WHO KILLED THE DEAD RODENT?

[Jrand62]

Heading for chat...hang on Danise!

[bk]

Chat in a mere two minutes, or just come on in now.

[Jrand62]

Page Seven Dance!  

[bk]

Where in tarnation IS everyone?

[Jane]

Danise, no rush.  Sleep well.

[Jane]

Have a nice chat.  Goodnight.

[Danise]

Thanks Jane.  I can't get into chat.  The computer is acting strange.  Even as I type this it's acting funny.  

[td]

Chat is open and engaging!

picked out DRACULA HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE to watch whilst I chat. . .I think that Christopher Lee may get a lot more of my attention. . . .

[Danise]

My computer must be as tired as I am.   I don't know if it's my computer or the board or the net or what but I can't get past the java loading screen and I'm to tired to fight with it.  You guys have a nice chat.

Goodnight.

[bk]

We are merrily chatting away.

[George]

I just left, but it's not too late to join the chat!!

[td]

Quite active chat tonight. . .tarzan in manhattan. . .tarzan in fairyland. . .really a swingin' affair!

[Tomovoz]

A big hello to DR Jose from his friends in OZ.

[elmore3003]

Michael Shayne I have to go to L.A. but why anyone would want to spend their vacation there is beyond me, unless it is to see people.  On that note, who wants to meet us for breakfast at Du-Par’s?

I do!  I do!  Oh, hell!  I'm in New York!  I love Du-Par's!  Just back from the rehearsal.  Sorry I missed Chat! I'm catching up on the posts now.

[bk]

I will be there for breakfast whenever you say.

[Matt H.]

DR td wrote: "I held off on the original titles, for I had heard gossip a while ago that Warner would indeed be putting them in a box.
( "Put it in a box, tie it with a ribbon and toss it in the deep blue sea." - I know that some dear reader will recognize those lyrics immediately)."

Of course, it's one of Doris Day's hit tunes from her screen debut in ROMANCE ON THE HIGH SEAS. I think it's "throw it in the deep blue sea," isn't it?

[Emily]

I just ran into chat and no one was there.  I guess that's what I get for the dead rodent ghost thingamabobber

Jane - the winter term of school ends in early April with exams stretching until Wednesday at the latest.  For most people, summer starts then - but I'm taking two month long intensive summer classes in May and June, so my "official" summer only starts in July.

Oh well... three whole days of freedom.  Of course it also hasn't broken 20 degrees Celcius yet - so at least it won't feel like I'm missing out on summer.  

[elmore3003]

DR WEL: Update: Annie Get Your Gun is the 1999 version. Our promotion/booking booklet arrived in today's mail.

DR Tom, you'll be hearing my orchestration!  It's a loooonnnggg story!

[Tomovoz]

Actually I won't be hearing your orchestrations - I will be in France at the time. C'est La Vie.
I will get to "Carousel" which is in August but will not suffer through anyone producing "High Society" on stage - once was more than enough. Annie will have to get her gun without me. I have not seen a stage production of AGYG and still have not seen the movie since its first release.

[JoseSPiano]

Good Evening!

First of all, thanks to all those in chat tonight for the very warm welcome back.  -And for those of you who weren't in chat when I was...

In short, it's been a rough two weeks.  My "allergy crap" turned out to be two(!) bacterial infections - one in my throat and one in my sinuses.  Thankfully, my doctors really ran the gamut of tests on me, and started me on the road to recovery.  There's been a virulent strain of strep throat going around lately, and, at first, that's what they thought it was, but after running various tests and checking out all the various possibilities, they finally put their collective finger on my particular malady.

After all is said and done, I am doing much, much better now.  The biggest thing I had to deal with was the side effect of the antibiotics - I developed a very upset stomach, and, consequently, acid reflux - which is something I've never had before.  So, now that my antibiotics are "all gone", I'm now on Prevacid to help remedy the acid reflux, and it seems to be working like a charm.  It's sooo nice to sleep through the night without waking up every 30 minutes coughing up a storm.  *I swear there was a stretch of four days/nights where I only got about 10 hours of sleep total.  -And, trust me, that made playing the show quite interesting - even when Mr. Schwartz came to see the show!

-And, looking back at the past two weeks, I was actually kind of pitiable... I basically would wake up in time to get to the show - and to eat - well, try to eat (my throat was really sensitive for a while) - get to the theatre, play the show, and head back to the apartment and try to sleep.  There were a few times I wanted to call in, but since I don't have a sub...  YES!  I'm a trouper!    Thankfully, the staff at the theatre was very understanding, and made me as comfortable as I could be when needed.  -And I have to say Ford's Theatre has one of the most comfortable "Equity cots" around - just perfect for those for in-between shows naps.

Oh! One "pleasant" side effect of the past two weeks is that I lost 16 pounds in about 11 days!  My doc tells me that I should "Eat, Eat, Eat", and put back on the weight I lost, but, hmmm....  She even suggested that I eat lots of ice cream!  The full-fat stuff too! ;-)  We'll see... In the meantime, I'm enjoying fitting back into my "skinny jeans" again.  *It actually caught me off guard... I weighed myself last week, and noticed that I had lost a lot of weight in a short time... I thought it was my scale malfunctioning, but when I went back to the docs last Friday, sure enough, I had dropped all that weight.  -And after thinking about it, I did try to eat at least three to four times a day while I was sick-sick... but when you only eat about 200-300 calories each time, it doesn't really add up... well, at least not to my normal caloric intake.

Now I just have to introduce foods back into my diet at a "cautious" pace just in case I've ended up becoming sensitive to some foods, spices, etc.  I have tried some "bad" food here and there, and so far, so good.  Hopefully, once my system gets used to NOT producing so much acid - especially since I'm no longer on the antibiotics - I should be able to eat "normally".  But I will be playing it safe in the meantime, mainly to not to aggravate my throat which is still a bit "tender".

Too much information?

-Oh, and there were the couple of days in there where they thought I had contracted Lyme disease... ugh...  Needless to say, that weighed heavily on my mind and psyche in general.

So...

As for spy movies... Never really much of a fan of them... I like the Bond movies, but I never really watched any of them closely enough to tell you which one is which.  However, I, too, love (most of) the theme songs, and there's still nothing like the sight of Sean Connery in his bathing trunks.  Truly the best looking Bond without his shirt on.

OK - Well, I think this was long enough of a first-time-back-in-a-while ramble, but...

DR Jed - Sorry your production of EDEN is not going so well.  I'm still liking mine.  -And till June 4...

As for Broadway caliber talent...  There are sooo many people out there.  Deserving and (possibly) undeserving.  I play about 1500-2000 auditions a year - regional theatre, tours, and Broadway productions.  Most everyone who comes in the room has a chance, but it's that "something" that attracts the eye/ear/heart/other-body-part of the director/casting director/choreographer/musical director/producer that gets that person the job.  Yes, stunt-casting does abound nowadays - but I don't think stunt-casting is something new, is it?  -However, I do have to wonder about Scary Spice stepping into Mimi in Rent?  Does anyone really care any more?  (And from all reports, she is majorly vocally handicapped for the role... but I guess with half of the audience singing along anyway... ) -Sheesh, I guess my meds made me catty too...

-I just wish there were more shows running at the same time so that more people could get work.  Heck, even in the "regions" the competition can get quite tough at times.

And as for people not learning how to project...  Blame it on their teachers!  I'd rather have a student start off with a good classical teacher to learn some good technique and vocal habits, rather than having them be coached and finessed to death throughout their training - which, unfortunately, happens.

OK - Now I am rambling... I guess I'm more back to "normal" than I think I am...

I missed you guys!

[bk]

And one for Mahler.  Welcome back Jose!

[Panni]

Great to have you back, Jose! Missed you! hope you're totally well REALLY soon.

[elmore3003]

No, STAR! is about Julie singing and dancing, Gertie sure as hell didn't have the sustained high note in "The Saga of Jenny!"

Of course STAR! was about Julie Andrews; I'm smart enough to realize that.  It's equally clear from the FUNNY GIRL Broadway gestation period that the show became more about La Streisand than Fanny Brice, and since the producer was Miss Brice's son-in-law, the show wasn't going too deep into all the facts.  I suspect there was some equal fiddling with FIORELLO's accuracy; for one reason, real life is never as tidy as drama.   Noel Coward seemed to have no problem about his godson portraying him, but Bea Lillie clearly was a problem.

Several of the numbers in STAR! are tied to their stage origins like the rag doll in OH, KAY!'s "Someone to Watch Over Me," and "The Physician" looks a bit like its London staging.  While I like a lot of the production numbers in STAR!,  I find  "The Saga of Jenny" hyperventilated, over-inflated, and gaudy.  I'm glad you and DR MattH like the number; I loathe everything about it.  Chacun a son gout.

As far as Gertie's "limited" range, she ends her recording of "The Saga of Jenny" with a sustained high C.  She was never a great singer, but. like Helen Morgan, she was a light soprano, and I suspect a lot of her bad rep comes from THE KING AND I, Rodgers' bio, and the fact that she was dying from cancer.
Julie's highest note in STAR! is probably at the end of "The Physician," and I haven't checked the pitch.  The highest notes I've heard from her elsewhere are her high B-flats in "Poor Little Pierrot" on the OBC of THE BOY FRIEND, but she seems happier ending on a high G or F-sharp in "I Could Have Danced All Night" and "The Simple Joys of Maidenhood."

[elmore3003]

Jose!  Welcome back!  Sorry I missed you at chat.

[bk]

We haz slowed to a crawl.  I've got Dead Rodents here - posts are all I've got to make the smell bearable.  

[bk]

Sad to be all alone in the world with a Dead Rodent.

I see Pogue but does Pogue see me?

[Jrand62]

I see you.

Four Horsemen is starting up!  In letterbox!

[Panni]

I was reading a manuscript and fell asleep. Ooops (spoo). Now I'm awake, but not in the mood to read a manuscript.

[Panni]

...And now I'm thinking I'm going to try and go to sleep early tonight. Here's one more to help ease us toward the big 4-0.
G'night!

[Jed]

Glad to hear your CoE production is going well, Jose!  As for ours... well... I thought I'd experienced ugly tech rehearsals, but I had no idea.  Ended up starting over an hour late, and then Act I ran damn near 3 hours!!!  Since this is a high school production (with a few middle school chorus members and elementary school animals), the director just called it a night, without getting to Act II at all.  Ugh.  And this thing is supposed to open on Thursday?!?  I see looooooooong nights in my near future.