Is it Summer, or..?

We hit 83 degrees (Fahrenheit) today! But it’s March? I forgot for a while that I am actually living in California! Sometimes I have to take a double take to realize that I’m living among the palm trees and sunshine and not in Central Oregon. Central Oregon where spring means mostly clear and frozen skies and dead grass and plants everywhere. I like it much better down here and it’s making me happy! One of my favorite things to do is study outside. Laying on a beach towel with friends and basking in the sun makes a 10 page annotated bibliography just that much more bearable.

Gratitude Corner

I need to send a shout out to my cast and crew of Claradise. The unbelievable support and love this cast has brought is inspiring and unimaginable. And what we have gone through together is extraordinary!

Welcome to Claradise.

We opened Welcome to Claradise this weekend! Don’t get me wrong, it was a spectacularly and unbearably long tech week, and please don’t get me started about the finicky projections that have impressively been running quite smoothly. We knew we had a show when the MCC, the Multi-Cultural Center, decided to protest again the show saying that they weren’t represented in it even though they hadn’t yet seen the show to realize that 1/3 of the show is dedicated to the struggles and accomplishments the MCC has faced over more than 50 years at SCU. It was very exciting, and this show has sparked some amazing reflection and conversation among the Santa Clara community. I have never been a part of a project that has truly broadened and challenged the lens of my friends and professors. That’s theatre, folks.

Why This Didn’t Send on Monday:

Because dead week is upon us and this weekend consisted of WAY too much! This weekend I need to do just a few minor things. I had to memorize two monologues, one of which was Shakespeare just to give you all a slight headache, and memorize a song via a piano and sheet music (praise the Lord I can read music). I also managed to squeeze in an hour-long private vocal lesson, and a two-hour long gospel choir rehearsal to learn six songs and their harmonies. Not only that but Aldo and I gave a dear friend of ours from the Oregon Shakespeare Festival a tour of the Theatre, Music, and Dance buildings just because they happened to be in the area. Later that day, Saturday, I went off to run Welcome to Claradise from 6:30pm to 10:15pm and we had some thought-provoking and difficult dialogues happen during our talkbacks after the show with the audience, which is exactly what we wanted! Then I gave my complimentary tickets to my vocal coach and his girlfriend and saw them at our matinee on Sunday, how exciting! After that matinee I had just enough time to run back to my room, drop all my stuff on the floor, put on some makeup and a dress, fix my hair, print some headshots and resumes and stuff it all in a bag just to turn around and run back to the theatre for I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change and Measure for Measure auditions! Although my age range is way too young for the musical, I sang my song (which I memorized in 36 hours) better than I have ever sang it by ten-fold, and that’s a win for me! Also, I had no idea how my Shakespeare audition went until I got a callback for it and after 4 hours, I managed to land in the top two actors to compete for the lead role! I don’t expect anything, but I’d say it was a successful weekend! Oh, did I mention I had to do homework too? That consisted of making a movie, memorizing yet ANOTHER monologue for theatre, and reading an entire book! Yay week 9!