Stage Mom...

I am A Stage Mom. Usually, this term refers to the generally pushy and overbearing mother of a child performer. In my case, it refers to a Mom, who performs onstage. :) A while back I commented on Facebook about some crazy aspect of this existence, and several people suggested I start a blog about it. HA. I had to inform them that I actually already HAVE a blog that I don't keep up with, but that I would try to get around to blogging here about that aspect of my life.

The unique aspect of our family is that both my husband and I are performers. In fact, I was performing through my first trimester and into my second. (Lesson learned: no pregnant woman should be dancing onstage in a corset and heels, under hot lights, at 11 PM.) We joke that this was Elliot's "Stage Debut." And, really, thank god for that corset... because it kept his presence "under wraps" if you will, for the duration of the show.

There is no way for me to share everything about the Stage Mom existence in one post, because REALLY, that would encompass summing up all aspects of my daily life. I'm going to tell two stories this first time, and try to blog in this theme frequently.

An old story: This one comes from RIGHT in the beginning of my pregnancy, while we were rehearsing the aforementioned corset and heels show. I was so newly pregnant, in fact, that my cast didn't yet know that I was. (I was waiting until the 13 week Safety Zone to let that cat outta the bag.) We were rehearsing a VERY basic dance number. I am in NO way a very swanky, dancer-type, but I can move. I can move well, and this was literally like a "Walk, walk, walk, turn, POSE!" type of character-driven dance. Now, if you have ever been pregnant before, you know about the increased amount of blood in your body, and increased blood flow. Add to that my extremely pale Irish complexion, and I was sporting a SERIOUSLY red face. Like, it looked like I had been running a marathon, and all I was doing was walking in circles. So in the middle of this dancing/walking -which was not difficult whatsoever -my husband watches my face grow more and more tomato-like, and starts to panic. And as we literally walk in circles, he calls out from the sidelines in an extremely concerned voice: "HONEY! TAKE IT EASY!"

-- Insert blank stare of confusion from EVERYONE in the room here--

I love wondering what everyone thought in that moment. Wondering what the real level of my movement ineptitude must be to constitute such a level of concern from my husband that he calls out a WARNING as I walk around the stage.

Later in the rehearsal process we got to a point where everyone onstage is required to die at the same moment, and fall to the floor. This was clearly not something I was going to be doing, so we let everyone in on the secret by way of explanation.

Fast-forward 14 months, and this is the same show (with many of the same cast members) that my husband and I are working on now. He is starring in the show (talented guy) and I am swinging. (For those unfamiliar, this means that I am understudying multiple roles at once, in this case 4.) Last week I ended up performing 2 different roles in 6 of the 8 performances that week. Which led me to this Glamorous Stage Mom Moment:

On weekends we perform double days, or what we call a Quad Weekend. This means matinee Saturday, evening show Saturday, matinee Sunday, evening show Sunday (then blessed Monday off.) This meant that I was going to be away from Elliot from 12 PM - 11 PM on Saturday. Elliot is breastfed, so this meant the first of what will be many Stage Mom Pumpings. I had an appointment to work with our Music Director on some music for an upcoming audition between shows, but also had to get some pumping in. The solution ended up being me, sitting on the bathroom floor of the dressing room, pumping while frantically trying to flip through a book of music and sing to get ready for my vocal coaching. I should note here that I do not have a hands-free pump. I was one-handing the pump while flipping pages with the other. There was also a moment where (post-pumping, transferring milk into a storage bag) that I was praying not to spill... I really didn't want to have to explain myself to my male Music Director if I soaked the music with breastmilk... friend or not, that would have been awkward.

The best part about being able to do this show while pregnant and again with Elliot here is what a fantastic family atmosphere we have at the theatre and within the cast. Everyone is excited to see Elliot when he arrives, visiting backstage or during rehearsals. I think they all feel a little parental towards him, having taken good care of me back during my pregnancy, and him now that he is here to be cuddled and carried around. Our stage manager has joked that, if need be, she would wear Elliot in his Ergo backstage in order for both Eric and I to perform. I hope it never comes to that (because how crazy would that be?!) but her good humor and willingness to offer is an astounding testament to the amount of support everyone is giving us.