Recitals | Tech-Toy | Italy

RECITALS & CONCERTS

April was the month of recitals. I think I set a record this year—five recitals in one month! I started things off with Meghan Garvin’s senior recital at SLU, then Stephanie Ball’s Masters Recital for WashU a few days later. One particular Sunday, I did a 3-recital marathon: Joy Boland at Christ Church Cathedral, Tom Sitzler’s Masters Recital at WashU and Anthony Heinemann’s senior recital (for SLU) at Union Avenue. Capping off this month of recitals was a concert in Belleville with Christine Brewer and broadway singer Anna McNeely.

One highlight for me from each (though there were many of note):

- Meghan’s Frauenliebe und –Leben

- Stephanie’s Roussel set (with flute)

- Joy’s Puccini arias from Turandot

- Tom’s rendition of Hoiby’s “Last Letter Home”

- Anthony’s Tosti/Donaudy set

- Anna’s Broadway show selections (loved her “Broadway Baby”)

- Christine’s dramatic-soprano encores (which will be released on CD soon)

This month of recitals gives me an itch to audition for Artists’ Presentation Society next year. I have rep that I’d love to put out there…plus I’ve been plugging away at character Tenor rep for some time now. It’s time!

A little over a week after seeing Christine Brewer’s concert in Belleville, I had the opportunity to see her again in an all-Wagner concert with the Saint Louis Symphony. She performed the Liebestod as well as the final scene from Die Walküre with Alan Held (whom I remember from Salome in Chicago). The former was sublime; the latter makes me want to rediscover the Ring Cycle. It was a wonderful way to spend a Sunday afternoon!

THE NEW TOY

A couple weeks ago, I bought myself a new tech-toy. Usually when faced with the urge to splurge on a tech-toy, I second-guess the purchase until I spin myself out of the temptation. It’s a good habit that has spared me money woes. Not this time, though. I now own software and video/audio connections to convert my VHS tapes into DVD format. It’s mostly an effort to downsize and simplify my life, but also to preserve some of my treasures…including a live broadcast of The Light in the Piazza from PBS, the 1982 Pirates of Penzance movie (a box office disaster which will probably never be digitized), plus a bunch of college plays and musicals. I also promised my family I would make DVDs of my sister’s wedding and various family vacations. Bring on the awkward memories!!!

ITALY [!!!]

A month from now, I get on a plane for Italy. There is so much to do between now and then, I cannot even begin to say. However, I can say for sure that I have my plane ticket, hotel reservations in every city (even Venice, which costs an arm/leg), plus my Eurail pass. So that’s getting somewhere. Since church choir will be singing in three of the cities we visit (Rome, Assisi, Florence), we’re gearing up for that with rehearsals. The repertoire is a mix of sacred works (classical and renaissance period) and American spirituals—which Italians tend to enjoy greatly since that form is not part of their cultural/musical history. So far, I’ve heard that while in Rome, we’ll be singing in a service at a major Anglican Church which reportedly has a Sunday attendance second only to the Vatican!! (Funny how in the birthplace—more or less—of Catholicism, we’ll be singing somewhere non-Catholic.) Oh, and a certain traveler in our group will be turning the big THREE-OH while we’re in Rome. Can we say Birthday debauchery?!?!! More on Italy as it approaches.

2009: End of the Aughts

Well, another year has marched on by. Let’s take a look at what happened for me in 2009... I saw some great concerts with some heavyweight Broadway talents: Kristin Chenoweth, Mandy Patinkin and Patti LuPone! Also got to see some great operas, including Salome and Ghosts of Versailles at OTSL, plus a world premiere musical: Abe—which turned out to be quite entertaining (despite all the hype of its camp value). Got the opportunity to go to Italy (next year) with my church choir peeps. Best of all, I worked a LOT this year. My favorite gig? Merry Widow, because who wouldn’t love to sing German operetta in German??? Was great to work with Tim Ocel twice: first with Don Pasquale and secondly with Amahl and the Night Visitors—for which I got my first legit newspaper review. And as much as we had to say about O Pioneers!—for better or worse—there is something to be said about doing a new work and creating the first characterization of a role…and being heard on the radio for it wasn’t too shabby, neither!

Can you believe we’re about done with another decade?!? Remember how about 10 years ago this time, lots of people were freaking that computers were going to send us back to the stone age? Crazy that it’s been that long. Looking back, there were many highlights to the years of the Aughts—the decade of my twenties. Here’s a list of some highlights of each year:

2000 – The Pirates of Penzance | attending President Clinton’s speech in Quincy

2001 – spending Spring Break in cold Chicago | having the best. summer. job. EVER: MUNY Usher

2002 – Amos in Chicago | turning 21 | experiencing real-life sitcom living in Senior House with Mark, John and all those wacky guest stars (you know who you are!)

2003 – going on Franciscan Pilgrimage to Italy

2004 – conducting Gypsy | graduating from QU | becoming Uncle Phil to little William

2005 – having least stressful (and laziest) summer in recent memory

2006 – earning my Masters from WashU | seeing Voigt in Salome

2007 – birth of my niece, Grace | performing The Magic Flute | seeing Christine Brewer in Die Frau ohne Schatten…then missing the bus!

2008 – serving as Best Man at John and Hilda’s wedding | experiencing and obsessing over the Election

2009 – making Radio Broadcast Debut | singing quite often (and in this economy, that’s a blessing!)

Hope you have an enjoyable (and safe) New Year’s Eve. I’ll be enjoying a friend’s cabaret concert in midtown, then ringing in the new year in South City. Happy 2010!

Post-Christmas report

Christmas came and went. I found the actual day to be rather anti-climactic. It seems that as I get older, the actual day is not nearly as exciting as the events, gigs and get-togethers that build up to it. Maybe I’ve been emotionally numbed by the rotten December I’ve had. I really don’t know.

Christmas Day and its surrounding times weren’t all bad. I have plenty of happier things to dwell upon:

• Christmas Eve service at Union Avenue; singing “O Holy Night”
• The party at Scott & Anthony’s place
• Giving Snuggies™ to the niece & nephew and getting one from my sister
• Taking Mom to see Up in the Air; enjoying the film more for all the St. Louis landmarks than for the actual plot
• Splurging on an iPod (more on that later)
• Going to see NINE at the Tivoli (worth seeing for Marion Cotillard and Fergie alone!!!)
• Returning an age-inappropriate book to exchange it for the Kathy Griffin memoir on audiobook
• Cookies...nummy cookies...
• Calling my Uncle in DC and discovering that I’m not the only schmuck having a rotten December

Yes, folks, as you read earlier, I splurged and got myself an iPod to replace the one stolen earlier this month. It’s the black iPod nano 5^th generation. I’m very satisfied to have all the portable music I want in ONE place rather than lugging a CD wallet around with me. Aside from the obvious daily uses, this new iPod has all kinds of new bells-n-whistles. I dig the FM tuner…it lets me enjoy 99.1 more often. Love the cover-flow feature. The video feature looks pretty cool, but I don’t know if I’ll use it much though.

The funniest new feature on this iPod hands down is the VoiceOver technology—chiefly designed for the iPod shuffle, but available on all new incarnations. Basically, you can prompt the iPod to speak the song title and artist of whatever you’re currently listening to. The default synthesized voice is a woman speaking English. However, if you have a song in a foreign language, the VoiceOver technology attempts (emphasis on attempts) to detect the language and assign the appropriate synthesized voice. My album of Salome (an opera in German) prompts a deep-voiced male German-speaker—but for only the first two tracks!!! For some odd reason, all following tracks go back to the default English-speaker…and she has some AWFUL German diction ;) I’ve also noticed that for another unexplainable reason, one of the titles on my Porgy & Bess highlights album (“My Man’s Gone Now”) is read by the iPod’s Italian synthesized voice!! Very random. Very funny.

Ok, that’s all I got for now. Will definitely post a year-end retrospective on Thursday. Can’t believe we’re about to exit the Aughts!

I've returned

Dear Blog Readers (if you’re out there, and I don’t blame you if you aren’t),

I must apologize for neglecting this space. I could make excuses, but they’re kind of lame…so here is a rundown on my life events since the end of UAO’s summer season.

During late September/early October, I was involved in a world premiere production of composer Barbara Harbach’s O Pioneers!, an opera based on the Willa Cather novel. I was quite happy to have the job: it paid well, I got to work with some great singers, Mark Meier directed, and it gave me the opportunity to perform at the Touhill PAC. That’s about all I have to say ;)

For the past few months, I’ve been actively singing with the church choir at Union Avenue Church. We are embarking on an Italy Choir Tour this June. Scott, our choir director, negotiated a trip with a NYC-based tour company. The proposed route plan: 10-days in Italy, including 2 nights each in Rome, Assisi, Florence and Como. The airfare, bus transportation, lodging, some meals and admission (for museums/attractions) brought the final total to a whopping $3500—and that was ONLY if we could get 40 people onboard. I, and others, were uneasy about this price. Nevertheless, I was willing to scrimp and save. We got about 25-30 people to commit, and after some developments (including the option to keep costs the same by nixing Assisi—a devastating prospect), it was decided that going through a tour group was no longer feasible…

…which brought us back to square one. Last week, Scott proposed a trip planned independently—and if not enough choir people sign up, it will be an enjoyable trip with great friends. This option looks far more palatable, given how it would save everyone about $1,000. Plus, we’d get to keep Assisi on the tour and end it in Venice—where I’ve never been—instead of Como (on the Swiss border). I can also visit many places/see many sights I missed in Rome and Florence the first time around. And Assisi? Well, you know how I feel.

Paying for the tour seems a tough venture, but I must say that the challenge has been eased by some fortuitous developments. Since O Pioneers!, I have been engaged for five singing gigs. I just finished the first with New Opera STL (Chorus/Ambrogio in Barber of Seville), where I’ll return for some brief comprimarios in Werther and Gianni Schicchi in January/March. Next week, I begin rehearsals for Amahl and the Night Visitors with UAO. Jolly Stewart also asked me to be involved in Die Fledermaus—her final production at WashU this March. I’ll be one of the New Year’s Eve party guests, singing the “Tit-Willow” song from The Mikado. For all of this, I am very thankful!

Speaking of thankful things, here are some other things I have to be thankful for this year:

• Countless wonderful, accepting, understanding friends
• GLEE, South Park, Survivor and The Amazing Race
• A boss and supervisor that “get” my odd schedule and career needs!
• Union Avenue Christian Church—for many reasons
• Prospect of returning to Italy; having the means to do so
• Emily, Jeff, William, Grace, Grandma, Grandpa, Mom, Dad, Uncles, Aunt and cousins
• That I’m alive.

Have a Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Nostalgia: FCHS & QU

Two things happened ten years ago: graduating high school and going to college. I know it's sappy and all, but I admit to having an attack of nostalgia.

My ten year HS reunion (FCHS Class of 1999) was held Saturday night. I had to pass due to a previous engagement with the opera. While it would have been fun to be there, I'm hardly kicking myself for missing it. That's not to say that I look back on my years at FCHS negatively. I'll always remember the positive: Band (concerts, marching, stage band, tours), Drama Club, English w/Reavis, Choir...basically anything that spoke to my creative nature. Bottom line? I've just moved on. I've kept in contact with those that I care about and chosen to forget about (or even laugh about) the inevitable assholes a common BandGeek/DramaFreak/ChoirDork must contend with...by law, or something.

I'm actually a little more sappy-sentimental that it's been ten years since I went to college in the fall of that same year. I found out about Quincy University through a phone call from an admissions rep at the school. I learned that QU was this small catholic school in a place I'd never even heard of: Quincy, Illinois, a town which, oddly enough, I first heard of literally the same day I'd visited nearby Hannibal, MO on a field trip. QU had a small music department offering a Music Ed degree plus multiple opportunities to perform...and the town of Quincy even had an OPERA company. After some consideration, I decided to apply to the school and audition for the music program.

Four months, an acceptance letter and an audition later, I was on my way to QU for my first year. On my first day, I moved into Centennial Hall and met my roommate, John--then a history major. (He has since attained his Ph.D in history from the Univ. of Edinburgh!) I'm pretty sure we were put together for a few reasons:

• we were both Band geeks (he played Trombone; I played Bassoon)
• I'd considered a minor in History
• we both possess/ed a screwy sense of humor

John deserves a medal for putting up with so much crap (chiefly my snoring and musical theatre obsession) for 3 out of the 4 years we roomed together at Quincy. (My sophomore year, I was a douche that wanted his own space and thought Padua Penitentiary was a habitable dwelling...WRONG!) We've kept in touch ever since, and he (along with his parents) have been very supportive of my musical pursuits over the past 10 years. I was honored to be the Best Man at his wedding last summer. I owe you and Hilda a visit to Scotland, John.

I also got to know some great folks in the Music Department that year, including fellow music majors Ellie, Lisa, Ben and Canadian Steve, and Jenée...a personality not easily forgotten. I'm always thinking of you guys and the times we spent in Solano Hall...may it rest in peace.

QU was like a family member. You love it, even though at times it drives you nuts. I know that Quincy wasn't a perfect place by any means, but I think that the community atmosphere that it inspires makes me appreciate it to this day. Was I itching to move onto new surroundings after five years at the school? Surely. However, after some time has passed, I miss it.

Call me a sap, but I really do.

Dass hat Rrrrrrassss so tra-la-la-la-la-LAAA!

This weekend marked the end of a truly enjoyable experience onstage and off. Die lustige Witwe played its final performance yesterday afternoon. Afterwards, the cast gathered for drinks and hors d'oeuvres at Bar Italia to celebrate the end of our run. It may be hard to top this show! Right now, I'm filled with a sense of joy and wistfulness...for all the obvious reasons.

I'll admit that when I discovered (over a year ago) that UAO would be presenting The Merry Widow, I was quite "meh" about the prospect of auditioning for it. I wasn't that familiar with the operetta, and of what I could tell, it seemed such a saccharine, dated, convoluted piece. However, when I sat down to hear recordings of the season repertoire, I could NOT stop listening to Lovro von Matačič's iconic 1962 recording of Die lustige Witwe with the incomparable Elisabeth Schwartzkopf and Eberhard Wächter. The music, while not at the level of Verdi or Mozart, had this way of making me laugh and feel genuine joy. Sure, the subject of Lehár's score probably hasn't graced the pages of many doctoral dissertations...but who cares? If you have a sense of frivolity and romance, this score will do. you. IN. It did me in, at least...hehe!

Putting the show together was "lustige" on so many levels. The cast got together smashingly, and sounded/looked great! We even proved wrong the old stereotype that opera singers can't move/dance...even I managed to waltz. I even tried my hand at a Polka and the Can-Can! Success? I hope so. I'll always chuckle at waltzing "drunk" with Megan, my lovely Frau auf der Bühne. Men's Chorus numbers were tons of fun...especially our "gawk at Hanna scena" and the epic "Damenwahl trainwreck." And those grisettes? Tres chaud! We looked damn good, too...all thanks to Teresa, our resourceful, dedicated costume designer. Julie, the production manager, summed it up succinctly: "You all look like a million damn bucks!"

Oh, and did I mention that singing the piece in German was the ultimate Glasur auf der Kuchen?!? I don't give a flying @*#!Ü what a silly critic has to say about that choice, either. I think it's quite refreshing and unique to hear a piece just as the composer heard it and wrote it. So there!

...

Oh, and I might as well mention that I turned the big TWO-EIGHT on Thursday. My wonderful, loving parents gave me a fantabulous gift: a MacBook. You may have no I-DEEEE-A how badly I've wanted/needed a new computer, and this was a complete surprise for me. I've already named it: Agador Spartacus. Points to whomever knows where I got the name!

The new week brings on the second wave of Lakmé rehearsals...more on this later as I shave off the mutton chops and take on Brahmin Hinduism.

Goodbye 'Trovatore' ... Hello 'Witwe'

Opera season leaves me with so few days off...and today I'm free from rehearsals and performances.

No sooner than Trovatore finished, I went right into rehearsals for Merry Widow. Sunday and Monday evening were all about getting the music solidified with the chorus, then chorus + principals. Got to meet the principals on Monday. All the principals but one (Tommy Wazelle, our Camille) have worked with UAO before, but I'd not previously known Sylvia, our Hanna (the title character). She's got the looks and the voice for this role, and she's so wonderful to watch onstage. Ian, the Danilo, is also very engaging in his role. He is definitely going to be the matinee-idol for the audiences. It's also very fun to have a lot of old friends come back to town for the show: Scott Levin, James Harr, David Dillard, Ann Hoyt. It's like a homecoming...or something equally sentimental. John, my voice teacher, is even involved as Njegus, a speaking role. His german is a model for us all!

Tuesday, we had a concept talk amongst the cast. It seemed, at first, like it would be a waste of time, but I will admit that I did learn a lot about the characters and have been able to develop my character a lot better...even if I'm dialogue-less. :( That night, the men of the chorus gathered to work on our opening scene with Hanna...which ought to look pretty cool...almost like Ziegfield Follies-meets-Moulin Rouge.

Thursday, the men of the Marsch Septett in Act Two gathered to block that scene. Expect to see us doing a lot of high kicks...for an extended period... I thank Lehár so much for giving most of the men in that scene a chance to breathe (and for me to get all the sweat off my brow) for at least ten minutes before the next entrance.

Friday night was a night off from Widow, but not for us in Trovatore. As with all returns to a show after a six-day hiatus at UAO, things got a little hairy getting back into the groove...but according to maestro Schoonover, it went a lot better than usual.

Yesterday, I had my costume fitting. Let me just say that Teresa, our costume designer never fails to find and build kick-ass costumes. My Trovatore duds were really cool, and no matter what people think, I loved my gypsy costume which included a vest/coat that made me look like the mysterious man in Into the Woods...or Old Deuteronomy in CATS...those of you who came to the show may be the judge. My doublet and "poofy pants" (as Teresa likes to call them) weren't too shabby neither. Well, now that she's working on Merry Widow wardrobe, I got to see and try on my Bogdanowitsch duds. For Acts One and two, I'm wearing a creme-colored military snap-up coat with black accents. Teresa told me that my costume was recently worn in a San Francisco Opera production of Widow which I've already seen on DVD. Now I'll have to rent it again! (Apparently, I'll have to look for it worn by the Baron Zeta.) You'll see me in tails for Act Three, which takes place in a cabaret setting.

Oh, and did I mention that there's a TON of dancing in this show? Expect the obligatory champagne-operetta waltzes, the famous Act Three can-can, a polonaise, a ballet, a mazurka and my personal favorite (cuz it's clinically simple): the polka!

Saturday afternoon was spent blocking the Act Two finale and running all of Act One...which really flies by even though we had to stop after some minor trainwrecks. I went home in the afternoon to take a nap before I had to get back up for the evening... ...which brings me to the end of Trovatore. I think our final performance really was at the same energy level as last week...and that's a great way to go out. I'll miss the superstition scene, the anvil chorus, the raucous end of "Di quella pira", and the haunting miserere (which I am dying to have heard in the house!).

Now, I can focus my energy completely on Widow...and try to enjoy this lovely mild weather before August comes to screw us all!

ignunce & fireworks

These past four weeks have been a blur of rehearse, rehearse, dressels, work-during-the-day, rehearse, rehearse, ignunce*, rehearse....et cetera!

*Ignunce cannot be described; only experienced! Suffice it to say that when Mark Meier's in town, I stay out waaaaay too late and have waaaaay too much fun ;)

I'm currently singing in the chorus of Il Trovatore with Union Avenue Opera. Two weeks ago, we met to solidify the music and block the entire show. One great aspect of working with our director, Mark, is that his directorial philosophy goes like this: "Mama runs a tight ship." His approach allows us to get all the housecleaning out of the way as quickly/efficently as possible, then take the rest of the time to work in the dramatic elements. The past week was spent running acts and eventually running the entire show...which is incredibly tight and FLYS BY...and that's saying something for Verdi. Today, we meet with the orchestra for the first time to do the Sitzprobe...then the next few days are all Dress Rehearsals before Friday's opening night. Tonight, I will finally have my costume fitting and figure out what she wants to do with my beard...which is quite pitiful. Not gonna lie.

Overall, this has been a great cast to work with. The chorus people are mostly UAO veterans (Nate, Jonathan, Alan, Clark, Jon) with some new blood joining our company (Tom & Anthony). I have a lot of interaction onstage with Jonathan Brader, whose talent for chattering in Italian (whenever we're not singing) is impeccable and amusing. I chuckle at what he'd sound like in a russian piece. The atmosphere backstage is collegial and quite humorous at times...what a great place to to work. I've almost forgot the principals, too. Alexandra, our Leonora, tears. it. UP. in Act IV...and anyone undecided on coming to see Trovatore should keep this in mind. Patrick, our Ferrando, is a vocal powerhouse...one of those "could listen to him sing the phonebook" voices! Veronica, our Azucena, plays the old, crazy gypsy-witch to the hilt...yet another reason to come, y'all. Go to this website and get your tickets: http://www.unionavenueopera.org/

How did you spend your Fourth of July holiday?? I was originally supposed to join my immediate family members down at the Lake of the Ozarks for all of Saturday and then head back today, but circumstances kept us all here. My parents and I spent the afternoon with the Rhymer-side of the family--specifically at the place of my cousin Dave and his wife Amy. I never pass up a chance to schmooze with my Aunt Kathy, plus it was a great way to see some family I see rather infrequently. As dark approached, I drove to good old Freeburg to join my sis, bro-in-law, niece and nephew for a fireworks show at Freeburg Recreation Park. *cue sappy music here* I felt a lot of nostalgia to be honest. This was where my sister and I grew up going to the pool, playing on the swings, playing little league, riding the rides at the homecoming festival (ROCK-O-PLANE!!!), and many other small-town joys. Now, my little niece and nephew were playing there... *end sappy music here* Being in a small town, we weren't expecting a show on par with Fair St. Louis, but the Freeburg Chamber of Commerce (or whatever org) exceeded my expectations! 30 minutes of balls-to-the-wall fireworks...was mightily impressed with what they brought to the table. It was a delightful way to cap off the Fourth of July. All that was missing was a soundtrack of Neil Diamond and Irving Berlin!!

Review: ABE

ABE, a new musical, received its world premiere in Quincy, Illinois two weekends ago.  Presented by the Muddy River Opera Company in a city that hosted one of the historic Lincoln-Douglas debates, this new work holds particular nostalgia for the state of Illinois in 2009, the Lincoln Bicentennial Year.  Composer Roger Anderson and Book-Writer/Lyricist Lee Goldsmith began collaboration on this musical in the 1970s, but had not finished it until recently, when MROC took interest in premiering the work.

ABE focuses on the life of Abraham Lincoln from his early years until his departure from Springfield, Illinois for the Presidential Inauguration.  The first act mostly concerns Lincoln’s formative years in New Salem, Illinois; the second with his rise to power and marriage to Mary Todd.  Dramatically, the musical suffers at the beginning.  While the creative team succeeds with a stirring, effective prologue set at a New Orleans slave auction (at which Lincoln is a prominent spectator), their opening number—“Fifteen Houses, A Hundred People”—lacks energy.  Despite this initial flaw, the musical numbers that follow manage to liven up the pace.  “Who Are You” gives the audience a glimpse into Lincoln’s quest for purpose.  “Corn,” “Two Hundred Seventy Seven to Three” and “Who, Abe? You, Abe!” gives the ensemble ample opportunities to shine and put a smile on our faces.  The second act of ABE happily maintains the established dramatic pace.

In the title role, baritone Samuel Hepler gave a sensitive, well-considered reading of the iconic 16th president.  His warm, rich baritone and lanky, handsome stage presence exuded Lincoln’s idealism, melancholy and heart.  Soprano Elise LaBarge was charming and sympathetic as Lincoln’s first love Ann Rutledge, and her solo “A Man Like Him” proved bittersweet, given Rutledge’s fate.  Ms. LaBarge also deftly negotiated some of the more awkward, stilted dialogue in the show.  Soprano Joy Boland portrayed Mary Todd Lincoln with gutsy aplomb and gave us a glimpse of a woman that—despite an often difficult temper and shifting mood—loved, cherished and supported her husband wholeheartedly.  Baritone Greg Lewis had clear diction and strong presence as Mentor Graham, schoolteacher and early friend to Lincoln. Tenor Robert Boldin was an utter delight as Lincoln’s oft-smashed law-partner Billy Herndon.  Boldin showed remarkable versatility in the unsettling “What Am I Bid?”

Director Mark James Meier handled this big, old-fashioned book musical with careful attention to detail and resourceful usage of his ensemble.  Along with the bigger, splashier numbers, Meier offered many simple, touching moments throughout, especially regarding Lincoln’s early courting and eventual loss of Ann Rutledge as well as the enduring friendship between Lincoln and Billy Herndon.  Conductor Scott Schoonover’s leadership of the 20-piece MROC orchestra was a generous complement to the proceedings onstage.  Paul Denckla’s production design made the effective approach of suggestion over presentation with a rustic unit set (calling to mind Lincoln’s early years in Kentucky and southern Illinois) coupled with projections of actual plot locales.

The production team, cast and crew of Abe are to be commended for giving such a wonderful world premiere.

Goin' up to see "Abe"

Tomorrow, I'm going up to Quincy, IL to see the world premiere of Abe: the Musical presented by Muddy River Opera.  I first heard of Abe way back in June last year, when Mark Meier (director of UAO's Elixir of Love) said that he was offered the job of directing the show.  To hear him describe it, you'd think that it had the potential to be a campy adventure a la the play-within-the-movie of Waiting for Guffman.  When he told me that the composer and lyricist wrote a show-stopper called "Corn" I knew I had to see it.  Of course, there's more reasons than that to want to come to my college town, including the fact that several friends are involved.  Joy is Mary Todd Lincoln; Elise is Ann Rutledge; Emily is some role I cannot remember right now; Scott is conducting; Mark is directing.

So, up to Quincy I go tomorrow.  I shall offer a full report here...perhaps in the wee hours of Saturday morning when I've stumbled back to my motel room after some inevitable post-opening-night partying.

grumblings

Lots of stuff has happened today to make me grumpy.

First off, I decided to purchase some music from iTunes, which my computer downloaded and processed at a mind-numbingly slow rate.  Then, it lost 3 of the files which I had to re-purchase.

Secondly, my computer (in many ways other than the iTunes debacle) is a piece of crap, and I really hope that if Obama can pass this stimulus package, I'm seriously buying a freaking laptop.

Thirdly, Circuit City didn't have anything worth purchasing in their liquidation sale.

Fourthly, the air in Maplewood smells like farts.  Seriously, I think the sewers are belching!

Finally, I didn't get a callback for STAGES.  That's life, I guess.

The only bright lights?

1. watching a deliciously campy shot-on-a-soundstage-and-they-weren't-apologizing-for-it DVD of Salome from 1974 with Teresa Stratas in the title role and Karl Böhm conducting.

2. seeing my good friend Charlie Martinez, who is in town for a production of I Pagliacci, at Dressels.

Thankfully, my day wasn't a complete drag.

It's baaaaaaaack!

Well, hello there!  I decided to get back into this blog-writing habit of mine.  Figured it would be healthier than meth, don't you think?  The last time I blogged over at LiveJournal, I was leaving for Canada* for John & Hilda's wedding.  Well, don't worry, friends...it's not as if I was detained for five months in Canadian customs for trying to smuggle free health care, maple syrup or Celine Dion into the states.  I just lost the desire to blog...and that's odd cuz I'm at a computer an awful lot.  Oh well...

*still pronounced kuh-NAY-dee-uh

In case you still believe I was detained in Canadian customs (or some other wacko conspiracy theory), here is the fast-forward version of what you might have missed in my life since returning from Canada (just imagine the 'micro-machines' guy reading this next paragraph):

In July, I saw a production of Otello, wherein the title singer missed a stage entrance by a minute...awkward!  As August rolled around, I began work on a production of Carmen, which is pretty much all that happened...well, that and I turned 27.  September?  Nothing ever seems to happen in that month.  During October I sang in Il tabarro and volunteered for Obama, whose glorious win in November brought about the relief-giving departure of Sarah Palin back to moose-huntin', baby-tendin' and general evil.  Samson et Dalila dominated the first half of the month...and then Thanksgiving rolled around, pushing me into a tryptophan coma.  The month of Christmas-- erm-- I mean, December had me in a Christmasy mood, except for on the actual day (though I did see Doubt which was awesome). HIGHWAY 40 WEST FINALLY REOPENED!!!1!! Attempted to ice skate for the first time; failed miserably.  Somewhat newlyweds John & Hilda came the day after Christmas and we hung out for New Years...and even visited Quincy on New Years Day!

*whew*  *wipes sweat off brow*  *has cigarette*

So here we are on this, the fourth day of January 2009--a new year.  Ought-Nine doesn't really have that much significance to me, other than that it will be the Tenth Anniversary of two milestones:  

a.) graduating from high school (may) 

b.) matriculating at college (august)

HOLY CRAP!  Has it really been TEN years?  I'm going to have to sort out all these weird feelings I'm having of dis-accomplishment that I may or may not be right to feel right now.  *Zoiks*  Everyone says we're in for a shitfest this year, but nevertheless, there are a few things I personally can hope for in the new year:

a.) the possibility of an intelligent, pragmatic presidency (yes, he screwed up on choosing the invocation speaker, but as long as he's better than Bush on issues related and unrelated, I'll forgive this misstep)

b.) further development of my career (including--OMG--Met Auditions?!?)

c.) a new Palin baby...so they can name it Tweeker Zamboni Oxycontin Palin.  (Oxycontin is the Christian name...read the latest news to figure out who might suggest it...teehee.)

Of course I'm joking, but let's face it.  You KNOW that family's due for several more unfortunately-named chilluns.

I have yet to develop any plans or special postings for this blog.  I'm going to see how it fleshes out.  I certainly hope you'll come and read it when you can...and feel free to leave your comments.  I love reading those as much as the blogging itself.  

Here's to the New Year and the New Blog!