Today I went to see one of the first run-throughs of our next Old Town production, Bed and Sofa. It’s always fun to see a show for the first time, although this particular show was a bit more familiar to me than some of the others.

Bed and Sofa was first produced by Cygnet during our first season in May of 2004. At that time we had about 40 subscribers and a rather small following.  Nevertheless, it was very well received and garnered numerous awards from the local critics including a best Musical Production award from both the San Diego Critics Circle and San Diego Patte Awards.

Cygnet has produced over 35 plays and musicals in our short 6 year history but I have to say that if I were to pick a favorite, Bed and Sofa would definitely be it. The music is wonderful and the book and style of the show are just so clever.   It is no wonder that so many patrons have asked us to do a remount.

Now, onto the run-through.  I had seen the previous production about 5-6 times so I know the play very well.  This was one of the first run-throughs so I was expecting to see a lot of stumbles and a pretty rough take on the script.  The productions usually get there but sometimes at this point in the rehearsal process it can be a little scary.

The truth is, though, the actors are very far along.  The story is a compact 90 minutes with no intermission and once you get into it the whole thing just flies by.   Today was no exception, even without the costumes and the set and all of the pieces that make the production full, I got totally engrossed in it. I really wasn’t all that surprised that they are doing so well.  As we share our office with the rehearsal space all of us at the office have been hearing everything for weeks.

The cast consists of three actors that are all new to the Cygnet Stage.  Lance Arthur Smith, who plays Kolya, Colleen Kollar Smith who plays Ludmilla and Jordan Miller who plays Volodya.  They all have great voices and compliment each other well.  We’re very happy to have found such a wonderful cast for this production and help us bring back this wonderful piece of theatre.

At this point I feel very excited about where the production will be in a few weeks when we open.  Bed and Sofa is a truly unique theatrical experience and if you missed the first time I hope you’ll take this opportunity and see something really special in the theater.