Always...Patsy Cline Part IV: Performance - Honoring Patsy

  "Find one person in the audience and sing to them with all your heart. And then cast a spell over them. Hoss, if you can't do it with feeling - don't." ~ Patsy Cline

During the first week of performances there was much trial and error. This show relies a lot on the energy and participation from the audience and it was quite the challenge to get the balance right. Entertain them but also include them. A key component was to remain completely truthful within my character. If I did that, it was exhilarating to play with the dynamic each night. It took a certain amount of surgical energy to read the audience at every moment and invite them into our "home" each night. 

I got many chances to get it right with Louise, but with Patsy I was limited. Roger came to my first performance as Patsy and told me that I could go further in connecting with the audience. I was feeling a little puzzled as to how I could accomplish this when I only performed her once a week and then it hit me, I basically have to apply the same principles that work for Louise with Patsy. Yes, they are two very different characters and one connects with the spoken word and the other connects with song, but it is still similar in the sense that you reach through that fourth wall and welcome them in to your heart. Take them on the journey with you. Allow them to see your character's vulnerabilities and most of all allow them to FEEL. Be gracious with the energy they are giving you and return that energy to them, but fill it with warmth, love and devotion. The beauty of live theater is being in the same room experiencing that give and take. We are laughing together, crying together, and feeling all the emotions on a deep level through the cathartic art form of storytelling. 

It all started to boil down after the first week of performances that the key component was to honor Patsy Cline. Her music, her life, her personality. Louise isn't just a funny narrator, she is a fan and Patsy means a great deal to her. This all takes place in Louise's memory, but the actress playing Patsy should be approaching her as a real person and all the complexities that go along with that. She goes on a journey throughout the show the same as Louise. In order to make these characters come to life we couldn't do it as two separate actors simply doing our part when the time came, even though the script is pretty much broken up like that. It took a team of people to add to the support needed to pull this play off in a truthful way that would honor Patsy Cline the way the creators of the show had intended. 

The way the show is formatted either Patsy or Louise are taking turns singing (Patsy) or talking (Louise) and their isn't much scene work between two women going on. Even when they are in a scene together their isn't much connection, it is very presentational. BUT, I learned that support can still be given even when the actor in the role of Patsy or Louise is seemingly alone out there doing their own thing. 

The first of that support comes from the band. The show opens with Patsy singing at the Grand Ole Opry. She interacts with the band and with the audience. At this point the audience is usually not warmed up to what this show is and they may be hesitant to clap along or interject in any way. It can easily feel as an actress that you are out there singing to no one. But, our band members were not only some of the best musicians in the valley, but also some of the best people. Their joy of doing what they loved was infectious. Anytime I would acknowledge them they would be right there with me. Smiling, laughing, and interacting with Patsy's dialogue to them. They were people that I could lean on if the audiences' energy was low and I needed to keep driving things forward. Anytime I would look back at Kelly on the keyboard he was beaming a smile of encouragement. It meant the world to me. 

They did the same for Louise. She would give them a hard time and interact with them in silly ways and they were totally up for it. She directed the band at times and danced around them. She did little comedy bits with them as well as some touching, heart-felt moments. They were a big part of the show and a source of tremendous support. 

We had our set players for each performance and then each of them had a sub on the times they needed to miss a show. On keyboard was Kelly DeHaan (sub Tanner DeHaan his son), on lead guitar was Bryan Hague (sub Rich Dixson), on bass was Mark Robinette (sub Davin Tayler), on lap steel guitar was Mark Maxson (sub Rich Dixson), on fiddle was Aaron Ashton (sub Becca Moench), and on drums was James Densley (sub Jacob Bradshaw).

Then came the support of our backstage crew. The stage managers: Megan and Amy, hair and make-up: Cassie, Claire and Olivia, the dressers: Maggie, Rose and Veronica, our sound engineers: Griffin, Tenney and Michelle, and our stage technicians: Ben and Joe. This show had a lot of moving parts and talk about costume and wig changes! If Patsy isn't onstage singing she is off stage changing costume. Everyone was alert and ready to make those changes as smooth as possible. All of these people were a huge source of support as well as being a complete delight to work with. 

And then of course, there was the support of my co-stars, Cori Cable Kidder and Adrien Swenson Berry. 

Cori is always a good time on and off stage. Besides being insanely talented she was also able to strike a nice balance of being professional but still knowing how to have fun and put people at ease with her humor and playful charm. She taught me so much throughout the run of the show and has become one of my dearest friends. As the star of the show she set the tone and it was definitely one of kindness, laughter, and love. She was pretty hard on herself and always wanted to give 110%. If she couldn't reach her own expectations she wouldn't let that energy bleed onto everyone else, she would quietly keep it to herself and/or joke about it to keep the atmosphere light. I could totally relate to having high expectations for myself and I admired her for how she navigated it all with such poise and grace. She was under a lot of pressure being the actress the theater 'brought in' for this show and having to live up to everyone's expectations of her, and I am sure that could not have been easy. But, in the end, she inspired everyone to be better just for knowing her.  

I always tried my best to support her onstage and give her positive energy. And she did the same for me. My favorite parts of the show were in the second act when we laughed, danced and even shared a hug. It all took place in Louise's home and it was so fun to finally have some true connection with each other. I always got teared up when I had to say goodbye to her at the airport, and on my final monologue talking about Patsy's untimely death. It isn't hard to fall in love with Cori and those tender moments came easy because I couldn't imagine this world without her. 

And then there was my Adrien...I felt like the luckiest gal in the universe to have her not only as my double but, my co-star once a week. It was a unique experience to have been given that opportunity. We created 'Louise' together and it was a very special collaboration. I just love Louise so much and that is in large part because of the process that Adrien and I went through together with this character. Adrien is one of those rare actresses who wears her heart on her sleeve and is not afraid to be honest and vulnerable while also leaving any ego outside of the creative circle. She has every right to be conceited, she is gorgeous, funny, intelligent, and breathtakingly talented. But, she is just...Adrien. And I will always be smitten. 

And as far as lending me her support, well that started from the time we auditioned together. Besides Kelly, our director, Adrien was my biggest cheerleader. I soon realized that she and Kelly have that gift of making anyone feel like they are the only person in the room. I will never forget my first performance as Patsy, she asked me what I needed from her and I said, "Just be with me up there. Any time I look back at you, just be right there with me." And she was. Every performance we had together she was present and generous. 

I could not have asked for a better experience with a show. Our goal was to honor Patsy Cline. I think we did that and more. Sure there were a lot of bells and whistles with this high budget production, but you could have stripped all of that away and you still would have had a show with honesty, and heart. I know this because that is exactly what we did a week after 'Always...Patsy Cline' closed at the Hale Centre Theatre. Cori and I went down to "middle of nowhere" Utah to perform this play in a 'Field of Dreams' type setting...

PC: Leave it to Leavitt (4th photo is Cori Cable Kidder as Patsy)