Post Production musings

My production of "Rick" my own play finished last night. We went out on a high which is great, good audience both in terms of numbers and of response. At least some of them had come back for a second time. We caught what may have been the casts best performance on tape which will be transferred to DVD soon. I have just finished packing up all the scenery and props and in a couple of hours I need to go back and take down my lighting rig. Now how do I feel? It's a good question. I've been living with this play for nearly four years through several drafts, two readings one private one public and a long run of developmental rehearsals. Despite all that I am about to go into another rewrite. Just a trimming one, there is perhaps a little too much fat in the script. We had pretty good reviews (one was a real stinker but nobody much cares about that particular reviewer) there was a lot of very good feedback from audience members about how good it was and yet ... Audiences were disappointing. Yes it is a drama and deals with unsettling subjects like bullying and rape and it is a new work but why don't people go? I am mostly disappointed for my wonderful cast who breathed real life into the characters that had only existed on paper up to this point. They did a wonderful job with my script pointing out my worst flights of fancy and helping me make it a real as possible and then played to small crowds. I have not lost heart and will carry on. This was my first production as an independant producer but it will not be my last. See you next year at the Adelaide Fringe.