It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like Christmas

...Everywhere you go. Seriously, with this last week came the emergence of millions of mini-lights, an abundance of Christmas Trees, and even a little bit of snow! And we here at NY Arts have been taking full advantage of the seasonal opportunities.

On Friday, I finally made it to Rockefeller Center to see the wonderfully illuminated tree! It really is a wondrous sight - the lights do a little flashing dance sporadically, and the tree is topped with a nine-foot Swarovski Crystal star. Not to mention that Saks Fifth Avenue next door is bedazzled with with huge light-up snowflakes that do a dance to "Carol of the Bells". Of course, the tourists go mad around these parts and it's a mess to navigate through, but it's definitely worth the sacrifice.

On Saturday, we saw our first hint of snow. It really started off as rain, and turned into a wintry mix of sorts halfway through the afternoon...but there were definitely some clearly-defined snowflakes at times. Amanda, Kelly, Sally, and I used this as an excuse to visit Bryant Park and have a look at all the shops and the tree. Unfortunately, it was too wet out to ice skate, but we will surely return when the time is right. We then hiked on up to Rockefeller Center (yup, twice in two days for me) to have a look at all the madness before calling it a night.

And today, Fallon, Kelly, Sally, and I headed down to the Union Square Holiday Market. There are all sorts of fun shops in the square, selling knickknacks and scarfs and snacks and hats and ornaments and all sorts of crazy things. Sally and Kelly each purchased a delicious gingerbread woman, while I opted for the non-human-shaped form of same cookie. It was potentially the best cookie I have ever had - and paired with some delicious hot apple cider (or as I prefer to call it, wassail), it was exactly what I needed.

So New York has been transformed into a Winter Wonderland of sorts. Hopefully the snow will actually come down with conviction at some point in the next couple of weeks. And finally, coming up tomorrow night...the ultimate New York Christmas experience...The Radio City Christmas Spectacular with the Rockettes! I cannot contain my excitement!

Four-Letter Words

This has been the week plays with four-letter word titles. On Tuesday, Kelly and I saw Fela!, and followed it up today with Race.

Upon glancing at the list directly to the left, I have realized that Fela! is the first show we have seen this semester with an exclamation point in the title - which is tragic, because I love and exclaimed show title. Well, Fela! definitely delivered on its promise of exclamation. The show is about Fela Kuti, a Nigerian musician and composer who pioneered Afrobeat music. The show's choreography is absolutely explosive - and we audience members even got our turn to break it down. The best part of the show: Sting was in attendance. Not to belittle the merits of the show (it really was phenomenal), but everyone loves a good celebrity.

Wednesday was definitely...um...eventful. Kelly and I planned on hanging out at Rockefeller Center for a few hours to see the lighting of the Christmas Tree. Well, we got there around 5:30, and the crowd was out of control...not to mention that it was raining. We were far away from the tree, couldn't hear the performances, and were getting wet, so we decided that the New York Arts lounge would be a much more comfortable place to watch the event. So we did just that - although, sadly, I managed to get distracted during the countdown to the tree lighting, and completely missed it. So I went from expecting to see the tree lit in person to missing it altogether. Oh well, at least I was warm and comfy inside.

And tonight we saw David Mamet's Race. It was definitely a step (or two or three) above the current production of Oleanna. It's about a law firm made up of two black lawyers and one white lawyer who have to decide whether or not to defend a white man who has been accused of raping a black woman. So...do we understand the title yet? The production was great - in classic Mamet style, it was incredibly provocative. James Spader and David Alan Grier were excellent in their parts, Kerry Washington was good but not great, and Richard Thomas was kind of awful. But the best part of the event - it was a press preview, so I was joking that we might see Ben Brantley (chief theatre critic for the New York Times) at the show. After taking our seats, I went down to use the bathroom, and who do I spot...but Mr. Brantley himself. BTW, He is just as frightening in person as he is in the picture to the right. We even stalked him a little at intermission, and found him outside reading an article about the show...making that exact same face. Absolutely frightening. A lovely evening at the theatre.

To Have and Have Not...

Sunday was another case of the good and the bad (well, more like the ugly actually), compliments of (respectively) the Upright Citizens Brigade and the Roundabout Theatre Company.

We kicked off the day with a visit to the theatre to see After Miss Julie. Amanda, Sally, Kellie, Kelly, and I picked up our $10 tickets and took our seats. Sadly, the lovely discounted tickets are the last good thing I have to say about the show...it was pretty awful. Sienna Miller did not deliver what the title character needed, a good 20 minutes of the play was unspoken, and there was a large table around which the characters walked at least 40 times - including one fantastical sequence in which Johnny Lee Miller pounded his fist while hopping bizarrely all the way around the room. Roundabout produced this play (along with Bye Bye Birdie...eek), so I'm not really sure what to think of them anymore. Yeah, I'll stick with MTC.

But at least the post-show activities were exciting. We trekked on up to Blockheads and had a delicious Mexican fiesta of a lunch. My nachos were spectacular. On the way home, we made a much-needed stop at Duane Reade. I can't honestly recall why we went in, but suffice it to say that we left with (between all of us) two large bags of peanut butter m&m's, a Diet Coke, two boxes of Christmas cards, a Sprite Zero, a bag of sour gummi worms, two festive holiday garlands, a box of decadent chocolate, and then some. A productive stop indeed.

And of course, the night was topped of with an always-hilarious visit to the Upright Citizens Brigade. Kelly and I chose to stand in the back, which was fine other than the two girls to my right who snuck in and slowly but surely ousted me from my prime position. So I took the passive-aggressive approach to stand directly behind them and whisper loudly to Kelly about how upset I was. Regardless, the show was absolutely hysterical. Amy Poehler showed up once more, as well as Jason Sudeikis from SNL. Both the monologues and the skits were enjoyable this time. I love being an Uptight Citizen!

Cornucopia: Meaning Bountiful...A Lot Of

Thanksgiving in New York City has come and gone. My dad and brother came to visit, and we tackled a cornucopia of exciting activities. The festivities began on Wednesday and lasted all the way to Saturday. Nonstop.

First things first: I get word that the fam has arrived in North Bergen, New Jersey at around 5:00 on Wednesday, and they board a bus around 6:00, poised to arrive in the city within 15 minutes. So I scurry on over to the Port Authority Bus Terminal...only to discover that there bus is caught in ca-razy holiday traffic. So I wait (and wait (and wait)), and they finally arrive around 7:15. We quickly scarf down some pizza at Famiglia and hoof it on over to the Helen Hayes by 8:00 for a hysterical performance of The 39 Steps. It was just as funny the second time around, and provided a lovely start to the weekend ahead.

With Thursday came Thanksgiving itself! And what does Thanksgiving in NYC mean?...Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade! Live! In person! A large group of NYAPers headed out early (really, it was 6:30 a.m., a small price to pay), and we scoured out a prime spot on 42nd St. & 7th Ave. - the parade made a turn here, so we got to see the balloons and floats coming at us, and then do their wondrous turns. After two hours or so of waiting, the parade finally began! We could literally see it coming at us from a mile away - straight up the street from Central Park. And the parade did not disappoint: the balloons were massive and made some frightening turns over our heads/through narrow gaps, the floats were exquisite, the celebrities were...present (I either didn't really know who most of them were, or just didn't care), and the crowd was massive. The experience was thrilling.












After this, we made a trek up to Rockefeller Center (where the not-yet-lit tree stands) and then to Central Park. After accidentally riding an express train all the way up to 125th St. (we wanted 72nd), we finally made it to the park. We stumbled upon the Jacqueline Onassis Reservoir, which is huge and I've strangely never seen before, as well as Strawberry Fields, which was sadly not decorated - the homeless man who usually brings the flowers and does the work took the holiday off. We then rested for a little while in preparation for Thanksgiving Dinner, which was not to happen until late at night.

Around 8:30, we finally met up with the Voigt family and headed down to SoHo for our lovely feast at Bistro Les Amis. We arrived just before 9:00 (the time of our reservation) and discovered there were no tables available...so we waited outside (and waited (and waited))...until finally, we were seated at 9:30. Luckily, the wait was well worth it. The meal consisted of bread, carrot ginger soup, salad, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, squash, mashed potatoes, turkey stuffed with sausage and mushrooms, and a choice of pumpkin pie or cheesecake for desert (I had a little of both...). Each and every course was delicious, delectable, and festive. Properly stuffed, we headed back and hit the sack for the night.

Friday was the day of the museum. We first headed back to Central Park to visit the Museum of Natural History. I've missed this place since my first visit more than 5 years ago. The best parts are all the animal exhibits, which display all sorts of creatures in their natural habitats. And of course, the forest, biology, space, and dinosaur exhibits are all fascinating as well. What a wonderful tour - I even learned a little something in the process. After this, we headed to another museum for a less intellectual experience. Yup, we went to Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. It was so worth it, too. I got my picture taken with all of my favorite celebs: Tyra, Whoopi, *NSYNC, Shakira, The Spice Girls, and even Madame Tussaud herself. They look so real!










Saturday was the last day for dad and Scott in the city. So how did we kick it off? By heading to New Jersey of course! We hopped on the NJ Transit and headed to downtown Hoboken, home of Carlo's Bakery (of the show "Cake Boss"). Unfortunately, upon arriving, we discovered a huge line looping around the block - and it wasn't moving, so it was surely a good hour wait. Well, we didn't have time for that, so we just snapped some pics of the front facade and then headed out. Around the corner, though, we spotted the back alley behind the shop. And emerging from it, bearing two enormous sheet cakes for the crowd, was none other than Mauro (we didn't know his name at the time - I just looked it up). Well, he offered us the cake (I took one of each - chocolate and red velvet) and then we got a nice picture with him. These people are incredibly nice. It was so worth the trip.

After moseying around a nice park in Hoboken for a while, we re-boarded the NJ Transit heading for the World Trade Center. Except that we ended up somewhere else in Jersey and had to wait for the correct train to pick us up there. We ended up a good hour out of our way. The NJ Transit only has five trains, but it's still so confusing. Well, we finally got to lower Manhattan, saw Ground Zero, perused the memorial, and walked along the southern shoreline, catching a distant glimpse of the Statue of Liberty as the sun set. Wow, that was beautifully stated...

And for our last event, we attended a performance of the groundbreaking musical, Next to Normal. Upon entering the theatre, I was disheartened to find that the amazing Alice Ripley would not be performing in the show (let's be honest though, neither dad nor Scott cared - and her understudy was phenomenal anyway). Again, this was my second time seeing the show - and it was even better this time around. Everybody loved it - how could they not?!

So that's the amazing holiday weekend. It was great to see my dad and brother before I embark on my last month in the city (ah!). And it was also terribly convenient, because they drove in, and I was able to send a whole bunch of unnecessary things home - because I can't take it all on a plane. Now that Thanksgiving is over, bring on the winter!

It Won't Be Long Now

We have officially reached the one-month countdown to saying goodbye to New York City. Not that I will actually be counting, because that would just be tragic. There's so little time, and so much left to do...I suppose. I guess other than seeing the rest of the shows on Broadway, I don't have much planned. We'll see where the road take us.

One thing I will definitely miss (and am sad that I discovered so late) is the free improv at Upright Citizens Brigade. I returned there for a third consecutive week this past Sunday, and it was the best show I have seen yet. The troupe this time included Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers once again. Oh yeah, and did I mention Rachel Dratch?! That's right, the Rachel Dratch from SNL partook in the improv hilarity. Honestly, it doesn't even matter what she says, because I will laugh regardless. And Fallon and I took a seat on the floor, practically on the stage, so we were dangerously and awesomely close to the stars and the action. I love celebrities. I love comedy. Put them together, and I will have a good time.

Speaking of a good time, one can also be currently be found on Broadway at Studio 54, home of Carrie Fisher's Wishful Drinking. And actually, the formula is pretty much the same as UCB: celebrity + comedy = good time for Nick. Kelly and I got some wonderfully discounted tickets for $10 (!) and the house wasn't sold out, so we even got to move closer to the stage. Now I've never been the biggest Carrie Fisher fan (although I do love her work in "When Harry Met Sally", and paricularly in "Scream 3"), but she is actually absolutely hilarious. She makes fun of herself and her ridiculous life (complete with lots of Star Wars references), and focuses on her struggles with addictions and manic depression. Another amazing part of the experience was the theatre itself - Studio 54 was a nightclub back in the day, and they have kept the wooden floors and cheetah-print carpet intact. Loves it.

Well, that's that. My dad and brother arrive in the city today! And tomorrow is Thanksgiving! So lots of fun things are in store - seeing The 39 Steps tonight, going to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade tomorrow, and seeing Next to Normal on Saturday. I'm not really sure what we'll do to fill in those gaps, but we'll figure something out. It should be an exciting time.

Some Guys Got It...And Some Guys Don't

These past few days have been a strange combination of the terrible, the mediocre, and the amazing...all rolled into one. I guess it's been a guilty pleasure sort of week. Let's start with the worst and build our way up...

Well, first let me provide you with some more advice for NYC tourists: if you are looking to see a Broadway show, do NOT - I repeat, DO NOT - see Bye Bye Birdie. Kelly and I have realized that we are roughly 8 shows away from seeing everything on Broadway, so we figured why not go for it? The downside of this effort is that it may require seeing some atrocious things - case in point, the revival of Bye Bye Birdie. Now I am actually a fan of the show itself - I think it's pretty funny and has some very catchy songs. But this production may have changed all that. Let's start with a list of the good things: Jayne Houdyshell's performance as Mae Peterson. [.....silence as people wait for the list to continue.....]. Sorry, but that's where it ends. She gave an admirable performance (and notice I said good things, not great) and provided the only genuine laughs in the show. The rest was pretty terrible - John Stamos and Gina Gershon both have terrible voices and gave weak performances...not to mention that the latter had a CD for sale in the lobby - who let her record a CD?! The kids were trying so hard to give the show energy, and some of the teenage boys were hilarious in how much they committed to their roles. Bill Irwin, who played Mr. MacAfee (a role I once perfected myself...), was clearly aware of how terrible the show was and as a result gave an unrestrained, out of control, admirably awful performance. In the end though, this was one of those shows that is so bad that they I began to enjoy it for that very reason.

One thing that was not so bad (other than our terribly distant seats) was Girl Crazy at City Center Encores! (that exclamation point is a part of the title - not that I'm not excited anyway). MTC got some comp tickets, and I snatched them right up. Amanda accompanied me, and we had a ball. This is a show from 1930, so there was basically no substance to it. However, the book was pretty darn funny and Gershwin's score was played to sumptuous perfection by a huge orchestra. There were some pretty big names, too - Wayne Knight (Newman on "Seinfeld"), Broadway star Marc Kudisch, and Ana Gasteyer ("SNL" and, of course, MTC's The Royal Family). The best part of the event was just to be able to hear Gershwin as it should be played - because they just don't write music like that anymore...

And now for the greatest guilty pleasure of all...This week, Kelly and I had the honor and privilege to attend a taping of "The Tyra Banks Show". We got to sit through the filming of two episodes. What more could one ask for? We kind of got jipped on the seating - we were way in the back corner of the section they don't film that much - but it was still a blast. They divided the audience up into 5 sections, and each had to compete against the others to cheer the loudest and be the craziest. During the first taping, our section (Section D!) were the clear winners...but they gave it to Section A. Which means that they got Tyra shirts. Not cool.

That's alright though, because I soon made up for my lack of prizes. Before the second episode, they selected a representative from each section to take part in a contest. Because of my insane enthusiasm, I was selected to represent Section D. And then they revealed what kind of contest this was: a dance competition. I was doubtful about my odds, because I was up against three black girls and a Latina. But I broke it down and held my own. So after the dancing was over, the four women were presented with a bag of various products, and I received the grand prize: a $100 gift certificate to Levi's.

The taping of the show itself was pretty terrible...and wonderful. The first episode was a makeover show - three average people gave makeovers to strangers they found on the street. There was also a beautiful segment in the middle in which Tyra gave a quadriplegic fan a makeover. Tyra really knows how to tug at my heart strings...Now the second episode was a strange potpourri of sorts. Topics include little girls struggling with body image (this was sad and frightening), a boy wrongfully accused of a crime who was proven innocent with the help of Facebook (really, Tyra?!), a woman who has had three plastic surgeries without anesthesia (eek), and organic skin treatments (lame). So we didn't really get the best episodes - but gaining $100 and experiencing Tyra up close in all her madness made it more than worth the trip.

And of course, no indulgence of guilty pleasures is complete without a visit to Jamba Juice. On Friday night, Amanda, Anna, Bryce, and I spontaneously headed up to Times Square to get some late night refreshments. That is the farthest I have ever traveled strictly to get Jamba, but it was more than worth it. Actually, this time I didn't feel so guilty, as I tried a delicious Jamba Light, and found myself very pleased with the slimming decision.

Coming up this week, we have Thanksgiving, which means family, turkey, parade, shows, fun tourist activities, and (strangely) lots of work. Although I get off at 2 on Wednesday, I am working some crazy front desk and patron lounge shifts (for cash) that will keep me busy all the way up until break begins. I don't hate it.

Passtime Potpourri

These past few days have been eclectic, to say the least. It wasn't my same old routine (work-->show; repeat) - I shook it up a little bit. On Saturday I did actually have a double shift working the patron's lounge for Nightingale. But I had four hours between shifts, so I hoofed it over to Central Park to (finally) get a look at the fall foliage! And let me say I was not disappointed. Sure, it was drizzling out, but the leaves were still all sorts of lovely colors - and the rain even added to the autumnal ambiance. That is until I reached the dead middle of the park...and it started pouring. Buckets. Vats. Dams. (It was raining very hard). I could not escape it, and even though I had my umbrella, I still got a got soaked. I hope the patrons at the night performance didn't notice my soggy clothing and the faint smell of mildew...











On Sunday, a whole gaggle of NYAPers went to see improv at the Upright Citizens Brigade. On Sunday nights, there are free shows - all you have to do is wait in line for an hour so, at which I am a pro. The show is basically an hour and a half of improv - the troupe performs skits based on improvised monologues given by a person called the "monologist" (who is generally famous). This was actually my second visit to the UCB - last time there was a whole slew of famous people - lots of SNL cast members, including Amy Poehler, Seth Meyers, and Bobbie Moynihan, as well as Jack MacBrayer from "30 Rock" - and the show was absolutely hysterical. This time around, the troupe didn't have any particularly famous people, although the monologist was none other than...Chevy Chase. That's right, the Chevy Chase. His monologues were actually incredibly strange and not terribly funny (and the ensuing improvs were a little sub-par as well), but being able to see Chevy Chase up close was alone worth the trip. I shall be returning very soon.

And now comes Nick's advice for the day. This one is for prospective NYC tourists: if you want to win tickets to a Broadway show via a lottery, go for Rock of Ages. I tried this on Monday, and the contest was virtually nonexistant - roughly 14 people vied for 28 tickets (at 2 per person), so everyone got in. I had my hesitations about this show, but I cannot lie - I actually liked it. A lot. It does for 80's rock songs what Mamma Mia! does for ABBA - and it even does it slightly better (although sadly without the exclamation point). The show is just downright silly, and I even recognized most of the songs! Not to mention that the vocals were absolutely phenomenal. I really went for Kerry Butler, who did Xanadu last year - I know, you wish you had seen that one, right? She was hilarious and sassy of course. And Constantine Maroulis (of "American Idol" Season 4 - back in the day when I still watched) was surprisingly great. Add to the mix the battery-powered lighters they handed out and the glittery confetti at the end of the show, and I am sold.

And finally, tonight I attended a taping of "Inside the Actor's Studio" with the Strasberg Institute - Kelly got comps, and I tagged along. The special guest was Kate Hudson, so it wasn't the most intriguing of discussions. Although I do love her work in "Almost Famous" and am super excited for "Nine". In the end though, it was just amazing to see James Lipton in the flesh - he seriously had a colossal stack of note cards and went through all of them. So look for the episode to air later this year and listen for a sustained scream during the final applause - that would be me.

If I Won the Lottery...

I would see lots of shows! And indeed, Kelly and/or I won several lotteries this week, and saw three phenomenal shows.

On Monday we attended the lottery for Next to Normal. As always, I had my doubts - it's always better to go in expecting the worst. Well, the lottery drawing began, and I fortunately did not have to wait long before my frown was turned upside down. My name was called...first. Let's repeat, shall we? First. Once more: first. Yup, I am officially a lottery master! Kelly's name was also called about eight in, but it matters not, for we only needed my two tickets. I am actually seeing N2N again with my dad and bro over Thanksgiving, but it's totally worth a second viewing. The music and lyrics are (appropriately) eclectic, and the direction and performances are all spot on. Alice Ripley (who is cah-razy in real life) plays a bi polar mother/wife to perfection - although, let's be honest, it's not really that much of a stretch for her. My fave was actually Jennifer Damiano, who played the daughter - her storyline was the most moving and she has some great material. I'm really excited to see it again...from further away. Because we were in the front row and very close.

The post-show scene was an event in and of itself. We stopped by the stage door to see the cast and get some autographs. They were all very nice, and gladly obliged to photos. Alice Ripley was, of course, absolutely crazy...and she has the most bizarre autograph I have ever seen - it involves block lettering and takes a good 15 seconds to complete. Anyway, after this, we happened to pass by the Minskoff Theatre next door, where Bernadette Peters's benefit concert was just getting out. We decided to stick it out at the stage door and see some celebs...and indeed we did. We first spotted Martin Short, and then shortly thereafter Mary Tyler Moore - I was starstruck. And then came the greatest of all - Bernadette Peters herself emerged, in all her amazing glory. She is seriously 61, and looks like she is 38 or so. My life has been changed.

The next two days were not so kind for lotteries. On Tuesday, I attempted the Ragtime lottery (again) and promptly lost. On Wednesday, I gave Hair another stab (again) and promptly lost (again). On the bright side, it was nice to have some quiet nights at home. And Wednesday's loss gave me the opportunity to return to Ice Gleem Social Wednesdays! Let's be honest, they have been falling apart without my presence. I got a three one-dollar scoops and watched a lovely episode of "Glee". Not too shabby.

On Thursday, the victory continued! I couldn't make it out of work in time, but Kelly hustled over to the In the Heights lottery. I arrived too late to put my name in, but just in time to hear her name called! So once more we won the lottery and saw a show from the front row. The show is absolutely amazing as well - the set is exquisitely detailed, the songs are rhythmic/driving/beautiful/powerful/etc., the dancing is pulsating, and the performances are sound.

The best part of the occasion though was my triumphant return to the Richard Rodgers Theatre. This is where I saw my very first Broadway show, Movin' Out, just a mere five years ago. So returning was a homecoming of sorts - full circle, you may say. I found the area where our seats for Movin' Out were, and took some nostalgic pictures. I was just a bright-eyed young child when I saw my first Broadway show, and I have now seen 27. With many more to come...











Speaking of which, on Friday I attempted the Hair lottery once more. This is the eighth time I have attempted, and the first time my name was called! Last time we saw the show, we had the last row in the boxes (behind lots of heads) and could see - um - stage right only. This time I was hoping for some better seats, and we were given...the exact same ones. So we couldn't see much more of the show than before. But it was still absolutely phenomenal. And this time I had an aisle seat, so I got my hair tousled by cast members a few times. I tousled their hair right back. And of course, we danced onstage at the end, and had a ball. After the show, Will Swenson auctioned off the pants he wore that night to raise money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. They ended up going for $600. That's right - SIX HUNDRED DOLLARS. I wish I had that kind of money to throw around willy-nilly.

So yes, this week was a rousing success. We have pretty much conquered all of the lotteries - the only ones left to win are Ragtime and Rock of Ages. I have confidence that it will happen. We will succeed!

The Sun Sits Low

Time is slipping away in the City of New York. There are but six weeks left to cram in all the excitement possible. With the departure of daylight savings time, it gets dark here at roughly 5:00 p.m. As a wise man once said, you don't know what you got till it's gone. Seriously, my every waking moment of daylight is spent indoors working (not that I don't love my internship). But it is already halfway through fall, and I am yet to experience the true wonders of autumn in New York City. I tried to make it to Central Park yesterday to see the vibrantly colored leaves (as I assume they are), but upon my arrival circa 5:00, the sun promptly disappeared, leaving me no gorgeous sights to behold. Time is precious and it's slipping away, and I've been waiting for you all of my life - yes, I'm talking to you, NYC fall foliage.

And with that, I will transport you back to Tuesday. The Manhattan Theatre Club officially took over my life this week. Let's count the hours, shall we?
Monday: 8 / Tuesday: 11 / Wednesday: 10 / Thursday: 8 / Friday: 4 / Saturday: 8
And the grand total: 49 hours. AHHHHH!
Of course, this tally includes 12 paid hours and 3 hours at the opening night party, but still. This week was full of crazy hijinks at MTC - opening night party for Nightingale on Tuesday, review day and fun quote ad meeting on Wednesday, Associate Artistic Director seminar on Thursday, double Patron Lounge duty on Saturday, etc. Not to mention that I worked at the front desk for an hour on Thursday and got to buzz Angela Lansbury into the 8th floor for rehearsal. We made eye contact - we made a connection.

Tuesday was a marathon of epic proportions. I went straight from working at my internship from 2 to 6 to working the front desk shift from 6 to 10 to the opening night party until 1 a.m. The party was a grand (and classy) time. It was held at the Beacon <--- seriously, click on that link - you can tell just by looking at the home page that this place is legit. I had an absolutely amazing time at the party - all us interns hung out for a few hours and bonded. We all discussed what we plan on doing next semester - about half of the interns are sticking around, and I really wish I could, too. Realistically, though, I need to get back to school so that I can graduate - yikes. But anyway, it was really great to be able to hang with the other interns - they're all really cool and nice and I don't get the chance to see them enough (if at all) outside of work.

At the same time, I am simultaneously impressed and frightened by the sheer ambition all of the interns have. They have grand plans to direct and produce theatre - and what's more, a lot of them are already doing these things on a significant scale. I'm just happy to be working at such a prestigious theatre company, getting experience in the field and learning about it all. I don't have so many strong, unflinching goals considering my future. It has been comforting, though, to talk to my adviser Sunil about such things. He definitely hadn't figured things out at my age, and at 30 he is still discovering where he wants his career to go. I think it would be advantageous for me to develop stronger goals, but I also need to accept that I will never really be able to fully figure everything out.

Anyway, I digress. I also packed in two shows this week. On Wednesday, I got student rush to Oleanna. I accompanied Sally and Kelly, who had comps for the performance (in orchestra seats far better than my third row paid-for mezzanine seats). I thought the play was good, but I wasn't completely sold on the direction and performances. Bull Pullman was solid and Julia Stiles was passable (of course nothing can beat her flawless performance in "Save the Last Dance"), but the show just didn't flow and build to the climax like it should have. This production promised to be incredibly provocative and apparently after original production many couples left the theatre arguing. Leaving the theatre, I expressed my disappointment that I didn't feel there was much to argue about... Of course, immediately following this statement, we began arguing - although it was more about the merits of the production, and not the subject matter. Oh well, it was definitely an educational theatre experience.

Although I'll tell what's not so educational - the poetry seminar I've been taking for the last 3 weeks. It is uniformly agreed that no one has gotten anything out of this class - it had its interesting moments, but was overall pretty lame. For our last session, the class went to a poetry reading that took place in an art gallery. This idea is pleasant enough on paper...except that it turns out that all of the poets were pretty bad. I enjoyed the second woman, because she was just a precious old lady, but other than that they were pretty expendable. I'm rather excited to have my Thursday nights back - more time to see shows or watch the leaves change...oh wait, it gets dark at 5:00.

On Friday night, Kelly and I (after losing lotteries for both In the Heights and Ragtime) attended In the Next Room or the vibrator play. I know, sounds classy, right? Well, actually, strangely, it was. It is a Lincoln Center production on Broadway, so you can rest assured that it is well done and legit. The show is a dramatic comedy of sorts set in the 1880s, during which time doctors were apparently treating women for hysteria using...well, you know. But the play turned out to be a surprising poignant commentary on human connection, and I found the ending stunningly beautiful. I won't give it away, but let's just say that it steadily snows - which is always a plus for me. In fact, check out my new list of shows I've seen that feature onstage precipitation!

And you may have noticed one gaping absence in my blog as of late. Well, no worries, I have ended my hiatus...and made a triumphant return to Jamba Juice! Yup, as it gets colder, my love of Jamba grows fonder. A good Peanut Butter Moo'd can turn any frown upside down, as it has indeed done for me many a time. And with that, have a plentiful Jamba week!

We Did The Mash! (We Did The Monster Mash)

Okay, so only two days out of the last week were actually dedicated to Halloween, but I felt terribly deprived of the Monster Mash song throughout the week, and as such I have decided to immortalize it as the title of this blog post. What now follows is a chronicle of the last week...

Tuesday and Wednesday were...(no surprise here)...fun show days. On Tuesday, I picked up some super-sweet student rush tickets for Memphis: front row. My eyes were just about in line with stage level, so it was a glorious view. I enjoyed the show a lot more than I expected to. The first act had some well-directed intense moments, and there were a good bunch of toe-tapping songs. Unfortunately, the second was kind of lame, and there were some extremely questionably book and lyric moments (Really, you just rhymed stupid with cupid? Really?!). The two leads were great - Chad Kimball owned his character and sang some beautiful high notes (even though he may have channeled George W. Bush a little), and Montego Glover could sing her face off - and the ensemble as a whole was incredibly energetic. All in all, it wasn't the greatest musical by any stretch, but definitely a good night at the theatre.

South Pacific, on the other hand, was another story. This was one of the most genuinely beautiful productions I have ever seen, which is a result of both the perfect writing and flawless direction. To my great disdain, the (supposedly great) Kelli O'Hara was out that night, so I was stuck with her (passable, but overall pretty dismal) understudy. It's okay though, because other than this girl and the absolutely dreadful Lt. Cable, the production was pretty much perfect. Paulo Szot gave one of the most heartfelt, effortless performances I have ever seen as Emile - he did win a Tony, and rightfully so. I wish they still wrote musicals like this. I would classify this night at the theatre as...(ahem)...some enchanted evening.

And now for the saga that is Halloween in New York City. I procrastinated a little in finding a costume, so I was left to whatever resources I had available...Fortunately, while looking around my room for inspiration, I spotted my good old reliable Snuggie. I put in on and paired it with a vest given to me by the lovely Chelsea Barberi. And through sheer serendipity, I had my costume: A Snuggie-clad Jedi.

The Halloween festivites began on Friday with a rousingly enjoyable party at the New York Arts residence. At 6:00, a pumpkin-carving contest was waged in the backyard. There were three pumpkins...and three people showed up. I competed against the well-equipped Kellie Holm and Jessica Black. I had neither the will nor the strength to compete, so luckily Kelly came to the rescue and pretty much single-handedly carved the pumpkin. At the eleventh hour, I made a crucial decision and carved out some hair for the pumpkin. Some would call this unnecesarry and bizarre, but I maintain that it was completely beneficial and genius. In the end, no real winner was determined - which is fine, because we all ate the championship candy throughout the course of the contest anyway. At 8:00, the real party began. The festivities included a donut-on-a-string race (I lost), a costume contest (I won "Most Creative"!), and a strange impromptu game that involved spraying whipped cream into each other's mouths (I did not partake). All in all, it was a wonderful evening of rabblerousing and camaradarie.

With Saturday came All Hallows Eve itself. I had been hearing talk for weeks about this famed parade that happens in West Village. It's supposed to be a grand time, and even better if you dress up and actually walk in the parade. So we all did just that. We got to the parade around 6:30, and promptly got let into the the parade...or rather, the waiting area for the parade. We waited around, packed in like sardines in a huge crowd for about an hour...during which time it started raining. I brought my umbrella, but that did not make it okay. We finally got moving, and endured this parade for a good 20 blocks. Maybe more. We basically just walked along the outside of the floats, cars, strange dancing people, and basically anything interesting - thus blocking the view of people trying to watch and detracting from their good time. We escaped a few blocks before the end and promptly headed to the Chelsea Square Restaurant for something to get our blood pumping again. There is nothing better than escaping the pouring rain in order to eat some delicious, nutritious breakfast food. By the time we got home, we were all completely exhausted. Bedtime: 11:30 p.m.

Sunday was a day of closing performances. The second closing, Off-Broadway's Still Life, was a less than enjoyable time. The play was alright, but overall jumbled and disappointing. I don't think anyone is too sad to see this one close.

The same cannot be said about Brighton Beach Memoirs by Neil Simon, which tragically closed on Sunday after only a week of performances. It was seriously one of the greatest things I have ever seen on the stage. It was deeply moving, heartfelt, and genuine. I don't think I've ever been so affected by a play. The set was intricate and gorgeous (done by Jon Lee Beatty - who also designed The Royal Family) and the performances were right on. Who can say exactly why the production didn't succeed, but the marketing campaign definitely didn't do any good (I know these things - I work in Marketing...). After the show, we waited around the for the actors. The first person to emerge was this old man who none of us recognized. People started swarming and asking for autographs, and Amanda, Kelly, and I stood by and pondered loudly (and rudely) who this man was. A kind gentleman next to us informed us that was indeed the Neil Simon...whoops. Well, we promptly rushed over and got his autograph as well. The rest of the cast exited carrying all of their dressing room decorations - it was a very sad sight, but they still gladly signed for us. I sincerely wish I could see this production again, as well as the sequel Broadway Bound (isn't that an ironic title...), which will not open now. Oh well...(sigh)...at least I know what Broadway should be.

Well, the Manhattan Theatre Club is a-hustlin' and a-bustlin', as usual. Last week, all kinds of fun things happened - I met with my mentor Jeff (the Director of Finance) and we discussed all kinds of fun things concerning finance and life in general. I also had my midterm review with Sunil and Caitlin, and they informed me that they think I'm a great intern and they love having me around. This week will be phenomenal as well - tonight is the opening for Nightingale Off-Broadway, so I will be heading to the post-show reception. In the morning, it's review day, so I have to come in early and compile all the reviews - then, in the afternoon, I get to go to an exciting quote meeting! I'll learn all about how they choose quotes and design the post-opening ads and all that mess. It should be a good time.

And finally: quite possibly the two most exciting things that have happened thus far:
1) Today, I finally got to see Angela Lansbury in the flesh. A fellow intern informed me that she was downstairs, so I promptly headed down. She was sitting in the lobby studying her script. We didn't talk or anything, but that is enough for me.
2) I will finally have my name in a Broadway Playbill! The final edits have gone through for the November Playbill for The Royal Family, and I will be listed under the Interns. This is pretty much the pinnacle of my career, and I can stop working now.

So that's the week (and then some...). All this posting procrastination has given me (and you, I'm sure) a real big headache. I will be getting back on track this week. I swear it's true this time. Okay, ta-ta for now.