Allora

Overall the weekend was exhausting....
I hardcore practiced on Saturday for over an hour in a great studio space
I'm trying to get things moving further again and I've been vocalizing parts of three arias.
I wont hit things too heavily until after the show
But my butt was totally kicked.
I grew a tad frustrated with myself at times
and then suddenly became comfortable and happy with the fact that it was time to stand in front of the mirror again and realign, relax the jaw--lay on the floor and simply breathe. I haven't done this for a little while-suddenly it felt comfortable to do this again-nurturing and healing. I kept telling myself to concentrate and relax. It was an ebb and flow. The Donizetti and Rossini felt the best which makes me believe even more that my voice needs to move every day as much as possible.
I had drinks late last week with some of the cast-I was delighted to hear some of their tales of opera-since some of them consider it to be what they do. I complained jokingly about how the baritone voice or at least mine is seeming to take forever to mature..."it will come when it's ready" was the phrase softly spoken to me by a very wise older English actor and singer. That certainly made me smile. I think to an extent we have to ready and open for things in a very spiritual way before they can actually happen to us. It's like the energy around us is not willing to give us what we want until we are completely ready. I will soon be ready-some times it takes long priority check for us to realize what it is we have to do to open up.
The show is going fairly well. LONG rehearsals make me tired though. I'm finding myself jumping between a couple of different worlds more easily than every before. You just have to roll with the punches. I'm worried about memorizing everything I have to memorize. Some things are sticking and some are not sticking. We will block a scene and we may never do it until our run throughs...which kills me. After this week we only like one full week left of rehearsals before jumping into tech and then we open. It's crazy-but if I can make it through this...I can make it through anything. I couldn't have asked for a better day job which I'm now officially a permanent part of which means salary and benefits (which is UBER amazing)...at a wonderful place called Lyon Heart. They are an extremely progressive adversiting and communications firm for major drug companies...it's great!
Tonight I make a move into midtown as the girls I'm staying with now have guests coming. My apartment was supposed to be done last week--of course the renovations are taking longer. We're told that Friday or Saturday it should be done. So a wonderful angel and new friend of mine is letting me crash at his place in Midtown for a few days while he dog sits before I head out of town for the holiday. I'm SO ready to get into the new apartment...Mandy and I are anxiously awaiting just being in our own space!! It will be amazing to finally hang my clothes on hangers and in a closet and not have to iron every day. Although it has been good practice!
For now that's all... :-)
-Justin