A Remarkable Show

Standing ovation at Sunnyvale Theatre

The Square Root of a Sonnet ended this weekend with two full houses.

This was a remarkable show in many ways. Artistically, it was very satisfying for those of us involved. But in other ways too, it was… shall we say heart-stopping :)

This is the fastest we have gone from starting rehearsals to opening night - less than 7 weeks. There was so much uncertainty around indoor events that we couldn't really get a commitment from the theatre until the end of June. 

There was another hiccup when mask mandates went into place. For two days we didn't know if the actors were also supposed to wear masks or not. When we finally saw the exception in the county guidelines for stage performers we heaved a big sigh of relief.

Then there was the matter of where to rehearse. We had given up the lease on our studio during the pandemic to save on rent. We were desperately looking for a new place but nothing was clicking. Luckily Ranjita Chakravarty, our director, was most gracious to let us use her front yard for rehearsals. Rehearsing outdoors, in a way, was safer. But it did get quite hot in the afternoons. Eventually we put up a pop up canopy and some tarp to protect the actors from the sun. Evening rehearsals were more comfortable, and must have provided good entertainment to the people passing by on their evening walks!

Sarah Thermond and Vibeka Sen Sisodiya, under the pop up canopy

Vaccination proof checks was another adventure. When we announced that we would require proof of vaccination to enter, many people told me that we couldn't do that (this was late June). We actually got hate mail about it. But we stuck to our guns and now the balance seems to be tilting towards requiring vaccination proof checks from everyone for indoor events as well as some employers.

Lobby management had to be completely rethought because of the vaccination proof checking. A big thank you to all the volunteers who showed up to help. And to Sathish and Nayana Shenoy who managed ticketing and the lobby so efficiently and effectively.

In the face of all this, just being able to put up a show that people came to would have been sweet victory. That people loved it so much, is truly gratifying. 

Till next time!