Today, sweet Adam Sanders and I taped a radio interview for Magic 98.9, a local radio station.
Our hostess/interviewer was Monnie Whitson. She was a scream! Loved meeting her, and she really showcased our Company with great questions and her own spin on what we're doing.
Very enjoyable.
Adam is Danny Zuko and Monnie made him sing, off the cuff, acapela, and he was great. He's just a joy to work with in any circumstances.
Last night I found Funny Girl on Television and if you know me, well, you know that if I find one of "my" movies on television, I consider it a personal gift from the Universe so I was elated, and I took it as a good omen.
We're taking F.G. rehearsals rather slowly for the next couple of weeks in anticipation of the opening of Grease on February 13th.
I'm looking more and more forward to seeing these kids strut their stuff.
We are really doing something in Fountain Inn!
Jan 26, 2009
Jan 21, 2009
A Brand New Day
Apropo of nothing having to do with Funny Girl, I must talk about Barack Obama.
I voted for Barack. It is the first campaign in my 43 years on this earth that I actually worked for. I made phone calls on behalf of our new President. That fills me with pride because I feel like I'm a part of something big.
Now....many people whom I love do not agree with my opinion about the state of our union.
I understand. No one needs to agree with me. My last President wasn't that popular among my friends either, but I loved him and I still do.
I am proud to be an American today. I am proud that we have overcome the racial divide to elect the most qualified candidate.
President Barack Obama has the potential to change the world. He has already changed our country.
I kept my children home to watch the day unfold. The greatness of a country with a seamless transition of power. As George W. Bush boarded the helicopter to depart our Capital, I felt the lump in my throat as I wished him a silent farewell, and Godspeed. He served our country to the best of his ability. He wasn't the leader I would have chosen, but he was our leader.
He managed to squander an enormous amount of goodwill, worldwide in the months and years following 9/11/01.
President Obama is faced with the same challenge. The world is watching. He has this unprecedented opportunity to lead this Country out of the current darkness and into a brand new day. The moment was one that I will never forget and I'm happy that Regan, Lucas and Rosey were here with me as he was sworn in. They really didn't care that much, but in ten years, when they're grown up they will remember being in their pajamas with me in the family room at 420 Rochester Road, Easley South Carolina when their Mother's guy was sworn in.
Mommy has a President again.
And anyone who knows me, knows that I eventually meet my President and Barack has no idea that I'm in his future~
I voted for Barack. It is the first campaign in my 43 years on this earth that I actually worked for. I made phone calls on behalf of our new President. That fills me with pride because I feel like I'm a part of something big.
Now....many people whom I love do not agree with my opinion about the state of our union.
I understand. No one needs to agree with me. My last President wasn't that popular among my friends either, but I loved him and I still do.
I am proud to be an American today. I am proud that we have overcome the racial divide to elect the most qualified candidate.
President Barack Obama has the potential to change the world. He has already changed our country.
I kept my children home to watch the day unfold. The greatness of a country with a seamless transition of power. As George W. Bush boarded the helicopter to depart our Capital, I felt the lump in my throat as I wished him a silent farewell, and Godspeed. He served our country to the best of his ability. He wasn't the leader I would have chosen, but he was our leader.
He managed to squander an enormous amount of goodwill, worldwide in the months and years following 9/11/01.
President Obama is faced with the same challenge. The world is watching. He has this unprecedented opportunity to lead this Country out of the current darkness and into a brand new day. The moment was one that I will never forget and I'm happy that Regan, Lucas and Rosey were here with me as he was sworn in. They really didn't care that much, but in ten years, when they're grown up they will remember being in their pajamas with me in the family room at 420 Rochester Road, Easley South Carolina when their Mother's guy was sworn in.
Mommy has a President again.
And anyone who knows me, knows that I eventually meet my President and Barack has no idea that I'm in his future~
Jan 14, 2009
One vocal reherasal down!
Okay, so I'm not really a "singer"...I don't read "music" and I don't really hear "notes."..how can that be, you ask? No answer.
I sang professionally for several years and was fortunate to have musicians who appreciated the way I sound when I sing and audiences that could also take it.
As for theatre, I stayed away from musical theatre because of the tendency of music directors to be a little too academic about something that, to me, is very organic. That being said, I love Gwen Starling. She enjoys the sound that I make, even when it isn't the note that she sees on the page.
She is exactly the musical director that I need.
Then there is the actual role of Fanny Brice. The only person I really have to sing with is the lovely and talented John Brigham, who is the Nicky Arnstein of my dreams. Win/Win for me.
John wants to sound good, so he's willing to help me hear what I don't hear naturally and I think he's sure that we'll get it right, by March.
Fanny is pretty much a solo act. Is that why I've always wanted to play that part? Probably.
I, too, am a "bagel on a plate of onion rolls" when it comes to musical theatre. I am perfectly at home on the stage, on my own terms.
I love a microphone, no that's not hyperbole, I actually love two microphones, and I have the pouch that I carry them in to prove it. Just ask anyone who has ever had to perform with me.
I love the light. I close my eyes, and I'm going to have to stop doing that, but I feel what I'm singing and it doesn't always lend it's self to looking at anything, except the image of the song as I "feel" it. I really do feel it.
So, off I go. This is going to be an adventure for everyone who knows what they're doing and asks themselves, how did she get cast in this role? She doesn't even read music!
Some things just go together. Fanny Brice and the Spotlight, Me and the dream of playing Fanny Brice. It's something I've been waiting my whole life to do, and I don't even know if I knew I was waiting until one day when I sat down with that Anita Sleeman character and started talking about what we would do "if we had a theatre". We would do Funny Girl. It went on our list and now we do have a theatre so that's the way that went down!
I will be musically directed, and dramatically directed and I will find Fanny Brice and I will lay her out on the stage in Fountain Inn.
She will be okay in my loving care, I promise.
I sang professionally for several years and was fortunate to have musicians who appreciated the way I sound when I sing and audiences that could also take it.
As for theatre, I stayed away from musical theatre because of the tendency of music directors to be a little too academic about something that, to me, is very organic. That being said, I love Gwen Starling. She enjoys the sound that I make, even when it isn't the note that she sees on the page.
She is exactly the musical director that I need.
Then there is the actual role of Fanny Brice. The only person I really have to sing with is the lovely and talented John Brigham, who is the Nicky Arnstein of my dreams. Win/Win for me.
John wants to sound good, so he's willing to help me hear what I don't hear naturally and I think he's sure that we'll get it right, by March.
Fanny is pretty much a solo act. Is that why I've always wanted to play that part? Probably.
I, too, am a "bagel on a plate of onion rolls" when it comes to musical theatre. I am perfectly at home on the stage, on my own terms.
I love a microphone, no that's not hyperbole, I actually love two microphones, and I have the pouch that I carry them in to prove it. Just ask anyone who has ever had to perform with me.
I love the light. I close my eyes, and I'm going to have to stop doing that, but I feel what I'm singing and it doesn't always lend it's self to looking at anything, except the image of the song as I "feel" it. I really do feel it.
So, off I go. This is going to be an adventure for everyone who knows what they're doing and asks themselves, how did she get cast in this role? She doesn't even read music!
Some things just go together. Fanny Brice and the Spotlight, Me and the dream of playing Fanny Brice. It's something I've been waiting my whole life to do, and I don't even know if I knew I was waiting until one day when I sat down with that Anita Sleeman character and started talking about what we would do "if we had a theatre". We would do Funny Girl. It went on our list and now we do have a theatre so that's the way that went down!
I will be musically directed, and dramatically directed and I will find Fanny Brice and I will lay her out on the stage in Fountain Inn.
She will be okay in my loving care, I promise.
Jan 11, 2009
Just when you think you're doing something...
you hear the words, tumor...surgery...pathology...and they're not referring to you, they're referring to your four year old treasure named Rosey. Of course those of you who know me, know that I've already heard those words and I dealt with them on the condition that I didn't have to watch my children suffer. What happened to the deal I struck???
My youngest daughter Rosemary had a tumor removed from her belly on Tuesday. By all accounts, it was as big as a coconut. That defies logic, but it's true.
The final pathology wasn't what David and I were hoping for so follow up with Hematology/Oncologists are on the schedule for Wednesday this week.
The latest pact between my husband and I is that we can not look at each other and say "Can you believe this?" any more than once an hour and we must take turns saying it, because it's not fair for only one of us to get to say it every hour.
As we learned back when I had Cancer is that life does go on. You might not know what's around the corner, but life is certainly going on.
We'll be okay, because that's the family that we are. We have support from friends that is undeserved and yet never wavers, so we'll continue to sneak by on the belief that everything will be okay, because we've never been proven wrong in that belief.
Another story to tell about the year that I was Fanny Brice will be the story of the coconut tumor in Rosey's belly and how we kicked the butt of anything that reared it's ugly head in our world. That's what we do.
Thanks to all of you who help us do it.
My youngest daughter Rosemary had a tumor removed from her belly on Tuesday. By all accounts, it was as big as a coconut. That defies logic, but it's true.
The final pathology wasn't what David and I were hoping for so follow up with Hematology/Oncologists are on the schedule for Wednesday this week.
The latest pact between my husband and I is that we can not look at each other and say "Can you believe this?" any more than once an hour and we must take turns saying it, because it's not fair for only one of us to get to say it every hour.
As we learned back when I had Cancer is that life does go on. You might not know what's around the corner, but life is certainly going on.
We'll be okay, because that's the family that we are. We have support from friends that is undeserved and yet never wavers, so we'll continue to sneak by on the belief that everything will be okay, because we've never been proven wrong in that belief.
Another story to tell about the year that I was Fanny Brice will be the story of the coconut tumor in Rosey's belly and how we kicked the butt of anything that reared it's ugly head in our world. That's what we do.
Thanks to all of you who help us do it.
Jan 4, 2009
" I hope you will have a wonderful year, that you'll dream dangerously and outrageously, that you'll make something that didn't exist before you made it, that you will be loved and that you will be liked, and that you will have people to love and to like in return. And, most importantly (because I think there should be more kindness and more wisdom in the world right now), that you will, when you need to be, be wise, and that you will always be kind"~ Neil Gaiman
Okay, so I'm quote happy!
I'll stop once rehearsals start and I have something else to post about. In the meantime, read these words and tell me that they don't start you thinking.
Tomorrow we read thru the script of Funny Girl...I really do have some nerve!
Okay, so I'm quote happy!
I'll stop once rehearsals start and I have something else to post about. In the meantime, read these words and tell me that they don't start you thinking.
Tomorrow we read thru the script of Funny Girl...I really do have some nerve!
Jan 3, 2009
I totally stole this quote from a Blog that I regularly read but I always steal quotes. I credit them to whomever they're attributed to, but I collect them. I'll be sharing a lot of quotes.
" Language does have the power to change reality. Therefore, treat your words as the mighty instruments they are - to heal, to bring into being, to remove, as if by magic, the terrible violations of childhood, to nurture, to cherish, to bless, to forgive - to create from the whole cloth of your soul, true love." ~ Daphne Rose Kingman
I intend to be more impeccable with my words this year. They're powerful. I see the way they affect my children. They listen to me. Sometimes what I say isn't worthy of their attention, yet they listen. They don't always obey, but they listen.
What does this have to do with me being in Funny Girl? (I know that's what you're thinking.)
It has everything to do with being in Theatre and treating each other with kindness and love.
A loving environment makes for a safe place to explore what you're really capable of.
Theatre people aren't known for treating each other kindly, and that is something I'd like to see change.
" Language does have the power to change reality. Therefore, treat your words as the mighty instruments they are - to heal, to bring into being, to remove, as if by magic, the terrible violations of childhood, to nurture, to cherish, to bless, to forgive - to create from the whole cloth of your soul, true love." ~ Daphne Rose Kingman
I intend to be more impeccable with my words this year. They're powerful. I see the way they affect my children. They listen to me. Sometimes what I say isn't worthy of their attention, yet they listen. They don't always obey, but they listen.
What does this have to do with me being in Funny Girl? (I know that's what you're thinking.)
It has everything to do with being in Theatre and treating each other with kindness and love.
A loving environment makes for a safe place to explore what you're really capable of.
Theatre people aren't known for treating each other kindly, and that is something I'd like to see change.
Jan 2, 2009
She's really doing what, you ask? She's really going to portray Fanny Brice in Funny Girl...
Who cares if she's way to old or that she talks about herself in the third person...
I just stopped doing that, by the way.
So I've been considering a Blog, and this is a story that I think I'll have fun telling, so here we go.
Follow my adventure as I play the only role I've ever really dreamed of playing.
I'll begin rehearsal with a read-thru on Monday night, January 5th, then it is off to the races.
I should probably tell you a little bit about how this came about.
I belong to a Repertory Acting Company in Fountain Inn, South Carolina. I am also the Resident Production Assistant and Business Manager for our organization.
Because of the devotion of my friend and mentor, Anita Sleeman(Executive Artistic Director) when we started F.I.R.E. (Fountain Inn Repertory Experience) she chose Funny Girl for our Premiere Season, partly to shut me up and partly to make an old ladies dream come true. Theatre People are all about that kind of stuff. So, the decision was made and I have this script and now I have the orchestra book, and I guess that I'm really going to go through with this.
I know most of my cast mates and I love them. We are a group of crazies that have become a family in the past eight months during our productions of High School Musical 2, Godspell, Zombie Prom and Christmas by the F.I.R.E. Funny Girl will be presented in March...Forty Five Years to the Day that it opened on Broadway with Ms. Streisand in the Title Role. That's to the day if you count that it's the same Friday in March...the acutal Calendar date is off by one digit.
I added that bit of info because I know that there are Streisand fans that know the actual date and would say I lied, I didn't lie, I'm just looking at the Friday angle because it makes a better story.
This is the inaugural post of this blog. I chose today because it's January 2nd and I wanted to Blog this year and I'm doing it. (One resolution down!)
I hope you'll read on if you're interested in how a production like this comes together and what it's like to be the person who has an opportunity to make a dream come true.
Blessed is what I am and I hope that the blessings extend to everyone who is associated with this show.
Who cares if she's way to old or that she talks about herself in the third person...
I just stopped doing that, by the way.
So I've been considering a Blog, and this is a story that I think I'll have fun telling, so here we go.
Follow my adventure as I play the only role I've ever really dreamed of playing.
I'll begin rehearsal with a read-thru on Monday night, January 5th, then it is off to the races.
I should probably tell you a little bit about how this came about.
I belong to a Repertory Acting Company in Fountain Inn, South Carolina. I am also the Resident Production Assistant and Business Manager for our organization.
Because of the devotion of my friend and mentor, Anita Sleeman(Executive Artistic Director) when we started F.I.R.E. (Fountain Inn Repertory Experience) she chose Funny Girl for our Premiere Season, partly to shut me up and partly to make an old ladies dream come true. Theatre People are all about that kind of stuff. So, the decision was made and I have this script and now I have the orchestra book, and I guess that I'm really going to go through with this.
I know most of my cast mates and I love them. We are a group of crazies that have become a family in the past eight months during our productions of High School Musical 2, Godspell, Zombie Prom and Christmas by the F.I.R.E. Funny Girl will be presented in March...Forty Five Years to the Day that it opened on Broadway with Ms. Streisand in the Title Role. That's to the day if you count that it's the same Friday in March...the acutal Calendar date is off by one digit.
I added that bit of info because I know that there are Streisand fans that know the actual date and would say I lied, I didn't lie, I'm just looking at the Friday angle because it makes a better story.
This is the inaugural post of this blog. I chose today because it's January 2nd and I wanted to Blog this year and I'm doing it. (One resolution down!)
I hope you'll read on if you're interested in how a production like this comes together and what it's like to be the person who has an opportunity to make a dream come true.
Blessed is what I am and I hope that the blessings extend to everyone who is associated with this show.
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