Final Week for Mice, Men and Macon

I have officially begun the final week for the stage production of OF MICE AND MEN with the Maples Repertory Theatre here in Missouri.  It's been a rewarding and challenging 5 weeks. The adjustment of being away from friends and family back home, working in a peculiar small town in the middle of America and the many performances that I already have under my belt with performing in this show has allowed me to reflect on this wonderful and bizarre experience of making live theatre and telling stories.  I use the metaphor of jumping on a freight train or running a marathon to best describe was it feels like to perform an entire show like this one for a live audience.  As an actor I need to be ready to jump on the train otherwise I will be left in the dust.  The amount of focus, commitment and energy, both physically and emotionally, it takes to perform as Lennie Small for every show can be exhausting.  There are some days where I don't know if I'll even have the energy to get through a show because of the demands it places on me as an actor.  But somehow once I jump on that train I am magically carried along for the journey and come out the other side feeling both exhausted and elated for having shared the experience with a live audience.  That being said the audiences have been varied and small but the doesn't mean that I perform each show with same amount of dedication and energy as the rest of them.  Having been performing the show for the past few weeks I feel as through I am now building back my stamina as a performer, which is a muscle you can only build from doing theatre regularly.  Some of the shows are now getting a little easier to do where I don't feel so drained and exhausted after I take my final bow. That being said, I am still entering my final week of performances and it'll be a sad time to release and let go of the character of Lennie Small. I have undoubtedly grown very attached to the character and his emotional journey.  I have also grown so much as an actor in playing him onstage.  The gift of being able to stretch my muscles and expand my craft as a storyteller has been, and continues to be, an amazing and extraordinary experience.  Chi-Miigwetch/Thank you very much to all those theatre patrons who have made time in their busy lives to come see and experience OF MICE AND MEN onstage at the Royal Theatre.  I truly believe I am doing some of the best work of my career with this show and regardless of how many people see it I know in my heart that I will be leaving this show with a great amount of gratitude and joy from having been given the opportunity to be part of such an amazing story and production.