Learning Something Unexpected When I Look An Awful Lot Like Vicki Lawrence In A Play This Weekend!

This weekend I performed in a play, Deliver Us From Mama by

Jessie Jones, Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten at The Ritz Theatre in Sheffield, Alabama, directed by Andrew Maples and Laura Connolly. It is a wacky comedy where the actors play multiple, diverse, quirky characters and all seek to find home. I played 3 characters, this picture on the right is me as Rema Jean, a Southern woman jealous of her little sister marrying a money bags man. The comparison was made to me that my character reminded people of Vicki Lawrence's character, "Mama"! I also got comments that my character had a little Golden Girl, Blanche Devereaux vibe. Another of my characters, Tamarind, a vegan-oasis-yoga-loving-California-hostess got me the comparison of Carol Burnett with my antics and movements. And finally, my performance wraps up playing Marique, a Mardi-Gras partying pickpocket in New Orleans. I mean, really, what a weekend!

What does comedy and farce and outlandish characters have to do with training?

3 Impactful Points come to mind:

1) All day, every day, as learning professionals, and professionals in general, we adjust our style, communication methods, ways of listening to be sure we are bringing the information we have to the people who need it and that we are leaving channels open to hear, stop and adjust if the new info we hear needs to reroute our original plan. This morning I shared learning survey results to the staff who took the survey so they would know the larger results. In the play, I told EVERYBODY at the wedding what I thought of my gold diggin', bible-thumpin' sister, Ardale and her plan to skim that geezer out of his money on that bait and hitch scam to marry him. I gave the wedding party their own sort of survey results. Applied to the work place, I did not sugar coat, I told it straight, gave the feedback verbatim. Transparency is golden.

2) In organizing a training program I have crafted a prioritized list of items needing organization and implementation. Guess what? Not everybody agreed, not everyone liked the list. Same thing happened when I played Tamarind this weekend. Imagine me in an embroidered, floor length tunic erratically, passionately performing yoga in a restaurant and offering my favorite dish of wild-caught, sustainably sourced seaweed foamed on a wisp of virgin cedar, the perfect cleaner for the palate. Guess what, the guests HATED it!!!! How could they pass on my beautiful offering?! In reflecting, the key is opening up other's "palate's" by showing, slowly, gently, with purpose, that these new flavors can make the work place better, and also, me/Tamarind listening to when enough is enough.

3) Finally, imagine Marique in a red, wild wig, sequins and Mardi Gras beads! She is all show, and honestly, no substance. So, here I am, re-inventing a program! Pizazz, flashy, exciting! That reminds me being excited about program development, about the work operators do, about the products we manufacture ARE important but that is only a foundation. Deeply digging in, beyond the superficial, is where real understanding happens. It is early, so I am continuing to learn what is needed. Sparkle on.

To summarize, adjust and present findings with transparence, prioritize and take action to implement with caution knowing everyone will not be happy and finally, remember enthusiasm is a foundation, not the root cause. Make sure to find it, too! So, hey, who knew hours of rehearsals after work, evenings of adoring fans and wigs and costumes could bring so much insight?!