When you think about Seuss!

My last semester of college, I was in the BYU Young Company production of Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse. The Young Company is a Theatre for Young Audiences production group that has an initial run on the BYU campus and then tours to local elementary schools for the rest of the semester. I loved being part of it and it was a great capstone to my time in college.

My friend Summer was also part of this group. I think we'd had a few other classes together over our time at BYU, as she was a Theatre Education major and I'd started as one (though ultimately dropped the Education half). After Lilly's, I graduated, Summer left on her mission for the church, and we lost touch.

Until, fascinatingly, I found out we were moving to Japan. She had moved here several years ago with her husband, a teacher at the high school on base, and her kids. A mutual friend who knew that helped us reconnect once Blake and I announced our move! Immediately, she suggested that I'd be able to help with the Drama Club she and her husband (who is also the bishop of our ward/congregation) run at the high school.

So, this spring, about one year after we reconnected, I helped the high school mount a production of Seussical, Jr.! Summer directed, her husband (Ben) produced, and I choreographed - something they could do, but don't feel super confident in doing.

We all had a great time working together and I am already looking forward to our next production this fall!

I am I, Don Quixote, the lord of La Mancha!

Knowing Blake was going to be gone for 10 weeks, I was semi-retired, and I really missed doing theatre, I figured that doing a fall show at a nearby community theater would help me pass the time and be a great deal of fun. So, mid-summer, I started looking around at what was coming up. I started with the organizations closest to me and discovered that The Arlington Players would be doing Man of La Mancha at exactly the right time. I scrolled through their audition notice and then looked at the production staff, which seemed to have a number of vacancies, including choreographer. I knew it wouldn't hurt to volunteer my services, because if they didn't need me, I could still audition. I really do love both performing and choreographing, so I'd be happy either way.

They quickly responded to my email and I soon met with the producer and director and we all hit it off immediately! This project was a go! Sure, I'd miss being on stage in the actual performances, but to be part of the creative process would be such a joy. Plus, I wouldn't have to risk auditioning and not actually getting cast. 

It really was the perfect way to spend time while Blake was away. I could use my day time to plan choreography, get ready for Japan, and do all the other things I needed to do, and then spend my evenings in the rehearsal hall. We started rehearsals a week before Blake left and the last performance was a week before we moved, exactly the time frame I needed.

The Impossible Dream

It's not a dance heavy show, but I still made it to most of the rehearsals and the director and I worked really well together on several moments throughout. I'd tweak blocking and movement and she'd add layers of character to my choreography. It was a beautiful process and I'm so glad to have been a part of it! 

Golden Helmet of Mambrino

Ultimately, it breaks both of our hearts that we met such a short time before I had to leave. I really hope we can find a way to work together again. We also hung out several times outside of rehearsals, whether joining me in binge watching The West Wing or eating dollar tacos.

Choreographer and Director on opening night!

Blake couldn't attend opening weekend, but he did send me flowers to congratulate me. He was able to get permission to visit over Columbus Day weekend, so we got to attend closing night together. The oldest two Heiss girls came with me to opening night instead, which was pretty cool. 

I have a very sweet husband, who knows how to celebrate someone on stage, having grown up with a violinist for a sister.

I felt a like a mermaid, and many of my cast agreed!

The second weekend of the show, one of our actors had a work commitment for one performance. We cast her anyway, and I acted as her understudy, so I got to perform after all! In our staging, everyone was on stage pretty much the whole show, so even though I had the fewest lines of anyone to memorize, it was a bit of work to remember her entire blocking track. It worked out though, even if I lost a prop that went rolling under our set right before I needed it, and I had a few friends in the audience to cheer me on.

The innkeeper's less kindly sister

I'm not entirely sure what opportunities I'll have in Japan to exercise my musical and theatrical crafts, but La Mancha was a fantastic way to end my theatrical time in DC.

Flamenco for I, Don Quixote! also become part of the pre-show.

Hold me closer, tiny dancer

I started taking dance classes when I was 6. We had just moved to Texas and Mom started me in ballet classes at Bonnie Cokinos School of Dance. This place still exists and I wouldn't be surprised to discover if Miss Bonnie is in her 80s now. 

I absolutely loved it. I walked around on tiptoe outside of class (though I still remember a classmate at school, who also danced at the studio, calling me out on it once) and probably danced all over the apartment. I know I struggled with turnout and my flat feet were not ideal, but I did my best every week. My first recital was to Mistress Mary, Quite Contrary - we wore little green and white tutus and had feather dusters.

Two years later, I started in the Royal Academy of Dance curriculum, which was taught in the other room of the dance studio, in addition to my regular studio ballet classes. It was only RAD class members who could be involved in the annual February production of Cinderella. Each class/level had a specific part, and I moved up for the next few years from firefly to flower girl. It was a wonderful production and I loved being part of it every year!

By around age 10 and 11, most of my classmates got start en pointe. Sadly, my terrible flat feet and bad ankles prohibited me from joining them and so I stayed at the pre-pointe class level until the end of 5th grade. I danced in Cinderella and a summer recital one more time and then decided to end my ballet career just before my sister, who was four years younger than me, was due to end up in the same level I was in.

Luckily, when I started 6th grade, my middle school offered a jazz dance class/club after school once a week. I jumped right into that and, of course, loved it. It wasn't offered in 7th grade, alas, and 8th grade is when I took a year off to have my reconstructive foot surgeries.

Just before 9th grade, we moved back to Utah. This time, I joined the after school ballroom dance class/club. I'd done some swing dancing at youth conference over the summer, so this was a great discovery! I also quite enjoyed that my not-my-boyfriend did the class with me. Unfortunately, it was our failure at the spring swing dance competition at BYU that was a contributing factor in our not-a-relationship's demise.

I didn't dance in 10th grade, but in 11th grade I discovered modern/lyrical/contemporary as offered as an elective. I'd enrolled in Dance 1, but I knew immediately that was going to bore me, so I transferred to Dance 2/3. We dabbled in a few styles, but it was the contemporary dance I remembered loving the most. When some classes I tried to take senior year didn't work out, I enrolled in Dance 2/3 again. Each semester we had a dance concert in conjunction with all the school's dance and drill teams and ballroom classes. At school dances, I practiced my ballroom skills, which was easy since so many of my friends also did ballroom.

College was where I really started exploring - I took as many dance classes as I could - folk, jazz, tap, clogging, and, especially, modern. I never did any of the dance teams, but I spent many happy hours in a dance studio. Since I graduated in three years and worked my way through school, I was really busy with all the academic stuff, so dance was my fun thing.

After college, I joined a dance company in Salt Lake City - mainly modern/contemporary, but they convinced me to at least try the hip hop company as well. I wasn't too terrible.

Throughout all of this, I was also heavily involved in community and school theatre. Having studied so many dance styles has really come in handy, since a stage musical could draw from just about anything depending on the music. It's also helped as a choreographer for musicals, which I first did (outside of class choreography assignments) in college and have done again as recently as a year ago. And I have so many pairs of dance shoes now!

Since moving to DC, I've taken a variety of dance classes including modern, hip hop, and even Bollywood. I've gone out swing dancing and blues dancing regularly. Right now, I'm taking tap for the first time in more than 10 years, at the convincing of a friend I've known since freshman year of college. By golly, I am rusty, but I'm having fun and mostly keeping up!

I plan to keep dancing as long as my body will let me!

Previous discussions of my dancing career can be found here.

Just Dance! Gonna be okay

Dance break!

There are all kinds of benefits of dancing. Flexibility, strength, endurance, not to mention a healthy sense of well-being. It's my personal favorite form of exercise, but it hardly feels like exercise at all. When you're concerned with technique, it can be hard and feel like work, but the good kind.

But just letting go and dancing with abandon? Awesome.

I love random kitchen dance parties. Or office dance parties. Or car dance parties. It just feels good!To encourage you to just get up off of that thing, shake it, and feel better, here are some of my favorite dance songs. If I'm missing one of yours, just let me know!

And if that's not enough dance music for you, here are a few other playlists: Here and here.

You say goodbye, I say hello

Oh hi there!

It's been awhile.

Sad, I know.

Sorry about that.

I've just been busying adventuring and working and not blogging about any of it. I'm also job hunting, so after spending my few evenings at home editing cover letters and resumes all about myself, I feel like I've done enough "Look at me! Look at me!" for the day.

Fortunately, I have been taking pictures of some of my goings on.

I finally saw the cherry blossoms.


I even had company!
We also saw the terra cotta warriors at the National Geographic museum.


I spent Easter and Conference Weekend with one of the coolest families I know.


These kids are just precious.



I learned how to do my hair and make-up pin-up/rockabilly style.


Then showed it off at the DC Lindy Exchange with Miss Apple.



I've played really great moves on Words With Friends.


I dyed part of my hair black cherry.


And I love my life!

Eight days a week

What a week. Seven tiring days of nothing going as expected. Nothing really bad or life changing, just a long, tiring week.

Sunday, the editor of short film I directed and I met together to finalize our film before submitting it to our bishopric for the stake film festival. There were some weird technical glitches and the fixing of them took almost twice as long as we expected. But fix them we did, and our test screening went swimmingly.

Monday, I was just tired. I finally got back to my dance class after missing for two weeks for various reasons. I also starting my working day at 7 AM, 2.5 hours earlier than usual, and 1.5 hours earlier than I usually even get out of bed. Deadlines at 9:30 AM on a Monday morning are not my favorite.

Tuesday, I was even more tired than Monday, as my long day had caught up to me. I also felt rather oogy in general, for whatever reason.

I was feeling mostly better by Wednesday, but it didn't last. My current dance class is through Northern Virginia Community College, and their dance department was having a little showcase. My class (Advanced Modern) was last, and as I was doing the across the floor combination (a rather fun one I had just learned on Monday) I suddenly found myself flat on my back in the middle of the stage. I don't remember tripping or falling, just landing. As I tweeted, collective audience gasps are rather surreal when they're for you. I ran off the stage and the showcase continued, but I did end up going to bed with a headache.

Thursday was going really well. I didn't feel oogy at all, just a little sore and bruised. Until, of course, my cataloger came into my office and we exchanged our usual pleasantries:

Cataloger: How are you?

Me: Good, thanks. And you?

Cataloger: I'm good. You don't look so good.

Me: Oh . . .

I decided that it must have just been my tiring week manifesting itself in my demeanor, because I really did feel well enough.

We've already discussed Friday.

Today, I slept until 11 AM, did some cleaning (including those dishes and clothes), and then took a little nap. This evening was the aforementioned film festival, which I was looking forward to. During the opening announcements, however, a list of guidelines and themes each film was suppose to adhere to was read, so the audience knew what to look for. This was the first anyone in our ward, even our bishopric, ever heard of these guidelines, and, of course, our film didn't really fit. It was still entertaining, but I was embarrassed and annoyed, as were the other members of our crew, that we hadn't followed the "rules", even if it wasn't our fault.

We did, however, win the "Best On Location Shooting" for "following" the "This is the Place" theme, since we filmed at 7-11 and Eastern Market, and the MC did try to mention that we hadn't seen the guidelines beforehand. They were all Girl's Camp style awards - the ones made to fit the recipients. I can live with that, and I'm still pleased with the film under all the circumstances of its creation.

Pleased enough that I'll share it with you!



In a few days, I'll be returning home, and I'm looking forward to recharging my batteries, especially after a week like this!

The sweetest thing

My weekend in pictures

The baby birds (robins, I think) cuddled and snoozing on my front lawn. Their mom was off getting food (she was there when I'd arrived home).



The worst injury I have sustained thus far climbing out of bed. The picture doesn't really do it justice. It's a lovely greenish-yellow today.



Twilight candy? Really?



Oh yes. Really.



The makeup for my dance concert.



And in full.



I also got to practice my parenting skills, or least Best Aunt Ever skills. The "nephew" and his parents came over on Friday to help me hang up some of my bigger art pieces and I was able to show him the baby birds and teach him how to fist bump. In turn, he showed me where I need to child-proof my home. On Saturday evening, I babysat so his parents could go on a date and I was able to practice my baby shampoo mohawk skills. (No pictures here because I forgot to take them, and I wouldn't post pictures of someone else's baby in the bath anyway.)

It was so fun to watch him learn and associate things. He doesn't like bubbles on his face (no bubble beards for us), so if he had some, I'd wipe them off with the washcloth. Then, at one point, when my arm was covered in bubbles and hanging over the edge of the tub, he used the washcloth to wipe them off.

And the best part? Besides the baby hugs and kisses and overall adorableness?

He's learning to say my name.

Gets me every time.

And we're dancing

Have you ever seen pictures of people kissing the ground when they return somewhere they haven't been in a long time?


That's kind of how I felt tonight as I walked into my new dance studio. I know I tried getting back into dance last year, but it was at an inconvenient location and time. I think these classes are going to stick. The studio is 7 minutes from my house, and the time is pretty decent. It better stick because I paid for the entire session tonight.

So what am I taking?

Intermediate Hip-hop and Beginning Bollywood.

It was great! The hip-hop was at exactly the right pace and skill level, and a really good workout. Bollywood was a little slow for me, even with no real previous experience (except the master class Smash and I took for fun last year), but hopefully that will get better.

I realized a couple of things though. One, my posture needs work. I was watching myself in the mirror and realized some of the moves looked a lot better when I rolled my shoulders back. I'll have to watch that. Which leads me to the other thing, I saw a lot more jiggling going on in the mirror that I'm used to. That's what not dancing 2-3 hours a day + not schlepping all over campus will do to a person. I'm working on that too. Just wish that process went faster.

Really though, I'm just THRILLED to be dancing again, even if it is just once a week. It felt really good to be moving like that again.

I could make those people dance

Everything for my show is choreographed. All the moves are set, the kids just have to get the timing down and clean it up. I'm really proud of them, even if three of them disappeared in the middle of rehearsal to go on a food run, after I'd told them they didn't have time. I was glad I'd packed my angry eyes, but today was the first time I'd had to use them with this group. They were also really chatty today for some reason.

Still, I'm excited. This really does have the potential to be phenomenal, and the kids have three and a half weeks to make it so.

I'm also excited because I'm going to see The Aquabats tonight. I was introduced to them in 9th grade, and saw them for the first time in concert my freshman year of college.

I'm really looking forward to hearing/seeing them live again and to buy a new t-shirt. I trusted a boy to buy me one at the concert I couldn't attend in 10th grade. He was a little smaller than me (and a BOY), so telling the merch guy to give a shirt that would fit a girl about his size was less than successful.

I ended up with a youth medium. I could get away with wearing it in high school, though only barely, and it most certainly doesn't fit any more.

Tell your mom, tell your dad, we were Su. Per. RAD!

I started singing

I am brilliant, and this is my blog, so I can brag about if I like.

The choreography for my latest show is going even better than I planned. At yesterday's rehearsal, I realized I'd choreographed more than I had music for. I asked the dancers to cut from point A to point B. We ran through that bit again and not only was my cut exactly the right length, but the movement worked perfectly with the music. I couldn't have done better if I'd tried. Everything I've done so far looks really good, and it helps that the kids I'm working with are amazing.

Today, I was having some problems with my PHP code. Actually, I've been having these problems all week. I pretty much just stared it down last night, with no luck. I came back today and had the brilliant idea to look up a classmate's code and see what I was missing or doing wrong. I found it almost immediately and my code works! Almost. Still having some other problems, but I'm much closer to figuring it out.

Go me!

I saw you dancin' in the gym

Browsing the interwebs this evening, I came across an interesting "Would You Rather?"

Would you rather dance or sing in front of people on demand?

My immediate reaction was "Either! I love both and do both in front of people on a regular basis! What a silly question."

Then I thought about it some more and came to the conclusion that if someone came up to me and required that I either dance or sing right then and there, that I would rather sing.

Both, to me, are often expressions of emotion and what I choose to sing or how I choose to dance in any given moment is often related to how I am currently feeling. To do either requires me to open up to my audience, whether it be of one person or thousands, and I am often not comfortable just suddenly bursting into song or dance for fear of being judged, critiqued, or even ridiculed. I am confident in my ability to do both, but humble enough to realize that it's not going to be perfect every time, especially without warming up or practicing.

When singing, however, I am singing someone else's words and either applying them to me personally or a character I am trying to create. It's not entirely my own and, thus, there is still a wall between my audience and my raw emotion. I can create the emotional connection, but I didn't create the words that I am singing, and am therefore somewhat removed from the final product.

Dancing isn't quite that way. When dancing on command, I'm creating it as I go. I can often still recall dances and pieces I've done in the past, but if I were do dance on command, I would create something entirely my own, and it would likely reflect exactly how I'm feeling in that moment. The tempo, the movement, the space, and even the style I choose, would all be coming from my heart, whether I want them to or not. To suddenly do more than just a step or two for someone would require me to completely open up and let go of any inhibitions that may be holding me back. Also, while I've been dancing my entire life, I am not as confident in my dancing as I am in my singing.

Overall, I feel very vulnerable doing either, but I would be more comfortable singing on demand than dancing. That said, if my choreography session yesterday is any indication, I am actually a pretty darn good dancer and choreographer and I ought to give myself more credit. And you should come see my next show.

Dance, dance, we're falling apart

OWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW

After a two year absence, some weight gain, and at least two major ankle sprains, I have once again started taking a dance class. I did take one ballet class a few months ago, but it is right after that last sprain, and right before my life got really busy (as if I'm ever not), so that didn't last long.

Today, I started an Intermediate Modern class at a studio in Maryland. I've trained in a lot of different styles, but modern is my favorite. I feel it brings me the most connection between body and soul and allows me to express that connection in ways that other dances cannot. Despite what some think, it isn't all about pretending to be a tree or being the water. In fact, that rarely, if ever, happens. It's about how the position of your pelvis creates the room for your feet to move off the floor. It's the connection from the top of your spine to the bottom of your toes. It's breathing and feeling the movement, just as much as thinking about it.

I used to be really good at it, or at least a lot more confident. I've been doing modern for more than eight years now, dancing all the way through high school and college. Unfortunately, dancing as a working adult is lot harder than fitting .5 credits into a semester's schedule. I was on a company for the first year post-college, and there were some really hard technique classes, but I was still fresh on my technique and did fairly well.

Then I moved here. I still dance a little, but teaching dance is not the same as actually dancing. You might do the sequence once, but then you spend the rest of the time critiquing others and showing bits and pieces. So, this morning, I was really out of shape. I didn't have the same retention for sequences I used to, and since we weren't all new, the instructor didn't take time to break everything down for me. Of course, I don't blame her for that, and I know that most of the other students have been working with her for much longer than two hours and have done many of these sequences before.

I messed up a lot. My right ankle (the one I have injured the most) hurt so bad about 90 minutes into the class. I was even bleeding in two spots on my leg; I think I scraped them on my toenail or something. I felt judged by the others in the room that were doing much better. I almost cried out of frustration, hating myself for not doing this sooner.

I also kept up pretty well. Even though I was hardly perfect, I didn't look like a total hack (except maybe in that last sequence). I realized that the other dancers were likely not judging me, because they were worried too much about what they needed to fix. I was also reminded that they've all been the new kid before, so they understand. I certainly know that I'll empathize better when I'm no longer the newbie. I also received a couple of compliments from the instructor, once after she fixed my positioning on a movement and another when I did something well all on my own, and that felt really good.

It felt really good just to be dancing again, full out and with as much heart as I could muster, or spare when I wasn't cursing my lack of talent. I'm not going to give up, because I know it's going to be that much easier next week.

I did buy a new ankle wrap (one that's more flexible than the brace I wear running) and some tennis balls (great home massagers) on the way home. I have a feeling tomorrow I'm going to rediscover some other aches and pains when I try to get out of bed and can't move. Ibuprofen, here I come!

Moment of Genius

Though I'm a librarian now, I have a BA in Theatre. I still do theatre whenever I can, whether that be performing, or a newer love - choreographing.

I'm a choreographing a show this summer, and when I'm creating a dance I usually have at least one moment in my rehearsal that I call my "Moment of Genius". It's that moment where I know exactly what I want, how I want it to look, and how it's going to fit. I was so excited the other night to have my Moment of Genius, and I was explaining it to my cast. (This was our first rehearsal together.)

My eyes lit up, I got totally excited and said "Yes! Moment of Genius! This is going to be awesome!" Then, one of my cast members said something that distracted us for a second.

I should mention at this point that I'm a Mormon, and the group I'm working with is predominantly Catholic. We're even rehearsing in a Catholic church, and I was standing not 20 feet from a crucifix.

Hence the following embarassment. I had to get us all back on track, and was so excited, which means I was talking fast.

"K! Guys. Focus. Back to my Moment of Gesius!"

Awesome. Go me.