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The only bad thing about this is the fact that they took the pictures before I got my wig. Here I am in it!

WE ROCKED!

Opening Night was a success!!! We were sold out!! Thanks everyone. Pictures and reflections to come! Come see the show! We run till May 22nd! Show/Ticket info at www.farmingtonplayers.org

OPENING NIGHT

Whew! Tonight is the beginning of our run of "Gypsy" at the Players Barn. So many emotions..!! I really should be trying to take a nap - slept like crap last night - but I am too wired.

Let's sort some of this out, shall we?

Okay...first fear - FREEZING ON STAGE. It is a weird thing that happens to many people. You walk out on stage and, suddenly, there is Mr. Naysayer in your head... "Wow, I wonder if my dress is buttoned, am I standing up straight, how does my face look, do I feel centered, oops better listen to that line, I'm next..."

SHUT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have never frozen onstage. True, that voice speaks to me but I will do my very best to not listen. With 14 scenes, 9 songs, 10 costumes changes (2 in under 30 seconds, a dog, children, food on stage.... there is way too much stimulus. Concentrate. 'Nuff said.

We lost a little girl this week to cancer. She performed in several of the youth theatre shows and summer theatre camps. Haley was a bright star and given a short span here on earth. She used up every moment of it and was an inspiration to her family, her friends and those who knew her. She loved theatre and singing and I need to remember that as I have the opportunity to go out there tonight. Haley can't so I will sing and act in her honor and in her memory.

Then there are my parents who will be watching from the celestial balcony tonight. They would have burst with pride at all that I have achieved in this production and I cannot let them down. They will be in attendance and, again, I sing and dance in their honor and in their memory.

This is a great chance to bring to life an amazing story. The real folks depicted in this wild tale are gone now and they too need to be honored in the age old tradition of "the show must go on!"

And lastly, this is theatre. Theatre must be for the audience; to lift, to inspire, to amuse, to shock and to entertain. The actors will have an amazing time of it but we need to bring it so that our audience can savor the "in the moment" feeling too. The Arts stop us, dead in our tracks, and gets in our face. This is why music, dance and theatre is essential to life. It lifts us up and out of our lives, out of our heads, out of ourselves and MAKES us look around!!

And we need to stop, once in awhile, and look around, right?

This is a roller coaster of a show. It makes us feel. It makes us think. It is art.

I am humbled to be a part of it.

So, with the spirit of my English grandmother, my mother and father, Haley and Rose Hovick herself, I intend to walk out on that stage tonight and SHINE!

On with the show!

EASTER 2010

Here are some shots of our family this Easter. It was the first without both my parents and that was hard. But my "new" family - my husband's family - were so wonderful and we are so blessed. Have you hugged your folks lately?

WHAT A WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay....whew. What a week. First off, I had a birthday. Not a biggie, as far as numbers go. It's not what I am feeling inside my body so it's not really a factor is the story. For the record...my internal number is 37. No idea why - just is.

The morning of my birthday - March 2nd for calendar watchers - I sent Mal off to school and hit the shower. I drove to Starbucks, got a Venti and munchie and headed off to see a 9:45 show of "Avatar". Okay, you're thinking...you had me till 9:45 ..?? Well, I was trying to get it all in, ya know? The first 3D showing I could get to was 9:45 so I strolled in to my own private large screen show. Way cool! I pushed up the armrests, put my feet up, drank my coffee and watched in my oversized living room! I even took a call from my brother - who was I going to disturb?! He actually remembered my day without any prompting from our mother. Remember, this was my first Orphan Birthday for those of you arriving late to my blog.

"Avatar" was spectacular. It really touched me with it's message of connection and the idea that we are not separated from our ancestors or God. It was the reminder I needed that morning. After a good sob over the credits...again, who was I bothering...I took my self to the 'loo located right next to my theater and threw some water on my face. I headed out into the sunlight and got into my car. The first song that blasted out of my stereo was "Wherever We Go" from Gypsy. Not too much of a coincidence as I am studying the show but still... I get it! I feel you, Mum!

Drove off to Ferndale to see my good friends, Jeanne and Robert. After a short time in Robert's lovely home, we walked to INYO where we enjoyed a really great sushi lunch! Really YUMMY and I would highly recommend this place. Bonus - we ran into another good friend of mine, Jeff! How fun! The only problem with all this was the time crunch. After hugs and an amazing cake put into my hands - it rocked, Robert! - I drove back to my side of town and a lesson I had to teach. After that, my husband put together a really lovely dinner and after that!!!!, I had to go to a three hour Gypsy music rehearsal! Whew!!! What a day.

Thanks for all the wonderful birthday wishes, gang! Thanks!!!

Onto the rest of the week. Saturday morning I was able to give my annual student Vocal Recital at Greenmead Historical Village in the Newburgh Church. I had 9 singers perform and all went exceedingly well! My aforementioned friend, Jeanne, borrowed my daughter for the weekend so we had a chance to do a few things,namely, a wonderful lunch with my charming partner. Later we attended a DSO concert. Highlights include...shaking hands with Mr. Michael York and Sir Neville Marriner! Not too shabby! If you look at the website..we saw the concert the evening of 3/6/10.

The one very surreal thing to come out of this weekend was the situation that finally came to a head for a very old friend of mine. Our girlfriend has meekly fought a battle with severe alcoholism and this weekend was almost her end. Luckily, I am part of a 4-woman posse that gathered around her and got her the support she needed. She is now in hospital and will move to a treatment center soon. Our dear friend may well survive to die another day but she didn't expire on our watch.

Geez, that was one week in the life!. What will this week bring?

Time.....

Wow. I just realized it's been three months since Mum passed away. Three months! I have been very, very busy and I guess it made the time fly... For that I am grateful. It made time start up again after it seemed to stop with her death. It still seems like it was 2 weeks ago. My mind keeps dwelling on her last evening and the amazing things that happened then. I guess it will take some time to process it all.

Next Tuesday is my birthday. Not a big deal, really, but I am feeling a bit low about it. The one thing that hit me and made me realize time rushing past was this. Every birthday of my adult life...no matter where I was.. my mother and I shared a birthday tradition.

I was born at approximately 8:30 in the morning. Every March 2nd, at around 8:30 in the morning, I would call her and say "HAPPY BIRTHDAY"! After all, it was a birth day for her too, eh??

Last year, she was in the hospital recovering from a heart procedure - an offshoot of years of damaging chemo treatments.. I called and spoke to her in her room...and she apologized for not doing anything for my birthday....

My mother made me feel special all year long. She never failed to send me cards and letters and always spent time finding something cool and fun for a present. She spent alot of time looking for just the right card as she never wrote much in it except for the words - I love you, Mom...and the year in the corner. This was harder in the last few years as I drove her everywhere. I always knew to keep my distance when she wandered over to the card section. At the end, I wheeled her over and left her so that she could look with a bit of privacy. When my dad was alive, we'd wander the aisles together and point out our favorites, laughing over the really funny ones. We'd positively cackle over some of them.

Over the years, my mum cooked many wonderful birthday dinner. She knew I loved her cannelloni and gladly spent time making the fiddly dish. Other times it would be roast beef and Yorkshire pudding or a wonderful fillet Mignon. Some of you reading this may well have enjoyed those fabulous meals with me. Weren't they great? Homemade cake too with that wonderful cream cheese frosting. She always worked hard to decorate it and was disappointed, in later years, at her shaky hand!

The years she spent without my dad were hard - three and a half - and I can only hope I helped her as much as she helped me through that time. Then, we didn't always celebrate birthdays on the date. Often, we'd have a lovely dinner out. She had a harder time enjoying them but she loved to celebrate. She loved her family and knew the importance of spending time together. After all, she missed out on a lifetime with her mum - seeing her only twice in her adult life after she left England. In fact, I recently found a telegram from January 1970 from her step father telling her of her mother's passing...it read... Mummy passed peacefully. Stored with that telegram was a Christmas card that could only have arrived a week or two earlier signed by her adoring Mummy.

I will miss hearing her voice next Tuesday. I can't tell you how much.

Goings on...!

This (the one at the bottom of the post!) was taken after a performance of "Cirque Dreams - Illumination". Wow. What fun. And fun to be with friends. Michele and Jeanne - been gal pals for 30+ years - and Robert - hmmm 20+ years? Michel and Jeanne have been married about 25 years so I've known him at least 20. Janine is the only one in the bunch who is new to me. She is the singer in the show and a friend of Jeanne's. We had a lovely supper at Chez JQ and then headed out to the show and hung out afterward with Janine.







Last weekend we headed out to Winter Blast - the outdoor festival in d'town Detroit. This my pal Jeff - and I've known him for nearly 30 years too! The s'mores were tasty, btw!