Replacements

Of course, you can never totally "replace" someone in a show cast. Hopefully not, any way. There will always be differences between talent. That's one of the things that gives live theater life. I pray for y'all that when you enter one of my most sacred precincts - the live theater - that the performance you see will not be a total duplicate of a performance done before nor ever be duplicated in toto by any other performance, whether you see it or not.
I knew that next week I would be rehearsing an actress into a role in our flagship production for next Friday evening.
This afternoon I found out that I will also be rehearsing an actor in a role in a show whose next performance is a week from Monday. Assuming that I will find another actor to replace him in time. Which I will, of course, but casting is very often a daunting project for me. And even when it goes well, more a question of a week's work than a weekend's.
Pray for me, please.