Post show... blues?

Film rehearsals started the day after the show closed.  Perfect, crazy, timing... and then, I went to the Hip Hip Dance Fest!  I know I've said this before, but I love the Hip Hop Dance Fest!  It is one of my favorite San Francisco shows!!!  I bought a ticket to the only performance of the weekend I could make. :)  ILL-Abilities almost had me in tears, but the Academy of Villains remains at the top of my list.  They, alone, were worth the price of admission.  CJ is not only an exceptional choreographer, he is a charismatic, creative, and inventive performer.  I HEART.

After the weekend, I ended up with a couple days to breathe and get my life back in order, and then Thanksgiving!  

Thanksgiving was spent with Maureen and Dave and their family up in San Rafael.  It was so nice to spend time with them and watch little Lily run around the house all day.  :) 

The show closed on a rainy San Francisco night last night to a small, appreciative crowd.  A perfect ending to great show... 

Twelfth Night

I'm sitting backstage near the end of show 3 of 7.  When this night is over, I'll have 3 days off in a row -- I can't wait!

The hardest part of theatre is going from work to show to sleep to work to show to sleep -- for what seems to be forever.  The weekends help a bit, but still don't feel like your own... It's a hard process -- though filled with so many things that I love.

:)

...and, I've found that place where I'm proud of the work I've done. 

A time to eat

One new variable in your routine can change everything.

I've recently added three.  Big ones.  I've already mentioned them.

The boy. 
The play. 
The film.

All of these things require my heart, my undivided attention, complete vulnerability, and significant amounts of time....

First of all, it's a drastic shift to go from singledom to boyfriendland.  The process is invigorating and challenging, and this particular relationship makes me feel like I'm in a perpetual state of shock.  ...but, in a good way.  :)

The play has been a process, but we're getting there.  It's now in nightly rehearsals, which will lead us straight into tech week, and then it opens for a two week run.  I've finally invited people to come, but I'm very nervous about it.

Once the show is over, I jump straight into film rehearsals.  I'm exited about the film, but I'm not really sure what to expect from it.

I just canceled EIGHT for December because I already feel in way over my head...

...and, I'm really missing some of my friends that I never really see enough of to begin with....  

A fairytale

It was a magically perfect October day in the mountains of Colorado... The sun was out, the skies were impossibly blue, and my brother and his soon-to-be wife gathered the most generous and loving group of people together to witness their commitment and dedication to one another. 

Todd wanted to find the perfect girl and, with his standards, it was no easy feat... but, it was well worth the wait because he found her.  :)

Here's to wishes for a happily ever after! 

A Lovely Day

I've been meaning to write about a documentary I saw with Maureen and Aatman called A Lovely Day, but I can't seem to find the right words to describe it. It's about these Oakland kids and, after living in Oakland for as long as I have, I've found that there are some things you just have to experience to really understand.  The film seemed to capture that somehow.  

The director of photography was a guy I used to live with back in my West Oakland/Dogtown days.

The golden hour

Home for Todd's wedding! 

It's been a year and a half since I've been home, and I somehow forgot how clear the skies were at night. 

How could I forget so many stars....?

You look like a rabbit

my version:  

After eating a gourmet style burger, Aatman sat across from me slumped slightly in his chair with his elbow resting on the table.  He peered at me over the ruins of our meal as he chomped on a big piece of lettuce that was used as garnish for his burger....

Me:  "You look like a rabbit."

Aatman:  ...  "YOU look like a rabbit." 

his edits: 

After eating a gourmet style burger, Aatman sat across from me slumped slightly in his chair with his elbow resting on the table. In a somewhat pensive mood, he inadvertently picked up a piece of lettuce used as garnish and gnawed insipidly at it while waiting for the check.

Me: "You look like a rabbit."

He snapped out of his trance and peered quizzically at me over the ruins of our meal at what had seemed to be a discordant characterization.

Aatman: "... YOU look like a rabbit."


*heart*

By the bay

Taking a break by the bay to enjoy the gorgeous weather....

I'm sitting on the pier by the stadium and there are a couple of half naked guys in a boat next to me blasting Don't Stop Believing.  Of course.

I was just offered the starring role in a paid short film project where I'll play an FBI agent.  This time I get to do some good fighting on screen.  I'm pretty excited about it.  We'll shoot the film after the first of the year. 

I'm also presently working on a theatre production of the Twelfth Night that will go up in November. 

I'm starting to think I should skip the December installment of 8 and start again in February.... hmmmmm.  We'll see. 

Things that make me laugh uncontrollably, part 1

I was sitting by a fire in the woods with my church youth group and someone decided we should tell scary stories.... I hate scary stories, so I plugged my ears so I wouldn't have to hear them.  Matthew got up and started going on and on about the Silver Fox -- which, supposedly, was a fox that roamed the woods and killed kids, or something like that...  All of a sudden, everyone jumped up and ran to the other side of the fire except me and my friend Lance.  They were laughing and pointing, and when I unplugged my ears they said, "Lance farted really loud and you couldn't hear it because your ears were plugged!!!!"  

Down the rabbit hole.

Sometimes, you have to follow the rabbit to see the woods.

... or something like that ...


I'm guessing you've gathered that I have a boyfriend.

I would like you to know that he is amazing, and that I feel very lucky. :) ...even though the whole thing kind of twists my brain up...

Rebecca's birthday

Rebecca was the first friend I made when I moved to the Bay Area.  We went for a burrito for lunch one day, and have been friends ever since.  Saturday was her 40th birthday.  She had the kind of gathering that reminds me of why I can't seem to leave this place -- lots of music, and lots of genuine, creative, and fun-loving people...  :)

EIGHT (take 4)

September 8th.

Gabriella Arroyo and Ronitte Libedinsky
Christian Cagigal
Lisa Hyde
Carolina Duncan
Meredith Clark
Stephen Ku and Dash Kwiatkowski
Enormvs Muñoz
Matthew Solberg

Rob managed the sound, Carl ran the house, Aatman worked the door, and Dan and Luis shook up the bar... 

This was my first sold out show. 

The crowd was fantastic. 

The lineup was excellent, and in the prefect order. 

I learned that the sound equipment should be checked thoroughly before the show, putting a harp in the middle of a crowd is an excellent idea, and no one will know you have a live chicken in the house until it's held in front of a naked man to cover his... um, stuff. 

You woke up

I'm feeling really grateful right now for: my family, my health, and my incredible friends --

for all of the talented and inspiring people in my life...

for love, for laughter...

...and, for reminders to not take any of it for granted...