El final (the end)

Oh. My. Goodness.
After 66 shows, 30+ postcards, 3 unsuccessful attempts at taking a picture of the "Welcome to Georgia" sign, and 1 deceased deer...it's done. Over. Kaput. Terminado. Fini. THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD First National Tour has reached the Emerald City and is no more. Word for Theatreworks is that it's not booking in the spring, so unless something changes, I may have been in the ONLY touring cast of YBR. Sad to think that no one will ever wear that lime green pimp suit ever again...that thing is FIERCE.

I got the market cornered on Fierce.

We finished up at the Katherine Hepburn Theater in Old Saybrook, CT (nicknamed "The Kate") for a small but pleasant crowd, and after a tasty cast dinner at the Penny Lane Pub, we are headed back to NYC to sleep, baby oil all the mic tape residue off our faces, and get back on the audition circuit. Well, except Danny, McBee, and myself. Tomorrow at 9am (ugh.) We're unloading the set at two different warehouses and dropping off the cargo van to get serviced. Extra pay, hey hey hey! But after all that, my involvement with YBR will be at an end. I can't say I'm particularly emotional, because touring has been really draining. The show has been fun to perform, and I have enjoyed that experience, but if I never have to lug another 9-foot metal mirror frame up two flights of stairs in 30 degree weather ever again, I will die a happy girl. :-D
It's been kind of higgeldy piggedly this last week, with today's show having been rescheduled from last Sunday, and Wednesday's show being cancelled, cutting our hotel stays (and also per diem pay) short. However, it was kind of a blessing in disguise for me, because I got VERY sick on Tuesday night and woke up on Wednesday feeling like hell. I'm still getting over it today, and I've taken a good number of alternate notes for my songs in the last few shows. Ah, the life of a sick alto!
I was also blessed with a visit from Oli for a few days, fresh off his contract on the Norwegian Spirit. He got to see the show on Thursday, which it was really special for me, since the only thing he's ever seen me perform are the shows on the ship. Who knew I could ACT too! I've been very lucky to have some people who are very special to me come to see the show: Cecilia, my dad, Gary T'To, Karine and Marc, Yaniv, Mandi, and Oli...all at different venues, but all proud of me and my work. What more could a girl ask for?
As far as what's next for me...who knows? I'm looking forward to settling into my new place in Hamilton Heights/Harlem, Christmas in SoCal/Tahoe, cruising on the Noordam with Liz in January, and just getting back into the audition circuit--but this time as an Equity member! Here's to moving forward! I'd love to book a summerstock gig, but I certainly wouldn't say no to a local show! But if I nave to travel, I certainly know which discount hotel chains to avoid..!
Thanks for following along on this show, and please keep checking my website for more updates as they come.
Gracias!

Puedo ver La Ciudad Esmerelda! (I can see the Emerald City!)

Only nine shows, eight days, seven venues, three hotels, and fifty-four costume changes before the end of this tour! Not that anyone's counting...

Tony modelling the gripped gloves I bought for the cast

We had a great week off for Thanksgiving, and are back in the swing of things, doing shows in New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, and New Hampshire. It's been getting coooold up here, so I bought us some mittens with grips to help with those freezing load-ins. We had a stop in Kingston, NY last night on our way to Schenectady, and it was very picturesque. Also, very very cold. It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!
I think the cast is getting excited to finish this tour and jump into Christmas/Hannukah with the passion that can only come from having lived out of suitcases and made pre-dawn runs across the GWB for three months. We've all had an incredible experience on this tour, and I think we'll all take something away from this.
I mean, besides the Equity Card. But oh man, does that count for a LOT!
I'll update a little more as we get closer to the end.

Hasta pronto!

Hogar (Home)

Aaaaah, to be back in NYC!!
After almost seven weeks on the road, we are back in Empire State! We had a local show in Greenwich, CT yesterday, and we have our big 50th Anniversary Fundraiser show in Tribeca this afternoon, followed by a talk-back session with the audience. Then we are OFF for all of next week, and I can't wait to go back to California and put my long-dormant cooking skillz to work to create a fabulous Thanksgiving feast with my family.
After many moons of eating anemic muffins and weak "coffee" at Super 8s across the South, I can't tell you how wonderful the taste of NYC deli coffee is. Also, not having to pack up all my stuff every other morning to check out and head out for points unknown...the simple joys, I tell ya..
Since I last updated, we had another show in Ohio, followed byt wo days off and a late afternoon show in Donegal, PA. What a welcome respite that was! I got to see Frank lloyd Wright's "Fallingwater" mansion, which was spectacular.

We also took a night trip into Pittsburgh, which turned out to be a lot less "pit"-y than I expected! In fact, it was really very nice! And the men...looked...like...men! Actually, they looked like lumberjacks, if lumberjacks got it on with hipster frat boys. Which, hey, they probably did, I'm not judging... :)  There was an incredibl;e view of the "Golden Triangle" from Grandview Avenue up on Mt. Washington, and what a sight to see the city all lit up and sparkling down below. It reminded me of seeing Hong Kong from Victoria Peak many many years ago. Well done, Pittsburgh!

We moved on to a single show in western Maryland where I had NO cell service (Verizon gave me service in the backwater canyons of the Blueridge Mountains in Virginia, but not in Frostburg, MD. Go figure). We had our first--and thankfully, only--triple show day that day, and I have to say that we pulle dit off with flying colors. We then drowned our aching muscles in margaritas at a local Mexican place. We DESERVED those bad boys. We also got to hang out with some of the student techs, which was really nice. usually, the techs--if they involve themselves in our show at ALL--pack us out and say goodnight. But these guys were rockstars. :) Loved it!

After a 12-hour day on the road, we finally made it up to Quechee Gorge, VT for a day off and a double show day in Woodstock (no, not THAT Woodstock). I spent my time having a PT session for my shoulder (resulting in a cool looking kiniseotape up my right side...La Bruja looks even MORE badass now!), heading to the Ben and Jerry's factory in Waterbury, VT, drinks in Burlington, and being totally overwhelmed by the adorableness of eveyrthing in Vermont. Seriously. If Martha Stewart had a child with Town and Country magazine, it would be named Vermont. It actually snowed a bit, which was lovely...but also a little dangerous, as we were constantly seeing signs proclaiming the dangers of Moose Crossings. A deer hitting our van was bad enough...a moose? We'd have no chance. Neither would the moose, frankly, but still. Yours Truly kept her eyes PEELED, for sure!

Anothe 10-hour drive, and we were home in NYC. What a treat to see the Welcome to the Empire State sign, and the lights of the George Washington Bridge looming ahead of us. Even the sights and smells of taking the 1 to my fabulous friend Yaniv's apartment (where I'm currently shackin' up) brought a msile to my face. Which must have been weird, because I was still in full stage makeup. Ah well, it's NYC. We all look like freaks. :)

That's all for now,
Hasta pronto!

Adios, Ohio

It got coooooooooold.
We actually had a few flurries today on th way to Independence from Dayton. Crazy!

We've had some...interesting...shows in the last few days, now that our big three-day trek northward is over.
We had two shows in the basement of a church in North Royalton, OH--or what we've dubbed a "churchatorium". It was the first time in a whil that we've had to unload ALL of our set equipment, including the speaker stands and tons of cables. It really is a blessing when we're in an actual performance space!! The thing that stood out for this venue for me, however, was the absolute SILENCE that followed my big solo ("Powerless"), in which La Bruja conspires with her Monkey to destroy Dora and get the precious zapatillas de rubís. The schoolchildren of St. Albert the Great Christian School were NOT havin' the Bruja's satanic chicanery, apparently. I have never been more uncomfortable in a performance. Caro was a bit sick and her Monkey wasn't 100%, which maaaaay have had something to do with it, but I doubt it, because eveveryone LOVES Monkey. And seriously...UTTER. SILENCE. In the second show, someone STARTED to clap, then instantly stopped when no on else joined in. No bueno.
Today's shows were at the lovely Victoria Theater in Dayton, and the kids LOVED it. What a difference a lack of religious stranglehold makes...
I got a WONDERFUL surprise after the show, when my uncle Jim happened to be n the area and stopped by to say hello! It had been much too long since we'd seen each other. It just so happened that he was in Dayton one of the few times a year he has business, and it coincided with my show! It's a shame he couldn't see it, but it was a treat to get to spend a little time with him.
We have one more show in Ohio tomorrow, again in North Royalton, then we're off to Donegal, PA for a muuuuuuuuuuuuch-deserved two days off before a 1pm show on  Monday. I'm going to sleep like a CHAMPION this weekend.

Oh, also, we hit a deer on the freeway yesterday. That was definitely a new experience. Sorry, Bambi.



That's all for now, mama had a looooooong night last night. Oh, Dayton, you are a wily mistress...

Hasta pronto!

Hola, otoño! (Hello, autumn!)

And so we crawl our way north...

We had our last show in Florida on Thursday the 3rd, at the Coral Spring City Center, home of the World's Least Helpful Tech Crew. The day before we performed at the GORGEOUS Kravis P.A.C. in West Palm Beach, home of the World's MOST Helpful Tech Crew (also Diego, World's Most Unexpectedly Attractive Tech Crew Member...thank yooooooooou, Florida!), to a crowd of 2,000 very enthusiastic school children. Neither venue featured the inexplicable Clap-Along, and I'm kind of hoping that's the last we'll get of it. I think I'm alone in the cast with this feeling, but hey, theater etiquette starts early! After our show in Coral Springs, we began our long trek north to Sylvania, Ohio via Cordele, Georgia and Corbin, Kentucky. Google map that bad boy. That's a lot of driving.
Melissa left us on Thursday to fly to Pennsylvania and sing for her BFF's wedding, so it's only been six of us cruising up the 75 and soaking up all the...um...billboards advertising pecans, fireworks, and anti-abortion. The South is WEIRD, y'all.
Yesterday was the first day in many weeks we experienced actual chilly weather, which is a bit of a disappointment. Yes, I know it's November and by all rights I should have busted out some peacoats by now, but there was a certain amount of schadenfreude in knowing that my New York friends were shivering their buns off in unexpected mid-October snow while I was traipsing around Miami in a tank top. Le sigh.

We got a little treat in Vero Beach on Thursday night, with comp tickets to see Boeing Boeing at the Riverside Theater. Our Stage Manager's friend Jen Cody (who--fun fact--voiced Charlotte LaBouf in Disney's The Princess and the Frog) played Gabriella in the show, and it was a really nice production. We went for a post-show drinkypoo afterwards, where we got our first round taken care of by a trio of very grateful Canadians whose Porsche we jumper-cabled. You know,  people make jokes about how NICE Canadians are, but these guys went above and beyond the stereotype. I ordered the MOST expensive red wine by-the-glass on the menu, instead of the cheapest! DREAM BIG. All in all, it was nice to get out of our routine of show-drive-hotel-internet-sleep and see some really great theater. 

Add look damn good doin' it, too.

Also, tonight we visited the site of the very first Kentucky Fried Chicken (originally "Sander's Cafe"). Who knew it was right here in Corbin?

I love doing this stuff.

Hasta pronto!

Feliz Día de Las Brujas! ("Happy Halloween!")

How appropriate that I'm playing La Bruja on this particular holiday, eh?
We're en route to Clearwater, FL (home of the mirrored Virgin Mary...Google it) after four shows and three days in and around Palm Beach, FL. We stayed at a cute little inn right on the water, where we enjoyed complimentary breakfasts, the sound of the waves lapping at the shores, and the torrential downpour that flooded the parking lot. Seriously. Whoever invented the phrase, "When it rains, it pours" must have been a Floridian.
We have no plans for All Hallow's Eve, though I'd be content with wine and Hocus Pocus on TV. Can't say I've been a big fan of Halloween since I outgrew my (adorable!) Voting Booth costume, so I'm not too disappointed. Besides, we have a 10:45 show tomorrow. And with a job like mine, it's pretty much Halloween EVERY day. Yeah, that's my excuse to not party tonight...yeah...that's it...

Also, this.

The shows continue to go over well, but we encountered a strange phenomenon in two separate venues: clapping. So much clapping. Not the good kind, with the tumultuous applause and roses thrown onto the stage. Clapping ALONG. What's with the clapping along to everything? I appreciate the enthusiasm, but it makes it so hard to hear the music! Luckily, the kids were too hair-raisingly terrified of my Bruja that they weren't inclined to clap during MY number (yeah, that's it...), but it got kind of old. On the other hand, I'm a crotchety old bruja in real life too, so there's that to consider..
I had some very special visitors on Saturday, with the arrival of two of my favorite French Canadians! The lovely Mademoiselle Karine St-Marine and her fabulous Arby's-lovin' love Monsieur Marc-Andre Bourbonnais planned their Florida vaycay to coincide with my tour dates, and they came to one of the shows in Lake Worth! I hadn't seen them in such a long time (tu me manques beaucoup, Québec!! Gaaaaah! Je vais revenir a te voir bientot!), and it was so nice to spend the (rainy) day with them. I'm very fortunate to still have them in my life, when so many other things have a tendency to go away.
Have a safe and Happy Halloween, and eat a mallowcreme pumpkin or 40 for me!
Hasta pronto!

He aprendido una cosa nueva ("I learned something new")

How much kids clap along with the songs is not an indication of how much of the show they understand, but it IS an indication of how much they're enjoying it.

Thanks a bunch, Belle Glade, Florida.

That is all.