iBroadway

iBroadway deserves a post of its own. ‘iBroadway’ – a medley of EVERY SINGLE SHOW TUNE EVER WRITTEN – is show #2 on board the Infinity. The house was PACKED for this show – most likely near 1,ooo people (no pressure). It’s a full-scale, elaborate production with lights, sets, and costumes galore. The performers are working it out there for a solid hour, twice each night – and the audience loves it! They sing and clap along to almost everything. There is also a video projection that accompanies maybe a quarter of the tunes.

I’m playing keyboard for this show which is vastly different from the piano I played last night. The keyboard is pre-programmed (thank goodness) with all the different sound patches (about 15 in total) – all I have to do is increase the patch. The click track is still foreign to me – it’s hard to anticipate time changes, meter changes, etc. And in this show there is a TON of music (19 medleys) and a TON of heavy piano stuff…pretty nerve-wracking! We ran through it once this afternoon, which was barely enough time to figure out the key signatures. I had no choice but to roll with it, though, and playing the show was a ton of fun. It runs about an hour, which seemed never-ending at the soundcheck, but it flew by in performance.

The show covers pretty much everything from Oklahoma to Tommy, The King & I to the Producers, and my personal favorite – an entire ABBA medley. (I think this was the audience’s favorite too). There is also an acrobatic couple on board who perform this amazing act during the show. I’m anxious to play show #2 (in about 30 minutes) and get a better handle on all of the music, but overall it was an awesome show. We’re onstage for the whole show which is a little hard to get used to at first (you’ll know why if you’ve ever seen me play a show) but I’m sure the audience is distracted by the performers...

Before iBroadway, we had a Captain’s Toast (free champagne) for the ship. The band played while each of the senior officers were introduced, and then I ‘noodled’ while the champagne was being passed out. This segment had zero rehearsal….yay, sightreading.

Yay, Broadway! I love my job. Ketchikan in T-12 hours…we’re one hour back tomorrow.

Cruise Life!

It’s been a crazy and hectic first day onboard the Celebrity Infinity. From the hotel in Seattle, about 50 crew members were bused to the cruise terminal. I was one of two girls, and the only American crew member. It took a while to process everyone’s paper work and finally board. We were brought to one of the movie theaters on board where they served us coffee and snacks, and we had our first orientation with the HR team. I then met the bandmaster and got a whirlwind tour of the ship. It was a while before my luggage arrived, and I got settled in my room and met my lovely roommate Zoe (from England)! She is a dancer in the shows – some of which I play with her as part of the orchestra. I also had to attend a safety training session with one of the Officers.
When all the passengers were boarded we set sail at 4pm – not that I could tell because I was in rehearsal! The cruise director is brand new as well, and we all assembled in the theater – his staff, the orchestra, the dancers, and the a cappella group – for a rehearsal/sound check. I am playing a Yamaha grand on stage in a 1,000 seat theater (for most of the shows). There are 6 other band members – bass, drum set, trombone, tenor sax, trumpet, and alto sax (3 of which are female!). The music was waiting on the piano and I jumped right in. Our first set is called the “Infinity Teaser” and it is played to a click track (my first time!). It includes tons of Broadway music, a whole 5 minutes devoted to “Don’t Rain On My Parade,” and a medley called “Boogie Wonderland.” The a cappella group (On Tap from Lehigh University) does a set, and then we play a Jersey Boys medley with them. We end with a set including Circle of Life, Defying Gravity, and Footloose…I love my job. Rehearsal was pretty stressful and I only got to run through everything once so I’m a little apprehensive about tonight’s show. But the rest of the band is really great and supportive so I’m sure it’ll work out.
The ship is HUGE and I’m going to try and figure out the situation. The weather outside is lovely as is the scenery. ..
Tonight we played our first show in the theater, with seatings at 7pm and 9pm. The cruise director is hilarious and lots of fun and the crowds loved the show. It was exhilarating and (mostly) horrifying to be essentially sight-reading in front of hundreds of people but luckily I had headphones on and couldn’t hear if I was making a mistake  Playing to a click track is a lot harder than it looks and will take a lot more getting used to. It was a very fun night of performing, and all the other band members have been incredibly supportive and helpful. After the second set some of us went to one of the lounges to listen to a FABULOUS Argentinian jazz quartet with an ah-mazing singer.

The ship is moving along at quite a clip to get to Ketchikan (500 miles north of Seattle) by 7am tomorrow! I’m explored the gym and some of the other areas on the ship; it is a gorgeous boat and the trip so far has been beautiful (though very cold and windy!).

I Left My Heart in San Francisco

I just got back to Seattle after a lovely 4-day visit to San Francisco! SF is almost 50(!) square miles, but I got to see a lot of it. The flight to and from Seattle/San Francisco is gorgeous over the mountains - and I got to see these cool salt ponds! (See picture). The colors come from a high concentration of algae, which forms in these highly salinated artificial ponds. How cool?!

I stayed in the Castro for a few days, and enjoyed the lively, hip, up-beat environment. It's easy (and familiar) to walk everywhere, and we had delicious coffee, pizza, and dinner. The Castro Theater is a great, old movie theater - like old, European theaters. The weather was foggy and chilly - as Mark Twain once famously remarked, "The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco." The sun did come out later in the week, though. We shopped in downtown SF and visited Union Square. Day 2 we visited the city hall, San Francisco Opera, and San Francisco Symphony Hall (Davies Hall). It's my goal to see the country by all of its major symphony halls. Michael Tilson Thomas is at Tanglewood this summer, so there weren't any concerts to speak of while I was there. We had lunch at Fisherman's wharf and visited the lovely Ghirardelli square. We then took a boat ride to Alcatraz and toured around there for about an hour -a wonderfully kept historic landmark! We drove crooked street, visited the "Full House" home, toured Haight-Ashbury, saw the Golden Gate bridge, and shopped on Union Street.

I found San Francisco a lot different than Seattle, and also a lot different from the other Californian cities I've visited. A most unique city, for sure. Thanks to my tour guides for a great week!

I'm back in Seattle and will be boarding the Celebrity Infinity early tomorrow morning. See you in Alaska!

San Francisco: The City of Fog

As I am finding out, San Francisco is known for its chilly summer fog...which is why I'm currently stranded in the Sea-Tac airport. Soon, though, I will be in California's 4th most populous city! San Francisco is named for Saint Francis of Assisi, and has become a center of American liberal activism. It is my first time in the bay area & I'm excited to explore the famous hills, bridges, and shores of San Francisco. Flight is boarding now...more info to come!

Cruise: T-5 days

One Short Day in the Emerald City

Yesterday we spent a beautiful day exploring Seattle. We started at the picturesque University of Washington and made our way to the Seattle Center. We saw the Space Needle, International Fountain Seattle Opera, and Experimental Music Project. We made our way up to the 5th Ave theater where the marquis for the touring production of IN THE HEIGHTS is already up! We then walked down to the Farmer's Market where there are endless stalls of fresh food, flowers, and goods (lots of shopping happened here). I got to go in the first Starbucks - my dream come true. The market was lots of fun - so many people milling about, lots of fresh produce and specialized goods, and a fun and friendly atmosphere. Everyone we interacted with was so friendly - a noticeable difference from New York. Lots of bike riders and green initiatives around. We saw the Gum Wall, Seattle Aquarium, and we visited the cruise terminal where a Norwegian Cruise boat was docked. I'll be there in 5 days! The views from and around the water were stunning - mountains, trees, and water are everywhere.

We walked (a long way) up to Capitol Hill - a fun neighborhood with lots of shops and restaurants. Seattle is so much more spread out than most cities I'm familiar with (Boston, New York) - it's not as walkable, and seems a lot bigger. It's also situated on hills, and feels a little like San Francisco in that way. Michael took me to the beautiful (and huge) St. Mark's Episcopal Church where they have a 4,000 pipe organ and beautiful views. We took the bus back to Seattle Center for dinner by the International Fountain before a performance of RUINED at The Intiman Theater.

RUINED was a truly stunning production. I highly recommend learning more about it here:

http://www.intiman.org/2010Season/ruined/default.aspx

The Pulitzer Prize winning play is about the civil war in the Congo and the femicide that occured as a result of it. It was a lovely production in a beautiful theater, and a really important piece of art for 2010. The production is travelling to South Africa later in the year to share it with the large population of Congolese ex-pats in Johannesburg.

A wonderful day in the emerald city! I fell in love with Seattle and its fresh, young, do-it-yourself spirit. It has a very at-home atmosphere (so different from New York) and the views and the city itself are beautiful. Off to San Francisco in the morning!!

Mount Rainier and Vashon Island

Yesterday we visited Mount Rainier on a perfect day (see picture). It took about an hour an half to get to the mountain, and we took the scenic route up. It is the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States (Mount McKinley here I come...) and is, to my surprise, an active volcano. It is very heavily concentrated with glaciers. Some days it can be seen from as far away as Portland, Oregon! The mountain is covered with Evergreens, snow, and glaciers, and we found lots of beautiful waterfalls. It was pretty crazy to be playing in the snow in 85 degree heat. The scenery is breathtaking and the weather was just perfect. I can't believe I feel this way about a MOUNTAIN...the scenery is getting to me.

Last night we went to a friend's house on Vashon Island (see other picture), a short ferry ride away from Tacoma. The island is quite big, with its own high school (though no traffic lights). The house was right on the water and reminded me so much of New England living. I'm so happy to be around so much saltwater here!

Today I was the "guest artist" at Michael's summer camp at Tacoma Little Theater. He acted as the moderator and I answered some of the high schooler's questions about Life On Broadway...it doesn't get any better than this, my friends...

The Emerald City

I have arrived! I landed at Seattle/Tacoma ["Sea/Tac"] airport on Thursday afternoon and I've been in love with the Pacific Northwest ever since. Flying into Seattle we saw the Pudget Sound to the left (and the "floating bridge") and Lake Washington and Downtown Seattle to the right. Mount Rainier was not visible (I've yet to see it in all of its glory) but I'm sure it will emerge out of the skyline one of these days. The bird's-eye view was just as I imagined it - lots of green, trees and water everywhere (and thus began the differences between the Northwest and the Northeast).

Seattle is named after Chief Seattle, and the Native American influences are prominent. It is a city of c. 600,000 people. It's nickname - The Emerald City - refers to the many evergreen forests in the area (Washington is The Evergreen State). Seattle is known for its heavy coffee consumption, which is (let's face it) why I'm here. I'll write more about Seattle when I visit on Saturday!

I've spent most of my time since in Tacoma, staying with the best friend. Tacoma is c. 30 miles South of Seattle, and is another large metropolitan area in Western Washington (population c. 200K). Tacoma gets its name from the original name of Mount Rainier: Mount Tahoma (more Native American influence). The area is so lovely - both similar and vastly different from New England. The area is SO green, with lakes everywhere - people are very nature-friendly here, and I would be too in this environment; lots of walking paths along waterfronts and huge, beautiful parks. The air is so fresh and crisp here - and it always smells like Christmas! I am surprised to find myself not missing NYC. It's much chillier than I'm used to here, but I do NOT miss the high humidity and stickiness of a New York City summer. I've loved being outside and exploring the PNW. It's much more similar to New England than New York City, of course, and I'm happy to be back near the ocean and the beach. Washington is much bigger than most of New England, and it feels more vast and spread out.

Michael & I have been exploring maps to figure out my route to Alaska. There is quite aways North to travel in the Pacific Ocean before I even reach the Southernmost tip of Alaska (it takes about a day and a half at sea to get to Juneau on the cruise ship). We first have to sail out of the Pudget Sound and get into the Pacific Ocean proper. Lots of people here have been to Alaska (either flown or cruised) and I've enjoyed talking to them about their travels. Clearly, I was expecting MUCH different weather and packed ONE pair of pants. This might be a problem...

I love the Pacific Northwest! I'm very much looking forward to exploring Seattle this weekend (another big city to cross of my list) and to head to San Francisco on Monday. I've spent SO much time on the East Coast and so little time on the West Coast, so I'm very grateful for the opportunity to explore this part of the country. And again, I now know more about Western U.S. geography than I do about my own coast! Good thing geography isn't on the GREs...