London Diaries - Closing Night (2011-11-05)

I can feel it in the air as I enter the theatre building, tonight is our last show. Something about the energy is different than it has been since day one. An excitement, a sadness, nostalgia, fear, happiness, so many mixed feelings all rolled into one ball called closing.

I am sure we all feel it and we, I believe, work to be in the moment which is this time. We shall enjoy our last show and keep our nostalgia to ourselves until we are done. Yes, until we are done. This world is different from ones I have known before. It is not high school, or a little show no one sees, or something insignificant (there are no small shows or parts only attitudes that make them small), where on closing night we can play for ourselves, joke around and do our thing. No this is professional and it is our job to bring life to characters and tell story for an audience who has never seen this and wants to know. So we play this show, as we have played each one before, keeping our emotions in check and letting the emotions of the characters and story surface.

At curtain call, we take our bow, and we are allowed as we walk off to let ourselves show. We are sad to see new friends part, sad to see our work complete, to not come here tomorrow, to break our routine. We are happy with our success, the friends we have made, the chance to move forward and begin fresh. We have fear and excitement for the unknown of what next. And we have this moment in which we will celebrate and toast our success.

We hug, we laugh, and we gather in the green room. We, as we have done so many times, break bread, open wine, tell stories, reminisce, we cry, we smile and we party. I step back to watch all of this, taking it in. I have never felt included at any party, but I am accepted and present. I as observe I am awed by what we created. It is not just a story which audiences have seen. It is a family. Some us will go on as great friends, other acquaintances, others just ships in the night, but it is a family. This family in particular has carried no ego, drama, or personal battles. We have got along and connected with each other. 

This rare privilege has been oh such a sweet treat. From that sweetness it has not only brought us close together but it has raised the caliber and the body of our work which was the Canadian Premiere of To Master The Art.