Apparently, on the night before opening I get nervous and adapt old Christmas poetry…. (I also rewrote Clement Clarke Moore's “A Visit from St. Nicholas” waaay back in 2013 before the opening of THE FANTASY CLUB!)
But I did it again because, well, I'm a little nervous. My awesome partner ended up in this version. Oh, the things we put our families through….
‘Twas the night before opening, my heart pounding hard,
Not a playwright could relax, not even the Bard;
The actors’ lines were locked in memory with care,
In hopes the stage manager’s anger wouldn’t flare;
The director had blocked and paced out the scenes,
With visions of great reviews plastered on all screens;
The lights all a focus, and costumes sewn and tended,
The sets painted jolly, and sound mixed and blended;
But still in the middle of the night I rose with a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to find what was the matter.
Away to my laptop, I flew like a flash
Tore open FinalDraft and prayed it not to crash.
The moon on my desk filling my small office so bright,
Gave a lustre to my words and intensified my fright,
When all through the play my wondering eyes did search,
To find artistry and craft, nothing to leave me in a lurch.
But a voice then came upon me, there in the night,
It was quiet at first, but it spoke clearly of my plight;
“Now calm your nerves!” it said in a howl,
“Your work is done, you gain nothing from your scowl,
To the back of the theater, you’ll sit tomorrow night,
And hear all the laughter born from your pen’s might!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!
To bed you will join me, to sleep you will fall.”
I knew in a moment it must be my spouse,
Only he knew the words able to see my fears doused,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
Sometimes he has moments, wisdom like an elf.
To our room I did follow, a dream quickly coming on
It would not do to worry away all the hours before dawn.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he fell back to sleep—
“Break Legs to all, and from you not one more peep!”