New Shoes New Show

For six months I have wanted the same pair of shoes, and for a Gemini’s attention span this is a lifetime, this week the day finally came when I got these beautiful leather, steal capped, triple soled, buckled beauties.  My favourite part in the purchase of new shoes is the first moment you try them on and an instant partnership is formed, you are going to travel the world together, party together and walk taller, there is so much to look forward to. 

With no patience I wore them the first chance I had.  Things were going well for a while, and then the pain started.  I went and bought thicker socks, but the pain got worse, by the evening I had to ask for a plaster in a bar I had gone to, and by the end of the day I was limping home.  The partnership between the shoes and I had definitely turned a little sour, the relief I felt taking them off…well I can’t even explain.

I strapped up my heal and reverted to an old trustworthy pair of Dr Martin boots, but the pain just got worse, I battled it with pain killers and blister plaster, I even had the Theatre Manager get me a walking stick out of our props store.  The shoes have gone back in the box, waiting for me to heal so I can attack them again.

To deviate, or perhaps to parallel, this experience isn't dissimilar to putting together a new show.   The meet and greet, the first read through, that’s when you first try on the show and you know a fabulous production lies just a few weeks away.

Then everything gets underway and sometimes there are bumps, and it can be painful (sometime literally, yesterday I saw the theatre manager hit her head on a low door frame at least three times) rehearsals aren't always smooth, lighting can be temperamental, sets are enormous sculptures that take time and energy out of everyone.

But you have your team; they are your pain killers, your plasters, your bandages and your stick.  The support system that helps you through the pain, and before you realise it you have worn in the shoes, they have moulded to the exact shape of your feet and they are perfect.  And not only appreciated by you but by those around you, “That shoe was amazing, the best shoe I've ever seen”.

The pain is forgotten and you can enter into a wonderful run.

That isn’t to say everyone will like your shoes, there aren’t always to everyone’s taste, but it’s often just easier to ignore the critics.