One does not live on writing alone. There are several other aspects of my life that bring me great pleasure, and one of them is theatre. I love directing, especially working with the young players at the Winnsboro Center For the Arts, while I was theatre director there for 15 years. I recently passed the baton off to some other folks who will keep the theatre going, and have moved to Sherman, TX, where I hope to get involved with the Finley Community Theatre. But first I have to get settled in the new house.
About seven or eight years ago, a friend turned me into an acting monster when she told me about a role that was open for an… ahem… “old lady” at a community theatre in Sulphur Springs, Texas. She talked me into auditioning, and I was up against some seasoned performers, so you can imagine my shock when the director handed me the script and said I would be Mildred in “Squabbles.”
Following that, I played Martha in “Arsenic and Old Lace” This was a role I’d always dreamed of playing, if I ever got brave enough to step on stage, and it was perfect for an “old lady.”
I was Big Mama in “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and Mrs. Gibbs in “Our Town.” I directed that show at the Winnsboro Center for the Arts, and I don’t recommend directing and acting in the same show, unless you have a very small part. Like a walk-on. Mounting a show and learning lines and developing a character was quite a challenge.
The last show I did in Sulphur Springs was playing Beth in “String of Pearls.” That was an amazing show with seven of us playing multiple roles. In addition to Beth, I was Kylie’s Mom, a woman with severe dementia, and Ela’s busy-body mother. I had never been in a show that had me playing more than one character, and that was quite a stretch for me. I worked with a stellar group of ladies and we all pulled it off quite well.
Something else I enjoy are book signing events where I meet people who love stories as much as I do. What fun it is to talk about books and authors that we all name as favorites.
McKinney Book Festival
I was one of the authors at the McKinney Book Festival on June 3, 2017 and we all had a grand time.
When not involved with work or theatre, my other great enjoyment for many years was playing farmer on my little piece of heaven in East Texas. I had five acres that were been dubbed “Grandma’s Ranch” where I had a horse, Banjo, a goat, Lucy, and a sheep, Marie. My dog, Poppy, was a great companion as I did chores and went for walks, but she always preferred to play ball.
Poppy moved with me to Sherman, TX, but unfortunately died a couple of months later. It took a while, for me to be ready, but I recently got a dog, Dusty, from a rescue organization here.
Dusty will not replace Poppy, as she was probably the best dog I ever had, but he is a good canine companion.
Then there are the cats. Cats all over the place. We used to have outside cats, and Poppy really liked playing with them, especially the Tuxedo cat, Orca. We lost all the outside cats about seven years ago, so the ones I have now live indoors. All four of them. Harry and Hermione are the black cats. Lily is the tiger cat, and Sammy is the Siamese. They all let me know when it is time to eat. Or time to play. Or just time to get up and pay attention to them. Humans don’t own cats. Cats own humans.
