A MET DISCO CHRISTMAS

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HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM THE MET FAMILY

As we celebrate this joyous time of year here at MET, we also thank all of our loyal patrons and welcome our new ones. Here's wishing you all a happy and safe holiday, spent with loved ones and friends. After a successful tour of our beloved production of Christmas Carol at the Carroll Arts Center in Westminster and the Weinberg Center for the Arts, our festive holiday offerings continue. " The Santaland Diaries" (welcoming sell-out crowds) and the raucous "4 Eggnogs and an Apology" run on the Mainstage through January 3. And, don't miss "The Snow Queen", running on our Family Theatre stage through January 24. In between, many of us will be in South Carolina at our annual company retreat rejuvenating, planning, holding creative workshops, rehearsing for the upcoming production of "Almost, Maine"...and of course, playing.

And finally, here's a bit more holiday cheer from us to you! CHECK OUT THE VIDEO ABOVE:
A MET DISCO CHRISTMAS
featuring some of your favorite MET characters and our newest MET-ster Eve

..Oh and if you are in need of last minute gifts, stop by the box office for mugs, MET scarves, t-shirts, hoodies or gift vouchers!!

MET in the News

We're all over the place this weekend! Not only are there several articles about MET in today's local papers, our shows are also on the covers of both 72Hours in the FNP and the A&E section in the Gazette! Follow the links below to read the stories and reviews:

A nice piece about Julie Herber and a review of 4 Eggnogs and an Apology, in the Frederick News Post.

A story about A Christmas Carol and one about our partnership with Cakes for a Cause, in the Gazette.

A Christmas Carol load-in at the Weinberg

Last Sunday, the day after we closed our run of A Christmas Carol at the Carroll County Arts Center, our crew loaded the set into the Weinberg Center in Frederick. We've been using the same set, designed by Tad Janes, for the last several years, and it's basically a giant erector set, fairly easy and quick to put together. And this year we captured the process on film:

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This is what the set looks like when it's all put together, with lights and special effects:

A Merry Bah Humbug Christmas

MET has partnered with Cakes for a Cause to present, for the first time ever, Scrooge Gear! During our performances of A Christmas Carol at the Weinberg, you'll be able to pick up a Merry Bah Humbug scarf, Cratchit Crackers and Tiny Tim Treats. Below MET board members and owner/founder of Cakes for a Cause Elin Ross model the fabulous scarves (design by Jean Peterson), and Elin displays her baked goodies.

First Row: Ben Mourad, Elin Ross, Shawn Pitts

Second Row: Amy Benton, Dan Kuebbing, Elizabeth Cromwell, Tad Janes, Kara Norman, Beccah Bartlett

Snow Queen Press Round Up

The Snow Queen received lovely press this week, with stories in both the Gazette and the Herald-Mail. Both pieces feature an interview with writer and director, Reiner Prochaska.

Photo: Daniel Cross as Kai, Rachel Sears as Gerda and Carly Lawrence as the Snow Queen. ©2008 Joe Williams

More Eggnog Fun

Check out the 'history and life behind that little frothy brew!' Yes, apparently there is some disagreement about where the name 'eggnog' came from. Was it derived from 'egg'n'grog' or 'egg in a noggin' or 'egg and grog in a noggin'?

Read the arguments and choose a side at the link above! And, come see 4 Eggnogs and an Apology this weekend!

The Fourth Eggnog

Low-Fat Eggnog

Ingredients:
6 cups skim milk
1 cup “Egg Beaters” (or similar)
2 teaspoons vanilla essence
2 teaspoons rum extract
sweetener or sugar, to taste (just remember that this is supposed to be a DIET recipe, and sugar has more calories than a sweetener)
2 x pinch nutmeg,
2 x pinch cinnamon, ground

Directions:
In a medium saucepan (or bowl, if you plan to use the microwave), heat the milk, Egg Beaters and sweetener or sugar. You’ll need to remember to stir continuously if you’re using the stove, and every minute if you’re using the microwave.
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Heat & stir until the mixture thickens slightly – enough that it can coat the back of a spoon. Stir in the vanilla essence, rum extract, one pinch of nutmeg & one pinch of cinnamon.
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Remove from heat (or microwave).Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the eggnog has cooled (at least 3 hours). Just prior to serving, ladle your yummy low fat eggnog into glasses, and garnish each with an extra little sprinkle of ground nutmeg & ground cinnamon.

The Third Eggnog

Eggless, Non-Alcoholic Eggnog (does it really count as Eggnog without the eggs and the liquor?)

Ingredients:
8 cups milk
1 3 oz package of French Vanilla Instant pudding
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp of nutmeg

Directions:
In a large bowl, mix the pudding with 1 cup of the milk. When pudding is formed, add in the remaining ingredients and mix well. Chill.

The Second Eggnog

Christmas Eggnog

Ingredients:
12 egg yolks
5 cloves, whole
4 cups milk
4 cups cream
3 cups light rum
1+ ¾ cups sugar
2+ ½ teaspoons vanilla essence
1 teaspoon cinnamon, ground
¾ teaspoon nutmeg, ground

Directions:
In a saucepan over low heat, blend the milk, cinnamon, cloves and half a teaspoon of the vanilla essence. Keep stirring while mixture heats, and remove from heat just before boiling point.
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In a bowl, mix together the sugar with all those egg yolks. Make sure you whisk them well so that they're light and fluffy. Gently and a little at a time, pour in the milk mixture while continuing to whisk.
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Transfer mixture back into your saucepan over a medium heat while continuing to stir. Keep stirring until your eggnog mixture starts to resemble custard. Never let the mixture to reach boiling point!!
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Pour and strain the mixture into a jug, making sure to remove the cloves. Stand jug in the fridge for an hour or two. Gently stir in the cream, light rum, remaining vanilla and ground nutmeg.
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Put back into the fridge overnight. Serve in cups with a little extra ground nutmeg, cinnamon or baking cocoa sprinkled lightly on top.

Kris Kringle Parade

Every year the cast of A Christmas Carol marches in the annual Kris Kringle Parade. This parade winds through Historic Downtown Frederick and includes high school bands, girl scouts and cub scouts dressed in holiday garb and of course, Kris Kringle himself!

The cast meets at MET to get dressed, and then head over to the Delaplaine to line up:

Long-time METster Ashley Hall helps the children get dressed.

There are lots of kids in A Christmas Carol and finding shoes, stockings, pants, shirts, coats and hats for them all is always an interesting challenge!
Tad Janes (right), who plays Scrooge, has been growing those fabulous mutton chops for weeks! He applies white cream to his hair with a tooth brush

At last it's time for the parade! It was cold on Friday night, but our cast marched with smiles, handing out postcards promoting MET's holiday lineup.
Photo by Rob Dallimore

The two new Tiny Tims: Elissa Dalimore and Lena Janes.
Photo by Rob Dallimore

Elissa with Bill Stitley.

Photo by Rob Dallimore

100th Post!

This is the 100th post on the MET Blog! We've been blogging for almost a year! This blog was started as a way to communicate more with our patrons and give people a sense of what MET is all about, besides producing plays. But it's become more than that. It's become a great way of documenting and recording our process, a living archive.

If you have comments about the blog, please email them to me at: sstraw@marylandensemble.org

Thanks for reading!

The First Eggnog

The Comedy Pigs' original holiday sketch show, 4 Eggnogs and an Apology, opens on Friday, and to celebrate I'm going to share four eggnog recipes with you, one for each day until the opening. So, here is The First Eggnog:

Basic Eggnog
Ingredients:
4 egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar, plus one tablespoon
1 pint whole milk
i cup heavy cream
3 ounces bourbon
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg whites

Directions:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Add the milk, cream, bourbon and nutmeg and stir to combine.
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Place the egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat to soft peaks. With the mixer still running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.
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Whisk the egg whites into the mixture. Chill and serve.
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Cook's Note: For cooked eggnog, follow procedure below:
In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the 1/3 cup sugar and continue to beat until it is completely dissolved. Set aside.
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In a medium saucepan, over high heat, combine the milk, heavy cream and nutmeg and bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and gradually temper the hot mixture into the egg and sugar mixture. Then return everything to the pot and cook until the mixture reaches 160 degrees F. Remove from the heat, stir in the bourbon, pour into a medium mixing bowl, and set in the refrigerator to chill.
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In a medium mixing bowl, beat the egg whites to soft peaks. With the mixer running gradually add the 1 tablespoon of sugar and beat until stiff peaks form. Whisk the egg whites into the chilled mixture.

More Snow Queen Video Shoot

Reiner talks to Mark and Gené about the play and the sequence they are going to shoot:

Snow Queen Video Shoot

Our production of The Snow Queen features a multimedia component and director Reiner Prochaska has been busy filming video sequences for the show. These mini movies will play on screens upstage of the action. Yesterday evening, Reiner filmed some segments in our Ensemble School classroom:

Julie Herber and Reiner apply makeup to Ken Poisson, who will be playing the part of "Evil Sprite."

Julie makes Ken look evil, Reiner applies spirit gum and elf ears. Ken relaxes, enjoys the attention, sips a Fresca and muses that he should wear this makeup when playing World of Warcraft.

Ken is an evil sprite!

Reiner sets up a low-tech green screen. 'Real' green screens are incredibly expensive, but Reiner made this one for $4, using plastic tablecloths. He said the other videos he's shot with this cheap solution look great.

Ken positions Ensemble School students Austin Lemere and Lena Janes, who are playing his minions. Reiner prepares to shoot their scene.

To see how the videos turn out and how they mesh with the play, come see the show!

Ken's Evil Amulet

Ken prepares for his role as an evil sprite in a Snow Queen video sequence. There was a minor costume malfunction just prior to the shoot. But Ken, ever the resourceful METster, grabbed some spirit gum and saved the day!

New MET Website!

We have a new look for our MET website! Same address (www.marylandensemble.org), different look.

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And now you can access the MET Blog from the new homepage, just click the Blog link on the left side of the page.

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In the photo, Gené and I are talking (on our fancy new phone in our fancy new conference room with our fancy new table!) with web guy Phil Graves. Gené designed the look of the site and Phil put everything together for us.

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As with any new technology, there are always bugs to work out - thank you for being patient as we make this transition. Let us know what you think about the new site! Email me at sstraw@marylandensemble.org

Santaland in the news and a trip down memory lane

There was a lovely article about The Santaland Diaries in the Gazette today. Read it here.

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The Hagerstown Herald-Mail also has an article about the show. Read it here.

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As I was searching for the article online, I came across this piece about MET from Christmastime 2003. It's just a brief summary of all the shows we had going at the time, but it proves that the holidays have always been the busiest time of the year for MET. I heard once that when you're in show business, the only way you know it's a holiday is that you do two shows instead of one!

Santaland Tech Week

It's Tech Week for Santaland! This is the time when all the technical components - lights, sound, costumes, set, props, etc - come together with the performance. The director works with all the designers to get everything just right.

The set is still going up - it has to serve for three different shows: Santaland Diaries, 4 Eggnogs and an Apology and The Snow Queen.

Santaland director Suzanne Beal gives notes to Rona Mensah after rehearsal.

Suzanne, Rona and the designers/technicians talk about the show.



Rona takes notes. The swirly blue on the walls behind her are for the Snow Queen set.
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I'm still not sure how everything is going to fit together and work for each show, but I know that our set designers (Ken Poisson, Joann Lee and the Comedy Pigs) and our technical director (Mark Barnhart) having been working together closely will find a way to make it fabulous!

Doll's House Strike

The moment the audiences leaves a final performance, we begin strike - putting away props, furniture and costumes, dismantling the set and getting the stage ready for the next production. Below are photos from the A Doll's House strike:

First, we clear all the props and set dressing.

© 2008 Joe Williams

Then it's time to remove the bigger furniture items. Some of the props and furniture pieces belong to MET, but most of them were loaned from various company members, so we had to sort everything as well.
© 2008 Joe Williams

Joann poses with her beautiful floor. We hated to paint over this masterpiece!
© 2008 Joe Williams

The stage is almost clear and the windows have been removed, so it's time to start dismantling the walls.
© 2008 Joe Williams

We try to reuse everything we can, so in addition to taking the walls down, we have to pull out every single nail, screw and staple.
© 2008 Joe Williams

Reiner is He-Man!
© 2008 Joe Williams

At this point, everyone needs a screw gun, but unfortunately we don't have enough to go around.
© 2008 Joe Williams

We had a lot of people help with this strike, which made the whole process go quickly. By the end of strike, the stage was clear, except for the things that were going to be throw out or given away. The next day we had a work call and a dump run.

© 2008 Joe Williams