Back in NYC

I've been back in New York now for almost 3 months now!  Once again time has gone so quickly...(remember when a year seemed like forever as a kid??)  While being on the Jade was a great experience, I was definitely ready to get back to dry land...and cell phones...and real internet...and take out Thai food.  I have been so blessed to be provided with the opportunity to travel to so many different places that I only ever dreamed of going...Norway, Egypt, Ireland, France...and the people that I met while doing it are people that I hope to always have in my life...wonderful, wonderful friends and performers.  HOWEVER...ship life itself was just not for me.  It was a little bit like being in the military, a little like being in high school, a TEENSY bit like being on vacation for too long.  I'm just not used to people telling me where to be, who to talk to, what to wear, when my curfew is.  I don't think I'll be repeating life on the open seas, but I really do feel incredibly blessed that I was able to perform in this capacity.  I needed this job when it came along professionally, creatively, financially and emotionally.  

Being back in the city is always hard for me.  I feel an almost instantanious panic attack when I don't immediately book another job. I am surrounded by some of the most talented friends imaginable but that is both a blessing and a curse.  So many of them are constantly working or booking shows on Broadway or just being total badasses around town and it can be hard not to feel "less than".  But I'm working hard and expanding my horizons and waiting for life to lead me in the direction that I am supposed to go, just like it always has!

Barcelona-Rome-Greece-Turkey-Egypt-Malta-Barcelona

I will admit that I have been REALLY bad about updating.  Unfortunately, the internet on the ship is not that great and kind of expensive...and I've just been busy with the shows and going to different ports.  

It seems like the work never ends here...we are finished teching and opening all of the shows, but last cruise we spent puting together a Jazz Brunch and Broadway in the Atrium, basically a couple more opportunities to perform on the ship.  We do a Broadway cabaret the night before the cruise ends at a central spot on the ship...people tend to really like to see us perform as ourselves after that have spent a cruise seeing us in shows on stage.  It also gives us an opportunity to try out new songs and keep up on old ones.  We are pretty much free to do whatever we want, but the crowds LOVE their Andrew Lloyd Webber and such. :) 

We just left Rome last night...we actually port in a city called Civitavecchia and then have to bus in to Rome. This was the first time that I made it there because of techs for the shows or boat drills or other conflicts.  It just so happened that it was Easter Sunday, so we were lucky enough to be able to see the Pope speak at the Vatican.  You can't help but think that that is a once in a lifetime opportunity!  We also had the chance to see the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish steps.  I have a TON of pictures but that will have to wait until I have better internet in one of the ports.  

We always have an overnight in Alexandria, Egypt when we are there so that the passengers have time in Cairo which is about 3 hours away.  And THAT means that there is usually a crew party that night while most of the passengers are away and it just so happens that the production cast is sponsoring it this time.  They tend to be theme parties (Pirate, Egyptians, etc), cause who doesn't love a theme party?  Ours is "Heaven and Hell" this time, so hopefully we can get a lot of people in the crew to dress up...the cast always tends to go pretty full out.  Again, pictures to come...

Barcelona-Casablanca-Agadir-Las Palmas-Funchal-Malaga-Barcelona

We just started in on our new cruise, our third cruise now.  This is actually the same itinerary as the first one.  We missed a lot (and by "a lot" I mean ALL) of the cities because we were teching  the shows.  I'm excited to hit these even though they aren't necessarily very touristy. I know that there is some cheap shopping and some sunny beaches and thats good enough for me!

The other good news that we got a couple of days ago is that Mike Stoller (of Leiber and Stoller, who wrote the music for SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE) is on the ship for this cruise!  We saw him today when he and his wife stopped by the our SHOWDOWN tech and he seems excited to see the show...hopefully he'll like it!  It's pretty amazing to meet the man that wrote songs for Elvis....

Out On the Open Seas

I've finally made it to the ship...actually, I've been here now for almost two weeks!  I have to say that it's been pretty crazy since we got here...we've already teched SHOUT!, AND THE WORLD GOES ROUND, and SMOKEY JOE'S...we opened SHOUT! a two days ago and it was really well received, so I'm hoping that we get the same response for WORLD when we open tonight. A Kander and Ebb revue isn't exactly what a lot of people are expecting when they are on a cruise, but maybe it will be a good change for them.  The schedule has been hard.  Two or three days to tech each show and then doing a tech run the day we open...the other cast was here doing shows  for a while, so we are doing costume fittings, etc right up to the last minute. 

Not only are we really busy with shows, but we are also trying to figure out ship life.  We have had a bunch of hours of safety training and we're still trying to figure out our way around the ship.  Being in the passenger area is fairly easy to navigate because they are used to new passengers coming and going all the time, but the crew area is a totally different story...EVERYTHING looks the same and there are no signs telling you where to go.  After being here a little while, I think that I am finally starting to get it.  

We weren't able to get off of the ship for the first cruise because we were so busy teching, but we finally had enough time to do it yesterday.  We were in Italy at a port called Civitavechia...usually people will take the train into Rome for the day, but most of us just decided to stay at the port.  It was nice to just be on land and be outside without having to sightsee or do any work.  Joey and I just walked around and sat at a cafe and enjoyed the beautiful weather.  We go back to Civitavechia about 3 or 4 more times, so I'm sure that I will make it into Rome a few times when I have more time.  We are in Athens tomorrow and then Turkey and then we go to Egypt.  We are already set to do a day trip to Cairo, so I'm pretty excited about that...I need to see some camels and pyramids!  The problem with us going to Egypt and other North African countries is that the ship is very paranoid about people getting G.I., GastroIntestinal disease (with good reason...), so we get put on "Silver Service" which basically means that everyone gets served in the buffet instead of taking it themselves...and THAT means that they don't want us in the cast adding to the crowdedness and extra work so we have to eat in the staff mess hall.  Honestly, the mess hall isn't that bad, but their hours really don't work with our tech schedule and such.  Good thing we are able to eat in the restaurants as well!

Well wish us luck (and smooooth seas) in our WORLD opening tonight!  I'll try to put up some pictures at some point!

Only One Week To Go!

I can't believe that we have been in Nashville for over four weeks already!  Since my last post we have finished AND THE WORLD GOES ROUND and SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE...we ended last week with a showing of all three shows right now, which was a little rough.  They all went really well, but doing them back to back in one day was a LITTLE bit taxing.  This week Patti Wilcox, our director left and we got a new director for the last show.  It's a little bit weird to switch modes like that (Patti and Bruce are VERY different), but I only understudy some roles in SHOWDOWN, so I'm getting a little bit of a break before we start teching.

And speaking of which, we just got our Barcelona flight itineraries for next thursday!!  I'm so ready to head out to the cruise and get settled.  It's gonna be a rough couple of week since I am in three of the four shows...but the cast is great, and I'm sure it will be as much fun as it is work.  There is just so much other stuff to deal with besides puting up new shows.....learning safety drill procedure, adjusting to ship life, meeting about 1,100 new people that we'll work with.  We'll just have to hope that I can keep my head on straight!!

...But the Planet Spins, and the World Goes Round...

The past couple of days have really reminded me just how lucky I am to be working in this business.  Being a performer, there are definitely down times, hard times, when you wonder why you choose to be perpetually out of work...to put yourself through rejection after rejection...to have to supplement your life with meaningless day jobs...  It's easy for me to get jealous of some of my friends now and then.  Many of them have a steady job and a steady pay check.  They are able to buy nice things and go on vacation while I'm often hoping to be able to pay my rent.  

We just started our second show, AND THE WORLD GOES 'ROUND and it has actually been a lot less stressful than SHOUT! so far.  I am really loving the vibe of the show and singing Kander and Ebb is always amazing.  I'm also getting to dance much more than I have been in the past two years, doing "Arthur in the Afternoon" and "All that Jazz".  There is also a group number where we all play...[wait for it]...the BANJO.  Haha, we spent a good couple of hours learning how to play the song from a local Nashville Banjo player. Now I thought that that was pretty good, but then today they tell us that we will be working on roller skating for a section called "The Rink"...I don't think that I have ever laughed so hard in my life.  Just 10 people trying to stay on their feet, falling on their asses, slowly learning BASIC tricks and laughing at themselves.  And it's times like these that I am amazed that this is my job....I know very few people that are constantly challenged and laugh til they cry and play the banjo and roller skate and get PAID for it.  

And I hope that I remember this feeling the next time that I can't get seen at an audition and am already late for my waitressing job...

One Down, Three To Go....

I have been in  Nashville for a week now and we are officially done with our first show!  We had our first run through of SHOUT! today for a few select people and already we will start in on AND THE WORLD GOES 'ROUND tomorrow.   I have to say that this is definitely the fastest that I have had to learn a show!  We had two days of music, 4 days of blocking/dancing/cleaning and then a day to run through everything.  SHOUT! seems like a pretty easy show to do...a lot of 60's girl group pop, but it is actually a pretty grueling show to pull together....we NEVER leave the stage and we sing and dance in every song, a lot of it being 4 or 5 part harmony.  

We haven't had a lot of time to explore Nashville due to our 10 to 6 schedule of rehearsals everyday, but what I have seen I'm really loving.  We are put up in hotel rooms with full kitchens, two bedroom, two bathrooms and fireplaces....not too shabby!  There are a ton of stores and restaurants around us, so that is super convenient. 

 Tara came down this weekend to hang out with me and her friend Meg from Flagler (PS:  I am a little obsessed with Megan...I'm gonna make her be my friend for the rest of the time that I am in Tennessee).  The three of us went to downtown Nashville this Saturday night to check out the bar scene and had SUCH a great time!  This first bar we went to SOOOOO typical...country music band, FILLED with smoke, and a vending machine filled with Funyuns and Malboro Lights.  HILARIOUS.  We also went to The Big Bang which was a dueling piano bar....these guys playing the pianos were amazing....they played everything from "Womanizer"to Billy Joel to Hail to the Victors! So much fun and I'm sure that the cast and I will make it down there again before we leave.

And once again I am going to bed around 11:00...I've been sick and all hopped up on meds since I got here!  Getting my fill of Throat Coat, Emergen-C, and NiQuil!

SHOUT!

AND THE WORLD GOES 'ROUND

SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE

SHOWDOWN

[...new favorite songs, btw...--->  ]

Bon Voyage!

Well, It's finally time and I am OUT of here!  I'm getting on a flight to Nashville in the morning to finally to start rehearsal.  
I threw myself a little goodbye party at 123 Burger Shot Beer last night and I'm so happy that I did!  I got to see a lot of my friends that I haven't seen in a while and maybe would not have seen otherwise before I left.  I had a such a great time and was really reminded of all of the great people in my life.  I will be the first to admit that there are times where I fall out of touch with friends out of sheer laziness and lack of initiative on my part.  I realize that this epiphany comes at the worst time (being that I'm about to leave the country for six months...), but better late than never, right?  I'm at a point in my life when I really want to surround myself with people that are good, positive, and drama free...those that will enrich my life...and then, in turn, be a better friend to those people.  Something to work on...but for now, I have to get back to packing!!

Thanksgiving II

This was the first Thanksgiving that I didn't go home to be with my family and I ended up spending it with some friends at Cara, Bobby and Jaime's apartment. Well, it was so much fun, that we decided to do Thanksgiving II in January! Aaaaaand it was probably the best idea we've had in a long time! Rob decided that we should get a HEN this time....yes, a hen in lieu of a turkey. I have to say that I was pretty skeptical but it really came out great. Add in sweet potatoes, broccoli cheese cassarole, wedding potatoes, stuffing, creamed spinach and Rum punch and you have the best, fattiest, goodness you've ever tasted. I don't know why we didn't think of this sooner, because we always have the best time and with everyone chipping in and making something, it really is fairly easy to do. We naturally capped off the day with a trip to our favorite Astoria bars, Remote Sports Bar and Black Rock. Remote really used to be our go-to, but lately it's been all about Black Rock. The bar tender there is NUTS and likes to fill the evening with strange costumes and hula hoops and bar dances.....And the best part about it is that it's not even a block away from my apartment :) As always, it was so great to eat amazing food and spend some quality time with some of my favorite people!

P a N i C . .. . .

Well, maybe Panic is too strong of a word....But I am definitely feeling the anxiety start to set it...

First of all, there are SO many things that I need to get done before I leave for rehearsal on the 18th. When I got back to NY after Christmas, it felt like I had forever, but I'm starting to feel the crunch. There is the blood test, the drug test, the full physical, the chest x-ray, the medical forms that have to be filled out, the background check, the contract, the tax forms, getting my room ready for my subletter....not to mention the PACKING! I am the world's worst packer. I stand there and alternately look at my suitcase and my closet hoping that inspiration will strike and somehow the perfect things will find their way to where they need to be. And I have no idea what to bring on this trip...at least with HAIRSPRAY, we had layoffs so that I could change things out when I had a week off in NY, but this being out to sea for 6 months! I guess that I should try not to worry...it's not like Europe is a third world country!

The rest of my anxiety stems from just starting something new...I don't like change (shocker, I know.) I like to know what I'm doing, I like to be familiar with my surroundings. And this is a lot of "New" - New shows, New home, New COUNTRIES, New friends, New colleges. In my head, I know that I'll be fine...I had these same feelings right before I started on the 'SPRAY and I LOVED being on that tour. I just have to get past the hump because I am soooo excited for this opportunity too and I can't not do things just because they scare me a little!

There is a favorite 'Peanuts' quote of mine:
"I think that I've discovered the secret of life - just hang around until you get used to it."

And I think that that about sums up my plan for the next month or so. :)

PAL JOEY

"There's a great big town. On a great big lake. Called CHICAGO..."

I went and saw PAL JOEY tonight with Rob...and I have to say that I really enjoyed it! It's nice to see an old show revived instead of another something ripped off from a popular movie (I meeeeean, not that there's anything wrong with that.....) I liked Matt Risch enough, but I REALLY would have loved to have seen Christian Hoff in the title role. And I would have loved if Stockard Channing had been a better singer...haha.

And quote of the night... Rob- "Isn't there a famous song in this show? Like 'Destroy, Destruction, and Something'?" Me- "Do you mean 'Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered'?" Rob- "Ooooh yeah...mine must be the man version..."

Aaaaaaanyway, I'm glad I got to see a show and I hope that I get to see a few more before I leave (got my ticket to Nashville for the morning of the 18th!!! Yay!)

Mix Tape 2008

I was going through my iTunes today and thinking about the songs that all came together to make the soundtrack to my 2008. It might be a little biased to the end of the year, but such is life....these are the tunes that really spoke to me this last year or remind me of something or I simply couldn't stop listening to...ENJOY!

1. "Irreplaceable" - Beyonce
2. "Good Morning Baltimore" - HAIRSPRAY
3. "Capri" - Colbie Caillat
4. "See You Again" - Miley Cyrus
5. "Take a Bow" - Rihanna
6. "Damaged" - Danity Kane
7. "Missing You" - Tyler Hilton
8. "Wish You Were" - Kate Voegele
9. "Leave the Pieces" - The Wreckers
10. "Single Ladies" - Beyonce
11. "Gravity" - Sarah Bareilles
12. "Runaround Sue" - Dion
13. "Hollywood's Not America" - Ferras
14. "Bleeding Love" - Leona Lewis

Because Everyone Else Is Doing It!!

So I've recently been finding that ALL of my friends have blogs to keep their friends and family updated on their lives, so what the hell? I guess that I'll make one too! I also thought that it would be a nice way to keep in touch with everyone while I'm out of the country for a while! I just recently booked a job on the Norwegian Jade cruise ship which docks in Barcelona, Spain and London, England. We'll be doing SMOKEY JOE'S CAFE, AND THE WORLD GOES ROUND, and SHOUT! while on board. I'm pretty excited for this opportunity because traveling (especially around Europe) is something that I've always wanted to do, but I never thought that I would have the time or money to really take the time off to do it. It's also a great opportunity to save up a good chunk of change...the only downside really seems to be leaving my friends and family behind for so long! It won't seem so weird with everyone in Chicago since I probably would only have seen them once (if at all) during that time, but I really am going to miss the people in NY that I would typically see at least once a week! But thank God for technology.... and I'd be crazy to turn down such a great opportunity!