feeling: blank

I'm spending my time in-between bouts of extreme happiness and extreme depression.  What is this crap?  It's got to be hormonal.  The glass is always going from half-full to half-empty and back again, and I'm fucking confused.  I've been sleeping all day and staying up all night and my body feels like it's quitting on me.

And no, no more anti-depressant medication for me.  I flat-out refuse.

On a happier note, I am doing a Harvey Sid Fisher gig on Wednesday the 29th.  For anyone who hasn't seen Harvey, you NEED to.  It's camp at its...well, I wouldn't say finest...  But Harvey is a great old guy with some really famous fans.  And Estefan Bravo, one of my fellow backup singers/dancers, is my gay god.  The show is at JUANITA'S -- 5930 York Blvd. in Highland Park, 90042.  It's at 9:30pm.  For those who don't know, Harvey Sid wrote one song for each sign of the astrology.  You haven't lived till you've heard the Taurus song.  :P

I'd like to invite some people to eat yummy Mexican food with me there beforehand, and drink at the bar during/afterwards.  I'll be there at 8 p.m. -- I hope some of my pals show up!

feeling: confused

I love this picture!  It's Lucas and I at the High Street Broadcast last month.  (There's no show this month, but come and see it the last Sunday of next month!)

feeling: enthralled

A kid after dental surgery:

feeling: amused

Levi Stubbs, the lead singer of the Four Tops and voice of Audrey II in the movie "Little Shop of Horrors," died this morning at the age of 72. It is our opening night tonight.

I feel like somehow this is a sign. Not a bad sign, but maybe a sign that Levi will be watching over us tonight.

feeling: sad

So excited! We open on Friday!

feeling: happy

You can't deny the awesomeness...



...of my boyfriend Lucas!

(This is a Rocky Horror related video and will confuse 50% of the people who will read this, but it's got Lucas. And no, he won't be at the con. Boooo.)

feeling: exhausted

We stood onstage, looking at the piano and crying, for Beth would play it no more. Then we stood, holding each other and crying in the dark backstage, for we would play at this no more.

feeling: sad

I can't believe they are frickin' cancelling "Swingtown." (Probably.)

feeling: disappointed

Um, I just saw this magazine cover in a grocery store and it really freaked me out:

feeling: surprised

Guest performing at Midnight Insanity = awesomeness!

Edited to add:



Hedwig love.

feeling: cheerful

One of my customers bought a Marilyn Monroe wig from me to put on a mannequin that, I believe, is going to be in a Hollywood memorabilia store. He just sent me the coolest picture:



I get so many pictures of my customers looking awesome in their wigs, as well...I should make a huge gallery for my craptastic wig website!

feeling: happy

Well, after a harrowing and frustrating final few days of rehearsal, "Little Women" opened on Saturday. We got a standing ovation on Saturday, and I think we would have gotten one today, except for the fact that Sunday matinees are 90% elderly people who have a hard time standing up.

I am *really* loving playing Meg.  I know I'm playing half my age and that fact alone is pretty ridiculous, but it's so fun to lace up a tight corset, wear a ball gown with a giant hoop skirt, have a whole bunch of romantic scenes, dance around acting like a little kid, and even actually get laughs.  It's weird that I get quite a few laughs in this show, but of course I'm eating it up.  The weirdest part is that I actually am starting to feel like these women are part of my family.  I think I am method acting without being aware of it.  I walk in, see my sisters and my mother and my great-aunt sitting in the dressing room, and it's just real.  It's /very/ strange.  We all cry every night, on stage and off; but you kind of can't help it with this show.  I really lucked out to have been asked to be in the show...even though I was their last choice for Meg due to my being so TALL and OLD, I think I fit in pretty well. :)

I hope some of you girls who like the story come and see it.  Boys, you probably won't come unless someone forces you, but you are most welcome as well.  It is really an excellent production with some breathtaking moments.  Our Jo is absolutely fabulous.  It's the perfect girly evening out...it's the "SATC with cosmos" for the Civil War set.  I get six comps this time because I did all the wigs for the show.  COME SEE!  More info is in the top post of my journal.

My keyboard is acting funky.
..it's putting in all these carriage returns.

Oh, yeah.  Come see me play Hedwig this Friday at the Nuart.  I'm also guesting as Columbia with M.I. this Saturday, with Gina as Magenta. I can't wait to see my M.I. peeps.  Whee!!

feeling: happy

Does anyone local have a fake Christmas tree, about 4-5 feet tall, they wouldn't mind lending out for a month and a half to our production of "Little Women"?  We might want to buy it from you.

feeling: busy

No, Sophia!

feeling: depressed

"Ruthless" has two more shows...Saturday night and Sunday afternoon. If you haven't seen it, WHY NOT? Seriously. Your friend may suck at acting but you still want to support her even if she sucks, right??? All the necessary info is right at the top of my journal. You can see a movie any time, but plays are special. They will never happen in the same way ever again -- when you miss them, they're gone forever. (Thank you, Jack Handy.)

I am depressed about stupid shit in general. They didn't laugh at me tonight again and I haven't lost any weight for over a week. I should have a better attitude and be more appreciative of all the good things in my life. These things really are plentiful. Goddamnit.

I'm playing Frank N Furter tomorrow night for the sixth week in a row. This is like, a record for me. I have many new pasties but I think I am going to break out the best ones for my last Frank for a long while. I'm also in the Chicago preshow tomorrow night...yay for playing the black chick. I have way too many things to gather and remember for the show. That is poopy.

I'm going to watch an 80s Bollywood disco movie.

feeling: blah

Um, hey. Does anyone want to be a nerd and go see "Mamma Mia" with me when it opens on July 18th? There are still tickets for Thursday midnight showings available, but only in ghetto ass theatres. I'd still go. I'd also go to, like, a matinee, if anyone wanted to go with me.

I actually could care less about "The Dark Knight." As far as I'm concerned, the buzz about this movie is pure "The Crow" all over again. When Ledger was alive, people couldn't stop bitching about his involvement in the series AMIRITE? However, I will leave y'all fankids to enjoy it in peace.

I plan instead to be immersed in the sounds of pure Swedish schmaltz emanating from Meryl Streep's golden pipez.

feeling: naughty
singing: p.s. i am up too late

And this one is a GOOD review! It will give you a LOT more information about the show.  And she said something nice about me. :~)
Offbeat musical delivers 'Ruthless' satire
Play review
By Cary Ginell

"Ruthless! The Musical," playing through July 13 at Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center, is a no-holds-barred, offbeat satire of a multitude of familiar films and Broadway musicals. Written by Joal Paley and featuring a score by Marvin Laird, the show made its debut Off-Broadway in 1992 and has since attracted a cult following in its many regional theater incarnations.

The musical is attractive to theater companies partially because of its relatively low production costs. One set is used and only a handful of performers, many of whom play more than one part. In the case of the Simi Valley production, several members of the cast even worked production crew positions, including costuming and set design.

The riotous story concerns a precocious 8-year-old named Tina Denmark, who will stop at nothing to play the lead role of Pippi Longstocking in her school production of "Pippi in Tahiti." She is so humiliated at being passed over in favor of the spoiled Louise Lerman that she gets Louise to hang herself with a jump rope.

This is only the beginning of a series of wacky circumstances that spoofs such shows as "The Bad Seed," "Applause," "Gypsy" and "Mame." The allfemale cast of characters (that is, if you count the role of barracuda agent Sylvia St. Croix, who is traditionally played by a man in drag) share one thing in common: a driving ambition to step on anyone who gets in their way.

As Tina, Emily Albrecht is delightful, a horrid little brat who can cry on cue and tap dance up a storm (in the song "Born to Entertain") and who has no scruples when it comes to getting what she wants.

Tina's mother, Judy, is played by an incredible talent, Lori Lee Gordon. At the outset, Judy is June Cleaver, your typical 1950s housewife, with bouffant hairdo, pearls and a perpetual smile. Gordon has a glorious voice (although her character claims she has no talent), and uses it to great effect in the pert opening number, "Tina's Mother."

After shipping Tina off to the Daisy Clover School for Psychopathic Ingénues, Judy is transformed into her alter ego, who is based on Bette Davis in "All About Eve"- a temperamental, egotistical star of stars, the effect topped off by a foot-long cigarette holder. As a comedienne, Gordon is very funny, especially when she goes into a variety of convulsions at hearing the name of the mysterious Ruth DelMarco, whose identity is revealed at the end of the show.

The plot twists in Act II are all pretty predictable, but the fun is in getting there. Marvin Laird's songs are hysterically funny. Although Laird is no Richard Rodgers, somewhere Lorenz Hart is smiling at Laird's clever and pointed lyrics, especially in such songs as "I Hate Musicals," sung by the jaded critic Lita Encore (played to perfection by Farley Cadena), who even panned "Fiddler."

As the statuesque agent/manager Sylvia St. Croix, Sean Harrington plays the crossdressing role straight, just as Harvey Fierstein played Edna Turnblad in "Hairspray." Only Nathan Lane could have done it better. His/her tour de force is the song "Talent," in which Sylvia declares she is Auntie Mame ("Mame") and Mama Rose ("Gypsy") rolled into one.

Elizabeth Stockton plays two roles: the nerdy, talentchallenged Louise Lerman and Judy's clinging and viciously ambitious assistant, who just has to be named Eve (after Anne Baxter's title role in the film "All About Eve," which became "Applause" in its Broadway adaptation). Stockton's Eve steals the show singing "Penthouse Apartment," in which she uproariously lays out her greedy plans for attaining fame.

Elissa Wagner plays Miss Thorne, the frustrated schoolteacher, whose own ambitions for Broadway stardom were thwarted when she was mugged as soon as she got to Penn Station.

The music is capably handled by Gary Poirot, who fronts a four-piece ensemble. The show is produced by Jan Glasband and directed by Dave Mason, both of whom should be applauded for the wonderful cast and faultless direction.

One note of caution: "Ruthless!" is not for kids. There is some bad language, although it is brief and not exploitative (some of the funnier lines appear as song lyrics and work great). You don't have to be a seasoned fan of musicals to get the humor; it's as subtle as a club over the head or an elbow in the neck. For a good laugh, give "Ruthless!" a try.

For tickets, call the Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center at (805) 5837900 or visit www.simiarts.org.

 
(Sean and Lori hamming it up for "Ruthless"...gotta love those Flintstones pearls.  Lori, BTW, is absolutely amazing.  She's won an award for playing this same part in another production.)

feeling: happy

It's been way too long since we've had a good lesson. First, I taught some of you the difference between viola and voila. Then, it was hoes and hos.

Now, I will delve a little into an important but overlooked pop culture tidbit.



Don't feel bad if you've ever gotten it wrong...even Simon and Garfunkel fucked it up. Actually, the two songs came out within a month of one another and the two similar-sounding lyrics apparently have no connection. It's too bad you can't ring John Lennon up and ask him what a "G'Joob" is.

feeling: mischievous

I wasn't going to do this "ask me a question" meme, but I am absolutely and totally bored.  I'm also procrastinating because there's a whole bunch of stuff to do today.  So, if you're bored, too, help us both out and ask me a question.

I doubt anyone will ask any questions (Livejournal has been kind of quiet lately...I guess my LJ friends have gotten lives), but screening and anonymous posting are both turned on for this post.  That means you can ask juicier questions.  If you've ever wanted to know anything, now is the time.

feeling: exanimate

feeling: exanimate

"Voila" is a French word meaning "Look there!" or "Ta-da!"

A "viola" is like a violin on steroids.

VIOLA:


VOILA:


And...viola! I'm done with this post! :P

feeling: bitchy
singing: obviously a VOILA!

I just joined a 24 Hour Fitness, and I can go to any one I want.  YES!

However, I've never belonged to a gym before.  Can anyone who's gym savvy tell me the general rules/etiquette about reserving machines?  It seems like the place is super busy during times when I would want to work out, and I want to grab a damn elliptical machine.  It seems like the only way to get one is to reserve it.

Okay, done being lame.

feeling: curious