A Happy Place..

It's always a pleasure when I can revisit a happy place in my lifetime. San Diego is one of those places and I was just there this past weekend. The people are lovely, the weather is beautiful, and the atmosphere is relaxed. It was a time where I could really reflect, grow, and strengthen without the craziness of life surrounding me. Don't get me wrong. I love NYC for lots of reasons. San Diego is just special to me in more ways since I feel I was able to accomplish things there I wouldn't have been able to if I went to the city straight away. Also, I met some fabulous people down there. I went to visit some of these friends of yesteryear who are now settled in their beautiful home in Carmel Mountain with their energetic new puppy. They are such wonderful people and I'm always happy to see them again. I also got to see another friend of mine in a show at the Lamb's Players Theatre. He's doing well and the show was fabulous. I knew more people in the show than I thought I would. It was great. Ahh the memories. San Diego keeps changing every time I go there. Not physically. Just going down there people have changed or moved on. My other fabulous friends have moved out. A couple moved down to Florida where they got married and now have a beautiful daughter. I had the pleasure of meeting them last December when I was fresh of the ms Zaandam with Holland America. Another pair moved to Kentucky! Quite the change from San Diego and even California. My best friend is now up north in the snowy portion of California where's she's performing with Sierra Reperatory Theatre in Beauty and the Beast. I didn't get to see her this trip since she was up north, but I'll see her this weekend. She's getting married this December so that means another trip to San Diego and a big reunion to celebrate that joyous day. I always feel refreshed whenever I can revisit those happy moments and memories. It's great to have those places as life pushes forward taking on its many changes.

Twenty, Ace, and a Miracle..

LAS VEGAS!! Glitz. Glamour. A chance to be on top of the world. This was the day trip offered to us as an incentive by our company, Stiletto Entertainment. A company owned by the record label Arista Records that produces Barry Manilow. So, with 2 casts in tow (20 people) and a coach bus we were on our way to the strip of dreams to see Barry Manilow in concert "Music and Passion" at the Las Vegas Hilton. It was a long and bumpy bus ride through the mountains of California to end up in the flat desert of Nevada. We left at 10am and arrived at 3pm. Oy! We had about an hour and a half or so to tour the strip and see the sights with intentions of riding the roller coaster at the New York New York Hotel and Casino. Unfortunately we didn't get to ride the roller coaster due to time constraints and the 45 minute wait time for the ride.Oh well! We were out on the strip on a clear and cool day in Las Vegas. We took the monorail back to the Hilton so we could take advantage of the free buffet we were offered. We had to scarf down the food so we could be ready for the 7:00pm call time we had to meet for the show. We all got dolled up because our seats were front and center. I was in the second row smack dab stage center for the show. If Barry sweat and came close enough to the edge of the stage, I'd feel it. I could see every expression in his face and in his backup group. That was only part of the amazement. Just 5 minutes before showtime, the music swells and en masse enters the American Idol top 11 finalists. Evidently they are doing 50s music this week and because Barry's show is a tribute to the 50s era, they got him to help the finalists with their vocal arrangements. They walked in and sat 5 rows BEHIND us. Of course EVERYONE in the audience on the ground floor was up on their feet and taking pictures. I was spitting distance from all of them. It was weird. The show started and Barry was amazing. He put together a fabulous array of music from his collection (from jingles to pop songs) as well as hits from the 50s and did it up a la Las Vegas style. I of course got caught up in the emotion with his "Looks Like We Made It." I felt kind of out of place with my group knowing almost every lyric and they would just look at me and smile kind of humming along. Boy did my age show then. Of course he ended with Copacabana as a tribute to the Las Vegas Hilton and what it represented from the past and it's placement in Las Vegas history. A glass catwalk came down over the audience and Barry (donning his flashy Copa jacket) and his backup singers (donning feathers, boas, and glitz) came strolling and cha cha-ing over the audience in what seemed like a huge Studio 54 party. Streamers shot out at the end of the show in his big reprise of It's A Miracle.

Afterward, we all went into the casino and gathered for some drinks. It was one of our dancer boys 21st birthday, so we all toasted to his first night of legal drinking. Who should be walking through the casino to meet us? Ace Young and Chris Daughtry from the current season of American Idol finalists! Shut Up! I was enthralled. Evidently two of our girls were flirting with the boys and they decided to come out for a drink with us. We were all skeptical of her saying that they would come out because of the recent hype and public eye surrounding the show. We were sure security wouldn't let them stroll through the casino. Well, there they were with a body guard each watching their backs.We all took pictures with them and then they invited us into the VIP lounge to have a drink. Our young girls were all over them with question after question. It was great and they were both down to earth guys. Ace was a blast to hang out with and apparently he has been on the record label streak even before his American Idol fame. He had been recording with Brian McKnight for 3 years before and was just using the show to give him a little bump. I think Chris Daughtry is the best vocalist of the show so far, but I hope Ace gets pretty far and does well. He's an attractive and well put together guy. The evening was definitely going well so far.
Ace and Chris departed us around 11:00pm since they had arrived early that morning on a 5am flight into the city. Our BUS was leaving at midnight so we had some time to spare. One of our girls suggested I'd join her at a black jack table. She was dying to gamble and hadn't gambled all day. I vowed going in that I'd only spend the money in my pocket and only sit at minimums of $5.00 if I were to sit at a table. I broke one of my vows and played the $10.00 minimum with her. I only put a $20.00 bill in though and said that was it since I already spent about $30.00 of my pocket money in drinks. Well, I was pushing for a while and then I started to win!! I was getting hand after hand of winnings and tripled my money in a matter of 20 minutes!! I was like, "I'm out!" I tipped the dealer a ten for my last 3 wins and left with $50.00 in my pocket. I had an entirely free evening of drinks and entertainment!! I was flying high. I was thanking the heavens above for such an enjoyable and eventful evening I would never have been able to experience as a regular guy going to Vegas. Talk about working for the right company and being in the right place at the right time. The only downer of the evening actually falls into the next day (the after midnight part) when we took the bus ride home. It was just not as enjoyable, but it still didn't bring down the high I had from the previous events of the day.

So 20 cast members, Ace Young, "It's A Miracle," and some fabulous black jack made for one hell of a day I will never forget!

Week 2 of Rehearsals..

I've been sort of aloof on blogging, but not really that much has come up as interesting stories to tell anyhow. I'm chugging along here at rehearsals. We have 4 shows to learn and we almost completed one. We did our Broadway review first and the problem I guess is that international copyrights are busting cruise liners for their Broadway content. So, we had to cut and paste a safe version of ours and an opener is still not finished for it. We have everything but the opener. Now we're working on another cheesy little review about a hat shop owner and a mannequin that comes to life. The lead female is the owner and the lead male is the mannequin. Sound familiar? Whenever I think about the show I keep thinking about Estelle Getty and the song "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now." Lol. Anyway, it's my most taxing show. I hardly sing in it and dance all the stuff with the dancers. I mean everything. I'm literally the third boy they wanted to cast as a dancer and never got (they only cast 2 dancer boys to 4 dancer girls) for this show. I have to not only sing the little amount I have, but dance all styles like Fosse, athletic leaping ballet, tap, hip hop, and theatrical dance. Oy!! I'm exhausted from the ballet portion we learned yesterday which goes to the Russian Theme in the Nutcracker Suite. The cast is great though and here they are:

So last night was kind of interesting. Our company, Stiletto Entertainment, is a manager of the record label Arista Records. They sign entertainment such as Barry Manilow. Well actually Barry created the company. They also have Kimberly Locke and Justin Guarini from American Idol fame. Besides all the props, feathers, and costumes hanging in the rafters at the studios for rehearsals and sending out to the ships, there are shelves of paraphernalia for these people (CDs, T-shirts, postcards, DVDs, etc). Once and a while, one of them even pops in for a visit. The company threw the employees a Mexican dinner and margarita night last night. It was fabulous and even though I was rehearsing I still managed to fit in 2 margaritas. I was a little lit for some of rehearsal afterwards, but quickly sweat it all out during the Fosse section of our show. Oy! All the casts were there socializing, drinking, and eating great Mexican food. Yum! Even the production teams of the various departments and representatives of the clientele were there socializing. Who should be roaming around in the midst of all this hub-ub? No, not the infamous Barry, but Justin Guarini. Yes! Justin Guarini and he's tall. He must be over 6 feet. Wow! He was the little celeb of the evening. I missed getting a picture with him, but 2 of the girls from our cast did. It was hilarious. It was definitely an evening of food and fun. My body aches from all the dancing, but it was definitely a fun evening.

Family In Town..

Within a week of me being in L.A., my dad was able to jaunt up to L.A. from his desert home in Arizona for a day trip. Literally he flew in Sunday morning and flew out Sunday evening. It was a great visit as we scooted around L.A. for the day. We went up to the Hollywood mountains to see the infamous sign. We saw Hollywood Blvd. and all the stars of yesterday and today imprinted on the famous marble sidewalk. We walked by all the famous landmarks and had lunch at the Santa Monica Pier. It was all the L.A. tourist stuff that I never did in my many visits to lala land and while I was even living in San Diego only a few short hours away. My dad even took a short trip up the scenic Highway 1 to Malibu. It was an exhaustive day and we ended at the apartment where all the guys thought I had a pretty hip dad. It was great to see him since I don't get to Arizona as much as I get to Ohio (and that ain't much either with my schedule). I know my dad secretly wishes one day I'll succumb to the warmth that Arizona has to offer and move there, but I must say with truth that even though my grass roots lie there (I was born in Tucson), I MUST be near water. Hello! I'm an Aquarian. It still puzzles me why this is an air sign since I LOVE being by the water. Hence the cruise industry, duh! Lol. Anyway, one day maybe I'll be bicoastal and my dad will get to see me as much as my Ohio family does. Which in actuality right now is only 2 times a year at most. Ahh the life of a gypsy.

Off On Another Adventure...

It's 9am on Thursday morning (well almost) and in 8 hours (God willing there are no weather delays due to the recent snow we're getting) I'll be in Los Angeles ready to start the 6 week rehearsal process. There'll be sunshine, warmth, and a whole other slew of friends to visit. I enjoyed my time here in NYC (although frigid) and seeing all my friends over here. Unfortunately because time moves so fast here, I only got to one show thanks to my friend Kristi who came down from Connecticut. It was a good choice too. "Light at the Piazza." I highly recommend it. It's a very touching tale and a beautiful and funny score. Well, I must get back to packing. My new adventure is about to begin.