lead-in to first opening weekend

Thursday 3/8: More rehearsals and Funstruction training. We are getting the most cursory, not always sensical training, often with incomplete supplies. People will be winging it this weekend for sure. The parade is frustrating because basic performance needs are not being met; I think they are pretty clueless in terms of production, and they also clearly do not recognize quite what they have in terms of the talent of their edutainers. I would really like to get them a copy of an Equity (actor’s stage union in the US) rulebook so that they know what professional performers in western countries expect. I’ll get on that, because they really should be aware of the standards they are not meeting. It’s very disappointing for us because the parade could be much better than it is, but we’re making the best of it. I’ve also made it my personal mission to get the teachers who have put in crazy hours choreographing, for which they will not be getting paid extra, some kind of compensation. I think the best possibility is a day off. I don’t think the head staff realizes exactly what their efforts entail. Sigh.

Friday 3/9: another run, some trails, some roads, almost got lost in Heyri art village, which is MUCH larger than I’d realized. Eeek! Made it home just in time to shower and get to our last rehearsals. A long day, but we’ll be sortof ready…

It’s Elana’s bday, so we had a small gathering in my room with wine and snacks, then went to a village party to welcome home the teachers who’d gone to Ansan for the week. We tied one on, went nuts dancing and singing to karaoke in one room, and playing in a drum circle on the porch, where our fire-eating entertainer did his thing. Yes. He eats fire. We stumbled home (the next building) sometime around midnight…a good time was had by all. It felt as though we’d been here for months, and that the Ansan crew had been gone for a really long time. This insta-community is so peculiar, in that we were all thrown together for work and play, and few of us know people outside of our walls. We’ve already covered personal topics that usually take a while to bring up. Kooky.

Saturday 3/10: Our first opening day! I was street edutaining for most of it, and we all learned a lot about what worked and what didn’t and how we can adjust. The kids were great, and adorable, and I got my photo taken a zillion times. A lot of waving and “Helloooooooo!” –ing. It’s so crazy that we’re in Korea, since we’re in the middle of this totally sterile village campus and in a situation where we aren’t supposed to speak any Korean. Really bizarre, and frustrating to not be able to use the little language we know among all the native speakers. I was dressed as a witch ("I’m a NICE witch!!!"), and they all know that word—apparently Halloween is big here. The parade went fine, aside from balloons run amok in the wind. The kids loved dancing and clapping and doing all the hand motions we did while performing. It was an exhausting day, though (the night before didn’t really help that…), and I took a long, hot bath to warm up and will go to bed nice and early! Whew!

A funny realization: Koreans will slurp and grunt at meals to show appreciation for the food, but do NOT blow their noses at the table. Of course, Koreans eat kimchi—cabbage pickled in red pepper sauce—at every meal, and it will clear out your sinuses in a big hurry. What’s wrong with this picture?

One of our Korean staffers wants to start a marathon club, and maybe to do a triathlon (if I get him hooked, maybe he can drive us to some races…). People here knew me as “that person who goes running by my window every morning” before knowing my name. Maybe it’ll be my year to run a marathon…especially if our fitness center doesn’t open soon!

Anyong hi gesayo!