Day 3 - A song demonstrating how underrated a musical is.

One of Andrew Lloyd Webber's lesser known and touted musicals is a wonderful show called WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND.  Although I have never seen it performed I love the music and the story it tells.  I wonder why it never recieved the recogntion I feel it deserves? This isn't an actual clip from a performance, rather Sarah Brightman singing a selection from the show.

 

Naked Ladies

I love this time of year when I have naked ladies in pink dresses just outside my gate. 

The 30 Day Musical Theater Song Challenge - Day 1

Well, I have no idea how this happened but my original post from this disappeared off my blog so I will try this again!  GRR.

This challenge is from Facebook.  I thought it would be fun to try it out.  The idea is to choose a song which fills the requirements of a list of questions.  I also decided I didn't want to choose the same musical more than once.

My first exposure to a musical was probably the same as many: THE WIZARD OF OZ movie on TV.  I was about 5 when I saw it and I was so traumatized by the Wicked Witch I don't really remember much else besides being scared of her. 

My next real awareness of musicals was later. When I was in about grade 3 my mom had several sets of Reader's Digest Condensed record albums.  They were sets of several records all on the same theme.  The one I loved was called Operettas.

I can't believe I actually found an image of the cover!

My mom would stack them up and we would listen for hours.  We lived in a town where dark came early and snow was plentiful.  We spent many happy evenings listening to that music.  The song I remember clearest was this one from SHOWBOAT called Old Man River.

Thanks, mom!

Day 2 - A song from your latest musical obsession

I just discovered SIDE SHOW.

I was listening to Sirius radio Broadway station and someone was interviewing Emily Skinner.  She is the current Mrs. Wilkinson in Billy Elliot and then they began asking her about this show.  She told some funny anecdotes and said Alice Ripley (of Next To Normal fame) was in it with her.  Then they played a song from it.  That's all I needed.  Ordered it from Amazon and  listened to the cast recording 3 times the first day I got it. A new obsession has begun!

My Love Affair With Billy Elliot

My love affair with Billy Elliot began with a little movie I watched in 2000.  It takes place in England in 1984 and stars the incredible Jamie Bell. Billy Elliot tells the story of a young boy with a dream to dance.  With the help of his dance teacher, he overcomes the obstacles of near poverty, an unsupportive family and the death of his mother to win a scholarship to the Royal Ballet School.  Enchanting story aside, the innocence, charm and sheer dancing brilliance of Jamie Bell captured me from the moment the movie began.  Julie Walters and Gary Lewis as his dance teacher and his father are perfect in their roles.  I bought the DVD and have watched the movie 30 or more times.  

As did most theater geeks who saw this movie, I just knew it HAD to be made into a Broadway musical.  Imagine my sheer delight in 2004 or so when I heard it WAS going to be a musical and would be opening in London in 2005.  I was thrilled to death to know that Sir Elton John had written the music and the original screenwriter, Lee Hall, had written the book and lyrics.  Peter Darling, who choreographed the movie, was also the choreographer for the musical. Could it get any better?

From that moment on I scoured the internet for any scraps of info I could find about the show.  I haunted the message boards at Broadway World and sucked up every bit of “Billy” I could.  When the original cast recording became available in November 2005 I bought it for myself for Christmas.  In 2006 I listened to that cast recording at least once a day EVERY day.  By mid-July 2007 I had weaned myself to about once a week or so.  Now, in 2011, I still listen to it several times a month.  Other musicals have tickled my fancy in the meantime, and some I am as passionate about as Billy Elliot, but although I may stray for a time Billy draws me in like an addict to crack.

Liam Mower, the most popular Billy (even to this day) is the Billy on the cast recording. Liam has the voice of an angel and won a Lawrence Olivier award for the role.  His vocals transfer all of the characters actions and emotions in the perfect way. His grumpy and encouraging ballet teacher, Mrs. Wilkinson, is played with much gusto by Haydn Gwynne. It’s hard to imagine how a musical about dancing could have any impact at all just by listening to the music.  Yes, it’s about dancing but it’s about so much more than that. And that message comes across loud and clear on the cast recording.

On October 1, 2008 Billy Elliot debuted on Broadway in NYC.  The internet and TV were full of Billy sightings and I gobbled up every one.    The 2009 Tony awards aired on June 7 and Billy Elliot danced away with 10 Tony’s including a Tony for each of the three original Broadway Billy’s!  

David Alvarez, Kiril Kulish, and Trent Kowalik

When I was on my WICKED jag I avoided anything and everything to do with WICKED.  I didn’t want to know anything about the story other than what was on the cast recording.  I wanted the actual story to be a surprise.  With Billy Elliot, I already knew the story so I didn’t see any point in avoiding spoilers.  Also, with WICKED I knew there was a road tour and that it was going to be in San Francisco and that I would get to see it, but with Billy I just didn’t think it would ever go on tour.  I thought finding that many Billy’s (3-5 per production) would be too daunting a task.  And there was no chance I would be getting to New York City anytime soon.  I thought I would have to be happy with what I could glean from media sources and Billy Elliot the movie.

As you can imagine, when I heard there was going to be a Billy tour I was over the moon.  As is often the case, it opened in Chicago first in March of 2010.  It wasn’t until months later that I found out it was coming to San Francisco. 

Tyler was still living at home when the movie came out and he had watched it several times and so was very familiar with the story and loved it as much as I.  Somewhere in all of this I gave Tyler the cast recording and he began to listen as intently and passionately as I.  He’s my “Musical Soul Mate.”  We can talk about musicals for hours, and believe me, we do.  For months we would post random Billy lyrics on one another’s Facebook pages and then expect the other to come up with the lyric immediately following.  He is a letter carrier with USPS and spent many, many hours listening to his Billy Elliot cd at work. 

In April, Norm and I went to Bellingham, where Tyler lives, to watch the grandgirlies for them while they were on Spring Break.  Dusti’s school break didn’t coincide with theirs and we were more than happy to drive up and watch the girls for a week or so.  I wanted to take Tyler to see a show in Seattle while we were there and much to my surprise Billy Elliot was going to be playing a 10 day run which coincided with our visit.  However, when I went online to get tickets they were very expensive and really lousy seats.  I tried several times through several venues to get tickets but I just wasn’t having any luck. I was disappointed in that I really wanted to take Tyler to see it.  I knew, though, that it was going to be playing in San Fran and that I was bound and determined to get tickets for myself at that time.  Then the best news ever…Tyler and his family were going to be taking their vacation in August and would be coming to see us.  After lots of phone calls and getting the schedules of Dusti’s family and friends coordinated I realized it was really going to happen.  

Tyler was going to be able to see Billy Elliot with me in San Francisco in August, 2011!! 

Now we are up to last Thursday and if you all are still reading this at this point you are 1.) a theater geek like me, 2.) a good friend, 3.) have no life or 4.) here for some other random reason.  But I digress.

Tyler even called me before he left Washington to ask me what he should wear to see the show.  Were we a bit obsessed much?  The BOTH of us?  

We left Sebastopol about 4:15 pm to be sure and leave plenty of time to get to the Orpheum and have a chance to eat before the show.  The drive was easy and uneventful although driving over the Golden Gate was a bit scary for Tyler as only a row of plastic posts separated the line of oncoming traffic.  It was his first time on the bridge and we had fun taking pictures and pointing out landmarks.  Well, I was taking the pictures and pointing out landmarks.  He was freaking out a bit.  

Thank goodness for his iphone (thank you Apple).  We arrived in one piece with no problems and  parked in the same lot I have parked in a couple of times before (next to the Chase Bank kitty corner to the Orpheum) and after a stop at the ATM we made our way to Sam’s Diner.  It had many positive reviews and is just mere steps from the theater. 

Notice the SIGNED Billy Elliot poster in the window on the lower left side.

After we ordered our food I mentioned to Ty that he should run over to the theater and take pictures before it got dark.  Nodding his agreement, he was out the door before I finished my sentence.  A few minutes later he came back with these great photos.

After a quick stop at Starbucks, just across the street, we headed to the theater.

  I picked up the tickets at will call and we made a beeline to the merch booth.  We each bought programs and t-shirts (never have I purchased a show shirt but I HAD to have one for this show) then headed to our great seats.  Second row of the Loge.  A bird’s eye view.  Not so close we felt we were on top of the stage but not so far away that we needed binoculars to see what was going on.  Tyler and I just kept pinching ourselves to see if we were really about to watch…BILLY. FREAKING. ELLIOT!!!!  It was Ty’s first time in the Orpheum and he was awestruck at the beautiful ceilings and velvet curtains and all the fresco work.  It was fun to hear him gasp in wonder.  Even a 27 year old grown man can find beauty in the unexpected.  Then the lights began to dim, the recorded announcement finished and the curtain went up!!!

The orchestra began, the music washed over me and I was swept away in the giddy abandon that is this fabulous piece of art.  “Our Billy”, as we called him, was Lex Ishimoto, a tallish, lithe boy of Japanese descent.  And oh man, oh man, oh MAN can that boy dance!!!  And really, the only character who DIDN’T dance much was… Mrs. Wilkinson, the dance teacher.  The Ballet Girls were fabulous; each one a different size and shape, each with their own character and personality.  The miners and policemen’s tap/clogging numbers were incredible and their voices blended to perfection. Tyler and I brushed away tears during “Dear Billy” and grinned ourselves silly during “Expressing Yourself” as Billy and Michael (Griffin Birney)   tapped and sang their way in and out of dresses, skirts and hats.

As each familiar tune began it was as if I was finally meeting an old friend for the first time.  A friend I had been introduced to long, long ago.  Had loved, spoken to, laughed and cried with but had never seen, nor touched.  Tonight I was touching that old friend and he was touching me.  Caressing me with power and caution and passion and awe and courage and indulgence and frugality and lust.   The sheer audacity of the cast to perform for me and to expect me to give back.  The lunging, plunging, flailing, sailing movement carrying me out of myself and into another place.  I gave Billy my heart and he threw it right back at me.  At intermission I was breathless.  I looked at Tyler and said, “There are no adjectives to describe this.” By the end of the show I was a sobbing, blithering mess.  I didn’t want it to end but end it did and Billy Elliot left me shaken and exhilarated and stirred all at once.

-It is an experience I will never, ever, EVER forget and it means so much to have been able to share it with my “musical soul mate.”  My Tyler. 

I Hugged A Mountie!!!!!

Yesterday was our last day at the Olympics.  Cody-Anne had the day off and she and Kevin joined us for the day.  I really felt bad for Kevin as his arthritis was bothering him  a lot.  Walking is not a good thing for him and he has done a great deal in the past week but he was a trooper and joined us on a basically sight-seeing day.  

Our first stop was to be the Canada Pavilion and the SkyTrain dropped us within 2 blocks.  When we got there the line up seemed endless but in actuality we were within the gates and clearing security with 30 minutes.  


A flash of scarlet greeted my eyes as I walked into the secure area and I raised my head to the most amazing sight; two RCMP officers standing in front of a big sign getting their picture taken with folks.  Well,l that was all it took for Mar.  She just grabbed my camera out of my hand, took my bag and pushed me into line.

 When I walked up to the Mounties she began giving them my whole life story; how I live in the States but I'm Canadian and that I love the scarlet coats and how excited I get every time I see them etc, etc, etc!  They were kind of laughing and when she and Cody-Anne had taken several pictures I asked the tall one if I could give him a hug.  He said, "Of course" and held his arms wide.  Mar caught that on the camera, too. 

 As I walked away from  that experience I burst into tears and then felt like a ninny.  Man, do I love me some Mounties!!!

Canada Pavilion was a bit of a letdown but the Mounties would make up for its downfall. Next we headed over to Yaletown to scope out Coca-Cola.  Yaletown is a fairly newly renovated area of downtown with really cool, trendy, unique shops and restaurants.  We wandered in and out of several of them accompanied of course by hundreds of tourists just like us.   The sidewalks were decorated with circular flags of the participating countries.  Who thinks to do that?  How cool is that?  Who gets to take them off?

Mar said she'd treat us all to lunch so we took her up on it.  It turned out we ate a place which had only been open a week!  I had salmon but the others had ribs.  It was great to just be together enjoying one another's company.  

Refreshed,  we headed to Coca-Cola where we succumbed to another round of security and after about a 45 minute wait we finally got in.  I liked the Coke place.  There was display of about 8 torches from past Olympics, pictures of Canadian Olympians and even free Coke!  

This red torch is from the Atlanta Olympics.

The place was staffed mostly by enthusiastic college students so it was energetic and enthusiastic.  The Coke Polar Bear was in attendance

 and there were lots of explanations as to Coke's involvement with the Olympics over the years.  In the same area as the Coke pavilion there were others, too, as well as huge screens and a performance stage.  We took a lot of pictures yesterday hoping to capture even the insignificant memories of our journey.


By the time we got out of there it was time to head back to BC Place for our final event.  Our last Victory Ceremony.  It was Prince Edward Island night ( Each night at the Victory ceremony they celebrated a different Canadian province)   Even Anne of Green Gables was there !  Although I enjoyed that segment of it the presentation was kind of lame and a bit amateurish.  

More Mounties!

The best part of the evening was the medal ceremony - Shawn White, Shani Davis, Chad Hedrick, Marianne St-Gelais  and Christine Nesbitt were there in person. 

Shawn White

Shani Davis

Christine Nesbitt

 The rest we saw from Whistler.  That place exploded when Christine Nesbitt got her medal. (We watched the Mens Free Skate when we got home.  We didn't know who had won so it was fun to watch it without prior results knowledge.  I am soo happy Evan won!)  Although my red mittens made no noise as I clapped my enthusiasm was no less than the others in attendance.  My hands were just cold, that's all!  We stayed for a couple of Hedley songs and then headed out.
As we walked the streets of Vancouver to the SkyTrain station, we waved goodbye to everything as we passed.  

Goodbye BC Place. Goodbye Robson Square. Goodbye crazy orange people. Goodbye press of bodies. Goodbye looney, hockey-loving Canadians. Good bye amazing blue coated volunteers. Goodbye cops on bikes. Goodbye Sky Train.  Goodbye to the adventure of a lifetime.  Good bye, Vancouver.  

Goodbye. 

No Orange Here !

So Tuesday was an easy-ish day for us.  The day dawned bright and sunny but alas we didn't see it until much later in the day.  (To be fair, Cody-Anne saw the day much earlier than we did as she had to be at work at 9 a.m.) The rest of us rose about 11 a.m. and Mar's blisters were still hurting. Poor Mar. She ended up with a dime sized blister on the bottom of one foot as well as 2 blisters on her toes.  We were heading out for Men's Figure Skating Short Program.  We originally had 4 tickets to see the Victory Ceremony that evening but when we realized we wouldn't get out of our event in time to attend we asked Cody-Anne and Kevin if they had some friends they wanted to invite to go with them.  They invited Kevin's best friend and his fiance.  Mar and I were a bit disappointed as the concert was going to be Bare Naked Ladies but we knew they would have fun and we were glad to do it for them.  


Kev's friends arrived at the house about 12:45 and Cody-Anne got home from work soon after.  Cody-Anne changed her clothes and we were on our way.  This time the kids drove us to the SkyTrain and dropped us off.  They continued on themselves in another direction.
The SkyTrain took us to buses waiting to transport us to The Pacific Colesium.

This was a much easier walk and we got there in lots of time.  There were several entertainers along the way and these crazy folks getting kids to perform and giving them a score the old school way!. 

Another round of security, ticket scanning and into the revolving doors we leapt.  To keep the tradition going we took a pee break, got some hot dogs and made our way to our seats.  


To think that I was soon going to be seeing an event in real life that I had only ever dreamed of seeing suddenly overwhelmed me.  I was here! THIS IS IT!!!  The ice sparkled and the Olympic logo in the middle gleamed. 

The little girls who collect the flowers and other things thrown to the skaters filed in and I thought, "What an amazing honour for these little skaters. Definitely something they will remember all their lives."  They acted so professionally all evening.  

I had to take in the big TV cameras, 

the rows and rows of press boxes, the judges stand (although we couldn't see them very well from our seats) and the information boards that gave us information on each skater. Then there was a countdown and the TV stations joined us and the first round of skaters came onto the ice to warm up. 

Then the rest of the evening unfolded flawlessly before us.   


There were to be 30 skaters and they would skate in groups of 5 with breaks between every 10 to manicure the ice. Before we left home we had the TV on and saw that Evgeny Plushenko would be back this year.  I hadn't heard anything about that up to this point and neither had Mar so were were a bit surprised. He skated as early as the second group.  He came in at 37th in the world and then just basically blew everyone away.  He's never been my favorite skater.  Although his jumps are perfection, he seems cold and un-emotionless to me.  He doesn't have good footwork either BUT in the past few years, and certainly the last Olympics, it's been all about jumps and spins at which Plushenko is the master. He skated pretty much flawlessly setting the standard high.


Right about now you may have thought I've forgotten the title of this blog - No Orange Here! -  well here it comes.  While the Richmond Oval was crammed to the hilt with Dutch fans decked out in their ridiculous costumes, there wasn't an orange fan to be found Tuesday night in the Pacific Colesium.    Not one.  Well, I found this guy but Mar said he ws just a poser.  

The Japanese were in abundance though and they had excellent skaters in the line up.  Several young guys we will see alot of in the future I'm sure.  

Canada's young skater Vaughn did ok but fell and bobbled taking him out of contention.  Patrick Chan, Canada's only hope for a medal but not really a contender did really well and ended the short program in 7th place.  

Soon Johnnie Weir skated, pink laces and all,

then, Evan, Lysachek, my personal favorite for the gold. 

His tears of elation at the conclusion of his program said it all.  He was thrilled with his effort.  The crowd celebrated with him.  

Finally, Jeremy.

Mar was sitting next to a lady who worked in the American skating community in some capacity and knew all the skaters personally and filled Mars ears with an ongoing commentary which added more spice to our audience experience.  Behind me were 3 older ladies and a man from northern California who predicted what each skaters score was going to be before it was announced.  I had fun just listening to them.  They had a HUGE American flag they held up for Johnnie, Jeremy and Evan and I turned and got this great picture of it.  

Mar and I had the Canadian flag draped over the seats in front of us as they were empty.  


It was kind of bittersweet when we had to leave the rink that evening as we knew we would only see the long program on TV and that our Olympic adventure would soon be drawing to a close.  

Another short walk to the buses chatting with others along the way, a now familiar ride on the SkyTrain and this time the most dreaded part of the whole day.  We had to catch another bus after the SkyTrain and then walk back to Cody-Anne's from there.  She and Kev were still out with their friends and wouldn't be home until later.  Getting lost and wandering around in Surrey soon to be blathering, blubbering middle aged women crossed our minds.  We hit Tim Horton's right at the bus stop and then made our way up the dark, quiet streets.  Now, it's 11:30 at night, mind you, and the streets are deserted, but it was kind of strange to be in such quiet after having been surrounded by the "teeming hoards" as they say - in the skating rink, on the  walk to the bus, in the bus and SkyTrain and back in the bus again.  As we sipped our coffee and walked along we just talked about what fun we've been having all week and the almost surreal feeling it gave us to be here.  Here, in the The True North Strong and Free.  Here, where despite some problems with protestors, a terrible, tragic accident, a silly fence around a flaming Olympic icon and the uncooperative weather, Vancouver has made the rest of Canada proud and Canada has shown the world what a great country it is.  Here, where my heart truly sings and my youth pours back to engulf me.  Here, where I know my mom would have loved to have been with us tonight and here, where God kissed the earth and used his best bits to make it and then used the rest on the other parts of the world.  


So, no Orange here?  That's ok. I forgive them.