2022 JCS Tour.

We arrived home from Disneyland in mid November

in the middle of the night on a Sunday morning. And

after a few hours of sleep and long showers, we all

headed in to the Big City to see the 2022 Tour of

"Jesus Christ Superstar" that afternoon. Verdict? It

was incredible! I've only seen the original movie

but have never seen the stage play. The music, the

lighting, the actors, the costumes, oh the set! It truly

was brilliant. It was a lovely day out too. Just a bit

of snow so driving in was fine. A great show to see!

~ Chy

Christmas Carol.

This year, our large theatre was not able to

provide "Christmas Carol" due to Covid.

This hit show every year is a staple in the

community. But they created a plan.

Shot over several days, this typically

live performance was taped and

then tickets were sold for the online

broadcast. We were gifted a ticket

for our family. Tonight we finally

had some time to sit and watch it.

And it was amazing! Perfect on so many

levels and a great twist on the story too.

We both acted in this theatre and it's

where we met, so this made it even more

special. A time we cherish and now a

way to make new memories. Loved it all!

~ Chy

Theatre Love.

We both appeared in school productions and

I was fortunate to tour with a children's

choir when we were young. Then fate drew

us together and we met as young actors in a

big production in the big city. We grew up,

married, bought a house, had children but

kept the love of theatre in our hearts and in

our lives. Our kids have all had various art

themed pursuits and now our grandson is a

tiny thespian! So proud and love this print!

~ Chy

Evan Hansen.

We have season tickets to one of the

big theatres in the Big City each year.

For this year, we've see "Waitress" and

"Rent." Both were incredibly well done.

The theatre staff always creates a drink

special for each show. The creation for

the show we saw last week was blue,

with chocolate hearts on the side. The

performance we saw was on Valentine's

Day, hence the amazing chocolate hearts.

The show "Dear Evan Hansen" was in

the moment, the best show we've ever

truly seen. Brilliant. Inspiring. Heartfelt.

I want to see it again it was THAT good.

We're now singing along to the songs

at home and when we're driving along.

If you have a chance to see this show,

do. I highly recommend it for all to see.

~ Chy

Amazing Show.

Last night, we went to the theatre to

see a touring production of the show

"Waitress" ~ part of the "Broadway

Across Canada" 2019 season tickets.

The very tall tree in the lobby of the

theatre. I couldn't get it all in the shot.

The featured drink at the bar ~ the 

Winter Star. Looked delicious but I

had something else. Dh and dd both

indulged and declared it "amazing"!

Dd treating her dad, and loving every

minute of it being an adult.So grown up.

A stranger took our pic for us in front

of the Christmas display. Lovely.

The curtain before the show. Made me

crave pie! It was an amazing show. If

you haven't seen it, we all recommend

it. Funny, great music and acting. Perfect!

~ Chy

RENT on Stage.

We've spent a great deal of time working in

our local theatre community. Such a fun life!

But it's so nice to have productions come

to town that we can kick back and enjoy.

RENT has been on my list for a while and dh

surprised us with season tickets this year and

RENT was one of the productions on the year

long line up. Great seats and great shows!

We arrived nice and early and were able to look

at the merch, read the program and have a drink.

No curtain, which was fun as we watched the

amazing band settle in and get ready for the show. 

"Curtain Call" with no curtain! Such a great cast

and their voices were brilliant. Very impressed.

Now I want to watch the movie again and decide

which I like better. In the end, it will likely be both!

~ Chy

Ticket Table.

The wind picked up the other night and

this was the result of the ticket table ....

Toddler Pj's.

Our dd holding the "toddler body" that

our one designer created for our show.

He needed a set of toddler clothes, so I

dug up dd's favorite pj's that she literally

lived in for a couple of years. I actually

had a matching pair but wore mine out

long before she outgrew hers. One day

I'd like to make a memory quilt for each

of my kids and this pj onesie will be a

big part of hers. A lovely memory.

Show End.

Our show ended yesterday afternoon. It was another great performance and we're all feeling really good about the rehearsals, the fundraising, the long hours, the physical work and the run. Our best show ever at the Fringe. After we ended, we all walked over to a local pub for a final drink together and the conversation (after the speeches and gifts were delivered) quickly turned to next year's production. Lots of options and great excitement surrounded us. Such a great team.

In time, some of the cast had to leave, so a smaller group of us retreated to our favorite pub but unfortunately, it was after 4 p.m. and our little guy wasn't able to be in the pub. So we went next door to another pub we've never been to. We now have a new favorite spot to spend time in. Pictures and commentary to follow. For now, I've posted a pic of the cooler and white chocolate I love to indulge in after a very big event. My "go to" treats for a job truly well done!

We got home later in the evening, full of good food, good cheer and great memories. It wasn't long before we found ourselves closing our eyes while watching a show on tv so up to bed we went. And woke up over 12 hours later this morning. We were tired! This morning we've lounged a bit in bed, watching a few episodes of "Escape to the Country" and munching on raspberry toast. We plan to do a bit of gardening today if the weather holds out (its cloudy and rain is predicted) and then a trek in the City to stock our booth at the Antique Mall ~ we've been selling quite a bit this month and we need to fill in the empty spaces. Then home for dinner and a bit more snuggling down to rest as this will be a very busy and active week. Lots to do before Fall hits our region. 

What are your plans on this quiet Sunday?

Do you have a busy week coming up?

Theatre Life.

The two of us met when we were cast in a production at our local professional theatre in the Big City. We were both 18, fresh out of breakups from our former partners and thrilled to be part of a energetic cast and crew. The production was well received but just a few weeks before the end, the promoter ran off with the proceeds and the show closed early. It was a blow to all of us who had worked so hard and the beginning of a time in my life when I unfortunately realized that not everyone in life can be trusted. A life lesson I carry.

Out of all that turmoil, we ended up in a relationship that a few years later resulted in our marriage, our house, our careers and then our children. Through it all, we would continue to be involved in the theatre world as much as we could. Our children have grown up with conversations at the table that are probably not typical ("who has an audition coming up?") and each of them has been involved in the arts in a variety of ways. I'm proud of their collective and individual creativity and am happy we have been able to maintain connections within our own arts community. Definitely not a boring life!

In August each year, we are either performing or delivering a production at the second largest Fringe Festival in the World. This year, our team wrote an original work and it's been well received at Fringe. Today is our last performance. I always get sad for the last day. We work so hard and its well worth the energy. But the curtain closes, we take our bows, strike the set, go out for a last meal together and then we're drive back home to resume the "normal" life we must live in between the performances, the cheers and the camaraderie. It's a great community to be part of and I'm grateful we've been able to carve out experiences with our family and our theatre life.

Stage View.

Just before the show the other night, 

I captured this sweet shot of one of

our actor/dancers as she sat for a tiny

moment before we opened the theatre ....

Brekky Dinner.

We had a late night after our first show

and when we got home, we both realized

we had missed dinner and were just a

tad bit hungry. The cupboards and

fridge are full but we didn't feel like

cooking, so we had a bit of breakfast

for our dinner. Yummy and very fast

to make. Not the usual but it worked!

Spooky Fundraiser.

 

We recently hosted a fundraising event for

our theatre production set for next August.

It was a great night, with yummy treats (see

above), music, a authentic screening of the

Twilight Zone and a dance part way though. 

We made money, but more importantly, we

raised awareness of our production and since

then, more donations and offers have come in.

Worth the planning, the meetings, the big

discussions and all the sweat equity that night.

Date Night.

My dh was recently in a theatre

production and on the final night,

after the curtain closed, we all

went out for dinner. Technically,

it was supposed to be our "date

night" but we were happy to share

it with our theatre friends. Great

company, laughs and amazing food.

My typical ginger ale, as I knew I'd be

the designated driver. Love they know

me well enough to give me both a lime

and a lemon to add to my drink.

An amazing strawberry salad (this is the house

salad) and a sandwich they made me for me

because I can't eat many things on the menu.

This was a roasted chicken with brie, bacon,

spinach and cranberry on a ciabatta bun. It is

 scrumptious and I'm thankful for the chef. 

Groovy Saturday!

Hi everyone!

Our weekends have always been a mix of busy activities, followed by relaxation and letting go. Now that we are in the process of getting this house ready to sell while our new home is being built, weekends have become a bit more hectic trying to fit in the extra tasks that need to be completed before we list. Compounding this time frame is the fact that I usually work on Saturdays. But we have created a pretty good schedule and so far, as my graphic says, our Saturdays have become "groovy"!

This Saturday, I went to my office just a few minutes from home to provide counselling services for some clients then spent a bit of time rearranging our art cupboard and my office. Two summer daycamps are just around the corner and I really need to have my work spaces organized and clutter free before the kids arrive. Once those items were crossed off my list, I headed home to paint the second coat in the living room, staircase, hallway and front door. As much as I was not crazy about the neutral color at first, I'm loving it now. Such a "groovy" color! A quick dinner and shower then we were off to be part of a fundraiser in the city that was planned to help raise money for my dh's Fringe theatre show in August. Goodies, drinks, a silent auction, panel discussion from the cast, a photobooth and a comedian, who is a friend of ours. It went well, we had fun, made money and everyone was happy at the end of  the night. 

So that was our "groovy" Saturday. A busy day, productive work and fun to end the evening!

How was your "groovy" Saturday?