Cadre Today - The Easiest Part

What is this feeling so sudden and new? I felt the moment I laid eyes on you. My pulse is rushing, my head is reeling, My face is flashing. What is this feeling? Certain as a fade? Does it have a name? Yes. Everybod Loathing. Unadulterated loathing for your face, your voice, your clothing. Good morning, Michelle T. North. Cafe Marisa, however small, makes my very flesh begin to crawl. Loathing. There's a strange exhilaration in such total intestation. It's so pure, so strong. Pause button. How's it going, everybody?

I hope you're doing great. Good morning, sunshines all around this planet. Chris Fortman, nice to see you today. If you are in the great north, it is chilly out there. Stay warm. I had to take one of my gloves off in my office so I could hit start and stop. But it's one of those wear your gloves in the office kind of morning. I feel like only people in Minnesota would have those kind of mornings. But hey, I'm glad that I'm here. I'm glad that you're here. I know the things that I know and I care about your space.

All getting ready this Friday to open up a new musical called Giraffes Can't Dance. And there's one giraffe in the cast and then other. Other animals and the moon and a gembe and. But 12. 12. 12 actors. One plays a giraffe. And the title of the show is Giraffes Can't Dance. I just played Wicked for you. Wicked is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West. Here's my question. Who in these two shows would you say have the easiest part, the easiest role in the play? Is it Meerkat Number three? Is it Ozian Citizen number seven?

Or is it the giraffe? Is it Elphaba, the Wicked Witch? Now, the world would probably say, well, the easiest role is. Is the. Is the smaller one. The easier role is the one who has less stage time. The easier role is the one who's not the main character or the protagonist or the antagonist. The easiest role would be the one that is over there off the screen. What I always tell people that I'm teaching and directing is that the easiest role is the one whose name is in the title, the one whose face is on the poster, the one who stands on the front of the stage.

Here's why. The easiest role is the one where all the information is given to you. That giraffe. The whole story shapes around the giraffe. Elphaba, the Wicked Witch. The whole Story swirls around Elphaba. So if there's a question that Elphaba has, the answer is in the script. If the giraffe is wondering how they're supposed to be feeling, the answer is in the script. The hardest job is Meerkat Number three or Ozzie and Citizen number seven, because they don't have a name, they don't have a story, they don't.

They don't have anything given to them. And they have to walk into the world going, who am I? How am I going to act? Where am I going to be? How am I going to respond? What is my name? Where do I come from? What do I like? What do I disl? And I will tell you, Cadre friends, very rarely are we the main character in the show. Now again, we. We may go, I'm the main character in my own show. It's like, yes, great. How often is the world going. Your show is the show that we are all focusing on. No. We are a part of this big story of humanity.

And if you're looking at the movie star, if you're looking at whatever an influencer is, I still have no idea what an influencer is, because everybody has influence. But if we're looking at the person who we think is the main star is the person who has the hardest job. So we kind of just put ourselves in the back seat. Now. You need to ask all the questions and then answer all the questions to figure out what your role is in the show. So my invitation today is to start doing that. You are not the lesser character in your kid's life.

You are not the. The smaller role at your job. You are not the easy answer within your relationship. You are not the one who lives in your neighborhood who doesn't deserve to know what you're blocking in your choreography is. You need to take some time to do your work. Because what do they say? There's no such thing as a small role, just a small actor. You know, there's something very degrading about how that is set up. But. But. But there's truth in it. The only difference between. Hear this. The only difference between that community theater production down the street and the Broadway show in is that the person standing on the back of the stage on Broadway is going, I'm on Broadway.

Like, I am literally a, making my. Making my rent check right now. But B, I'm on the biggest stage in the world. I'm doing it. They don't care what role they're playing. No one asks, like, oh, are you the lead. Are you the no. But you go to that community theater, you see people standing in the back of the stage, and you can see them feeling less than. It's hard work to move yourself from the feeling less than into feeling enough. But you're worth doing that work. So no matter where you are, no matter what's going on, I hope you're having a great day.

But if you're not having a great day, know that that is okay, too. To play us out, I'll pull up a little bit of the Cher show starring chair. We'll play a little believe where Stephanie J. Block, who won the Tony Award for playing Cher, was only one of all of the charact in that show. That's not sure that's Stephanie, but it sounds like share, don't it? Y' all have a good day. I do.