Brave Enough for Love

Etsyyyyyyyy

2010-10-31T10:25:25Z

Oh yeah, forgot to mention this...

Etsy
knitsbysarah

Buy my shtuff.

oddobsession @ 2010-07-20T20:31:00

2010-07-21T00:31:54Z

I gots me a ipody!

Posted via LiveJournal.app.

The Broadway Friending Meme!

2010-01-03T02:47:18Z

One of my New Years Resolutions was to get back and active on LJ and actually pay attention to my friends, but all the friending memes I've seen don't cater to the Broadway variety. Another resolution was to get back in touch with some of my fandoms that I've had to cut back on due to real life things, Broadway being one of them.

So anyway, I present to you: The Broadway Friending Meme! So copy, paste, fill, comment, comment some more, and YAY! NEW FRIENDS!

And for pimping purposes:

oddobsession @ 2008-08-30T22:25:00

2008-08-31T02:27:33Z

That is all.

oddobsession @ 2008-02-29T16:03:00

2008-02-29T21:03:27Z

A new batch of pics of my adorkable niece. C'mon. You know you love 'em.

^ I made that hat.

A Day in the Life of an Oklahoman!

2008-02-26T03:55:09Z

My fourth entry for adayinmylife, this time was Saturday, February 23rd. I'm in the ensemble of Oklahoma! at Myer's Dinner Theatre in Hillsboro, IN.

10:16 AM - Good morning, starshine. Hillsboro is a 40 mile/minute drive from where I live (Lafayette). There was a lot of snow on Friday, so I decided to stay overnight in the theatre offices with some other cast members.

I got one of the rollaways, rather than an actual bed, and this is it in all it's messy glory.

10:23 AM - Pack it up.

10:44 - Unfortunately, there is no shower in the offices, but there is one in the theatre, so I head over there (this is the stage door) to shower.

This is Missy, the owners' dog. She hangs out in the freezer room, which is also where the staff bathroom is and connects the kitchen with the backstage. I have to wait for Hayley to shower before I can get in.

10:53 AM - Showah time.

11:09 AM - Shower is done. I run to our basement dressing room to do my hair and drop off my junk so I won't have to lug it all over from the office later.

So fresh and so clean, clean.

11:15 - Back to the office to meet everyone since we have plans to go out for lunch before the show.

11:26 AM - We all pile into Tonya's car.

11:39 AM - And go to Chubbies! Chubbies is some bar that's on the road between Lafayette and Hillsboro, and we decided that we wanted to go to Chubbies, just for the kitsch of it.

Hayley being a goofball... at Chubbies.

12:07 PM - My half-eaten cheeseburger.

12:44 PM - Gotta stop by the gas station for CAFFEINE!

12:56 - Back to the theatre. This is our "living area" in our basement dressing room. Complete with thrift shop furniture and a broken TV.

This is a hat I finished knitting last night when we were watching movies at the office. I just wanted to take a pic of it. I thought the design would be cool, but it looks like a beehive. *shrugs*

1:20 PM - Step One of getting ready: Ve braid ze hair into cutesy little pigtails.

Step Two: MAKEUP! I think I'm addicted to makeup.

1:28 - But we're interrupted by vocal warm-ups/notes/circle. From left: Michael (Curley), Paul (Jud), Dorman (Cord Elam), and Linnea (director).

1:41 PM - All purdiful.

2:05 PM - Costume time! This is the dressing area I share with Hayley (Gertie) and Michael (Ali Hakim).

CORSET!

2:22 PM - Act I costume.

2:38 PM - I've got about 30 minutes in between my first scene (Many a New Day) and my next (Out of My Dreams), so I sit down and start on a new hat to knit.

2:57 PM - Intermission. Back stage chaos.

Act II costume. Baaaad photo.

3:42 PM - Bailey and Hayley hanging out downstairs.

4:19 PM - Show over, time for normal people clothes.

A picture of our super awesome set.

4:25 PM - One of the perks of working at a dinner theatre: FREE FOOD!

Yummeh.

4:29 PM - Hayley (Gertie) and Michael (Ali Hakim)... eating. Yeah. Great picture. MMMmmmhmmm.

5:13 - Run back to the theatre to grab my knitting.

5:30 - Back to the office where we watch Jeff Dunham specials! Yay Jeff Dunham!

From left: Hayley (Gertie), lying on the back bed is Jodi (Ado Annie) with Jeremy (Andrew Carnes), on the floor is Brian (Will) and on the other bed is Lacey (Laurey).

7:26 - Back to the theatre to get ready for show 2.

7:42 - Purdy. Again.

Michael being a dork.

Hayley doing Mindy's hair.

7:44 - I've got a while before I need to get dressed, so more knitting!

7:52 - Warm-ups/notes/circle again. From left: Jodi (Ado Annie), Jeremy (Andrew Carnes), Michael (Ali Hakim) and Hayley (Gertie)

8:20 - Michael also doubles as a cowboy dancer during "Kasas City", so I got a pic of him in his cowboy outfit. Hot shtuff.

8:37 - Time to get dressed again.

Dressed, blah blah blah Act I...

9:30 - Act II, blah blah blahhhh...

9:58 - A pic of Michael in his Ali Hakim suit before we go up for the final scene. Ain't it purdy?

10:24 - Show's over, here's the reception line.

10:53 - Ready to go HOME! Pack up all my overnight crap.

10:56 - And pile it into Tonya's car (we carpool since we're both from Lafayette).

An hour later...

11:59 - I'm home! With a very late dinner, and mail! Yay!

12:03 - Ooooh, books from PaperbackSwap and some makeup I got from ebay. w00t.

12:07 - Add the books to my to be read pile... er... shelf... er... case...

Unpack all my overnight crap.

12:14 - Take my drugs (I don't take all of those, only about four, most are refill bottles I haven't taken in yet).

Time to de-makeup and de-braid.

12:16 - Ahhhh.

12:19 - Time to relax with reruns of Sabrina the Teenage Witch.

12:32 - Read a bit.

12:54 - Read a bit more.

1:12 - Check the email.

1:47 - Bedtime! I have to do another show tomorrow!

A Day in the Life of a Cabaret Singer (and a Mother)

2007-12-03T06:12:19Z

Here's my most recent entry to adayinmylife. w00t.

This was Saturday, December 1st.

10:06 AM - Time to awaken.

Leftover pizza from the previous night's cast party and fruit drink = breakfast of cham'peens.

Must take these as well, as they are the only thing that's been keeping me alive (and with a voice) this week.

10:43 - Check the LJ friends and other regular internet places. Jane Eyre owns you. Don't deny it.

And a pic of my magnet board, because I'm a broadway whore.

11:06 - Got a DVD to send out from SwapaDVD. Add the post office to my list of errands.

Boots. Why? Because I love these boots and wanted to take a pic of them.

It's around 35 outside, and with my cold, hats and scarves are essential.

My baby.

11:21 - Ready to go.

First stop: The post office to mail my DVD.

11:50 - Second stop (actually, the main reason for this outing): The library book sale. I like books. Better than crack. I like these book sales because I can get lots of books cheap.

My selections. Yes. I love Susan Elizabeth Phillips.

12:16 - Stop at McD's on my way home for a coke because I'm dying of thirst.

12:25 - Home again.

Mail's in. w00t. A big pile of packages from PaperbackSwap and SwapaDVD have come in all at the same time.

It's like freaking Christmas unwrapping them. Wheee!

Must add all of my new books to my "To Be Read" er... shelf. Yep. That's it. 101 books and always changing.

12:42 - Shower tiiiime.

Out of the shower. I must remember to take this now or I will be a zombie for the show tonight, which is no good.

12:56 - Check in the books and DVDs I've received and sent on PaperbackSwap and SwapaDVD.

1:20 - Oh look! A midget has invaded my house! My niece, Lexi. I usually watch her on Saturdays, but my mom is on vacation, so she has baby watching duty.

Did I mention Lexi's a camera whore? And she has a dirty face.

1:38 - Time to waste time. Gamessss.

3:18 - Watch a bit of TV. Cash Cab. I heart Cash Cab.

While I knit. My cousin asked for a knitted blanket for Christmas, so that's what I'm doing.

3:47 - Read a bit.

Oh look, a passed out midget.

4:13 - Easy Mac. Lunch of cham'peens.

4:34 - Read a bit more. I read around 5 books at the same time, so... yeah.

4:58 - Hair time.

Ah. Nice and straight-ish and not frizzy. Good hair.

5:06 - Getting ready to leave. Mom is working on... something.

And Lexi's still being a camera whore.

This time I take mom's Tribeca, because we had to store all of the props and costumes in it last night (the play is in a church and they had a function that morning and we had to clear out everything and go set up again).

But first, some ice to scrape. Freezing rain is loverly.

5:26 - Arrive at Paul's house, so we can go over to the church and unload.

Hi Paul.

5:42 - Arrive at church and wait for church lady to show up with the key to let us in. Meanwhile Paul poses for the camera. Whore.

5:57 - We're in. And unloading.

6:12 - I run home to grab my makeup and stuff and switch cars.

6:23 - Then meet the family at Parkside Deli for a quick dinner before the show. Hi family.

6:58 - Time to get back to the church and to my dressing room station.

The stage is set for the play. Ain't it purdy? I decorated the tree all by myself.

My voice hasn't warmed up enough from my cold, so I play my solos on the sound system to warm up. This is the cabaret cue list.

7:14 - The rest of the cast has arrived.

7:37 - First act makeup. Scary, eh? Blame Paul, he did it.

7:49 - Ten to curtain. All dressed and done up in my "mother" costume, and what I like to call my Carol Brady wig.

We're all ready to go.

8:49 - Intermission. Time to change into cabaret costumes and MY OWN makeup. No drag queen shit.

And now for a series of very bad self-taken pictures.

"It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" costume, complete with cheap elf hat.

"O Holy Night" costume. Yes. I knitted the hat and scarf myself.

"Winter Wonderland" costume.

"All I Want for Christmas Is You" costume. My personal favorite.

9:39 - Show's over. Time to meet and greet. They were playing some strange country song and we were attempting a line dance.

Lexi's in the audience tonight. She liked the show. And she's still a camera whore.

My aunt and my mom.

Dressing room shot. Time to pack it up.

Packed.

9:48 - I'm out the door. Good show tonight, but I don't want to hang around.

Random stoplight shot.

And I'm starved, so I stop and get a very late dinner.

10:21 - I'm home to my completely ass-ugly but so-very-very-comfy chair for some relaxation after a long night.

10:56 - Mom and dad get home. Lexi's staying the night, so dad changes her into her PJs.

And mom's cooking at midnight. Why? Not sure.

I work on a bit more knitting to unwind.

12:41 - Off to bed, for I have another of these shows tomorrow.

A Day in the Life of a Queen (and a Turtle)

2007-09-03T09:05:19Z

I said I was going to post this, even if it is over a week late. Anyway, here is my post for adayinmylife. I did this almost a year ago. The other post can be found here.

11:03 AM - I am wakened by my sister because my mother is out shopping and I need to watch my one year old niece, Lexi, who had a cough and can't go to daycare today.

11:13 - Reading, since that seems to be the only thing I do any more. I will be the first to admit that I am a whore for trashy romance novels. The more smut, the better, IMO. Though, as you can see, I do read other things.

Lexi hangs out in her playpen while I read. I swear this kid eats more than I do and she's still underweight. I blame her father and his insane metabolism.

11:38 - Tired babies.

12:09 PM - Mom gets home from shopping and check's Lexi's diaper.

She also bought Lexi a new toy. Because the child doesn't have a room full of them already.

I decide to heat up some leftover tortellini. Breakfast of champions.

12:27 - Mom goes to bed (she works nights) and I settle in the front room (also known as Lexi's unofficial playroom) with Lexi. She has a fascination with that Colts rug.

I check out the newspaper because they're supposed to do a write-up about my show today.

And look! I picture of me! *happiness* I'm the white blob thing on the left. Though they don't put my name in, which annoys me because they asked it specifically. I'm such a diva. Larger photo in case you care to read.

1:24 PM - Lexi's an attention whore. And a camera whore.

2:01 PM - Somehow I got Lexi to take a nap, which means I can get back to sleep. I didn't get to sleep until very early this morning, and I know if I don't take a nap I'll be dead at tonight's show.

4:55 PM - Awaken. Lexi's still asleep. Good baby.

Which means it's shower time.

Obligatory foggy mirror shot in my purple robe.

5:25 - And look who's awake when I get dried off?

Which means only one thing...

5:42 - Time to check up on teh internets.

While Lexi amuses herself with some old CDs on my floor.

A book of mine is requested at PBS. I love PBS.

5:50 PM - I must plop La Lexi back in her pen while I get my shit together.

First: dressing. The usual black pants with a bowling shirt that was my dad's. The shirt is older than I am, it's my most prized article of clothing. Not sure why.

Lexi's chillin'.

Second: Wrapping up the book so I can drop it by the post office.

Fin.

5:59 - I'm running a little late, as call is at 6:30 and I like to get there early, but I'll be okay. I think.

Third: Hair time. Messy....

...To slightly less messy. I actually need it in a bun, but I'll wait and do that in the dressing room.

Most of my makeup is packed up for the show, so I'll do it down there as well. Now for the general good-smelling stuff. I love anything vanilla scented.

Fourth: Pack all my shit up. PBS book, book for reading during my backstage downtime, makeup, water bottle. I think I'm good.

6:13 - Wake up mother so she can take over with Lexi.

Lexi's still chillin'. With mardi gras beads. Kiss the baby.

Grab my shit.

And go.

I plug in my vocal warm-up recording on my trusty Olympus 300M. I'd die without that thing.

6:32 - Arrival at the theater. Rainy window shot.

6:50 - Get situated at my dressing room station. Yes, that is my wig. Scary huh?

7:11 - We'ze coo'. That's Taylor (Alice) and Kathie (Caterpillar) in front.

8:12 - The show started at 7:30, but I don't come in until the end of the first act. First costume: The Mock Turtle.

And a shot of my back because Richard wanted a photo of it since Paul spent hours painting this shirt.

8:40 - Intermission, time for costume #2, The White Queen. This is what Paul refers to as a "hot mess". Oh yes, I am. Perhaps the worst costume I've ever had paired with the best character I've ever played. Ah well.

9:07 - Cast people hanging out before the finale. Kathie (Caterpillar), little Nico (Card/Chorus and possibly the cutest little thing ever), Rita (Duchess, she's really British as well. I love her), and Christopher (Humpty Dumpty).

9:40 - Show's done for tonight. Time to pack up my station and head out.

9:46 - I pop in an audiobook, because I don't read enough at home or anything. *sarcasm* And I adored this movie and have been meaning to read the book, which I found the audio of for $1 at a book sale. Who can resist that?

10:05 - Join the cast and some friends at Arni's for some after-show eating (and drinking).

10:31 - Arni's Jr. Mmmmmmmm. Best salad known to man.

A bunch of dorks. We have Marcella (Frog Footman), Kathryn (White Rabbit/Tweedledum), the back of Taylor's (Alice) head, Citt (Fish Footman), and Christopher (Humpty Dumpty/Dormouse) in the background.

And Rachel (Red Queen), Richard (Paul's boyfriend/show costumer/general show helper), and part of Paul, who was sitting beside me and I couldn't get a good picture of.

11:51 - After much fun, it's time to go home or else I won't be able to wake up and we have two shows tomorrow.

12:01 AM - Home sweet messy home.

12:12 AM - And since I seem to be too riled up to sleep, I decide to read for a bit.

12:46 - *yawn*

oddobsession @ 2006-08-03T12:38:00

2006-08-03T16:42:57Z

I spent the entire morning in the hospital. But I'm not tired.

Why?

My niece, Alexandria Nichole Waggoner
Born August 3, 2006 at 8:40 AM

Just a-fucking-dorable.

oddobsession @ 2006-01-22T22:20:00

2006-01-23T03:52:44Z

Goodbye Ana & Kate!

Ana & Kate's last show was today. But what a good show it was...

Wicked: Chicago - January 22, 2006, 2:00 PM - All OCC except for Melena and some new ensemble members.

This is my full day, not just the show.

Today hasn't really been my day. The Gods must be mad at me or something, because for such a good day, I've had some bad luck. First of all, I forgot my camera, which I convinced myself wasn't a big deal, and I suppose it wasn't. Then I found out after the show ended that my recorder died 15 minutes into act 2, so I didn't get any of the good stuff. Meh. Not really that big of a deal either, as it wasn't going to be a very good audio anyway. Less trading crap for me to deal with.

Okay, so we got to Chicago around 1:15. Went to the theatre, nobody was there. We then realized that Chicago was a different time zone than Indiana, because Indiana is retarded. So we hung around Borders for an hour, then went to the theatre, hung around the entrance, went in, hung around the lobby, went in the theatre, hung around our seats.

Finally the show started.

Kate was totally on tonight. I can't really judge her normally because I've only seen her once before, and that was the week they started, which I don't think is a proper judge of one's ability. She was very good tonight, her voice did annoy me a little, but not too much.

Ana's acting and comedic timing was SUPERB tonight. The best I've seen her. She interacted with everyone else great, and there were jokes where I wasn't expecting. Just little nuances of her performance were hilarious. She didn't try too hard and she was fantastic. Her singing lacked a bit, I thought, but that could be a problem with the mics. Last time I saw her she blew the roof off, but it was also quite louder than it was tonight. I did notice that their mic cords were showing on their backs, which isn't normal. Last time I was in the front row of the dress circle and I could barely see a cord, this time I was in the last row of the dress circle and I could see the mics quite well.

Act I pretty much went off as usual. Everyone was on tonight though. Their interactions were fantastic, there was an extra "oomph" to everyone's performance tonight, it was really great.

Something Bad was really good. Normally I don't like this song at all, but Ana and Dillamond got along great during it. Many things were funny about the scene, the timing was great, it was just really good. I can't really explain it.

Popular was HILARIOUS! Kate went all out. She and Ana had a blast up there, it was so funny, I was laughing so much during it. 1000X better than her Popular in July.

Before One Short Day the two of them were on the verge of tears, and after the "Come with me" part they were clutching each other. It was really cute and sad.

Everything else pretty much went off as normal for the rest of Act I.

During Thank Goodness I think Kate was crying, but I really couldn't tell because I was in the back. I think she was, but she did a good job of covering it up.

As Long as You're Mine was really good. I couldn't tell if Ana was laughing or crying (or both?) during it. Kris barely made it through his verse, which was cute. Ana kept bending over into his lap, which looked bad to me, but you know me and my dirty dirty mind. But I take it she was crying or laughing or something when she did that. After ALAYM, when they're talking about Kiamo Ko and whatnot, Ana said, "Will we ever see each other again?", and she was crying. It was so sad. And then Kris hugged her and did his line. Just... ahhh.

The catfight was awesome. They really got into it and had lots of fun.

Then came For Good. Dear god, why did they have to do that? I was on the verge of tears by the time she pulled the curtain before the melting. Kate and Ana sang it, and they were both crying quite a bit throughout the whole time, they managed to cover it up for the most part, but after the second "because I knew you", they just broke down and couldn't finish it. It was so sad. I was watching the conductor and he was confused and didn't know what to do at that point, it was an odd moment.

Then they did the melting, and I think they were completely out of character by that point. It was really very sad.

Finale, more crying, trap door, more crying, because I knew you, more crying.

Curtain call. BIG standing O, big applause, it lasted a long time. That was great, because I didn't think that most of the audience knew that it was their last, but I guess they did. Then David Stone came on stage and started talking. His mic didn't work at first. Ana and Kate were clutching each other and crying so much, someone said that Ana was crying so much her makeup was smearing (and I thought that stuff was waterproof...). He said something along the lines of, "And since you couldn't finish For Good, I will. Because we knew you, we have been changed for good." (insert teary-eyed Sarah here).

It was just such a great show. Words can't even describe the emotion. I'm not really sad, I'm kind of sad and happy and "awww" and just a whole bunch of emotions over it.

This was the last time I plan to see Wicked for a long long time. I'm honestly not sure IF I can see it again, after seeing two of the best performances Wicked has ever put on (the other performance being on September 3rd when Ben Vereen was in town). I don't think anyone else can hold a candle to those two shows.

oddobsession @ 2005-09-04T16:14:00

2005-09-04T21:41:57Z

A full Wicked experience... with pictures *teehee*

September 3, 2005 - Evening

So the original plan was to get to Chicago for the matinee stage door, then go and try the lottery (even though we had tickets) and wander around for a while before the show started. All pretty much went according to plan, although not without complaining from my father and sister.

We got there around 4:00 PM, and according to my calculations, the matinee would have ended around 4:30-4:45. So we wandered around for a while, and my sister thought we were stalkers for hanging around in an empty alley trying to meet people.

So anyway, people who were at the show started showing up, and it was fun. The ensemble members came out, and then Telly, Kris, and Heidi came out. I got a picture with Kris, and Telly signed my Playbill. I tried to find Heidi after those two, but she kind of disappeared. Then we waited for a while for Ben and/or Ana to come out. They both came out at the same time, actually they just stood inside the doorway. There weren't any dividers out, so everyone rushed the door. Ana seemed kind of annoyed, and I would be too if everyone were rushing at me. There was a family there with a bajillion and a half kids who were so annoying. Anyway, Ana and Ben went inside before I could get to them, and I was kind of angry, but I said we'd come back later and hopefully they would come out again. Justice did get up there though and got her paper signed by both of them and got a picture with Ben, although it isn't a very good one.

Anyway, by this time it was a bout 5:40 and we should head over to Borders for the lottery. There were a lot of people there. We didn't win. One woman put her ticket in, and supposidly her husband put one in with her name, and both got called, so she was disqualified. I was kind of happy about that, even though we still didn't win. We had seats anyway, so I wasn't too angry about it.

So then we went to get something to drink and to sit down for a while, and we wandered around to the giant Old Navy (which I liked), and back to the theatre, where we hung around until they let us in. We found our seats and they were GREAT! You couldn't see most of the background stuff on the left side, but they were still so close. And it was in the front row, so lots of leg room. Last time I went we had lower balcony, and I'm a big girl, and those seats were very tiny. My leg was numb for weeks afterward because of them, so I was prepared for the same thing this time. My seat this time wasn't anything like the last one. So now I know to get dress circle tickets if I don't want to be in a lot of pain. There was a family with 4 kids who were in the rows that we were in, so they asked if we wanted to sit together and switched us seats, they were really nice.

The understudies for the night were Ben Vereen, of course, and Sarah Jane Everman as Glinda. I was kind of happy because I didn't care for Kate.

I'm not going to give a scene-by-scene review, because it's all kind of a haze. But Ana doesn't look as good in green as the other people, and Elphaba isn't supposed to look good in green, so it works. She was totally on tonight, the best I've seen her do. Her DG was fabulous. Sarah was a GREAT Glinda, she played the part very well, she was much funnier than Kate. She did mess up during the finale though, she said "Fellow Ozians" when Elphaba was supposed to come out of the trap door.

Ben Vereen is a FABULOUS Wizard. Oh my, he was so energetic, and he was doing little dances, it was so cute. I'm so glad I went to see him.

The curtain call was funny, and I have pictures from it, when the curtain went down they were all doing the robot. It was cute.

So right when the lights came up we made a mad dash for the stage door so we could be in front. They had the dividers up this time, which was better. Kris and Telly came out, and I got another picture of Kris (ohmygodhessohot). I wish I would've gotten a picture with Telly but there was nobody around to take it. He's so adorable.

Rondi Reed came out and did her whole "I'm Madame Morrrrrible" thing, which I've heard is supposed to be a distraction for Ana's getaway car, so we were looking for it, but we couldn't see. Then Ben came out again, and he remembered Justice from earlier, and so we asked for another picture, together, and he said no, and I though he was serious, and then he smiled and said "Of course!", he's so sweet. My sister couldn't figure out how to take the picture, and she got one where Ben was saying "no" to something, and he said, "Well now you have to take another", so she did and I was so happy.

About 10 minutes later Ana came out and she started on our side, and I was the first to ask for a picture (to put on the fan site) and she was so nice. She signed my playbill as well. I also made her a necklace with a polymer clay witch's hat, and I attached a note with my name and address, and the address of my fan site for her, and I told her about it. She didn't seem too enthusiastic, but she was probably extremely tired and didn't know what I was talking about.

That was the first time I have ever gotten that close to anyone famous, and I'm still in shock.

Anyway, on to the peeektures!

The number one rule of looking at the pictures is NOT TO LOOK AT ME. I can't even look at me in these. I don't take pictures very well at all.

Me & Kris *melts*

Ben & Ana signing stuff

Justice & Ben

Our view of the stage. Nice, right?

Oh my god! Blurry curtain call pictures!

^ They're doing the robot. So cute.

Kris (this one was just for you Aaron)

Me, Ben, and Justice.

Me & Ana

I can die now.

oddobsession @ 2005-07-05T14:48:00

2005-07-05T19:59:34Z

Writing my review. Ohhhh yeaaaa.

Wicked Chicago: July 2nd, 2005 2:00 PM

Contains spoilers if you haven't seen the show, you have been warned.

First things first: Our seats weren't spectacular. I was in row G of the balcony, against the left wall (when looking at the stage). I was able to see everything though, even some things they probably didn't want the audience to see.

I figure now should be the time to say my "experience" with Wicked. I have never seen the show in person before, but I've seen a few different bootlegs, so I knew what to expect.

Ana Gasteyer was AMAZING! I've heard people say that you have to get used to her... they're insane. It didn't take any time to get used to her, she was GREAT. I actually think she sounded a lot like Idina, her lower notes at least, her high notes sounded like... her. She was just spectacular.

My thoughts on Kate Reinders aren't so great. She just didn't play the part right. She didn't have any blatant "blonde moments", and her delivery wasn't that great. She just didn't have something, I can't really explain it that well. Her voice was also too sweet. I understand Glinda's voice is supposed to be sweet sometimes, but not all the time, like when she's trying to be mean.

Ana and Kate also didn't have very good chemistry. I didn't really believe they were friends, but I'm going to attribute that to the fact that they've only been doing it for a week, so it will probably take some time.

No One Mourns the Wicked
This one had quite a few problems to it, which kind of sucked because it was the first song, but it was the only song that had problems. First of all, there was no giant witch hat at the beginning, but no big deal, because I heard there wasn't one on the tour either. Does anyone know why that is? Then Glinda's tiara kept falling off, but Kate played it off pretty good. The major problem during this was during the part where she explains about Elphaba's birth. The bed is supposed to be there with the mother on top, and they pull the green baby out. This time the bed didn't stop at the end of the stage, it went straight through into the clock, giving them no time to pull the baby out, and then the bubble came down right in front of the father and the midwife when they tried to play it off. Basically it came down to the father saying "Take it away..." when there was nothing to take away. That seemed to be the only major problem in the whole show though. Kate was wonderful in this, she is a tiny little thing.

Dear Old Shiz
Another great one, Ana has great comedic timing. Rondi Reed as Morrible looked and sounded like a drag queen. I know Morrible looks like a drag queen, but usually she doesn't sound like one as well. I didn't like her.

The Wizard and I
Wow.

What is This Feeling
This was good, but you couldn't hear Ana over Kate that well. The mics weren't right or something, or Kate is just a lot louder than Ana.

Something Bad
I never really cared for this song, but they did it pretty well.

Dancing Through Life
This is one of my favorite songs in the show. Kristoffer Cusick is a really good Fiyero, he reminds me a lot of Joey. His voice is a bit nasal, but that's okay. Telly Leung as Boq is really good, not the best, but pretty good, he's not really dorky enough. Heidi Kettenring as Nessa is also pretty good. Her voice was slightly annoying, but only slightly, she did well.

Popular
This song is pretty funny, but it seems that Kate passed up a few opportunities to get a couple laughs and it just ended so-so.

I'm Not That Girl
Ana and Kristoffer are pretty good together, not great, but good. Another amazing song for Ana.

One Short Day
This song was also another great one.

A Sentimental Man
I also don't care for this song, but Gene Waygandt is a good Wizard.

Defying Gravity
Wow. Just... wow. The one thing that put me off is that usually (at least in all of the bootlegs I've heard/seen) people cheer during the ascent, and nobody did this time, it kind of ruined the greatness of it all. But it was still amazing, simply amazing. Ana is just... no words can describe how great it is to see her live.

Thank Goodness
That was a short intermission.... Anyway, Thank Goodness is one of my favorite songs in the show. It was performed alright, not spectacular, but still good. I still didn't like Rondi Reed.

Wicked Witch of the East
Heidi Kettenring is a good Nessa, although I don't really think anyone can beat Michelle. Her voice too was a little annoying, but not a lot. She did well. The only problem was that my seats were in such a place where you couldn't see Elphaba appear from behind the mirror and you could see the Boq's switch behind the closet.

Wonderful
I also don't care for this song, but it was pretty good, I like the dance in it.

As Long As You're Mine
Ana and Kristoffer have good chemistry. It's not THAT great, but I've seen worse. At the end of the song she says "I feel wicked" very humorously (which I've never seen done before) and then she basically attacked Kristoffer, which was great, I think she caught him off gaurd. It was fun to watch.

Fallen House
This is probably the funniest scene in the show. It was played decently, but I thought Kate missed a few opportunities for a good laugh. Ana was great in her delivery though. Her witch cackle was fabulous.

No Good Deed
Wow. She got really into this song. On the verge of over-doing it, but I don't think she went that far. When she was waving her cape it got on her mic a couple times. But this song was great.

March of the Witch Hunters
Nice.

For Good
Again, Kate just didn't do it for me. The song was nice though.

Finale
Okay, it took a few seconds for Ana to appear at the trap door, and I think that kind of lost the surprise of that part, but it was okay, got a good cheer. It was still really nice.

That's it. My review. *bows*

oddobsession @ 2005-04-13T17:13:00

2005-04-13T22:24:00Z

Compiled together for my crediting pleasure is a post of (hopefully) all of the things I have used when making icons. If you see that I have used something that is yours (brushes, textures, caps, etc) and I have not credited you, many many apologies, I either forgot or forgot where I got them, and do comment so that I may credit you properly.

Caps:
cap_it
Alfie
Brokeback Mountain
Dear Frankie
Elephant
Hedwig and the Angry Inch
House on Haunted Hill
The Notebook
The Phantom of the Opera (2004)
Popular: 1 2
Pride & Prejudice
Queen of the Damned
Queer As Folk
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar
Will & Grace

Brushes/Textures:
_joni
dearest
teh_indy

__3ppl
_lighthouse
10000_pixels
77words
ladyheatherlly
hanako_lovely
ashke_icons
blanket_icons
blifme
braggadocio_org
celygraphix
chouchoune
crazchica
colorfilter
crumblingwalls
disappearicons
inxsomniax
even_art
firaga
fuzzy
rozillla
graphicjunkie
haito
hisatomi
honerbright
idiotequeicon
ilmare
ingridmatthews
jeweledicecream
joli_papier
jubilli
julia_thorne13
lovetheories
meleada
metrosex
miggy
my_wonderful
myrasis
mythographica
ohpaintbrush
oxoniensis
photoshopranger
propaganda_live
quebelly
saava
saihara
secretly__dying
shagalote
sinecure
stargarden_
sweet100x100
wickedripeplum
withaghost
wound3d
xxmiraclexx

1greeneye
The Blooming Effect
bruisedxheart.org
Brunos-Honeypot.net
EvenStar
Innamoramento
The Magic Box
ManStomper.com
Of The Sky
Phony
VBrush

The rest of the things I've either made myself, or I've forgotten the source. If I am using something of yours and don't have it listed, please tell me so I may credit you.

oddobsession @ 2005-03-27T22:50:00

2005-03-28T04:10:02Z

*attempts to put this all together and make it look organized*

So, finally, I have my Phantom Chest of D00M done! Hooray! Actually it's been done for a while, but I was waiting for someone to hang my supahcool Phantom mirror. And it is hung, so now I suppose it is done.

From This:

To This:

So, I started out with this fine piece.

I wanted to do something Phantom inspired to it. My original idea was to paint it black and paint masks and roses on it, but I decided to go for something a bit more classic feeling. So I decided to kind of go off of the furniture from the newest movie (although it's kind of the same with every adaptation), I was mostly looking at the organ. Yes. I did stare at Erik's organ quite a bit. *giggles* Innuendo is fun. AAAAAnyway... So I stained it the darkest stain I could find: Bombay Mahogany.

After the first coat (even though you can't really tell much of a difference in the photos)

Then after the third coat (yes, it took 3 coats. Not. Fun.)

And my workspace, for no reason at all:

I wanted to do something special for the top. My first idea was to make up a score for Don Juan Triumphant (which would really have been the ALW music, but I'd title it Don Juan Triumphant) and write it by hand and age it or something. But I soon found that this task would take far too much time, and I'm not too good at writing musical symbols. So what I did instead was take out my trusty Phantom songbook and photocopied the pages at around 50% and mod podged them on the top.

My music:

The top up close:

Then that was done, and I had this:

But it needed some cool pulls on it. The original ones I wanted would have cost me like $50 in all, so I got these instead because they kind of reminded me of the chandelier (don't ask).

And the finished product... in my garage on an ugly blue tarp.

And then in my room, with the cool big mirror. I would have liked a nice floor to ceiling one, but my room is about the size of a sardine can, and wallspace is limited.

And with some of my Phantom-y decorations. Just because this photo looks cool.

And another shot for the mirror:

Now all I need is a lake and a chandelier and about five hundred thousand more candles and I should be set.

i gave you my music