I'm back in CA for my best friend's wedding, so my New York life will have to wait for me until I return on Saturday.
Still, I can love the opera from afar, and relish in its successes! The 2011-2012 season at the Met Opera has been hit and miss, according to the New York Times, but I was happy to read this morning's glowing article about the Met's new production of Khovanschchina:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/arts/music/khovanshchina-at-the-metropolitan-opera.html?nl=nyregion&emc=urb4
I could have done with out the jab at Millipeid's choreography toward the end of the article, because I have dancer friends in this show. In any case, this review has gotten me excited, so I'll have to see this new opera (written by Mussogorsky and arranged by two of my favorites, Shostakovich and Stravinsky) as soon as possible!
Oh, and hooray for our new Don Giovanni, Gerald Finley, in his concert at Alice Tully! Wish I could have seen him:
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/29/arts/music/gerald-finley-at-alice-tully-hall.html?nl=nyregion&emc=urb4
Happy Leap Year, everyone!
Cheers,
A Broadway Baby
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Monday, February 27, 2012
No Go at West Side, but much on the mind
It was a no go for this morning's West Side Story international tour audition... probably for the best, though. Let's be honest. Joe McNeely (director/choreographer) likes his shorties, and has never seemed particularly fond of me. Alas! Then again... not sure I would relish going abroad and leaving all mah babies in New York.
Speaking of les enfants, I'm really into this most recent intellectual development from one of my favorite students:
"The most important thing we can do with our opportunities - regardless of race, religion, nationality, or any other demographic category - is to be grateful for the chances we have to be better human beings. We can and must strive to help others achieve the contentment and opportunity that we all deserve"
What a smartie smartie he is, hmmm?
Also, I worked with my youngest pupil on her first research project this weekend, and she said the most adorable thing. She had been over at my house working on the history of Trinity Church, when her caretaker became available to meet up with us. The weather had gotten considerably colder, so I pulled out mah grandmother's mink coat and bundled it around both of us.
We had a nice little chat as we braved the cold and snow on the way to meet her mom's friend. At one point, we were talking about how smoking is not good for a person, and how it can be difficult to quit. She got excited and said that she saw this commercial that had this number that people could call for free nicotine gum and patches, and that she wanted everyone to know about it, because that way everyone would live longer and she could have more friends.
You may have to know this little girl to understand just how cute her logic was, but needless to say I briefly contemplating adopting said child if for no other reason than the fact that her little heart is so big and compassionate.
Also awesome is the fact that a not-in-service bus driver and his fellow off duty friend took pity on my lost little self and drove me right up to my apartment door tonight. Loving the MTA right now. Paulie and Roderick, such a pleasure to meet you, and hopefully I see you again soon!
Hugs,
A Broadway Baby
Speaking of les enfants, I'm really into this most recent intellectual development from one of my favorite students:
"The most important thing we can do with our opportunities - regardless of race, religion, nationality, or any other demographic category - is to be grateful for the chances we have to be better human beings. We can and must strive to help others achieve the contentment and opportunity that we all deserve"
What a smartie smartie he is, hmmm?
Also, I worked with my youngest pupil on her first research project this weekend, and she said the most adorable thing. She had been over at my house working on the history of Trinity Church, when her caretaker became available to meet up with us. The weather had gotten considerably colder, so I pulled out mah grandmother's mink coat and bundled it around both of us.
We had a nice little chat as we braved the cold and snow on the way to meet her mom's friend. At one point, we were talking about how smoking is not good for a person, and how it can be difficult to quit. She got excited and said that she saw this commercial that had this number that people could call for free nicotine gum and patches, and that she wanted everyone to know about it, because that way everyone would live longer and she could have more friends.
You may have to know this little girl to understand just how cute her logic was, but needless to say I briefly contemplating adopting said child if for no other reason than the fact that her little heart is so big and compassionate.
Also awesome is the fact that a not-in-service bus driver and his fellow off duty friend took pity on my lost little self and drove me right up to my apartment door tonight. Loving the MTA right now. Paulie and Roderick, such a pleasure to meet you, and hopefully I see you again soon!
Hugs,
A Broadway Baby
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Obsessed
I've said it once, I'll say it again. I'm OBSESSED with our American cast for the second leg of the Don Giovanni run. Led by Mr. Gerald Finley (below), they are a raucous group, full of energy and life. It's an added bonus that they make some beautiful, beautiful music on stage.
Also, I'm into the fact that we now have some enthusiastic, yet realistic screaming going on at acceptable intervals throughout the opera's action.
My corsets have gotten tighter, those uber expensive Italian leather boots feel a little higher, but the magic is still the same. I am not looking forward to March 17th!!
Lots of love,
A Broadway Baby
Also, I'm into the fact that we now have some enthusiastic, yet realistic screaming going on at acceptable intervals throughout the opera's action.
My corsets have gotten tighter, those uber expensive Italian leather boots feel a little higher, but the magic is still the same. I am not looking forward to March 17th!!
Lots of love,
A Broadway Baby
Thursday, February 23, 2012
LINcense to join the LINsanity
At the risk of being totally obnoxious, I'm hitching on the Linsanity express for the purpose of bringing this valuable cross-occupational advice to my fellow dancers and friends.
For those of you who are not diehard Knicks fans or New Yorkers, Jeremy Lin is a young man of Taiwainese-American descent, a Harvard graduate, and - as has been proven by his performance in recent games - a rising basketball star. His story is not one of easy access and guaranteed triumph. Rather the reverse.
As such, his experiences and the lessons that are suggested and supported by his current success have the potential to be transformational regardless of whether you play basketball, you dance, you teach, you work in finance, or you are not sure what type of work you want to do.
Here goes:
Lin-sanity has swept up the NBA over the last week. Now it seems like the phenomenon has gone worldwide.
Friday’s 38 point performance by Harvard grad Jeremy Lin for the New York Knicks against the LA Lakers was his greatest performance yet as a starter, since he burst on to the scene and propelled the team to 4 straight wins.
Lin now has over 200,000 followers on Twitter. He’s got over 800,000 on Weibo – including 200,000 new ones in the 24 hour period after beating the Lakers.
But there’s more to this
story than basketball. This isn’t just a modern-day, real-life version of
the Hoosiers movie. The Jeremy Lin story is incredibly popular because we
can all see a little bit of ourselves in this man’s struggles and now
successes.
What can all of us learn from this young man — and how can we apply these same lessons to our own lives when we go back to work on Monday morning?
1. Believe in yourself when no one else does. Lin’s only the 4th graduate from Harvard to make it to the NBA. He’s also one of only a handful of Asian-Americans to make it. He was sent by the Knicks to play for their D-League team 3 weeks ago in Erie, PA. He’d already been cut by two other NBA teams before joining the Knicks this year. You’ve got to believe in yourself, even when no one else does.
2. Seize the opportunity when it comes up. Lin got to start for the Knicks because they had to start him. They had too many injuries. Baron Davis was gone. The other point guards were out. Carmelo Anthony was injured. Amare Stoudemire had to leave the team because of a family death. Lin could have squandered the opportunity and we would have never have noticed. But he made the most of it. You never know when opportunities are going to arise in life. Often, they’re when you least expect them. Make the most of them. Don’t fritter them away.
3. Your family will always be there for you, so be there for them. It wasn’t until a few days ago that Lin got his contract guaranteed by the Knicks for the rest of the season. Before that, he could have been cut at any time. He had to sleep on his brother’s couch on the Lower East Side to get by. His family always believed in him and picked him up when he could have gotten down on himself. That made him continue to believe. If you want your family to believe in you like that, you’ve got to be there for them too when they need it.
4. Find the system that works for your style. Lin isn’t Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant. He’s not a pure scorer. He’s a passer and distributor – who can also score very well. It didn’t work for him in Golden State or Houston – where he was before landing at the Knicks. But Mike D’Antoni’s system at the Knicks has been perfect for him to show off his strengths. You’ve got to do your best to understand what your strengths are and then ensure that you’re in a system (a job or organization or industry) that is a good fit for those strengths. Otherwise, people overlook the talents you bring to the table.
5. Don’t overlook talent that might exist around you today on your team. You probably manage people at your own company today. Are you sure you don’t have a Jeremy Lin living among you now? How do you know that “Mike” couldn’t do amazing things if you gave him a new project to run with? How do you know “Sarah” isn’t the right person to take the open job in London that you’ve been talking over with your colleagues? We put people around us in boxes. He’s from Harvard. He’s Asian-American. Not sure he can play. How many assumptions have you made about talent around you? Don’t be like the General Managers in Golden State and Houston, and let talent slip through your fingers. With all their money, scouts, and testing, they didn’t have a clue what they had in their hands. Do you know what your people (or even yourself) is really capable of? Take off the blinders of assumptions you wear when you look at the world.
6. People will love you for being an original, not trying to be someone else. You’ve got to be you. You can’t be some 2nd rate copy of Michael Jordan. There will never be another Michael Jordan. Just be Jeremy Lin — yourself. Whatever that is. That doesn’t mean you don’t work hard — it just means you find what you’re good at and do it. Fans will love you for being you, just like they love Jeremy Lin.
**Judy Garland said it best**
Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.
7. Stay humble. If you one day are lucky enough to have newspapers want to put you on the cover in order to sell more, don’t let it get to your head. It’s been remarkable watching how humble Lin remains through all this media frenzy. It makes his teammates and fans love him that much more.
8. When you make others around you look good, they will love you forever. I didn’t know how good Tyson Chandler was, until I saw him playing with Jeremy Lin. Lin has set Chandler up many times over the last week for easy dunks because he drew the defense and then passed the ball. That’s partly why the Knicks are playing so well. They are all working harder to share the ball with others. And it’s beautiful to watch. And when the media swarms Lin, he tells them how good his teammates are. Do the same with your peers and reports.
9. Never forget about the importance of luck or fate in life. Some people believe in God, some in destiny, some in luck. Whatever you believe in, be grateful for it.
10. Work your butt off. Lin couldn’t have seized his opportunity if he hadn’t worked like crazy for years perfecting his skills. There are no short cuts to hard work. Success is a by product of that. If you’ve got a Tiger Mom who’s always pushed you to work hard, great. If not, let your conscience be your own Tiger Mom! Get up early, stay up late. Nobody gave Lin any free passes. Why should you get any? You can only control what you control and that means you’ve got to work harder than anyone else you know.
I hope the Lin-sanity continues. And I hope we all can apply these lessons to our own work and family life.
For those of you who are not diehard Knicks fans or New Yorkers, Jeremy Lin is a young man of Taiwainese-American descent, a Harvard graduate, and - as has been proven by his performance in recent games - a rising basketball star. His story is not one of easy access and guaranteed triumph. Rather the reverse.
As such, his experiences and the lessons that are suggested and supported by his current success have the potential to be transformational regardless of whether you play basketball, you dance, you teach, you work in finance, or you are not sure what type of work you want to do.
Here goes:
Just Lin, Baby! 10 Lessons Jeremy Lin Can Teach Us
Before We Go To Work Monday Morning
Lin-sanity has swept up the NBA over the last week. Now it seems like the phenomenon has gone worldwide.
Friday’s 38 point performance by Harvard grad Jeremy Lin for the New York Knicks against the LA Lakers was his greatest performance yet as a starter, since he burst on to the scene and propelled the team to 4 straight wins.
Lin now has over 200,000 followers on Twitter. He’s got over 800,000 on Weibo – including 200,000 new ones in the 24 hour period after beating the Lakers.
What can all of us learn from this young man — and how can we apply these same lessons to our own lives when we go back to work on Monday morning?
1. Believe in yourself when no one else does. Lin’s only the 4th graduate from Harvard to make it to the NBA. He’s also one of only a handful of Asian-Americans to make it. He was sent by the Knicks to play for their D-League team 3 weeks ago in Erie, PA. He’d already been cut by two other NBA teams before joining the Knicks this year. You’ve got to believe in yourself, even when no one else does.
2. Seize the opportunity when it comes up. Lin got to start for the Knicks because they had to start him. They had too many injuries. Baron Davis was gone. The other point guards were out. Carmelo Anthony was injured. Amare Stoudemire had to leave the team because of a family death. Lin could have squandered the opportunity and we would have never have noticed. But he made the most of it. You never know when opportunities are going to arise in life. Often, they’re when you least expect them. Make the most of them. Don’t fritter them away.
3. Your family will always be there for you, so be there for them. It wasn’t until a few days ago that Lin got his contract guaranteed by the Knicks for the rest of the season. Before that, he could have been cut at any time. He had to sleep on his brother’s couch on the Lower East Side to get by. His family always believed in him and picked him up when he could have gotten down on himself. That made him continue to believe. If you want your family to believe in you like that, you’ve got to be there for them too when they need it.
4. Find the system that works for your style. Lin isn’t Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant. He’s not a pure scorer. He’s a passer and distributor – who can also score very well. It didn’t work for him in Golden State or Houston – where he was before landing at the Knicks. But Mike D’Antoni’s system at the Knicks has been perfect for him to show off his strengths. You’ve got to do your best to understand what your strengths are and then ensure that you’re in a system (a job or organization or industry) that is a good fit for those strengths. Otherwise, people overlook the talents you bring to the table.
5. Don’t overlook talent that might exist around you today on your team. You probably manage people at your own company today. Are you sure you don’t have a Jeremy Lin living among you now? How do you know that “Mike” couldn’t do amazing things if you gave him a new project to run with? How do you know “Sarah” isn’t the right person to take the open job in London that you’ve been talking over with your colleagues? We put people around us in boxes. He’s from Harvard. He’s Asian-American. Not sure he can play. How many assumptions have you made about talent around you? Don’t be like the General Managers in Golden State and Houston, and let talent slip through your fingers. With all their money, scouts, and testing, they didn’t have a clue what they had in their hands. Do you know what your people (or even yourself) is really capable of? Take off the blinders of assumptions you wear when you look at the world.
6. People will love you for being an original, not trying to be someone else. You’ve got to be you. You can’t be some 2nd rate copy of Michael Jordan. There will never be another Michael Jordan. Just be Jeremy Lin — yourself. Whatever that is. That doesn’t mean you don’t work hard — it just means you find what you’re good at and do it. Fans will love you for being you, just like they love Jeremy Lin.
**Judy Garland said it best**
Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else.
7. Stay humble. If you one day are lucky enough to have newspapers want to put you on the cover in order to sell more, don’t let it get to your head. It’s been remarkable watching how humble Lin remains through all this media frenzy. It makes his teammates and fans love him that much more.
8. When you make others around you look good, they will love you forever. I didn’t know how good Tyson Chandler was, until I saw him playing with Jeremy Lin. Lin has set Chandler up many times over the last week for easy dunks because he drew the defense and then passed the ball. That’s partly why the Knicks are playing so well. They are all working harder to share the ball with others. And it’s beautiful to watch. And when the media swarms Lin, he tells them how good his teammates are. Do the same with your peers and reports.
9. Never forget about the importance of luck or fate in life. Some people believe in God, some in destiny, some in luck. Whatever you believe in, be grateful for it.
10. Work your butt off. Lin couldn’t have seized his opportunity if he hadn’t worked like crazy for years perfecting his skills. There are no short cuts to hard work. Success is a by product of that. If you’ve got a Tiger Mom who’s always pushed you to work hard, great. If not, let your conscience be your own Tiger Mom! Get up early, stay up late. Nobody gave Lin any free passes. Why should you get any? You can only control what you control and that means you’ve got to work harder than anyone else you know.
I hope the Lin-sanity continues. And I hope we all can apply these lessons to our own work and family life.
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
(Re)opening Night!
With the exception of a few unplanned shenanigans on the dance floor, last night's Don Giovanni went off without a hitch!
The new cast looked a little nervous around the minuet (who can blame them, considering they did not have many rehearsals at all), but were all in all quite wonderful to be on stage with. Isabel Leonard in particular was a revelation as Zerlina. That acting!
I did forget how restrictive corsets and wigs can be... and after a Tuesday of work and work outs that spanned from 8am to 1am, my body (especially the bones) is feeling it today. Barely got through this morning's Total Body fitness class. Yikes...
Anyway, I've got a modeling gig this afternoon, some tutoring in the early evening, but I most look forward to tonight, because I'm off to see a colleague strut her stuff in her new, one-woman show, "Naked People" at the Upright Citizen's Brigade. Exciting stuff!!
http://stephaniestreisand.tumblr.com/post/17753757148/theangeladee-naked-people-and-julia-wiedeman
The new cast looked a little nervous around the minuet (who can blame them, considering they did not have many rehearsals at all), but were all in all quite wonderful to be on stage with. Isabel Leonard in particular was a revelation as Zerlina. That acting!
I did forget how restrictive corsets and wigs can be... and after a Tuesday of work and work outs that spanned from 8am to 1am, my body (especially the bones) is feeling it today. Barely got through this morning's Total Body fitness class. Yikes...
Anyway, I've got a modeling gig this afternoon, some tutoring in the early evening, but I most look forward to tonight, because I'm off to see a colleague strut her stuff in her new, one-woman show, "Naked People" at the Upright Citizen's Brigade. Exciting stuff!!
http://stephaniestreisand.tumblr.com/post/17753757148/theangeladee-naked-people-and-julia-wiedeman
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Serene Green
1:45am must be Sunday's witching hour.
The cab I was in literally caught every green light from East 3rd street to East 76th street on the way home from a night out with friends. Fantastic.
I've never been so excited for sleep. I must be getting old!
Don Giovanni starts up again this coming Tuesday. Layers of corsets, oh how I've missed you!
The cab I was in literally caught every green light from East 3rd street to East 76th street on the way home from a night out with friends. Fantastic.
I've never been so excited for sleep. I must be getting old!
Don Giovanni starts up again this coming Tuesday. Layers of corsets, oh how I've missed you!
Social Saturdays
New York really is an amazing place. Even when I am feeling most disappointed and disillusioned, the city manages to offer up sympathy in the most diverse and pleasing ways
Yesterday soothed with a healing medley of opera, dinner, and dancing. Went out with the roomz and a visiting friend to see Barber of Seville at the Met Opera (I love that my work gives me free tickets). This production was SO raucous and hilarious!
It was genius that they built out the stage over the orchestra pit and blocked out acting choices where all of the principal singers came down and interacted with the audience. Talk about literally making opera more accessible! At the end, the Barber even gave out his business cards to a few people in the front row. Wonderful.
Anyway, after a lovely walk through Central Park, my friend and I parted ways for a bit so she could get macaroons with a friend, and I went and worked out. After the gym, the city greeted me with the most cleansing yet light rain, right as the sun was setting. It was serenely gorgeous.
Finally, we went to Le Cirque in Midtown for dinner, via a reservation with this new Groupon-esque company called Savoured. Le Cirque is one of those restaurants rated $$$$ for how good yet expensive the food is, and it has been highly rated by food critics around the world. As you may imagine, I was a cool 2.5% nervous about what our bill might look like. (Especially in the wake of an unpleasantly surprisingly $400 prefix valentine's dinner I recently had at Boulud Sud).
My friend and I ordered the lamb chops and the venison medallions, but SCANDAL they had run out of lamb! The lovely French waiter made up for it by buying our wine, gifting us a lovely little fizzy dessert wine, and then sending out souffle, creme brulee, macaroons, and chocolates on the house. With that and the 30% off your check that Savoured arranges, our meal was absurdly affordable. Another pleasant surprise!!
Those of you who knew me in college probably remember that I was not the most stereotypically adventurous of college youths, but wow have I been enjoying my post college life. Nothing thus far compares with how I ended my night, at this club somewhere in So Ho called South Side. There was dancing, there were smoke machines, there were weird psychedelic lights, and a cuddly but tortured Frenchman. I was a wee bit skeptical at first (I can't help it), but even after getting home at 4am, I'm oh so glad we went. All in all, it was the most cathartic way I've yet discovered to deal with the ennui that's overwhelmed me of late.
Yesterday soothed with a healing medley of opera, dinner, and dancing. Went out with the roomz and a visiting friend to see Barber of Seville at the Met Opera (I love that my work gives me free tickets). This production was SO raucous and hilarious!
It was genius that they built out the stage over the orchestra pit and blocked out acting choices where all of the principal singers came down and interacted with the audience. Talk about literally making opera more accessible! At the end, the Barber even gave out his business cards to a few people in the front row. Wonderful.
Anyway, after a lovely walk through Central Park, my friend and I parted ways for a bit so she could get macaroons with a friend, and I went and worked out. After the gym, the city greeted me with the most cleansing yet light rain, right as the sun was setting. It was serenely gorgeous.
Finally, we went to Le Cirque in Midtown for dinner, via a reservation with this new Groupon-esque company called Savoured. Le Cirque is one of those restaurants rated $$$$ for how good yet expensive the food is, and it has been highly rated by food critics around the world. As you may imagine, I was a cool 2.5% nervous about what our bill might look like. (Especially in the wake of an unpleasantly surprisingly $400 prefix valentine's dinner I recently had at Boulud Sud).
My friend and I ordered the lamb chops and the venison medallions, but SCANDAL they had run out of lamb! The lovely French waiter made up for it by buying our wine, gifting us a lovely little fizzy dessert wine, and then sending out souffle, creme brulee, macaroons, and chocolates on the house. With that and the 30% off your check that Savoured arranges, our meal was absurdly affordable. Another pleasant surprise!!
Those of you who knew me in college probably remember that I was not the most stereotypically adventurous of college youths, but wow have I been enjoying my post college life. Nothing thus far compares with how I ended my night, at this club somewhere in So Ho called South Side. There was dancing, there were smoke machines, there were weird psychedelic lights, and a cuddly but tortured Frenchman. I was a wee bit skeptical at first (I can't help it), but even after getting home at 4am, I'm oh so glad we went. All in all, it was the most cathartic way I've yet discovered to deal with the ennui that's overwhelmed me of late.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
The Universe
Don't f&*$ with it.
Because if you do, I can guarantee you from personal experience that it will f%^& you RIGHT back.
Wowza.
Because if you do, I can guarantee you from personal experience that it will f%^& you RIGHT back.
Wowza.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Met Opera
Rehearsals are back in full swing. For some reason I'm exhausted... surprising since we're hardly involved in this show any more. But all is well. Oh, and the new cast is almost entirely American. A refreshing change of pace.
Methinks I have some sort of rebellion in my throat/head cold monstrosity brewing. It is NOT nice. Wash your hands, people, it's sickness season!
Updates about my Valentine's Day fashion week date to follow.
Hugs and germ-free canoodles of love,
A Broadway Baby
Methinks I have some sort of rebellion in my throat/head cold monstrosity brewing. It is NOT nice. Wash your hands, people, it's sickness season!
Updates about my Valentine's Day fashion week date to follow.
Hugs and germ-free canoodles of love,
A Broadway Baby
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Friendly Reminders
Like many of my female friends, I've allowed consumerism to dictate my self perception, in that I think I look better with make up than I do without.
Well, I am much pleased to say that a random conflation of factors has begun to make me doubt my thoughts on the subject. At Amy's Bread in the theater district, one of the bakers caught me putting on makeup. In this dear french accent, he said that I don't need makeup because one can't enhance perfection.
I can't even make this stuff up. I do appreciate that New York endeavors to be kind to me after my sink exploded and a can of white paint spilled all over my black stairs and black door.
Win some, lose some.
Happy Valentine's Day, all!
Hugs,
A Broadway Baby
Well, I am much pleased to say that a random conflation of factors has begun to make me doubt my thoughts on the subject. At Amy's Bread in the theater district, one of the bakers caught me putting on makeup. In this dear french accent, he said that I don't need makeup because one can't enhance perfection.
I can't even make this stuff up. I do appreciate that New York endeavors to be kind to me after my sink exploded and a can of white paint spilled all over my black stairs and black door.
Win some, lose some.
Happy Valentine's Day, all!
Hugs,
A Broadway Baby
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Kick Me, Kate!
Gahh. I'm always trying to be about optimism, acceptance, and forward thinking on this blog, but boy I really dislike it when my fellow dancers are unaware of their space and kick/hit/step on me.
I mean I like to think I'm a nice girl, but I have HAD it with girls in character heels who don't seem to get the concept of windows (that's where dancers stagger themselves in a zig zag formation so that no dancer is directly in front of or behind another dancer).
At this point Im going to have to act in the interest of self preservation... I have a GOUGE in my foot from homegirl on Saturday! The audition for Kiss Me Kate (in the Fingerlakes?) went well enough, but it put me in a bit of a mood to sustain some damage only two minutes into learning the combination.
Suffice it to say, the stink eye has become well honed and was out in full force. I also seem to have developed this steely, polite voice that I use to whisper, "Please step forward. Now."
In other news, my private tutoring clients are really improving by leaps and bounds. I am le proud of them! A few of my students have crossed over into the Honors realm!
Don Giovanni rehearsals start again Tuesday. Here's hoping for a relatively injury-free next week.
Cheers,
A Broadway Baby
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Disney Cruise Lines & Kindness
Unexpected kindness is New York's saving grace, I think.
Over the past two days, I have had just had the most fortuitous of run ins with people who decided to be nice to me for the heck of it.
What a difference it has made!
Yesterday, I auditioned for Disney Cruise lines. I'm there all day long, doing different dances - a ballet combination to type out girls, then a charactery jazz bit, then a super competition jazz "So You Think You Can Dance - esque" bit of wonder. That last routine had a high battement, or kick, and a double pirouette (a turn where you spin on one leg while holding the other up in what's called passe, like a flamingo... errr, well, a flamingo at rest if it's leg was bent in the other direction from what it is below).
So the music for the last Disney routine had space to fit three pirouette turns. I must have been channeling my 17 year old self, because on the first run, I did three turns, and on the second I did four! Oh and I actually kicked myself in the side of my face on the battement kick - with enough fervor that some of the other dancers on the sidelines even said "weerrk" outloud. What an ego boost!
Then of course I get cut at the end of the day, and they keep two 5 foot dancers. Oy vey.
I would have been a bit irritated, had it not been for this wonderful young male dancer who had also been in the room. He went out of his way to say that I looked amazing and that he couldn't believe that the Disney casting people didn't keep me at the end.
After feeling for a couple of weeks like I wasn't a real dancer, that I wasn't serious enough about my "craft" or whatever, it made my day to hear some unsolicited positive feedback.
Oh and my Egyptian cab driver today said he couldn't believe that I was in between clients and working because he thought I should still be in high school.
... An age compliment to boot!!
Moral of the story, just live. Enjoy yourself, do your best, don't outsource your brain space to haters and don't over think, because all that really matters at the end of the day is that you've done something that you can be proud of.
Hugs and love,
A Broadway Baby
,
Over the past two days, I have had just had the most fortuitous of run ins with people who decided to be nice to me for the heck of it.
What a difference it has made!
Yesterday, I auditioned for Disney Cruise lines. I'm there all day long, doing different dances - a ballet combination to type out girls, then a charactery jazz bit, then a super competition jazz "So You Think You Can Dance - esque" bit of wonder. That last routine had a high battement, or kick, and a double pirouette (a turn where you spin on one leg while holding the other up in what's called passe, like a flamingo... errr, well, a flamingo at rest if it's leg was bent in the other direction from what it is below).
Then of course I get cut at the end of the day, and they keep two 5 foot dancers. Oy vey.
I would have been a bit irritated, had it not been for this wonderful young male dancer who had also been in the room. He went out of his way to say that I looked amazing and that he couldn't believe that the Disney casting people didn't keep me at the end.
After feeling for a couple of weeks like I wasn't a real dancer, that I wasn't serious enough about my "craft" or whatever, it made my day to hear some unsolicited positive feedback.
Oh and my Egyptian cab driver today said he couldn't believe that I was in between clients and working because he thought I should still be in high school.
... An age compliment to boot!!
Moral of the story, just live. Enjoy yourself, do your best, don't outsource your brain space to haters and don't over think, because all that really matters at the end of the day is that you've done something that you can be proud of.
Hugs and love,
A Broadway Baby
,
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Final Callbacks and Sparkles
Soreness, thy definition is the lower half of my body.
SOooo... honesty time, people.
I haven't been blogging with much heart or consistency lately, because I've been feeling pretty down. However, I've come to the realization that I should have been doing it anyway! After all, the whole point of my decision to embark on this dancing enterprise was to explore all aspects of something that I love, and the whole point of the blog was to ruminate about a dancer's life in a way that could be helpful to others and that would keep me honest about how hard I'm really trying to succeed at this.
Ergo, I'm back. The final callback that has had me really bummed was this audition for Sleep No More, a rather revolutionary new piece of audience participation theater/dance spectacular:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/07/arts/dance/sleep-no-more-is-theater-embedded-with-dancers.html?pagewanted=all
The audition was a week ago, and I've been trying not to think about it too often. Alas, when this much time has passed without another email/call, it usually means that the casting team has decided to go in a direction that does not involve you. Despite growing a pretty strong backbone after a year in this industry, the heavy feeling that I get when I feel someone or something I really want going in the opposite direction of me never really goes away.
So, I'm dealing with that, and going to another audition tomorrow. It's that whole "if you get off the horse for too long, it's much much much more difficult to ride" thing that I'm trying to avoid.
Thank heavens for my roommate, sparkles, and other lovely people/experiences to make things better:
Can you see me? Or are you blinded by muscles?!?! Gotta love birthday outings for my gay darlings.
Hugs, A Broadway Baby
SOooo... honesty time, people.
I haven't been blogging with much heart or consistency lately, because I've been feeling pretty down. However, I've come to the realization that I should have been doing it anyway! After all, the whole point of my decision to embark on this dancing enterprise was to explore all aspects of something that I love, and the whole point of the blog was to ruminate about a dancer's life in a way that could be helpful to others and that would keep me honest about how hard I'm really trying to succeed at this.
Ergo, I'm back. The final callback that has had me really bummed was this audition for Sleep No More, a rather revolutionary new piece of audience participation theater/dance spectacular:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/07/arts/dance/sleep-no-more-is-theater-embedded-with-dancers.html?pagewanted=all
The audition was a week ago, and I've been trying not to think about it too often. Alas, when this much time has passed without another email/call, it usually means that the casting team has decided to go in a direction that does not involve you. Despite growing a pretty strong backbone after a year in this industry, the heavy feeling that I get when I feel someone or something I really want going in the opposite direction of me never really goes away.
So, I'm dealing with that, and going to another audition tomorrow. It's that whole "if you get off the horse for too long, it's much much much more difficult to ride" thing that I'm trying to avoid.
Thank heavens for my roommate, sparkles, and other lovely people/experiences to make things better:
Can you see me? Or are you blinded by muscles?!?! Gotta love birthday outings for my gay darlings.
Hugs, A Broadway Baby
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