Sucking It Up.

The most interesting thing I've discovered in the last few weeks, looking for work, is that I know someone at every single theatre I've contacted. The lesson here is, burn no bridges. I have reconnected with long lost friends and stand in hope that the last argument I had with someone else weighs less in his/her mind than it does in mine.

We are a very small community. We can't afford to burn bridges. This is the politics of theatre.

I don't want to play politics. I just want to work. I just want my reputation to speak for me. What I've discovered is that if people don't know you are looking, they can't speak for you or offer you a job.

I've conceded. I've let everyone know I need work. I didn't want to ask. I've not had to ask in 25 years or more. I felt shy. I was wrong. The support and the relationships I've built over the years are paying off. Offers are coming in. All because I sucked it up and asked.

We are a community. We do, in fact, look out for each other. I am supported. I am heartened.

I love us.