[This is a guest post by Jennifer Pugsley, media relations manager at the Canadian Opera Company. Jennifer is joining David Feheley and many others from the COC for the U.S. premiere of The Nightingale of Other Short Fables at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). This post was written Feb. 26.] 

It was another busy day of rehearsals at BAM. With the theatre being dark on Sunday, Saturday’s sessions are that much more important. After all, Monday is our dress rehearsal.

Today was pool day. One needs to look no further than the puddle print trails in the hallways and on the stairs for proof. I managed to get a few pictures of the water works as the crew and the acrobats sorted out how to place various props in the pool without puncturing its lining. A fair amount of the water also got on the stage, hence the need for a little mopping up every now and then. The acrobats were in good spirits the whole time and I caught up with them backstage during a quick break to snap this picture of them in their robes (with wetsuits on underneath): (l-r) Sean Robertson, David Bonneville, Andrea Ciacci, Martin Vallaincourt and Noam Markus.

[This is a guest post by technical director David Feheley, who is travelling with the cast and crew of The Nightingale and Other Short Fables to the Brooklyn Academy of Music in NYC, where the work will receive its U.S. premiere on March 1. This post was written Feb. 26]  

We have been quite busy here in Brooklyn.

We now have the pool full of water and the temperature up to 24 C. The water has been tested and we have added pool chemicals to make sure the water stays clean and safe. This morning was the first time the crew got into the water. They needed to get all the props into the pool and set for the rehearsal tonight. Our two crew in the pool (Pat and John) are wearing wetsuits during the show to keep them warm. Pat got a rather abrupt introduction to the pool when he was pushed into water by Bill, the head of props here at BAM. We are tired but we are still having fun.

The acrobats came onstage yesterday afternoon to meet the crew and spend some time walking through the space.  We got to rehearse the first half of the show last night. The snow in Toronto and the wind in New York delayed and canceled some of the flights for our people but we managed the rehearsal just fine.

[This is a guest post by Jennifer Pugsley, Media Relations Manager at the Canadian Opera Company. Jennifer is joining David Feheley and many others from the COC for the U.S. premiere of The Nightingale of Other Short Fables at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). This post was written Feb. 26.]

For the first group of COC-ers traveling to New York today it was an early call. A shuttle bus had been arranged to shepherd eight of us from the COC’s administrative offices on Front St. E. to Pearson airport. We all had to be at the Joey and Toby Tanenbaum Opera Centre for 8:15 a.m. 

Everyone made it, and except for a few grumblings about desperately needing a morning coffee, the group was in good spirits. The snowstorm that hit Toronto in the morning quickly picked up in intensity and the flurries fell faster and heavier.

It’s a false stereotype to think that opera singers can’t get up early in the morning and be ready to start the day. Of the whole group, the singers were probably the most alert and ready to go. Opera singers are savvy travelers, I have to say. Never have I seen a group grab their luggage, pull up to the self-serve kiosks and whisk their way through the line-ups at security with such ease. I confess to having had a hard time squeezing all of my “stuff” into one suitcase. Looking back I should have given Meredith Arwady a call for some tips. She managed to fit into two suitcases her wardrobe for the next four months. Now you might scoff and say this is nothing, but her travels between now and June are such that she needs to prepare for both cold and hot weather conditions, and all the seasonal quirks and quarks in between. Then consider how much extra stuff an opera singer needs to travel with on top of his/her regular clothing: clothing for rehearsals, performances, special events, receptions and parties, meetings, etc. Plus toiletries and the like. Two suitcases (both normal in size and neither of which were tagged as being extra-heavy) is an impressive feat!