December 14 2012

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg
2 lecture demonstrations at two different sites :)
The day started with an accident on the 5 as I was going in, so I thought things were going to be a repeat of yesterday. Luckily, it was just a little blip. Got to the first Nutcracker LD with plenty of time. Solana Vista Elementary. So the dancers had plenty of time to warm up and get used to the space. The school has a sort of common space, carpeted pit/kiva. Very 80's. But a nice vibe. Kindergarten and 1st grade only.

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg
Second show was at Sequoia Elementary. Also very nice, but it started to rain a bit when we got there. This school was just a little more difficult. K through 6th grade. So had to work a little more to keep them all involved. But a good time was had by all. The principal forgot to tell me that I would have less than 50 minutes, so we went a little over. So we had some classes that had to drift away as Waltz of the Flowers played on and on.

December 13 2012

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg
Daily Stuff: The rains came. I heard the pitterpat of rain lulling me to sleep. I was hoping that it wouldn't send me too much into slumberland. We were supposed to do a Nutcracker lecture demonstration in the morning. At 8 am, I got a call from Karen (who goes in early). "Freeway traffic at a standstill." "Streets closed" "Flooded roads." It was POURING! When I checked online, I saw that the speeds for the roads we were going to be on were listed in the single digits. So we had to cancel.

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg
Luckily, we were able to reschedule to do it after the lecture demonstration tomorrow. In the evening, I was able to catch up with my buddies from my theatre life; Shana Wride , Steve Gunderson,  and Peter Van Norden at City Deli. Much subdued revelry and gossip.

December 12 2012

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg Some aerial views of Fanfare. You can see the Mad Hatter from the Alice: Wonderland set looking on.

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg. While the legs are a bit of a blur, I love the cleanliness and open quality in Sara's body here.

Daily Stuff: Ran the second act of Nutcracker. We need to adjust some tempos in the Cavalier's variation. Gave some notes on the Sugarplum pas de deux and Waltz of the Flowers. It is interesting how quickly little details can disappear and be replaced with new ones. Some I don't mind so much, others I change back to the original.

December 11 2012

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg. Originally, this piece was done in black unitards with trim in various shades of blue and green. This time around I wanted a more colorful presentation (I guess I wasn't in a blue mood).

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg

Daily Stuff: When I got home last night, I started feeling a bit queasy. So I took it very easy. All night long was a constant effort to stay relaxed, as to not vomit. The problem being that when I woke up, i was still a bit weak. Luckily, today was a day for Robin to teach. So I called in sick for the first part of the day and went in later.  set up an e-mail blast for tomorrow. The Nutcracker shows are selling pretty well. Then went to teach at Florence Elementary. Afterwards, attended a small fundraiser a board member set up at two lovely local shops. But I had to leave early, as my stomach was acting up. Feel okay now. should be 100 percent by tomorrow.

December 10 2012

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg

Taking a little break from posting Nutcracker photos. Here are some photos from the recent Fall Rep. This is from a remount of one of the first pieces I did for the company. Generally, an image like this wouldn't be used for any sort of publicity, as its a rehearsal... in flat shoes... in front of a backdrop for another ballet... and the dancers aren't all in unison. But I kind of like it because it has a nice energy.

Rehearsal for Fanfare and Variations  Photographer: Manny Rotenberg

A little more print worthy, but it still has some issues.

Today, worked on an ad and the schedule for the upcoming week. We had a lecture demonstration reschedule for later in the week (which is good).

Tonight, I am off to an artist's reception. Visual artist Julie Warren is having a retrospective of recently retired Senator Christine Kehoe's term in office. Julie and Christine are "good eggs" so I am going to support. Julie did the art for The Toughest Girl Alive as well. And in that vein, Sue Palmer will be playing at the reception. So it will be nice to catch up with her.