We had our preview tonight. It was going to be a press preview but my theater doesn't have a press contact list (that's something that'll change when they put me on the board), so it was a "friends and family" preview. Two board members came and enjoyed the heck out of it. And my Assistant Director, who is one of theater heroes and who has directed me in the past, told me that he has learned about directing from watching me!
The down side is that I had to give one of my actors "the talk". She has consistently blown her lines in one scene and forced the other actor on stage to bail her out every night since we went off-book. Every night she apologizes and promises to do better and every night it's the same thing. I asked her to stay after so we could talk. She asked me if I was firing her. I told her, no, because what, then, am I going to do. I told her that I've been very patient and accommodating, but that we are out of rehearsals and tomorrow we have our first paying audience. Up until now, she has only disrespected her fellow actors and myself. Tomorrow, she'll be disrespecting people who have paid to see her perform.
I told her I didn't care how she did it, but that the lines need to be there tomorrow. No more apologies. No more notes.
I am half expecting she will take the coward's way out and quit. I'm making backup plans, including getting up there with a script and doing it myself.