If at first you don't succeed...

What an afternoon! I'm taking the Writing for Mass Media Class this summer. We must ask a not-for-profit organization if they need a student-in-training (in PR training, not training to become a student!) to create public relations projects for them. Yesterday I did massive research on a local theater group. I was so excited about creating a campaign plan that I became overconfident in gaining their approval. They would say yes, right? RIGHT! Wrong. This morning, I had growing concerns. Well, when I called them, the man on the phone was very nice. However, he said that due to financial crisis, next season was up in the air so he didn't want to say yes and give me false hopes. I'd have to contact him in August. Yikes. My class *ends* in August. I was crushed. He said he would normally have taken me, but he turned me down. Hmmm... sorry I couldn't help him with the financial crisis thing since he said no to the PR projects. What next? I logged onto Janice's computer... searching the 'net once again for local theaters. The big ones (i.e. Paramount, 5th Ave., Seattle Rep) don't NEED my services. They have communication departments and PR professionals already. I searched and searched. I almost called the Bremerton Community Theatre, but they are a little too far away for me. They *are* seeking a promotions/publicity/advertising volunteer, however. Then, I don't know how, but I found the web site of Seattle Public Theater in Greenlake. (Is that one, word, btw? It's right on Green Lake, for sure) I called them up, wanting to speak to the community coordinator who talks to potential volunteers. She wasn't there, so I spoke to the artistic director, and when I told her what I wanted to do, she immediately and enthusiastically said yes. They asked me how much time and energy I could commit to this. I'm not quite sure yet, given the fact that I will start working again on July 12. I wonder how much time students in the past dedicated to their NPOs, so I've asked my professor. Well, it's thrilling to know that I'm wanted. I'm willing to commit to this theater community. They've got a cool youth program going on this summer. I was also informed that a music festival is in the works.

I seriously thought I would have to drop this class if I didn't find an organization. I'm so glad I can work with something I believe in and am interested in. Maybe this'll get my foot in the door, or maybe I'll get to see what I really can do for and in the theater. :) I have a meeting with the artistic director (and possibly other staff members) on Tuesday. Wish me luck everyone!

I'm back! My summer class starts tomorrow, so this is my last day of freedom. Wow! This past weekend in Washington seemed way hotter than California's dry heat. Ah, California! It was great seeing my cousin Jesse graduate from high school. Went to Legoland and took a lot of pictures of the minicities.

Hanging out with Brittany was so much fun. I met her friends/roommates. On Monday, we toured USC's campus and saw Harry Potter 3 at The Bridge. Spent Tuesday at Disney's California Adventure. I finally got to see Aladdin. :) Rode Tower of Terror, too. Let's see... oh yes, on Wednesday, we all went to the Warner Bros. studio and saw a very cool Harry Potter prop exhibit! They had just put up the HP3 stuff the previous Friday. Quidditch costumes. A Knight Bus Bed. Ron's various wands. The candy cart (which will be shipped back to England soon). Neville's grandmother's hideous apparel that the boggart, as Snape, wore. After the stop at the museum, we rode around in a tram and saw the exterior set of Gilmore Girls and ER. We saw where "Friends" was taped. The sets have been torn down, but the "Joey" sets are in place. We went inside the sounstage for "Gilmore Girls." :)

On Thursday, we spent time at Hollywood and Highland. The subway stops right across the street from the Pantages Theater at Hollywood and Vine. Yes, L.A. has a subway system. Who knew? The press could pick up media passes for Miss Saigon, so I wonder if we saw opening night? Perhaps the night before was a preview. Anyway, "opening night" signs hung from the building. Miss Saigon was amazing. Before the show started, an announcer said that Jennifer Paz would play Kim, and many people -- myself included -- cheered. She now ranks among my favorite Kims. :) You know, I don't just have one favorite actor/actress for the principal roles. Jon Jon Briones is a hilarious Engineer. Alan Gillespie has a big, booming voice with a good range too. He can hit the low notes of "Sun and Moon," and I love that probably because I love the song. Jennifer Paz did complete justice to the reprise. I can't wait to see the show again next May. I know that sounds weird, but it's true. As I watched the show, I kept telling myself, "I can't believe I'm actually seeing this LIVE again." So hopefully I can get over that and absorb the show even more. Yes, it's possible to do that. :) I was interested in the different staging and sets and so on and so forth. It was really cool to see a "fresh" interpretation. For instance, during the overture, the spotlight shines on Kim. They toned down the show lyric-wise and expletive-wise, I noticed. Instead of singing, "The girl is smart. She'll understand," they sang "Kim is smart..." Ooh, the "Telephone Song" did not take place on the telephone! Heh. Chris and John stood face to face! "John, listen fast, you never saw me at all." I could go on and on about the show. I'm trying to remember all the details. Jennifer Paz held onto the 317 paper throughout the song and threw it on the ground at the very end. We applauded for the orchestra during the entr'acte. :) I loved being in an appreciative audience. We clapped a lot, even after the Fall of Saigon flashback. I liked that the Wedding Ceremony took place in Dreamland. They decorated the bar area in red. The tiger and dragon fight during "The Morning of the Dragon" is a really good addition to the show. Hope Jennifer Paz will be in the show next May. Her voice is sweet yet powerful.

On Friday, we tried Carls Jr. hamburgers. They're pretty good. That makes three hamburgers in one week. Yikes!

So now I'm home again. Am trying to clean my room but it's just too tempting to go online or watch DVDs.

"I'm fer-ree-hee!"

Freedom! I took my last final this morning! YAY! It's over! I feel like a huge weight has been lifted off me. I'm really going to miss my classes though. I've enjoyed all three COM classes I took this year. :) History of jazz sparked my interest (see previous entries for a reminder) in all kinds of jazz music and artists. And English was fun. I wrote a song! Does it get better than that? Ummm... yeah!!! My English instructor e-mailed me, asking if she could keep the tape or make a copy of it. Does anybody know who Dar Williams is? I was told that I remind her of Dar Williams, so now I'm curious. Will have to check out the web site or something. Anyway, I'd be glad to share the song. That's what art's all about. Creating it and sharing it with others. :) Oh yeah, the song is called "More to Me." It gets emotional for me, and if you read Brown Girl, Brownstones by Paule Marshall, then you'll know where I got the inspiration. Hmmmmm... what else. I sold back my jazz book today. Didn't get back a whole lot. Hmph. Maybe I should have kept the book. Or sold it elsewhere. I'm in a California AND New York state of mind. And scrapbook state of mind. And musical state of mind. Think I'll go watch the Wicked segment of the Tonys again. :) Love that song.

P.S. The quote is from Genie (Robin Williams) in Aladdin

Last Night Only

Wow. I'm still grinning from watching the Tonys last night. I thought the awards show was the best I've seen in years. :) Very entertaining. As if I don't ever want to go to New York... now I *really* want to go! Congratulations to best new musical, Avenue Q! You had me at "It Sucks to Be Me." Dannnnnng! I just checked amazon.com, and the sales rank for the album is #2! Congrats again! The puppets are cute. Actually, you had me when the one blue puppet with the raised eyebrow and glasses hit on Hugh Jackman. That was hilarious. Yikes, I'm totally going out of order, but highlights! There are many:

Audra McDonald! She won her 4th Tony yesterday for best featured actress in a play. Isn't that amazing? She continues to do such great work, and I couldn't be happier that she won. She has earned and deserved it.

Idina Menzel! Woohoo! I don't know all that much about Wicked except for what a couple people told me (and they love the show, so it's all good), but I knew that the combination of Idina Menzel and Kristin Chenoweth is way too powerful to overlook. So glad she won best leading actress in a musical. I've gotta see Wicked someday. I really liked the song they performed. It's such a cool song. (Edit to say that Wicked is #1 on the amazon.com sales rank. Wow!)

So it happened! Hugh Jackman hosted and won for best lead actor in a musical. He, too, deserved it. I was impressed with his voice on the opening number, "One Night Only," and was equally impressed that he could kick as high as the rest of the Rockettes. :) He can sing, dance, act, and host. I'm not as interested in The Boy from Oz, but I'd see it. It was hilarious when he -- as Peter Allen -- pulled an embarrassed but compliant Sarah Jessica Parker up to the stage. She kept holding up her dress at her chest and said, "I'm scared of my top." It *was* CBS, you know. His speech was great. He said he noticed for two years how the music would start playing when people had their most important thing to say, so he started out by saying the most important first and thanked his wife.

Other highlights (yes, there are more!): Michael Cerveris won his first Tony, Tony Bennett's still got it, Kristin Chenoweth sang in her bubble, Fiddler performed "Tradition," Tonya Pinkins from Caroline, or Change sang an emotionally powerful solo, Big River's performed in ASL (I didn't know that), Victor Garber sported the makings of a mustache (is Jack Bristow going to have one? heh heh), Phylicia Rashad won best actress in a play, Carole Bayer Sager appeared (she co-wrote "The Prayer"), Brian Stokes Mitchell & Laura Linney introduced the plays, and Mary J. Blige sang "What I Did For Love."

Best quote of the night comes from the acceptance speech for Avenue Q: "It certainly doesn't suck to be us tonight."

Tony, Tony

My Antoinette! The Tonys are on tomorrow! Yay! I'm excited because I completely forgot about them but have just been reminded thanks to playbill.com. Watch for my commentary. :) Hehehehe.

I hope Blogger works today. I wrote an entry yesterday, but it wouldn't post. Anyway, yesterday was a huge relief for me. Today, I've been taking down pictures off the walls. It's a strange thing to have to do. Pull off the wall. Gently remove the tape. Watch the walls go blank. Moving is a weird thing.

I finally watched Wit on an HBO channel yesterday. I had been wanting to watch it for quite some time... ever since I found out that Audra McDonald was in it. Emma Thompson was perfect in the role of Prof. Vivian Bearing. Oh my gosh. I knew it was about a cancer patient, but I did not expect to cry so hard, especially when Dr. Bearing's own professor visits her in the hospital. It was so sad. *sigh* I'm tearing up just thinking about it. I cannot turn off my observances of language these days, thanks to my COM class. The soporific story line will make you laugh. :) The talk about medical and scholarly terms is interesting (just make sure to turn on closed captioning [or subtitles, if you're watching the DVD]). And, of course, the message about fighting cancer is difficult to ignore. In that case, you don't need language to see how it's affecting Dr. Bearing. This movie's not for the faint of heart/stomach. Again, Emma Thompson was superb. I missed the beginning, so I hope to catch it again. Be sure to watch Wit. I guarantee you'll be moved by it.

I've been listening to jazz all afternoon and evening. The free jazz is a grating on my ears, I'll admit it. Miles Davis is da man, I tell you. He played a tune called "It's About Time" actually. He's influenced soooo many artists that our TA joked: if we don't know the answer, just pick Miles Davis. Pat Metheny's "Third Wind" rocks. Oh yeah, Weather Report has grown on me. I feel like I should tell people at work about Weather Report. Get it? LOL! I know, I know. Lame, Allison. Oh yeah, the Bill Evans Trio is all right with me too. I can't wait to start a jazz collection. Right now, I own a total of zero jazz CDs. Heh heh. First up: Kurt Elling, Man in the Air. I'll buy it when I get back from California.

The End

Can we say relieved? Relieved! It's all over. Classes have ended. Final English Project is now in the box outside my instructor's office. I'm away from work for five weeks.

Now the hurdles left seem so small. My jazz and COM final. And moving out. Of course, I will still be studying for both finals. That's fo' sho'! It's just nice to take a deep breath for a change.

Now, if I could only see Harry Potter 3. I am dying to see it!

Oy vey, this is not my week. It's crunch time. I messed up and am still feeling the sting from my mistake.

I couldn't find the right classroom to attend presentations (I said I would come), and now I can't do anything about it. ARGH!!! Why oh why must I assume the time schedule's location listing was correct? I wasn't obligated to go, but I said I would. How embarrassing is that? And that's not even the mess-up I'm referring to above. *That* is a different story and one I do not care to divulge. Sorry, but it's Allified Information. Oh my gosh, that is lame, but it brought a smile to my face, so I'm gonna keep it there.

I have to pack up and move out soon. Finals are around the corner. I have a paper due on Friday, and it's not coming together.

The very few good things that turned out over the weekend are being overshadowed. They need to be voiced: I wrote and recorded my very first song (music and lyrics by yours truly). I got to spend time with all of my family. I actually saw a few episodes of F&G. Those three glorious days were relaxing.

Besides this week, spring quarter was a very good quarter. It's the school-related but non-class-related things that are making June a bust.

I need a good dose of HP3 at the movies. *sigh*