August 21, 2010

Back at the Edison - yet again

Another Saturday. Another big fat full day of theater. I'm  still working at the Longacre. The show is still good and I continue to enjoy La Cage Aux Folles the more I watch it.

My break was sort of exciting for actor spotting. When I walked into the Edison Cafe, the first person I saw was someone who was originally in 39 Steps, but isn't in the show anymore and wouldn't you know it? I have no idea at all what his name is. I can only describe him as good looking with a rubbery face that he uses to make people laugh really hard.

At another table were sitting two cast members from The Addams Family, Jackie Hoffman, who plays Grandma and Kevin Chamberlain who plays Uncle Fester. Both are tremendous performers and sadly in the case of Kevin Chamberlain - very true. I can't believe how heavy he has gotten. He was never a svelte performer but he has really gotten too big to be considered healthy.  Jackie Hoffman, in my humble opinion, gives the best performance in the Addams Family. Somehow, she manages to get laughs with the most ridiculous bits of dialogue. But then again she's an amazing, amazing perform. She also knows how to contort her face into a million hilarious but never unflattering positions.

She was funny in Hairspray, funnier in Xanadu and now the funniest performer at the Lunt-Fontanne Theater.

You get the idea,

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to pull that many shifts for next week - just one to be exact - so my big work rush seems finished for now. I've been pretty lucky the last few weeks. I plan on going to the various theater chains and applying for work as an usher. The work schedule would be similar but there would be more work simply because there are more usher positions per theater other than stagehand positions.

Carrie Pilby

Congratulations on the re-release of Carrie Pilby as a Harlequin Teen Romance. I am very proud of the author and hope she has much success!!!

August 18, 2010

A New Play, A New Book

It's Wednesday, early evening, and I am resuming my blogging duties in the lobby of the Edison Hotel. "Good Morning" from Singing in the Rain is playing over the loudspeaker. Now that I'm listening to the song a little more closely, I think it is Judy Garland's version from some movie she was in with Mickey Rooney. There are two adorable old ladies sitting on the couch across from me. They have generic mid-western accents and they are discussing something intimately, but I can't quite make out what they are discussing.

I just had a beautiful lunch next door at the Edison Cafe, cheeseburger with fries to be exact. I used my tip money from last night to pay for it.

This week I am working at La Cage Aux Folles at the Longacre Theater. The show is entertaining but long. So long, in fact, that I was able to read Around The World In 80 Days in its entirety in the time the cast performed two different shows. This is the second book I've read by Jules Verne, the first being Journey to the Center of the Earth. Jules Verne was the best travel writer ever.  I honestly believed that in order to write these books, Verne travelled to Iceland or made a trip around the world in 80 days.  Jon and I went to Iceland because of Verne's writing. I was totally obsessed with seeing Iceland for myself.

Now, you can be rest assured, I would like to take a world tour. I don't think Jon and I will be buying elephants anytime soon but I think a trip around the world is achievable. In the book, the trip cost Phileas Fogg 20,000 pounds. We could definitely do the trip for less. And in a shorter amount of time. We could start in England and make our way through India, China and Japan. But I would want to linger a bit in the South Pacific.

Anyway, the next book I would like to read by Verne is From The Earth to The Moon.

About two weeks ago, I read three other classic works. Frankenstein, The Invisible Man and The Time Machine.

I have a friend who actually had the discipline to read a book a week for at least a year. I'm not sure if she's still doing it, but I find that really admirable. When I read, I read obsessively for a small amount of time and then I don't read again for a while. I have to pace myself, otherwise I'm not able to retain what I've read.

So that's what's up with me with regard to what I'm reading and where I'm working this week.

August 14, 2010

Other places

So. I've discovered various places where you can latch on to the internet. Right now I'm sitting in the lobby of the Edison Hotel. Whenever I run out of places to go or things to do between shows on Saturdays, I reliably run to the Edison Hotel. It was going smoothly up until 3 seconds ago when an enormous Scottish man sat next to me on my comfy couch. When he sat down, his whole body created a big pull and now I am sitting at a slight angle. Of course, now that there is an open couch his wife and he are absolutely not moving. .  .

so I moved. I guess they prefer to sit across from each other. I can understand that. It is easier to have a conversation that way. Carmen Miranda is playing over the sound system. People are quietly or not so quietly discussing their vacation adventures. The lobby is surrounded by great faux art deco murals.

Another place I discovered you can pick up an internet signal is the lobby of the Sheraton Hotel, by the bar.

The Edison is great for me because it's across the street from In The Heights, which is where I am working today.

Me and My Netbook

I bought myself a netbook in May. The idea behind buying it - motivating myself to write. Did it work? At first it did, but then I started to get distracted by the Internet. In almost every place I take my netbook, I have found a way to connect to the Internet.

But now, at this moment, I am blogging in a public place (that isn't the Internet cafe) for the only the second time since Thursday night.

Still exciting. The idea that I can access the Internet someplace like McDonald's. The only drawback? Other people. There is a Russian family sittting at the table next to me. They are speaking in only Russian and I don't know if you've ever hear Russian. It's just a cool sounding language. If they were speaking anything other than Russian I would probably be annoyed.

I brought the netbook with me on our trip to Turkey in May. Jon and I went to Istanbul and Goreme. And you know, I completely forgot I have a blog. It never once occurred to me write about our trip the entire time we were there. We had a good time there. Istanbul was pretty amazing. I posted some of the pictures to my Facebook page but I really should take the time to post them on Flickr.

I also brought the netbook on our trip to Lake George and Cortland. Perhaps if I had blogged about our trip to the Corning Glass museum, I wouldn't have accidentally erased every single photo from that trip. Has that ever happened to you? After we got home from that trip, we went to the beach where my mother took several extremely unflattering photos. I went to erase them and instead of erasing one at a time, I selected the ERASE ALL option.

I regret losing the photos from the Corning museum. Some of the art was very inspiring and I am determined now to find a glass making class. Surely, in all of New York City, I will be able to find one.

August 13, 2010

Just Another Day

This entry is being written for the purpose of keeping me true to my word. I don't have much to say. It's been so long I forgot how to report on my life. But I'll tell you this.

Jon and I did the laundry together. I hate doing it so much, that I need him there as a crutch in order to get it done. He's really supportive and I totally appreciate that.

How much do you hate doing laundry?

Also, we did have a bit of bad news on this Friday the 13th. Con Edison taped a disconnection notice to our front door. It wasn't because we are not paying our bills. It's some kind of oversight by our landlord. I contacted our landlord and made her aware of the situation. But that was a little bit stressful. Naturally, we have an opportunity to pay the outstanding bill ourself if we need to. And it is absolutely 100% legal for us to deduct that from our rent.

So either way, we won't lose our lights but still. Ack.

August 12, 2010

In The Heights

Yes. The Gen X Misanthrope still exists. I've been completely distracted by Facebook. Posting on Facebook takes away the urgency that used to propel to write here. But I have to get out of that habit. I must start posting here again.

I still work my Broadway job. Earlier this year, in the snowiest part of the winter, I worked at a full-time job for a month. It was a decent job except I hated working during the day. I couldn't adjust. Four years of working a mostly night schedule has retrained my brain.

I found it difficult to get anything done. Strangely, I work the same hours in my current job but because it's at night, I'm able to get personal tasks done during the day. But turn that schedule upside down and I don't want to do anything. It's harder to get things done after a day of work as opposed to the other way around.

This week I'm working at In The Heights. There have been several cast changes since I worked here last. The lead is now being played by Corbin Bleu. Apparently, he is very popular because of the High School Musical trilogy. I never heard of him. But if you are a teenager or younger he is hot stuff.

Right now, I am sitting in the lobby of the Richard Rodgers theater and cast is performing "96,000", where the characters sing about what they would do if they won $96,000 in the lottery. It's the best number from Act I.

I just got my schedule for next week. La Cage Aux Folles at the Longacre. If you haven't seen that one yet, you should really make an effort. It's a lot of fun. And Kelsea Grammar is amazing.