Hello friends,
Merry Christmas Eve! As I type, I’m on my way to First Unitarian to get ready for our service today, and I am beyond excited! I’m so grateful for this community that’s become such a big part of my life here, and am so happy to be sharing this experience with my family who are making the trip to come be with me.
It’s been quite a while since you’ve heard from me, so here’s a little winter-break reading for you:
A few weeks ago, the women’s choir (BVS) that I mentioned in my last post had our concert, Understanding Love, and man oh man did it feel good to be performing in that way again. There’s something special about being part of a group of people who seem to love the music they’re learning just about as much as you do, and being able to make that music sound so beautiful together. I had a solo in a very beautiful kind of ethereal floaty piece that felt like a little look-back at the Mile Long Opera and was so nice to be part of (I’ll put the video on my page soon). What’s more exciting though, at least in my own opinion, was that this choir fills out their concert with solo performances, which allowed me to debut my most recent song. And, the even crazier part is that I had a professional drummer playing along with me. It has to be the coolest feeling to experience what my songs could someday (and someday soon??) become– full band, live audience (and a live audience that seemed to enjoy it at that). The overwhelmingly positive reaction that night, and the knowledge that I can (and do) move people with my music, is what keeps me writing, and keeps me so beyond excited to learn how to do it even better, find more places to perform, and keep singing my freaking heart out to whomever will listen.
This past month has been quite a learning experience, full of many ups and downs in the production process of Christmas In Hell, which opened last Thursday, and was a very different undertaking than Midnight at the Never Get. It lends itself to be a slightly more extravagant show, as it has eight actors playing multiple characters each in a myriad of different settings (compared to Midnight’s two actors and virtually no set changes). During the rehearsal process, I found myself making many many copies and reprints of music (as usual… sorry, Earth), but also found myself to be helpful in a more musical way that wasn’t as necessary in the last production. I would often sing vocal parts to the actors to help them learn, and ended up acting as a rehearsal pianist for music/choreography brush-ups, usually without the music director even present, and sometimes so that the actors could split to work on music with me and scene-work with the director. It was very cool to get a taste of what I would be doing as a music director someday, and all the problem solving and finessing that comes with the job (and I got paid for my work this round- ya girl’s moving up in the world!). I am so ready and excited for whatever theatre job I find next. 🙂
Wishing you a joyful holiday and happy new year,
~Allie
Minding The Gap 