Post show pig blues (March 2022)

The Enchanted Pig is over, and I’ve been hit with the post show blues. It’s been an absolute rollercoaster putting together Dove’s The Enchanted Pig ready to perform this month at Interplay Theatre. It’s the first opera I’ve done since covid and I cannot express the joy I felt every week going to rehearsals and finally performing in a space that isn’t my kitchen and hearing other musicians live. The creative team were an absolute delight (John Lyon (MD), Rosie Kat (Director), Jonathan Drummond (repetiteur)), and the cast were a joy to work with.

As me and the pig walked off into the sunset after our happily ever after on stage, the feeling began to wash over me that this was the final performance, and this was the last that we’d pig together. It was such a joyful show to be a part of, full of fart jokes and lyrics like ‘I love the way her false teeth clack’ (punctuated by appropriately ridiculous percussion), and now it’s over.

I’m not sure the post show blues has ever hit me quite so hard. There’s something about finally being able to do what you love again and finishing a run on such a high, that there’s an inevitable sense of ennui afterwards. I’ve spent the day alternating between eating chocolate, trying to force the cast to get together for a pint, and frantically organising more singing projects for the rest of 2022. The last point possibly hitting home what feels particularly sad about this run ending – a general fear that I won’t get to perform in something like this for a while. While not entirely true, as I have other performances coming up, it’s easier to feel like the end of a significant era is over when a show is finished. And the buzz you feel when performing is something you worry might never come back.

That said, my plan is to throw myself into some new projects, a developmental new musical at Guiseley Theatre and a booking with Leeds Symphony Orchestra on one of my all time favourite pieces everywhere. (That and eating more food, possibly chips and dips this time).

If you missed the show, you can read all about the wonderful cast and production team on the online programme.