My Tech Week Essentials

Tech week can be a long process...especially in tech heavy shows with lots of moving parts (like the Secret Garden).  Lots of late nights mean our dressing rooms have to be filled with things that make us feel good.  Here are my tech week essentials that you'll always find in my dressing room.

Alka Seltzer Plus Tablets -for staying healthy, and keeping colds at bay among sick cast mates

Magazines - for reading during offstage time.

Emergen-C 

Mini Notebook - for jotting down blocking changes and director's notes.

Cheese Its - my current backstage snack.

Super Chill Sparkling Water - Keeps me hydrated backstage when I want a little flavor in costume.

Organic Throat Coat Tea - Soothes my throat after a long day of singing or when I'm feeling tired.

Silk Robe - for covering up during snack breaks or when wandering around in a corset and tights.

Vitamin Water Zero 

That's what's in my backstage bag on any given day.  What's in yours?

The Secret Garden Opens December 26th!

Purchase your tickets for the beautiful, haunting story of the Secret Garden.  "Part Victorian thriller, part enchanting love story."  It has one of the prettiest scores of music around and is sure to leave you feeling full of love...and a little teary eyed.  Secret Garden runs from December 26, 2011 through January 1, 2012 in Evanston, Illinois.

Understudying Mary Lennox

I've been understudying the role of Mary Lennox for my upcoming production of The Secret Garden and it has been fun and challenging to channel my inner ten year old.  Last night's rehearsal was an understudy work through and I had a surprising amount of fun romping about the stage as Mary.

Purchase tickets to the show here, opening night is 12/26/11

The Secret Garden

Music by Lucy Simon

Book & Lyrics by Marsha Norman

Photo credit: SecretGardenMusical.co.uk

A little preview of the show...Here's a recording of me singing Mary's act two opening song, "The Girl I Mean to Be" at a vocal coaching yesterday morning before rehearsal.

Secret Garden Character Inspiration

My character inspiration board for the dreamers of Secret Garden...ghosts of Victorian people who have died of cholera in British colonized India in the early 1900s.

"They are only a ghost if someone on earth is holding onto them."

Secret Garden Rehearsals Have Started!

Rehearsals for Secret Garden have started!  It's going to be a fabulous show, with a great concept and cool set.  We started with dialect, music rehearsals, and design presentations and had our first staging rehearsal the other day.  We're also rehearsing in the brand new Light Opera Works' Rehearsal Studio, which is lovely!  The sprung dance floor is the full size of the stage and the rooms are filled with props and photos from past productions.  Read more about the new space here.

Hello, Dolly! Photos

Better late than never...some photos from last year's winter production of Hello, Dolly! with Light Opera Works.  That's me on the right front in the light light green skirt and pink sash during the production number of "Dancing."

"Before the Parade Passes By," the end of act one production number that was preceded by the dance number above and a three minute quick change into a marching band uniform.  It was a great number that often received mid-song applause and ended with a high D6 for the sopranos.  I'm on the left in the second row of band members, the second person of Dolly's shoulder.

Photos by Ocken Photography

My Resume...Visualized

I read about this super cool website Visualize.me in a recent issue of Marie Claire.  You can create colorful visual resumes by linking to your Linked In account.  There are my professional credits laid out in graph from (from 2005-2011).  You can pick different formats and colors.  Kind of cool.