This is very difficult

Ah... China.

Well, our set was stuck in customs.

I think this photo sums it up pretty well.

Tel Aviv, Israel was a beautiful vacation-- beaches, and parties, and dancing, and delicious delicious food and drinkable water... and now we are working 12 our out of 12's. Which I have never done in my life.

I suppose customs didn't know what to think when they found a bunch of guns, swords, and pyrotechnics. So needless to say we are rather behind in some areas.

Also- the process has been slowed down by the fact that everything must be said in English, Chinese and sometimes Hebrew.

We open on Wednesday, and we just finished our cue-to-cue. We haven't been able to do a real run of the show yet. Today we did some PR-- we had a house full of photographers, videographers and Newspapers. We did a few numbers from the show, and it was interesting to finally have an audience in front of us.

There are a lot of rules in this theatre. No food allowed beyond the stage door-- fairly common as a rule, but here it is strictly enforced. Sure I manage to sneak in a bowl of dry ramen-- but don't tell anyone. Our interpreter tells us that the guards were severely punished last time they let someone bring food into the theatre. I can only imagine what that could mean.

We spent a long time today trying to work with the Chinese follow spots. They sometimes get the two lead actors confused, and it takes a while to communicate things like taking it to 50% or turning the spot blue for certain scenes.

The worst thing about Shanghai outside the theatre, is that the trains shut down at 10:30. So we have to take cabs, and trying to find a cab in Shanghai on Sunday night can take a while.

Since our hotel is fairly far from the theatre, some mode of transportation beyond walking is very important to have.

There has not been a lot of PR for the show that I have seen around town, and I am wondering how interested the Chinese people are in Musical Theatre. I have heard that the Japanese and the Koreans absolutely LOVE Musicals, and a big part of me hopes for the kind of excitement my friends who have performed with the Tokyo Philharmonic speak of. They say people flock to the stage door crying, bearing tiny gifts- they are so thrilled to have Broadway performers in their city.

In China, so far it seems like we are more of an inconvenience wherever we go. People try to herd us into the markets at the subway station. One of our actors had her iPod stolen out of her pocket the other day-- and whenever we ask a question the answer is always 'no'. Even when clearly there is Diet Coke available. ;-)

So I am a little nervous about what will happen when the show opens. I don't know how big the audiences will be- or how they will react to a musical about overthrowing a corrupt leader. I took this job for a few reasons- first and foremost- I wanted an adventure. Secondly; I really wanted to do a musical that could affect people. This show is a spectacle, with flying and explosions and lots of massive moving scenery. But more than that it is a story about freedom and the rights of individuals.

So even though we are a bit behind, and our day off has vanished by means of necessity I am still thrilled at the prospect of entertaining and affecting an audience.

So for now I close, with the hope that everything will go smoothly, and we will open with the energy and organization a giant musical like this demands!