springtime

There's been a happier vibe among Chicagoans with last week marking 8 days straight of record high temperatures. It hasn't ever been mid-80's in the past two springs that I've experienced. The first day of warmness caught me off guard--I wasn't mentally prepared for having to think about spring outfits! That made studying my Instyle and Glamour magazines and a trip to the thrift store high priority.

 Although I'm always thankful for my day job as a nanny, I'm even more thankful on gorgeous days as those we've been having. You get paid to take kids to the park and soak in sunshine and fresh air. I've gotten to take my nanny child and play at the park with my fellow singer/nanny friends Tiffany, Jill, and their nanny children which always prove to be adorable playdates. On Tuesday, the first day of spring, I brought a spring surprise for Sofia and Alexander--a net, magnifying glass, and a little bug viewer. It's about time Alexander gets trained in the ways of bug catching from me, the bug catching expert. haha. I love how excited he is about it every time we get home from school. Maybe one day I can also pass on my knowledge of lizard catching. I know you're so proud, Mom! ;)

Two weekends ago, I went to see my first production at the Lyric Opera through such a sweet Christmas gift from my nanny family. I brought Jill with me, and it was so refreshing to fancify for an opera once again. An elite feeling fills you as you're walking to the opera house with other fancy opera lovers, and then you're overwhelmed with the gorgeousness of the building. We heard Verdi's Aida, and it was such a beautiful experience. The singers, set, and orchestra were amazing, of course!

Sunset Boulevard rehearsals get more and more exciting. As hard as it is to believe, our sitzprobe is a week from tomorrow, and we open in less than a month. What adds to the excitement is that my brother is flying in one weekend and the rest of my family will be joining sometime, too, to see the show.

 I've been in the thought process and also speaking with our makeup/costume person Lindsay about the possibility of going blonde with clip in extensions instead of a wig for the show. We'll see what the conclusion is soon. :)

Recently, I've had a lot of Million Dollar Quartet experience with getting to see my friend Michael Goodman (who is understudying in the Chicago cast) go on as Carl Perkins. All of the exposure to the show not only made me fall in love with the role of Dyanne, but also helped in preparation for an unexpected audition I had last week. I had been hoping for a bit of time to audition for the role, but from the cast's knowledge, I knew it could be a while due to no Dyanne contracts being up soon. It had been a while since I had checked my e-mails from Actors Access of new casting calls posted, but last Tuesday I randomly decided to check it. Claire Simon had just posted a casting call for Million Dollar Quartet Chicago/NYC/Tour casts, and I immediately submitted. Thursday morning I received a call to audition the next day, so in a matter of hours I memorized two songs from the show as well as sides, and had Rebecca consult me on the perfect audition dress which I made a special thrift store run for--to find authentic 50's dresses. The audition was a fantastic experience! It was adorable and flattering that they kept on commenting on my dress. I learned a lot through the preparation and the audition which will help me perfect everything the next time auditions for Dyanne roll around.