ugggh i hate these blogs. the obligatory blog that has to cover SO MUCH important material, being that the reason you haven't blogged in forever in the first place is because of all the crazy and meaningful things that have been taking up your time.
alas, i will try to be brief (especially as it is 81 degrees out right now).
1. SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS
take-my-breath-away, heart-stoppingly amazing.
a year's worth of thought. of casual mentions or deep dissections. always something that was coming up in the future. something to anticipate, something to work for.
and then it was postponed, perhaps even cancelled. what if it had been cancelled? never ever seen or discovered? it makes me shudder to think of it.
so i finally got to meet jj hunsecker. sidney falcone. susan.
ok, if you don't know what i'm talking about, i am referring to rockford college's sweet smell of success, which was kyle's senior seminar show. it has been a year since kyle found out he would be playing this role. a year's worth of thought, research, complaining, working.
and thursday night, i sat in the audience.
and i have decided that i am an incredibly lucky girl.
i'm lucky because i watch musicals all the time. and musicals are magical. i don't care who you are; you cannot - CANNOT - say that musicals don't move you. pick any part of the magic: swelling music, haunting melodies, beautiful story lines, the dancing, the movement. i don't see how you can sit through a musical and not be moved. and frankly, i pity the person who can't be moved. what a sad life it must be to sit through a musical and feel nothing.
i'm lucky because kyle d. adams is my boyfriend. and it's the coolest thing to date an actor. just when you think you know someone, they show you this new layer, this new character inside of them. and its like you get to rediscover their personality. and i'm lucky to have kyle because he introduces me to all of these new and beautiful stories and all of this new and beautiful music. my life would be so stripped of its beauty and culture if not for him. not to mention i would be a sorrowful girl without him.
as i watched this gripping, dark, and compelling story, i completely fell in love with the characters, the era, the music, and the costumes. like, to a notably obsessive level. sweet smell of success was all i thought about for a solid week after the performance. job well done EVERYONE. i was moved, transformed, amazed, spellbound.
which brings me to....
2. ANOTHER SUMMER PROJECT
i'm about to shock you.
ok, so picture me, amanda. i know all the little things come to mind, but no matter how you know me, i'd like to think that you all would definitely think of my passion for all things vintage. it has always been an obsession of mine. i love all things 20's, all things glamorous, all things 40's, 50's, everything. photography, fashion (especially), culture, language, artifacts, music: EVERYTHING VINTAGE.
so guess what. i've barely seen ANY old movies. i mean, besides wizard of oz, i don't think there is any other movie that i've seen that was made before 1970. honestly. gone with the wind? nope. casablanca? nope. streetcar named desire? nope. NONE of them.
shameful, i know.
so my new and exciting summer project is to brush up on all the old movie classics. i want to know the stars, see the clothes, hear the music, experience exactly what used to entertain the masses. i find it all so fascinating, beautiful, romantic, classy, and glamorous.
kyle and i already started with fred & ginger's last movie together, the barkley's of broadway. it was wonderful. incredible. i wept like three times during it just because of it's sheer vintage-ness.. i
this project is LONG overdue. i can't wait to fill my nights with a million yesteryears.
3. WILLY WONKA
it's over!! and it was great. well, depending on who you ask. if you ask me, i wanted to kill myself though every show. missed entrances, dropped lines, slow set changes, sound problems. but the audience and community LOVED it. and i really realized that it was about the EXPERIENCE, not the process. at the end of the day, i had kids singing their hearts out onstage. i had built a camaraderie between my cast members. i had gotten my students to show up. to memorize lines.
my boss was ecstatic, and that was a GREAT feeling. this experience has left me feeling proud, and i'm going to embrace that for a little while. this is the first time i have felt proud of myself in my career and its a damn good feeling. i am so happy with this year at ellis arts academy and I CAN'T WAIT for next year.
wow. that wasn't too bad. i'd like to close with some sort of conclusive paragraph that links these three topics together into something witty and meaningful, but as i already stated, it's 81 degrees outside. and i have a hot boyfriend in a straw fedora sitting next to me. and a cold beer to drink. so i'm out.