Kim finished her show yesterday and I attended both showings. It was an excellent show which I feel represents another significant upgrade to the production value of her vocal group’s showmanship. By my rough estimate, Kim spent 600 hours over six months on the project. She has been immersed in these 24 songs for the better part of six months. Unlike the last show, which I also thought was a meaningful upgrade in performance quality, it seems that most of the large ensemble group felt that the performance and the process both went well. While there may still be some worms that crawl out of the woodwork as people come down from their performance highs, it seems from the immediate feedback (including from cards and comments), that the cast and crew were happy with the product and the way in which they were treated getting from here to there. If those feelings hold firm, it will be a testament to Kim’s people management skills since this group of 60-70 people is probably one of the most diverse groups you can imagine.
Part of that is attributable to the organization’s membership philosophy of extreme inclusion. Not unlike the cabaret community in New York, the vocal group community out here (and probably in most places around the country) attracts creative artistic people with high empathy and social consciousness. That, and a genuine belief that singing is a healing activity that makes people, and the world in general, a better place, make the crew very accommodative of people who may or may not have all the natural talent needed to do what’s needed for the show. What that translates to is a significant directorial challenge. Don’t get me wrong, there is lots of talent in that group and that’s not by accident. There are auditions held by experienced professionals like Kim and others, so people without talent are weeded out to a good extent. But then, as a show gets put on the board, the members get to try out for solos, smaller group pieces, skits and dance numbers. Everyone is given the benefit of the doubt, everyone gets to prove they’re up to the challenge of their chosen role. But not everyone chooses wisely or honestly aligned with their talents…or more precisely, their potential lack of talent. That means that Kim or the musical director have to step in with the hard task of being the reality check and the killjoy. Sometimes it’s a matter of moving someone to the back of the pack in hopes that their deficiency fades into the backdrop. Other times it’s the axe, which is never an easy conversation. People don’t join a volunteer performance troupe to bring more rejection into their lives…especially these highly diverse people.
Kim’s friend Matthew came down from L.A.. Matthew spent years as a musical theater performer and director, so he understands the process very well. He reminded Kim that she doesn’t even have the normal levers to pull with the cast to get the most from them. She has them for a few hours a week after they’ve put in a full day of work (as in their “real” job).
All that and Kim still managed to lift all boats in the production with only a few “misfit toys” (as Matthew likes to call the problem children of a cast) being noticeable. Sometimes performers were stronger than others, but no one fell on their face. I’m sure that was a testament to extra time spent working with the laggards, making the swans from the ugly ducklings.
That all made for a hard 600 hours, for which Kim was paid $1,200. Kim’s choreographer was a critical part of the production improvement, and yet there was no budget for her role. So Kim gave her half her compensation out of a sense of fairness. So today, Kim is done. The show arrangements are put away, probably never to be referenced again. But that seems to be OK, especially since the show was such a success. Kim always has a post-partem effect that pervades her thoughts for a day or two. That’s why having Matthew around…someone who gets it, to ease her down off her ledge.
We went out yo lunch at the beach and Kim took a nice long afternoon nap. I can’t say that she’s over the dhow just yet, but the down time is certainly helping her get there.