Duck for a Day

It had been a lovely two days of performances in Greenville, SC. Our venue was large and beautiful, the downtown area provided charming lunches and daily diversions, and we were all getting more sleep than we've seen in weeks.

Yet, all was not entirely well on the farm.

For reasons I am not at liberty to disclose (positive ones, though), our fair Shaun was called back to New York City for an important activity. Now we've done the show once before with Aaron filling in as Duck (for those new to the blog, check out this entry), but our venue in Greenville was of particular importance and, as this absence came with some warning, Theatreworks decided to send us a new Duck. For a day.

Now, a replacement is a strange beast in the world of Theatreworks. It is much easier just to grab somebody who's done the part before, give them a quick brush-up and send them out (witness me in Max and Ruby II). However, Click Clack Moo is so new to the Theatreworks repertoire that they're somewhat short on Ducks. And, with the only two other people who know the role out on other gigs, it was time to call in the reinforcements: Josh Isaacs, a friend of mine from college, and Farmer Brown in the Fall 2009 tour.

Josh is a great guy: funny, smart, talkative and very talented. I was eagerly awaiting his arrival for selfish reasons as well: it was been a few years since I had seen him, and I was eager to catch up a little. And I knew he'd bring an nice energy to the cast. Which he did, within the first few hours. After Collen woke me from a mid-afternoon nap with a water gun spray to the face, I knew it was "on." Click Clack Moo 2010 Water Balloon fight commenced immediately in the parking lot of our La Quinta:





After dinner, and a good night's sleep, it was time to rehearse. Josh is a true pro, and came in ready with great choices, an extremely strong knowledge of the show and a sense of fun that made the experience new and different for everyone. By this time in the tour, we've all become a little set-in-our-ways, and it was nice to have someone come in and shake us up a little. Josh's Duck seemed a little Mick Jagger-ish at times, which is a major change from Shaun's. Our first show went very smoothly (a few glitches, but none noticeable to anybody but the cast), but by show number two, we were flyin'. We lunched together, headed back to the hotel and said our goodbyes to Josh, who was headed back to New York that day. It was a whirlwind of a day for all of us.

That evening, I headed off to the airport to pick Shaun up. While it was fun to have a new energy onstage for a day, and I loved spending some time with Josh, I felt very relieved when he jumped into the passenger seat of our Sprinter. One of the interesting things about a Theatreworks tour is that we truly become a "family" of sorts, and changing even one person does alter the dynamic. I am very proud to say that this cast has gelled extraordinarily well, which makes everything (even the most challenging days) great fun. And, with Shaun back, the "family" felt complete again. Which certainly makes me a very happy touring actor.



Call tomorrow: 8:10am, Greenville, SC. Last day of shows during this sit-down.

Kid Quote of the Day: What do you call a granddad without a granddaughter? One kid had the answer: "A meanie!"

Colleen Tractor Quote of the Day: (Remember, this is a sit-down, where we leave the set up for a few days) "Ethan Marc Angelica!! This is a very big day. Put your tractor BACK!!"