Magic Flute - Queen of the Night Aria - Der Hölle Rache

This is from the production I worked on. Sorry the quality is awful, I was also running light cues, sound cues, and following the score! By the way, the girl playing the Queen is blind. Completely blind. And her voice is amazing! She learns by ear and it a terrific performer so I made sure to video her performance. Her high notes rock my socks off.

<3

Halloween

Halloween was a lot more low key this year than it has been for me in the past. I had shows all weekend and Ryan and I had no plans, so we didn't want to spend a lot of money on costumes to wear once (boo). During the day Ryan and I went shopping for stuff to have people over for a Halloween dinner and we carved a pumpkin! Saturday night I had a show but my friends from college invited me to the Drama Department Halloween Party after. Ryan said he was going out so I decided to stop by. I didn't have a costume and did not want to pay a cover charge so I made one in the tech shop. My friend Kim gets 100% credit for it and I blatantly stole it (ok I texted her permission and she said I could) but basically I carried a picket sign that said, "Nudist on Strike".

Think about it... I can wait.

Hey I thought it was funny!

Anyway, I went with Jay (my friend and the opera director) over there and let me tell ya the drama dept has gotten a lot more risque since my time!!! So much cleavage... I had no idea where to look without turning red for them! Four Freudian Slips... wearing slips naturally, two belly dancers, vampires and lingerie models (I am guessing because that is all they had the fabric for? Maybe they were supposed to be a slutty story book character but I digress) and I felt very out of place wearing pants and a tshirt! Ok maybe my old married self is a bit bitter (... yea that's it) but we definitely were not like that back in my day!

It was still nice to see some of the people I knew from school. The seniors now were sophomores when I was there, so most of the kids at the party I had never even seen before. If I heard, "OHMYGAWD You're married?! You're like, an adult!" one more time I may have had to crack and break my one beer and driving later rule and start chugging. But after an hour or so I said my goodbyes and went to pick up my husband.

I thought he was going out with friends from work, but they couldn't line up plans so apparently he walked himself to King St and went to the bar. Yes, by himself. And he makes fun of me for ONE TIME going to the movies alone because I wanted to see The Proposal and no one else did! So I find my very very drunk husband talking to a cop on a bike, as in bicycle, and somehow get him to the car. Man oh MAN he was completely and totally smashed. I don't think I have seen him that drunk in a looooong time. Insane. I somehow get him home and to bed, but get gets up insisting he has to clean the Navy Seal vomit off of his shoes.

That is when I decide I am better off not asking questions.

Sunday I get up and go to my matinee and finish the show! Yippee no more rehearsal/shows til midnight! I get home and Ryan was awake, sober, cleaned, AND cooked! We had three of his friends over and one of them brought their wife Lauren. I was a bit worried because the last time I met one of Ryan's friend's wives it did not go over too well... but Lauren was great! It was nice to have someone female AND sober to talk to! We're going to get our hair done together for the ball Saturday and I just may have a date to see Harry Potter 7!



Our decorations included this spooky black lightbulb in the hallway.
We made witches brew with diet 7UP, orange juice, pineapple juice, rum and vodka. We also got those fun cups at CVS! Josh and Jack brought the pies with them.
I found this recipe on another blog and I cannot remember where now! If you know remind me, but it is basically a beef, rice, veggie dish cooked IN a pumpkin. It was amazing!!!! Ryan may have left it in too long, it said 1.5-2 hours and we did the whole 2, and our pumpkin sort of fell apart and sprung a leak!
But it was still DELICIOUS. The pumpkin added a nice sweetness and it was just so yummy.
And this is Jack, our Jack O'Lantern. Ryan "scored" it, aka drew the lines lightly with a knife and I had to cut it out because I am "better at those sort of things." .... whatever that means!! But I think it is cute. Next year he promised we could do a crazy design one because I let him go traditional this year.


Also checkout this AMAZING giveaway by Mrs S (and Mrs from Mr Mrs and a Little Miss!) that I am dying to win (:

A Night Off

For my night off yesterday I got some lovely quality time with my husband. We snuggled on the couch and watched Cash Cab (and let me tell ya, if we were on that show we'd win a lot of money between the two of us and our amazing amounts of useless knowledge) before heading out to dinner. It was unseasonably warm so we walked up the street to a restaurant we walked by a hundred times, Southside 1815. Never knew it, but it was a southern restaurant... yea I guess the name would help but looking at it it just looks like a typical bar/pub sort of place.

We actually ate outside, sans jackets, and it was some good food! We split some fried pickles for an appetizer, then Ryan had fried chicken with mashed potatoes and veggies. I had a dixie chicken sandwich (chicken, bacon, cheddar, a fried green tomato...that was a first!, watercress, and ranch bbq sauce) with fries. YUM. We then stumbled home and I was in bed, asleep by 9:15pm.

Bliss.


I was tagged by Long Distance Love to answer these 8 questions. Since I have done this before I may just answer them and leave them at that!!

1. If you could change 1 thing about your partner what would it be and why?

My mother in law said something very smart... women marry men thinking they can change them, and men marry women thinking they will never change. I don't think there is anything about Ryan I could honestly say I want to change without having him change in the process. Sometimes I wish he drank a little less, but that is more of a problem I have than he does. His tolerance is a whole heck of a lot higher than mine and I just need to get used to that.

2. If you were given the cutest puppy right now, what would you name it?

We already discussed this, Rylie. It is a combination of Ryan and Allie... haha.

3. Something you dislike about yourself?

Physically, my chest. Internally, my lack of self confidence.

4. What is something you'd like to see changed in this world?

I'd like to see everyone care about other people, fully and completely. Something tells me that would solve a lot of problems.

5. Do you truly believe one can live without regrets?

I do.

6. What is your favorite thing about each season?

Spring - Now it will be my wedding anniversary!
Summer - Being able to go to the beach or travel.
Fall - Leaves changing.
Winter - Christmas and snow!

7. Name one of your goals in life.

Career wise, to be a famous actress (:P) and life wise, to be a good wife and someday mom.

8. Are you living the life you want? If not, how could you get yourself there?

Mostly yes. I wish I could be acting again, but I just need to find the time to audition and earn the roles I can. I am happy in my current job, I love my husband and where we live, so I just need to push myself to do my own goals.



Off til rehearsal. Cross your fingers it goes smoothly and I am not there til midnight again....

Midnight Madness!

Ok not really... but that was the time I was at the theatre til last night! I got home around 12:30, showered because I was gross, and fell into bed with my passed out husband around 1am. I was up at 7am for work. Ugh. It has been busy on and off today but I am dragging. So. Tired!

I got to the theatre around 6, heated up my frozen dinner, and tried to wrangle 55 opera singers into costume to be prepared to go on time. Needless to say that did not happen. I got spoiled working the Fringe Festival the past two summers with professional singers. They were always on time, in costume and make up and warmed up BEFORE they needed to be. They were always willing to help out and were the nicest people. Some of these kids, yes I can say kids referencing to freshmen, have never done tech before and were nonstop complaining.

Tech sucks. Anyone in any show, play, musical, opera, knows this. You sit around for hours to do a minute of work (on the performance side) and if you are crew you are busting your butt for fifteen hours straight to get things done and not waste anyone's time. You are polite, you try, but some people just do not get it.

If in the professional world you EVER showed up an hour and a half late, you would be fired. If you back talked to an Assistant Stage Manager who called to tell you you were late and see where you are, you'd be fired. If you were consistently rude, not in costume, missed your cue... you'd be fired. You get the picture right?

Most of them are great, especially the principle roles. They are also so so so talented. The Queen of the Night's aria gives me chills every time. You know it...



The parts where she sings with no words I am sure you recognize! And the fact the women playing the queen are in college (or grad school) and are THAT good, is amazing.

But we ran over last night til about quarter after eleven trying to finish the run. Then I had to use my "bitch list" and basically assure them they were all great but there were some things that were just unacceptable (ie missing cues, trashing the green room, back talking to the ASM, being LATE during tech week). By the time they all got out of costume and I locked up and we had our production meeting... it was midnight.

DC was deserted as I drove home. It was kinda creepy actually.

I also left my laptop charger in the theater. Lame. At least Cat was there painting and hid it for me. No internet for me tonight post-work!

Good news is, I am not called tonight! It is Sitzprobe, aka music rehearsal with Maestro, and the crew is meeting to finish the build, but since I am "professional" (aka I earned my four years of crew hours) I can stay home tonight! I am out of here in four minutes and my goal is to be in bed by 8pm. (:

Long Weekend, Long Survey.

Oh what a long, long weekend.

27 of the last 48 hours were spent in a dark theatre hunched over a tech table and a score in a binder that weights a good ten pounds. Light cues. Media cues. Fly cues. Calling the show. Writing cues. "HOLD!" Music stops. Caffeine. Doughnuts. Pizza. McDonalds. Quiznos. Sugarfree Redbull. Sneaked cigarettes. Bleary eyes. Not enough sleep. Hard theatre seat from the 1970s. Neck cramp. Back ache (what else is new?). Dragging heavy platforms. Yelling at late singers. Cursing.... Listening to the Queen of the Night nail her famous aria. Seeing the stage look like it is a rolling ball of flames in the temple of fire. Laughing at the comedic characters' reveal and romance. Seeing the serpent slink out to open the show. Watching the leads find one another and be safe and together for a happily ever after. The stage positively ringing as 55 amazing voices sing out into a darkened theatre in perfect harmony.

That is tech weekend.

There is the good, the bad, the exhausting, and the tedious. But it usually ends up being worth it. Being in the theatre was adventure enough, but let us compare evening notes, post-rehearsal.

Friday Night

I went and watched another run through, pre-tech. I was supposed to get light cues but as usual we were way wayyy behind schedule. At least I got to see it again. I go home a little after 11. I get home around 11:45 or so. I sit down and make Ryan his "honey do list" (as he calls it) for the weekend. He had his first dinner with the Masons the night before (yes THE masons, he wants to join) and really wanted to tell me about it. I was exhausted and knew I had to be up super early but I knew he was excited so I agreed to go with him for ONE cigarette. We sit and talk for a bit about it and he goes to have another one. I am freezing in some baggy sweats and slippers and totally exhausted so I stop him. We get up to go inside and he looks at me and goes...

"Do you have your keys?"

No keys. No phones. No answer at the leasing office. Buzzing our ONE neighbor who has her doorbell hooked to her home 3 times and one hour later we get back inside at 1:30am.

I was ready to kill him. I may have punched him hard in the arm once. Or twice. I was so cold and tired and I had to be up at 8 to run errands pre-rehearsal. He got to sleep in.

He did try and help me fix my back though (sitting on a stoop for an hour did not help back pain) since it was too late for me to take my medicine and still wake up in the morning.

Flash forward 14 hours to Saturday Night

Long long day in the theatre. I finall get to go home at 11:30pm after being there since 9:30am. I am driving on North Capital St in the center lane. I am going slow as I know it is a sucky place to drive so I am being careful. Guy in the left lane was not. All of a sudden I lurch to the right as his front bumper hits me and scrapes the entire side of my car. I try to get out of the way and nearly get hit by a bus on the other side who honks at me as the guy who hit me tries to gesture at me to pull over.

My first car accident.

We pull over on the side of the road and I get out of my car shaking and crying. Damage is all cosmetic and I am shaken up but fine. The guy claimed full responsibility from the start and gave me all his information as he apologized. We both have GEICO so we call and get the claims in and finally after midnight I get to go home again. My mom was on the phone with me when I got hit (in a hands free device down in the middle counsel, promise!) so I called her back and filled her in. Then I had to call Ryan. You know any phone call that starts, "I am ok..." usually is not good. But he told me if I was ok and the car was ok just to come home. I walk in the door and he just stood and gave me a hug and I cried for about twenty minutes.

I really never want to go through that again.

It also made tech yesterday feel very long. But Ryan came and sat with me on dinner break and then stayed to watch us tech act two. He shocked me more when he said he couldn't wait to come back and see the show finished! Not bad since he sat there three hours and watched them sing in German with no translation.... he also did all the grocery shopping, a huge clean of the entire apartment, and laundry. I love him!

Two more minutes working here than off to the theatre til 11:30pm again.

This time next week it is done! Cannot wait to sleep.


I did this earlier to stay awake, feel free to do it if you're bored! I got it from Bella N Chief's blog.

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disney World
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty - not the top but lower level....
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill not in this new job though
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors one of them anyway, sort of
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing

What happened to 49?

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie stud
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving in a windtunnel....
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person - does from an airplane count?
80. Published a book - I had a poem published in one?
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve
86. Visited the White House - not inside, but outside?
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating - fish count?
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Got a tattoo
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee


55 definite dones and 5 maybe. I want to do a lot of the things on this list so who knows what the future will bring? Somethings I definitely can go the rest of my life without doing, like bouncing a check, but most of the travel related ones I definitely want to do!

Tech Day 2: 13 Hours

Getting there! And at least my husband is here keeping me company (:

More stories later... oh what a weekend!

Weekend Errands

Our weekend, as wonderful as a 72 is, was a lot of errands! Grocery shopping, bank, CVS, dry cleaners for tailoring someone's Alphas, shopping for all our winter clothes, physical therapy (for my back), and laundry. Whew. Shopping was great, we both got winter coats and I got clothes for work, sweaters and pants, black flats (since my old ones had no heel left and nearly killed me) and some gorgeous brown boots.

We did have our fun though, we went to the Maryland Renn Fest on Sunday... aka the Renaissance Festival! I love those things and have gone since my freshman year of college, but I was nervous to see how the hubby would react to it all. It may be a bit too much nerdy overdrive for him, but he loved it. We had amazing food, steak on a stake, macaroni and cheese on a stick, turkey legs, huge stuffed baked potatoes, cheesecake on a stick, ale, hard cider... and mead! We had a great drink called a Bee Sting which was half mead and half hard cider and aside from the few bees that followed us around a bit (*shudder*). We saw Hack n Slash, my favorite comedy duo, perform as well as some very good jousting. Fun times!

Yesterday I had my first bout of PT (Physical Therapy that is, not what my hsuband does a couple times a week!). It was pretty good. We spent most of the time figuring out what I needed and how my back was, I got some exercises to work on my flexibility and proper ways to sit and stand and walk... re-learning to posture yourself is not fun at all. My back was so tense it was actually making my left leg shorter than my right one! So my therapist had to shake me a little loose. Some of my "homework" stretches I actually have done before in yoga or Alexander Technique so they should not be too hard. I just need to make time and do them. I have appointments twice a week starting officially in November so fingers crossed!

After I went to David's Bridal and my wonderful husband helped me pick out a dress for the ball... what do you think?



I wore a blue dress when we went two years ago (and when I went three years ago with my Poppy I wore a black one) so I figured now would be a good time for a red dress! It arrives 10/21 so if I do need it altered (Ryan said it should be taken in, I said it was fine!) I have some time... but not a DB! Because it was less than 30 days to the even they charged me a "rush" fee of $30. Lame. Luckily the dresses are usually cheap enough to work it out. I'd rather order online next time and not worry about that at all, but I am so hard to fit I needed to get my size in the store first. I love that this dress is an illusion halter, but it covers up my chest enough so I am not inappropriate. It fit me very well and I am not gonna lie, when I was in there I was having major wedding dress shopping flashbacks. I was so tempted to ask for mine and try it on but I knew Ryan would think I am a little crazy! But it was in there somewhere (:

After work today I am heading to the Design Run of the Magic Flute I am the Production Stage Manager for... wish me luck! It is going to be a long night. I am praying I can get home and in bed before midnight, but since the run is til 11 I doubt I will...

(Note to self: Stop using ellipses (...) so much!