Final Week of Rehearsal
page 11

Shortcuts This opera house, like most opera houses, is a maze. I have not yet found the underground lake or the lair of the Phantom, but after several wrong turns, I’ve finally figured out paths between the places I need to be—the dressing room, the stage, and the artists’ lounge. Last night I discovered the shortcut between the artists’ lounge and the stage. I still become confused about which side of the stage I’m on—fortunately, the path from the dressing room leads directly to the side from where I make all my entrances, so I don’t have to worry about getting lost on the way to the stage; however, I keep forgetting that this is the opposite side from the door that leads to the real world.

A couple of colleagues showed me a way to the front of the house so that I could watch a scene in which we don’t appear. I was startled to open a door in the stuccoed, dingy wall of a room full of rickety kitchen chairs and empty water bottles to find myself in the opulent marble hall I recognized from previous visits.

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First Day - 1 2
Second Day - 3 4
Second Week - 5 6
Third Week - 7 8 9
Final Week - 10 11 12

“Oh, this opera’s kind of a twisted version of It's a Wonderful Life.” —Patron