recent developments

Hi y'all,

Well, it's been a week since the last blog, but I have a few updates!

First of all, I'm happy to announce that I'll be working Hair for the new musical, Limelight, premiering at La Jolla Playhouse! It's going to be a HUUUGE show...stay tuned for updates lol. This means I'm employed til October - hooray! Which means more money for the big move...things are lookin' up :)

Camp is going well...we've finished blocking our show (Pinocchio), and now just have to really start to nail down the run throughs. The kids are all doing a really great job...well, most of them. Sometimes 7 and 8 year olds can be such...well, 7 and 8 year olds. The show goes up a on Wednesday....it's actually gone by really quickly! I'm so grateful that the wonderful Sami took on camp with me...the first year is for sure the roughest...but she's been AMAZING. What would I do without her?? Who knows. Probably be a lot more stressed than I am. A week from right now we will be SO SO HAPPY. The show will be over, the kids will be happy, the parents will be thrilled, and I will get to sleep in. YESSSS :)

Going back to LJP, Midsummer is going well! The show has gotten down to routine at this point, which is awesome. Basically it means I can function on autopilot a little bit from 6ish til midnight. Learning to conserve energy is a faaabulous skill.

In other news, I'm getting antsy...it's been a while since I've performed/auditioned, and I'm really missing it. A lot. I've been looking at the audition postings on AEA and backstage and actors access, and it's a little bit torturous because I can't do a show until after Limelight, so I can't really go on any auditions at the moment unless it's stuff that starts after October. It's just an exercise in trust, really...there will be more auditions when I'm done at the Playhouse, and then I'll be moving to NY and there will be plenty of opportunities out there.

Patience patience patience.

Trust trust trust.

OH!! ALSO, this week, Proposition 8 was declared unconstitutional. HUGE DEAL! I found out at the end of camp and was SO happy. I just feel like love is love is love....if two people love each other, they deserve to be able to celebrate that love, whether it is hetero or homosexual. When Prop 8 passed last election, I said that I vowed not to get married until it was legal for my friends to get married regardless of sexual preference. Not like I have any prospects, but it was the principle of the thing...if my gay friends couldn't get married, it wasn't fair for me to be able to just because I happen to be straight.

Anyway, it's a small victory, but I'm sure the war is far from over. For now, though, I'm proud to be a (current) Californian.

love, love, LOVE.

A sensible Wednesday blog

Well, I'm working 15 hour days. Yep. You heard me...generally speaking, my current schedule is...

Monday:

8am-4pm: Camp Counselor

Tuesday through Friday:

8am-4pm: Camp Counselor Extraordinaire

5, 6:30(ish)- midnight: Wig Mistress at La Jolla Playhouse for Midsummer Night's Dream

Saturday, Sunday:

11am(ish)-midnight(ish): two shows at the Playhouse!

The good news? I'm making bank...I'll have enough to afford moving to NY if I'm smart about my money after all this! :) And I'm definitely not bored.

The bad news? I'm exhausted. Waking up in the morning is the hardest part...once I get going, I'm alright, but getting started is awwwwful. And, I don't really have time to do fun things. Well, these are fun things, sort of, as long as I don't think of it as "work."

I am so grateful, though. Let's be real...finding ONE job nowadays is rough, and I've come across two well-paying jobs that don't involve sitting at a desk. I get to run around and teach kids about theatre, then come work in one of the best regional theatres in SD. I'm spending time around kids and artists...so I can't complain. And I get to be (sort of) artistic at the Playhouse...getting these weaves under control is for sure a new skill for me. It's my second time working with wigs, and I'm running a whole show myself! Sort of a big deal :) lol.

The wonderful Michael comes in everyday and does allllll of the maintenance (and believe me, for this show, there's a LOT of maintenance to be done). I come in an hour before curtain and make the last few wigs pretty, then start putting the lead wigs on at half hour. Then I run the show and do a few quick changes. At the end of the show, I get to put all the wigs back on their heads, then go home and tumble into bed.

Lather, rinse, repeat. For the next 3 weeks.

I do get a few days off, though...when Erick or Michael can cover for me...yesterday, for instance! I got the whole day off to go to Val and Geoff's beautiful wedding! It was essentially a MET reunion...so many wonderful people that I haven't seen in FOREVER. It made me miss being able to play in Neverland with these kids.

the (in)famous stefamatina

at the beach after the ceremony!

the gang with the happy couple!

Seth made this AMAZING cake!!

Val and Geoff are two of the most wonderful people in the world. I was humbled when they asked me to sing their song at their ceremony ("Always" by Atlantic Starr), and "I'll Cover You (Reprise)" with two of our friends, Egbert and Michael. It was a blast, and I'm glad I was able to be a part of their special day! I wish them a beautiful marriage and a bright, happy future!

The wedding was also amazing because I was reunited with some of the best people in the world. I guess it was one of those "you don't realize how much you miss it until you don't have it" things...I didn't realize how much I missed being with everyone until I was back together with them. It'd been almost 10 months since I'd seen Ash and Seth...NOT ok. I don't even remember the last time I had seen Ryan, either. It made me so happy to see them again, and to get the Walnuts back in the same room...or at least most of us :). It's nice to know, though, that no matter how far we roam, we'll always be able to jump back into each other's lives.

This very moment, I'm sitting in Starbucks in La Jolla, relaxing for a moment between camp and the show. Only 2 and a half more weeks to go...

starbucks in one hand, hairpins in the other, I'm conquering this summer!

remember: love, love, LOVE.