Iceland Bloomington

Alas, things worked out for me this morning. I planned a little singing gig at Meadowood to serenade the residents with standard love songs from movies and musicals. This would require me to skip out of my 1 audited class and then choir. Alas, due to icy roads, school has been canceled until 12 noon, so I am free to go to Meadowood and not rush. Let's just hope I get there and get back in 1 piece. Haha....eeek.

I've been feeling the stress of mid-semester worries recently. Luckily I made a list yesterday and was able to get a lot of the things crossed off. Also I proved more prepared than I thought for a project of mine, so that's also a relief.

Upcoming events:

March 1--Don Freund's Romeo and Juliet. Daniel Shirley and I are premiering the balcony scene. I'm really looking forward to putting this together.

March 4--choir concert at St. Thomas Lutheran

mid-April--premiere of Andrew Estel's Sea Gods, three songs for soprano and orchestra.

April 21st, 1pm--My recital. The first half is a representation of my cultural background--an Italian set, and then a Polish set. I've been working on the Polish, and it's been a challenge, but it's going well, I think. Then the second half of the recital will be mainly new compositions--one set from IU faculty and friends of faculty, and the other set newly composed by 5 colleagues of mine! YAY! I'm really looking forward to the new music that they create.

Fill in one or two possible competitions, an audition for another summer program, learning a role for role prep class, and you've got my semester. Oh, and 20 hours of work a week, and the fact that Andy and I are trying to plan a wedding.

So, you've all survived another list-blog. Sorry about that.

Strange to think what life will be like next year. Each year here at IU has been completely different, and now I'll be starting something completely new. It's been a great 3 years here, but I'm ready to move-on. Soon. Not to say that finding a nice and relatively cheap apartment in NYC is going to be easy (it's not), nor will be finding a job that will pay for all my needs, plus leave me time for practicing and auditioning. Sigh..."real life" will actually begin. :)

Good luck battling the elements! Might even be fun...

Too Many Sopranos

In the middle of dress week, I'd like to announce that I've been having a great time with this opera (Too Many Sopranos) and if you find the idea of the stereotypical opera singer at all funny, you'll definitely enjoy this show.

The story begins in heaven, where a heavenly choir is being put together. Unfortunately, they can only take one soprano at a time, so four different sopranos who are there (a mezzo-soprano, a coloratura soprano, a dramatic soprano, and a soubrette) must audition for the spot. All four fighting for the spot, they all must descend to hell to try to do a self-less act and bring back some tenors and basses, as the heavenly choir doesn't have enough men, due to their sinful pasts. Then more sopranos will be able to be taken into the choir.

Act 2 the sopranos are in hell, and meet four tortured men--Enrico Carouser, an Un-named Bass, Nelson Deadly, a librettist, and Orson, a director. The sopranos are having a hard time doing a self-less act, and a messenger from Heaven "the Sandman" (who's got a bipolar personality) gives them a task to complete. If they do it, all will be well, and they can return to heaven.

So, that's the basic idea, and it's really funny. It's not the stuffy or boring opera experience that may torture some opera goers--so stop on by the MAC this (or next) weekend for this great composition, from our very own Edwin Penhorwood. It's a double bill with Busoni's Arlecchino, which runs an hour, and is on first. I'm on this Saturday and next Friday (Feb 3/9) if you want to see my in my bi-polar glory.

trying to get motivated...

I'm a slug. Sloth. Lazy energy-less person.

This morning is the first morning of the semester I've managed to wake up at my old standard time (6:15) to be able to take a slow morning approach and get to school by 8am for my 2 hours of practice before class.

For some reason, I'm not dying at this moment, but perhaps that's because I've switched out my decaf for a lovely Large mug of regular. Tasty, tasty. Anyhow, perhaps also my longer days due to opera rehearsals have left me feeling more motivated and part of something. I think the busier I am the better I feel. It doesn't help, however, when I'm sort-of busy with things that aren't so fun, and then all I want to do is sit around.

Plus there's so much planning to do for just 6 months away, when my life will be completely different...in a great way, but also a scary one. My first time since age 2.5 that I won't have been in school for at least a few hours a week. The first time I'll be permanently living with someone other than family (but not for long!!!) in an apartment smaller than ~750 square feet. I fear that my lack of structure will lead me to a less constructive practice schedule--but considering Andy practices from 7-8am and then a few hours after work, I'm sure he'll keep me focused. We'll never see each other, but at least we'll be working and practicing and rehearsing! Haha. The joys of a young married life, not to mention the life of musicians for decades.

Anyhow, on a brighter note (with a twinge of jealousy) my mom's started her Aruban vacation this past Sunday, and while it snows here, she's got her feet deep in the sand, soaking in the sand and salt and swimming with all the gorgeous fish. Sigh. One more year, and I'll be there too!

Before I miss the bus, and dash my plan for a very productive morning, I best be off. If I don't write again until post-production, come check out the first opera of the New Year--Feb 2/3 and 9/10 (Adonis and I are in 3 and 9). My role is small, and my entrance is at the very last twenty minutes or so, but it's fun and definitely not the standard opera fare :)

So this year though I've felt like I'm not 100% involved in anything (half at school, half at work, still in Bloomington, yet knowing I'll be leaving soon, etc.) important life markers are still keeping me on my guard:

Tomorrow I start my last semester of school. Ever. It took me long enough. Had I followed my original educational intentions, I'd be in my last year of med school (had I made it this far). I can't imagine it possible that I've learned as many things following this musical path, but I know that I'm following what I love and hope to make some kind of difference in the lives of others. I'll certainly have to be a lot harder-working at find jobs, and I know that despite the hard work and unbelievable intelligence and constant blood sweat and tears of doctors, at least they have a stable life and should be able to find a job provided they continue to care. I don't know how we artists continue to stay strong amidst the constant rejections. My friends and I are working on that, and so far we're still positive. I've gotta say, it would be lovely to be recognized for working so hard...

I just turned a quarter of a century. That's a pretty big mark, I guess. It's exciting to not know where I'll be in another 5 years, and then 5 years after that. Hell, I don't know where I'll be in 2 years. Life's been great, though, and I can't say I regret anything so far in 25 years. I figure that at the moment of all my decisions, I never thought that they were bad ones, so why regret them after the fact if you didn't at that moment? All life experiences make you stronger, if you know how to look at them.

I got engaged at the minute I hit that quarter of a century mark. This certainly is something I never thought would happen anytime soon. In fact, my close friends mock me about it, considering at every opportunity I would mention how appalled I was that people I knew under 40 years old were getting married. I suppose it's my just rewards, and I couldn't be happier. And the amazing thing is, it doesn't seem like a scary, horrendous and awful thing after all. It doesn't feel like a life-changing, (or shall I say life-chaining event--it just feels right. Who knew?

I guess I can't follow up with anything more shocking and incredible at the moment. So, for now, Happy 2007 to all. I hope that by this time 2008 we feel even more fulfilled, more focused towards our goals, and have taken every opportunity to grow into the people we want to become.

So I've completely ignored this blog for months, and I know I'll continue to steadily ignore it, as I've also been away from AIM for the whole semester. I guess I'm just ready to phase out of the college life.

So much has happened since my last entry, and now that I've got a good bit of work to do to catch up after a long Thanksgiving break, it's probably not the time to recount it all. I did survive until the long awaited vacation, however, and took an extra week for part 1 of the audition rounds. In the end, I only ended up singing for 1 opera company while away, but I was planning on singing for up to 4 when I made the travel arrangements. The extra week of break flew by, and I know I did a lot of nothing. Now I'm back and have to cram in the week I missed, plus the current week and finals week into 4.5 days. It's not going to be pretty. Plus I just found out that my Italian final exam won't be ready by the time I leave, so I may have to take an incomplete for the course. Blah. Also, I missed an exam this past week, and have to retake it tomorrow (during the time I'm at work, somehow) and I don't even know what's on the exam. Though I know this course is not important in the overall scheme of things, it's annoying to know I missed all of these things, for a 7 minute audition.

I did, however, get reaquainted with NYC, and saw more of Andy, after another 5.5 week time apart. He had to work and rehearse a lot, which actually left us speaking almost less than we do over the phone long-distance..but even the one full day with him was enough for the trip. Sigh.

Well, I have to go write a paragraph or three on Dante's first canto of the Divine Comedy, and also do a little extra credit assignment or two to make up in advance all the things I'll mess up on the make-up exam. Bleech.

I need to start catching up with everyone next semester. I've been really hermity, I know. I'm just ready to move-on, and I get my practicing/classes/work done, and then want to stay home. Come January, I need to get out of my shell. Until then, I really do love returning to my very own apartment, and will be pleased to have some time alone for a few days..

L.

Full swing past summer

Well, my last blog was right before classes started. To be honest, it doesn't feel very different now than my crazy summer days---but I seem to have more responsibility and less will to get everything done.

Two Gentlemen of Verona (despite a quasi-nasty review) went really well. I've never done 7 runs of a show before, and though 1 or 2 nights were a little sparse, it was a good experience, and I'm certainly glad I did it. I thought I'd be a major bomb, but it turns out that a lot of people really liked me, and the diretor gave me a lot of nice compliments. Growing up around a lot of pretty good actresses, I always felt untalented (acting-wise). Perhaps I've grown into it a little more and now have something to offer. Not that I'm going to give up the singing, but if other acting opportunities pop-up, I may not be as shy about it next time.

My classes are going well, and are pretty non-time consuming. Averaging one class a day (plus choir) is great. However, having work until 6pm most days doesn't help to keep me focused on my academics. So far Italian has been mostly review, and my Postural Alignment class has been very interesting. We'll have our first assignment due tuesday, and I hope I make the time to work on the body exercises everyday.

As for my singing, I'm at a weird place right now. I'm amidst some kind of allergy/cold or whatnot, and the singing feels strange. So that's pretty annoying. Add wasting a lot of pratice time ruffling through different (more obscure) Italian operas for a new aria, and practicing practially goes the wayside. Plus, my aria package is under my belt...why bother going over it ad nauseum at the lesson?-but of course I still need to practice it on my own. Part of me definitely wishes I didn't have this job right now, so I could focus in on everything.

As pretty much any grad-student vocalist could tell you--Young Artist applications are awful. It takes millemiums to fill them out, and then you have to take another 1000 years to figure out how to get to the auditions. Within a month it'll be close to Thanksgiving time, at which point I'll be living in NY all but 8 days until New Years. Sigh.

Opera casting should be finished (on the most part), and now we all just have to wait to find out the results. Bah. It's already been a month.

Ok, suppose this is long enough for now. Hopefully by next blog I'll have got my shtuff together so I'll be prepared and not as stressed about all those auditions.

I have realized that I always expect new blogs from friends, yet never seem to update myself. Sorry!

Another month has gone by, and it's really been mostly the same. I've added Shakespeare rehearsals 5 nights/week, which although strange, have been mostly fun, and have certainly kept me scrounging for free time. Two Gentlemen of Verona goes up at the John Waldron Sept. 14th at 8pm, and runs for 7 shows. If you'd like to see it, maybe I can get a few comps :)

Work has been the same. 3 jobs will be reduced to 2 on Sunday evening, and then classes start Monday. I think I'm really in need of an honest to goodness vacation, and that's not coming until Thanksgiving (audition-laden season). Sigh. I'm so excited about Andy coming in one week--I'll have one and a half full days off. I told work that I just couldn't come in on Saturday, so then at least we'll have one whole day without time constraints.

Andy and I hit our 6 month mark just a week ago--unbelievable it's been only 6 months, particularly because we haven't seen each other much in the last 2 and a half months. It's a sign for what's to come over the next year. Bleech. At least we'll be together in just 1 more week....

Today should be an interesting day--working with Marion, then at Heritage for 7 hours. I managed to lose my office keys (I have NO idea where they are) and nobody has called them in, despite the $100 reward telephone number on them. That makes me feel like they're hiding in some nook in this apartment, having escaped my numerous energetic searches. Ah well. Supposedly my boss is going to have a chat with me today, which I won't talk about here, but it's not about the keys, and I certainly feel that the whole thing is ridiculous. Life certainly throws curve-balls at you, and despite the fact that you try to be the nicest, most patient, hard-working person, sometimes others just can't see it. Ah well. It's not really my problem. I can't let silliness concern me when there are so many other important things.

...like singing! Ms. Wise is back (YES!!!!) and Naomi and I had a double lesson on Wednesday. It was fantastic. Ms. Wise assured me that I have been singing correctly this whole summer, and this pesky ticklish throat is not a result of my poor singing but of some kind of allergy (which the Health Center confirmed just yesterday. Damn Bloomington allergens). Anyhow, my main problem now is that I need to understand the different styles better, and truly sing with character. I have realized with my Shakespeare work and with my singing that I am a very academic learner--I think with my head, not my heart. I need direction, and need to think about things logically. I make almost all my decisions based on fact and (as I just mentioned) logic. I know that I can be creative, but I don't think I am as emotional and creative in the way that most artists are. I know I have to work on this a lot, but am just not sure how to go about it.

Well, someone at Meadowood waits for me. A little Rachmaninoff listening and humming is probably on it's way...