#this year literally all the musicals at the theater are ones that i've been absolutely obsessed with at some point and i'm sad bc i can't s

[where-are-the-spooky-gays-2]

"Where are the spooky gays" this and "where are the spooky gays" that

WHERE ARE THEY ALL AT???? WHERE DID THEY GO?? WILL THEY EVER RETURN???

APPARENTLY ITS BEEN 4 YEARS SINCE THE WEDDING EPISODE??? AKA THE LAST SIGNIFICANT PLOT POINT??

I miss them

I feel like im in my Steven Universe era where the show was in a everlasting hiatus. Where are they, Mr sanders??? What have you done with them/lighthearted

-🐀

They're all trapped in the secret Beach episode /joking No but controversial take that will absolutely get an angry mob at me but I don't give a shit at this point and this is not directed to you at all 🐀 Anon I've just been in this fandom for 7 years and I'm tired of biting my tongue /genuine But y'all need to understand that if we didn't have the Asides/Short vids, The Incorrect Quotes, The Photoshoots, Bloops, etc. then we would have not seen the Sides at all in the span of 4 years (That's 1,475 days) and even through said 4 years there was a pandemic, a hurricane that quite literally flooded the shit out of Thomas' old office, and a stress related condition that quite literally made this man not even wanna look at himself (If you think this is 'babying' him actually touch a dictionary) I know this might come as a surprise especially with the old memes I used to make on this blog and with how most countdown blogs are now but I'm probably the only one in this fandom who honestly doesn't care for the wait due to watching literally everything he makes. He's juggling different projects, he's preforming in more theater stuff, he's making a lot of music for a 4 part season finale along with a possible prologue, he's trying to get back into the swing of things and getting over his intimidation of doing main series characterization of the Sides and all we can do is wait and continue making more beautiful content for the fandom to enjoy and gush about the characters and ships we love. I'd rather watch something that was written with time and patience than rushed and hear more bitching from the fandom for something they wanted.

#also if crits wanna start shit with me they're getting blocked i don't have the energy to argue with y'all #remus sanders #virgil sanders #janus sanders #roman sanders #patton sanders #logan sanders #ts remus #ts virgil #ts janus #ts roman #ts patton #ts logan #sanders sides #thomas sanders #asks #answers #🐀 anon #not a countdown

[mari-writes]

My thoughts on Haikyuu!! The Dumpster Battle

⚠️ Warning: Spoilers for the film (and portions of the manga) ahead!

Two days ago, I went to see Haikyuu: The Dumpster Battle. I've been a fan of this series since 2015, and I started the manga within a month of the anime. So going to this film was a huge deal for me. (The only other time I've experienced a HQ screening was at the 2018 Crunchyroll convention!) It was awesome being at the theater with fellow fans wearing jerseys of our favorite teams, all excited to see our boys on the big screen. 🥰❤️

I absolutely LOVED how the film began, showing us Kenma and Hinata's first meeting but in a different way than in season 1, with the cat and crow staring each other down, and Kuroo overhearing their conversation from nearby. It really set the mood, especially with the incredible score (honestly the soundtrack is one of my favorite aspects of the movie).

However, I was upset that they left out the backstory of Nekomata and Ukai Sr. These flashbacks are so important to give the rivalry context and depth. The fact that these two characters met in middle school, and then had this battle decades later as elders, was so impactful. Not showing the history of their relationship affected the film's emotional impact. In my opinion, THIS was the biggest flaw in the script.

While we're on the negatives: I do think the film relied a lot on prior knowledge of the story. Which is to be expected, it's basically the 5th season of a show, but I don't think even casual fans would be able to keep up with how many characters and plot points quickly came and went. I recall being perplexed at certain things they chose to keep in, some of which were fun, but not necessary and just muddled the viewing experience.

Also: the subtitles. I've always had a beef with how Crunchyroll does subs. Not the translators themselves (I LOVE YOU GUYS YOU'RE AMAZING) but how they place the text. It was hard to distinguish between the primary and secondary dialogue. They were often stacked onto each other, with the barest hint of italics to differentiate. Honestly, while some background dialogue was great, I would've rather gone without to avoid confusion.

There were some other weakness, like the pacing and important character moments they cut. Obviously, as a MASSIVE fan, I would want everything to be adapted fully and perfectly. But that was never going to happen with a 1.5 hour film. 🤷‍♀️ The screenwriters did a really impressive job considering what they were tasked with accomplishing. Major kudos to them!

Now, on to the things I loved about the movie:

The animation. Gods, the animation was fantastic, such a breath of fresh air after season 4. I could tell how much care the artists put into this project. Some scenes literally had me speechless, sitting there frozen with my mouth hanging open. The final rally was animated ENTIRELY in Kenma's POV. The music faded out; you could here his heavy breathing and the team calling to each other. It made you feel like you were on the court. I've never seen anything like it before.

I mentioned the score earlier, but special shout out to the musicians, composers, and everyone involved in the soundtrack. 👏 I literally had goosebumps multiple times. And having a track by SPYAIR playing during the end credits gave me so much fuzzy nostalgia!

The voice acting was amazing. Kenma's actor, Yuki Kaji, absolutely hit it out of the park. He's always been one of my faves from the cast, but he went above and beyond in this film. But everyone did, really. It was so important for me to see the Japanese version FIRST to hear this wonderful cast who I've been following for the past 9 years.

Kuroo Testsuro. Good lord, did I come out of the theater having fallen completely in love with Kuroo. 😍❤️ His character is just SO GOOD, full of passion and love for his friends and the sport itself. I think the movie really highlighted this. (And it made me so emotional, knowing where he ended up in the future!)

BOKUTO AND AKAASHI. Thank you, movie team for letting them have their cute little moments. Especially the one with Yachi. I love these two so much. I'm very scared that their biggest arc, aka the Mujinazaka match, won't be animated. But I'm so grateful we got them in this film.

The after credits scene. REMEMBER TO STAY AFTER THE FIRST CREDITS YOU GUYS! They included the hilarious exchange between Kuroo and Daishou after the match, which was a really fun way to end things. 😆 Mika's little "You ready?" to her silly snake boyfriend was perfect. It made me giggle.

Okay, those are my initial thoughts! If I see the film again I might update this. For now, let me just say I really enjoyed it overall and it was such a special experience seeing these beloved characters on the silver screen. I still mourn the loss of a 5th season, and I'm nervous about what will be cut from the final movie... but that's future Mari's problem... 😅

Thanks for reading! 💕

#haikyuu!! #haikyuu the dumpster battle #haikyuu movie #movie review #kenma kozume #kuroo tetsurou #nekoma vs karasuno #nekoma #karasuno #mari rambles

[shutupandplayasong]

Mandela Catalogue HCs

heheh hyperfixation go brrrrr

Please don't yell at me if these suck im sensitive 🥺 /hj

Mark:

Would have been the best big brother to Sarah I stg

Not afraid to wear a tiara and feather boa and have a tea party with her

This towering young man sat on a dinky little plastic chair sipping imaginary tea, pinky out and all

Aaagghhhhhhh i love him

Definitely one of those "super talented, high iq, gifted kids" before the burnout hit him

Every Christmas, Easter, and birthday he'd ask his parents for a dog. He never got one :(

Not exactly a Disney adult, just a big fan of animated movies in general.

I think his favorites would be The Iron Giant, Monsters Inc, and Lilo and Stitch

Honorable mentions to The Fox and The Hound and Oliver and Company but they make him cry

Mark Heathcliff best boy 1,000,000/10

Cesar:

Cesar fans, you have my whole heart fr

You really took nothing and ran with it I can't not respect that

I see him as a total mama's boy. As far as I know, there's no mention of his dad anywhere so I imagine it's just him and his mom.

As a little boy he was like "I'm gonna be the man of the house now!" and he stuck to it like glue

Taking the trash out, doing the dishes, mowing the lawn because "Mom, you deserve to get off your feet, you're working too hard"

I think him being a mama's boy and having so much respect for her would translate into huge respect for women in general

I like the idea of him painting his nails ❤

His room is like a walk-in freezer you can literally see his breath when he sleeps

Used to skateboard but eventually "grew out of it" (he actually broke his wrist and is too scared to do it again)

Adam:

This toxic little fuck i love him

The most "dont talk to me until I've had my coffee" person you'll ever meet.

Not having consistent access to coffee must have been miserable for him when he was on the run. Doubly miserable for poor Jonah having to put up with a grouchy Adam for who even knows how long

You remember that tiktok trend from a few years ago like "I look really intimidating until I smile"? ADAM ADAM ADAM ADAM ADAM!!!

He's such an angsty little shit with the most severe case of resting bitch face disease but on the rare occasion he actually smiles??? Human sunshine

Definitely the type to look down when he smiles to try and hide it

Wouldn't be caught DEAD singing out loud, but will absolutely murmur songs to himself under his breath.

Just imagining him folding laundry or cooking and singing whatever song is stuck in his head to himself I LOVE THIS MAN

He likes rock music in general but I feel like he's really into songs like Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. Yknow those really mopey mid 2000s ballads?

Shattered by OAR, Chasing Cars by Snow Patrol, stuff like that

Jonah:

Rip jonah you would've loved tiktok

Was a theater kid but he got kicked out of class. Dude was just too hyper to follow directions

What can he say? He just stole the spotlight 🤪 (he's crying inside)

Walks into every room twirling his car keys around his finger like a dork

Can not be trusted to stand still, it's best to just make him wear one of those backpack leashes for everyone's safety

A gamer but not in a toxic way. He's actually terrible at games but he thinks it's fun to dick around and goof off in them.

You knows those "girlfriend who bites" memes? That's him. He's the girlfriend who bites.

Thatcher:

You've heard of wine moms, you've heard of wine aunts, well get ready for wine dad

I feel like he paints? He strikes me as very artsy

Loves plants but can't keep them alive for shit. It's not even that he forgets to water them, he follows all the instructions, the plants just hate him

Can't sleep without a TV on, or at least some sort of white noise or music playing.

Total garbage at gift giving lmao but he's trying his best

"I got you this card. Happy birthday."

"Thatcher, this says 'My condolences'"

"I know"

#the mandela catalogue #mandela catalogue #the mandela catalogue headcanons #mandela catalogue headcanons #the mandela catalogue hcs #mandela catalogue hcs #cesar torres #mark heathcliff #adam murray #jonah marshall #thatcher davis #a vck original

[tiredgeekgirl]

trolls 3 reviewww

so i've kind of had an off and on obsession with the trolls franchise since i saw the first film in 2016 as an almost 12-year-old who thought it was going to be the worst movie ever, and then after i watched it I was very pleasantly surprised, and it became one of my favorite films at the time

like I said the obsession's been on and off and while my opinion of the first movie has changed and I don't love it nearly as much as I did before, the franchise still holds a special place in my heart and makes me very happy, and I was so excited to see the third movie after I saw the trailers for it in theaters

anyway here are my overall thoughts:

• BRANCH-CENTRIC STORYLINE!!! Branch is my favorite character in this franchise and I loved seeing a plotline focused on him and his backstory. the "singing killed my grandma" line from the first film is still very funny, but honestly this movie actually made me a little emotional with the flashbacks we got, and said flashbacks shed some light on how sad his backstory actually is

• this movie was shockingly funny, of course there was some typical potty humor and a few questionable jokes, but overall a lot of the visual gags and jokes in this film were actually pretty hilarious, especially the scenes with Bruce/Spruce's family

• one of my main reasons for loving this franchise is Branch and Poppy's relationship, and they were SO freaking cute in this film, idc I'm a hopeless romantic and I loved seeing moments of these two as a canon couple

• I literally had a new favorite character every 5 seconds, from Branch's brothers to the new villains to a lot of the little background characters, and ofc it was also super fun to see this movie bring the Bergens back, it's super weird that the second movie kind of just ignored their existence entirely when they were one of the main plot points in the first film (at least that's what I've heard, I've never actually seen trolls world tour and I do not plan on it)

• THE MUSIC!!! I'm low-key kind of obsessed with white girl music from the early 2000s, so seeing the NSYNC reference at the end made me very happy, and I also just loved all the music in general in this film, Better Place (that song's been on repeat for me for about a week now LOL)

there were a few things I didn't love, namely Tiny Diamond's role in the film, I hate him and if you had taken him out of the film entirely the plot would not have changed whatsoever. luckily he wasn't even actually in it that much and some of his lines were actually kind of funny, but even when he was being his typical annoying self he didn't take away from the plot too much, which was nice. still, he's one of the main reasons I don't want to watch the second movie. and of course, like I mentioned earlier, there's some potty humor and suggestive jokes I didn't care for, but honestly the positives way outweigh the negatives with this film.

overall, i absolutely adored this movie! as a long-time fan I think it's the best piece of trolls media we've ever gotten, and even if you hate the franchise (which I completely understand regardless of my love for it), I feel like you would still enjoy this film, even if just for the visuals and character designs. solid 9/10 movie, would definitely recommend. think I'm going to go watch it again honestly LOL

#trolls band together #trolls #dreamworks

[lindszeppelin]

Hello everyone, Happy New Years!! I hope that 2023 is the year for everyone's wishes, dreams, and accomplishments to manifest. These past few years for myself have been quite stressful and it's not something I talk about on social media, so without knowing it you've all helped to make 2022 bearable for me.

I've been on Tumblr for so long that I should receive some kind of senior discount. Out of all the fandom's i've been apart of, the Austin/Elvis community is one of the friendliest groups i've seen. And it was one that I didn't expect to join at all.

July 9th, the day after my birthday, was when I went into the theaters with my parents to watch the Elvis movie. I had no clue who Austin Butler was. I knew who Elvis was, but I wasn't a big fan. I was keen to see what things I could learn about him, and maybe gain a different perspective and newfound appreciation. Well, upon minute one of watching the movie and exiting the theater I was a changed person.

I was quite literally obsessed with Elvis and I learned everything about him. Falling down the rabbit hole is putting it mildly lol. And then, this sweet blonde blue eyed man came along for the ride with me. To say that Austin changed my life is a massive understatement. I don't know what I would do without those two men. They're forever interwoven into my life.

NOW...onto the parts that are extra fun :) because why the fuck not!

Music is something i'm extremely passionate about. It honestly should be an official love language because im a professional mixtape maker lol. Since the summertime i've been compiling a playlist of songs specifically for Austin that fit his vibe, and that I think he'd enjoy (if he isn't aware of the songs already). The playlist itself is already linked in my profile, but I wanted to share my top 10 choices for the man himself! He's the best muse i've had in a long time :)

Incubus: Echo

Gary Clark Jr: I Don't Owe You a Thing

Royal Blood: Figure It Out

The Pretty Reckless: Absolution

S. Carey: Have You Stopped to Notice?

Al Green: Let's Stay Together

Beach House: Myth

Mac Miller: Dang!

Tame Impala: The Less I Know the Better

Guitar Song (Demo): Frou Frou

There's been way too many videos of Austin that I watched in 2022. Like...my YouTube history is filled with nothing but him lol. So, I thought i'd compile a list of my top 10 favorite moments of Austin this year. There's a wide variety for everybody, and for some reason incase you haven't seen some of these, you're welcome ;)

Austin's Actors on Actors with Janelle Monae

Austin on SNL as Grandma Lois (Jewish Elvis skit)

Austin on Jimmy Fallon

Austin for Esquire (on his fashion)

Austin for GQ (10 things he can't live without)

Austin at Graceland for Access

Austin for HBO MAX (how he transformed into Elvis)

Austin's "Firsts"

Austin with Baz (I call this one the "manspreading, sleepy, sexy Austin interview lol)

Austin for Deadline

MISC EXTRA VIDS (really short ones)

Austin being super bashful in Japan

Austin posing for the camera at Cannes

Austin eating Elvis's sandwich in Graceland

Austin at the Governor's Awards

And last but certainly not least, all of these lovely people i've grown to love over the last half of 2022, and I can't thank all of you enough for the friendship and heartwarming laughs you've provided me! If you aren't following them already, please do ♥

@powerofelvis @cryingabtab @ab4eva @infatuatedharleys @areacodefan @star-shard @purejasmine @avengen @elvisabutler @burninlovebutlerr @samfangirls @p-oolshark @pearlparty @plasticfantasticl0ver @troubleinapinksuit @imperialmarchingthroughthegalaxy @karamelcoveredolicity @floralcyanide @foreverdolly @blurredcolour @lovininapinkcadillac @lllsaslll @powerofelvis @aconflagrationofmyown @mymamalife @stargiirl27 @ash-omalley @loving-elvis @presleyonfilm @fantuhsise @she-is-juniper @elvisstyles @butlerstyles @missmaywemeetagain @bisexualwvtson @succsessions @sapphirescripts @carnevol @if-i-can-dream-of-elvis @mamaspresley

Love you all, and see you in 2023!

#austin butler #lindszeppelin's 2022 breakdown #austin babe-ler #followers list #i feel like i missed people and im the worst at remembering

[stellocchia]

Ok. Ok. Just. How do I get into it?

And I don't mean when it starts. Just. Give me the episode that best encompasses the feel of the series. I'll get the context once I'm in.

OKAY SO LET'S FUCKING START!

So, here's the whole official musical of season 1. I genuinely think it gives you so much of the feels of the series and it really shows how much the people involved are just as much theater kids as us. Like, they did this. Unprompted. Just because they wanted to they did a whole ass musical! And some songs in it are really nice, which you know is big praise coming from me.

That said, that's for the first season. The second season is pretty unconnected from it. It's set in the same world as the first one, but the story happens, like, 1000 years later. It's not a direct sequel even if there are some callbacks sometimes.

And OKAY FUCK, what's the best episode to show the vibes?

The amount of effort put in Sausage's backstory was honestly impressive. Like, holy fuck. And it's honestly so cool. Also, his adoptive dad turned me into a furry (<- ze says as if ze wasn't already).

But also, I can't not propose one of Scott's episodes because he's the fucker who got me into Empires, you know? Like, I have a special attachment to his little ocs. All of them.

And I think all the backstories this season really go to show that they went into it already knowing they were gonna roleplay this season. And, like, they put a shitton of thought into it. But his backstory episode also shows that it's a bit less "first oc" kinda character this season, because the collector is just so incredibly nonchalant about everything? It's great!

Last two real quick:

Katherine's first episode was absolutely amazing, it got me hooked on her character from the very first moment. Truly loved it. It gives you her backstory from the very start, which is nice, and it gives you the silly over-the-top vibes of the whole series which are just really fun.

And specifically this episode from Shubble, because she always pops off when it comes to angst. Like, I love Shubble so much. She so far has created 90% of my favorite pathetic women meow meows. Like, genuinely, she absolutely popped off with this episode so much.

My favorite fugitive that will most likely cause the apocalypse at some point <3

I'm gonna be honest, I tried my best to hold back because I have favorite episodes from everyone this season. I've been watching literally all of the povs so far, some a bit more than once. And, like, hhhh it's so hard not to rant about every single pov but MUST RESIST!

#ladycatland ask #empires smp #empires smp musical #empires sausage #empires scott #empires katherine #empires shubble #long post #I just hhhhh #love this series so much #like it's spinning in my head all of the time #like i'm actually considering writing a fic for it #'cause I just want more #I love it

[djuvlipen]

What your opinion on the hate Rachel zegler is getting like I seen it's from woman twice her age and from grown men and at this point it's getting supper misogynistic cuz now men and sadly some woman are talking trash about her looks and saying she can't play snow white cus she "not white enough" like what

I have many thoughts.

I don't really talk about this here but I'm a big musical theater fan and I've been following Rachel Zegler for a few years now, since 2020 I think? She is a really talented actress and singer, she is a much better actress than some older, more famous celebrities. I like that they went for a young woman who actually has a background in musical theater. I am so tired of musical movies casting actors who can't sing and actors who aren't age appropriate (Rachel is 22, Snow White is a teenager, that's better than having some 30yo play the role imo). So I think she'll be perfect to play the part.

I really don't understand the harassment she is getting. She is just a 22 year old woman who made the mistake of being a talented actress and singer cast in big productions. She deserves much better than that. I have seen YouTube videos mocking her, making fun of her being upset, for having feelings, etc. And I think it's kind of a consequence of Amber Heard's harassment campaign that made it trendy to make edits to villify women for having emotions, to dehumanise them on absolutely every social media platform (cyber bullying women was a thing before the AH trial but it reached unmatched proportions during the trial and now you can see it's just become a genre of internet memes)

I personally don't care about Disney remakes, I think they should stop doing those, and I'm not gonna watch Snow White because you just know Disney wants our nostalgia money (there is literally no need for a Snow White remake, the 1937 movie is literally one of the best Disney films). When it comes to casting actresses of color to play white characters I am personally team 'they should give attention and adapt stories that already have characters of color instead of race swiping a story that's already been told', like there actually are stories that feature women of color that should be told but instead we are lazily taking a story that's been told countless of times but changing the main character's race.

And part of me thinks Disney is doing this on purpose so that they can get free advertisement from all the noise this harassment campaign is causing, and if the movie flops, they can blame it on their young actress of color instead of blaming it on their lazy writing

#Asks #Arnaaluklove

[12timetraveler]

Okay I've had this floating around in my head forever but I don't think I've ever officially shared this. But I have some headcanons for Hosea and Javier in a modern AU.

✨Broadway✨

~ Modern Hosea is a Broadway fanatic.

~ so is Javier.

~ together they keep up on all the hot musical gossip

~ They host a Tony Awards party every year together

~ get unreasonably upset when their favorites don't win

~ and act like someone just scored the winning touchdown when their favorites do win.

~ Hosea has always loved the theater

~ he spent some time trying to make it on Broadway before his mischievous ways forced him to quit.

~ but he still talks about his Broadway days like he was a goddamn star.

~ and honestly he may have been. No one can prove that he wasn't, and some of the stuff he has in his attic suggests that maybe he was.

~ Javier came into the mucal theater world a little unwittingly

~ in middle school he was cornered by the head of the drama department

~ the school was putting on a production of West Side Story and needed more Latino actors to fill in the Sharks.

~ when the director discovered Javier could sing, she latched onto him and never let him leave the drama department

~ at first he was very reluctant but he started to really enjoy himself.

~ by high school he was scoring lead roles left and right

~ he made a kick-ass Phantom his senior year.

~ Javier and Hosea have season tickets to all the best local theaters.

~ especially the big fancy one where Broadway tour shows perform.

~ they get incredible seats and usually go to see each show at least twice.

~ Hosea prefers the classics

~ Fiddler On The Roof, Carousel, Hello Dolly, Music Man, etc.

~ he's very picky about what modern musicals he enjoys.

~ he never quite understood the Hamilton hype.

~ He loves Hadestown

~ And he has to admit Six is absolutely delightful.

~ Hosea will also go on and on about how incredible The Scarlet Pimpernel musical is and "what do you mean you've never heard of it?!"

~ it's his hipster moment. He's cooler than you. He loves The Scarlet Pimpernel

~ Javier will always have a soft spot for West Side Story.

~ and he loves Les Miserables (a musical about a revolution?! Sign him up)

~ Hairspray also comes in pretty high on his list, as does Newsies.

~ he loves Hamilton but is not so fond of Lin Manuel Miranda.

~ he'd kill to take over as Hamilton (literally)

~ They both go wild for Wicked and Heathers.

~ Singing In the Rain may be their combined favorite

~ they really go back and forth on Into the Woods. Sometimes they think it's pretentious, sometimes it's brilliant. Kinda depends on their moods.

~ neither of them expected to enjoy Sussical the Musical or Shrek the Musical nearly as much as they did.

~ Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat is their guilty pleasure. Literally once a year they will get together and watch the Donny Osmond version and just dance and sing their hearts out

~ (Arthur lives next door to Hosea and makes sure to be out of town that day so he doesn't have to listen to it for the billionth time)

~ These two bonded so hard over their love of musical theater.

#rdr2 hcs #musical theater #javier escuella #hosea mathews

[snowinthe-south]

Okay, I'm really annoyed because I've tried posting this like 5 times but Tumblr keeps eating it. But I'm gonna try one last time because I'm still excited and am telling anyone that will listen I GOT TO SEE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA ON WEDNESDAY.

It has literally been a lifelong dream of mine to see it live on Broadway someday... I've loved Phantom since I was a child, my mom played the soundtrack for me a lot and one of my earliest (non-traumatic) memories of literally me asking her to play me "the mirror song". It's shutting down on Broadway in April and there is no sign of a tour in the next for years... I cried on the day of the announcement because I thought it meant I'd never get to see it. But my boyfriend knew how much it meant to me, and he got tickets for my mom and I to go see it together as a Christmas gift.

We only went to New York for one night, it's about an hour and a half flight away from my state. And we stayed in this super nice hotel. I chose the hotel based off of convenience (a 5 minute walk to the theater) and affordable cost. But by a huge coincidence, the lobby had masks all over the cieling with lyrics from Music of The Night!!! I was absolutely giddy upon noticing this.

And the hotel had like, 45 floors... we were on the 39th floor. The receptionist joked with mom and I, saying "I hope you ladies aren't afraid of heights, because you're on the 39th floor." Mom and I who are both petrified of heights: "hehe... about that..." But listen ya'll, as much as I hate being up high I was LOVING our window and the view. The lights were beautiful!!!

During the beginning of the show when the chandelier starts to rise and the overture begins to play, I absolutely lost it. I mean it, I went from "wow!" to hysterical crying in 2 seconds, complete with mascara running down my face (on one of the few occasions I bothered to apply the stuff) and the scrunched up crying face. I scared my momma and the woman sitting next to me. 🤣

I cannot put what I felt into words, honestly. It really was a childhood dream come true and I'm so grateful for the experience. The show was wonderful and I cried (a little less dramatically) for the entirety of the first half. I must've looked like a crazy person!

[maybeimamuppet]

rahhh hi again! I loved reading your response to my movie review, you made a lot of good points! first of all im so sorry your poor 7-year-old self had to suffer through the 1996 movie :(( I dont have adhd but I can imagine how you must have not liked it AND MISS HONEYS DRESS HAD HOT AIR BALLOONS?? I did not notice that, how cute!! I'm in love love her cottagecore/pastel style, it fits her personlity so well i think. and ooh the red beret girl is called hortensia? cool, thanks! I read her name in your fics and I wasnt quite sure who she was so thank you 😭 and it was interesting to hear your view on the songs!! And I'm gonna be honest here, I've listened to Naughty, Revolting Children, and This Is My House at least once a day since I watched the movie 😭 THEY'RE SO FUN :D i also love This Is My House so much, it's such a sweet and deep songgggg uhggshdhsd 😭i think one of the reasons I wasn't a fan of how many songs there are is beacuse I've watched maybe 2 musicals in my life so far, and I'm more of a slow-burn dialog girl. But thats awesome you love them!! and I'd like to take back what I said about Matilda being timid in the 1996 movie. The way you described her as being bristly, clever and conniving was perfect. I think I said that because I'm just not used to her being so loud and bold with her clever whit and sense of justice 😭 (also ignore how many of the crying emojis im using lolll its a habit) so it stood out to me more than it would if I had watched the musical before 1996. i absolutely agree with what you said about miss honey. She's the soft and sweet people-pleaser type. She'll sacrfice herself to help others I think, and hates conflict. However like you said, I think that she has bravery inside her. And if it came down to protecting Matilda or something like that, she could absolutly stand up for herself. I think that her escapologist father and acrobat mother are lying right beneath her skin, just waiting to be let out. (not them literally ofc, but their daring, bold, and powerful spirit that has been passed down to jenny)

thanks for sharing your thoughts!! -🐸

hello again!!

it is absolutely fine i was just a coward lol. i’ve. obviously watched it since and it has a special place in my heart i’m over all the second grade nonsense lmao

EVERYONES CLOTHES IN 2022 ARE WILD. the set and the costumes have so much detail it’s bonkers and i still notice new things every time i watch it and go !!!!!!

that’s absolutely valid musicals absolutely have a kind of learning curve to them lol. matilda was the first one that i got really into on my own accord after being raised on annie and being friends with theater kids who talked about others. but matilda was the first one where i was like 👀👀👀👀👀 hello. and that kickstarted my whole musicals thing and now i am here

i find it so interesting that you look at it a different way now!! i thought all your points in the first ask were incredibly valid but i’m glad (not the word i’m looking for but whatever) that i kinda got to shift your perspective a little! also we love the crying emoji never apologize

you are absolutely right abt everything here and i’m hopeful you learn to love musicals (or at least not be thrown off by the number of songs lmao)

thank you for sharing yours!! it was really fun getting to see a different opinion/pov so thank you for sharing :)

#frog anon

[maxe-murderer]

Saw your tags on the post about kids not being computer literate and you saying that kids just don't know how to do something new and I'm a high school music teacher and that is so unbelievably true.

I'll have 30+ kids in a room and each will wait until I'm standing next to them to do anything. They get bored easily and don't know how to just play around, they need their hand held constantly. It makes it so so difficult to teach when I'm constantly running around and each kid wants me to only pay attention to them!

I've tried to show them how to compose and give them instructions and they're still so lost all the time. They all just seem kind of dead inside, not really caring what happens around them.

I don't mean to insult these kids, more just say that I totally understand what you're saying. Everyone is seeing it now. Most kids were never taught to care it seems, they just passively move through their own lives. And then they tell me that they're bored and I'm pointing to all the options they have of things to explore and learn and they just never want to try any of it. It's so so frustrating.

its absolutely insane how much kids seemingly just cant care. ill stand by the statement that last years high school seniors were the last class where the vast majority made it out of covid online school mostly ok. high school seniors rn missed freshman year and the rest missed a year of middle school which we're seeing very obviously affecting everything abt them rn. a lot of kids straight up don't know what a passing period is, social skills have been super stunted cause they were spending middle school isolated and on tiktok, and yeah, no one knows how to care.

cause theyve not rlly been given a reason to, you know? they were thrown into what easily felt like to end of the world when they were too young to do anything abt it and too young to properly understand it. all while they don't get the routine of going to school, they cant do the extracurriculars they like, they're not allowed to hang out with their friends. Some of the most important years for a lot of development were spent being told nothing but all the horrible things going on in the world. "if everything is this awful and there's nothing (I'm able) to do about it why does any of this matter" sorta thing.

and they dont have the skills needed to deal with that. then they also don't have a lot of the skills needed to be a functional student so they're struggling there too - not necessarily with their grades, but I think you know what I mean. freshman year is when you learn to be a high schooler in both the academic/going between classes sense and in the social sense and middle school is when you learn to be like, a person. without that you get a bunch of high schoolers acting like middle or even elementary schoolers with a high schooler's knowledge of everything that's awful and they still don't have the ability to do anything abt it.

they dont see a reason to care and they don't know how to just try things cause they didn't have the space to just try things for a while. online they were given their assignments and that was it. extracurriculars that continued online didn't help either - like, online theater was so focused on "can we get this done" that there wasn't a whole lot of space for the actors to try and properly act beyond say the words and putting a little bit of something into it - and a lot of those extracurriculars that did continue online couldn't always include all of the kids who would be a part of them normally - again, theater, you couldn't have any kids doing tech beyond maybe an AD and/or SM. like shit dude, if I was in their position id feel fucked!

and its definitely easier to notice with younger kids. they have a worse version of the stunted social skills. the only way I can describe it is that these kids are spoiled. not necessarily spoiled in the traditional sense but for a while their world consisted of online school, most likely being put in front of an iPad cause their parents had to work or take care of the house or were just too tired themselves (and some were just bad parents, and oh boy can you tell when a kid is an iPad iPad kid), and then being the only or one of the only things for their parents to pay attention to. If they have siblings its still only a few ppl to split attention between and if the sibling(s) is older then they could have still gotten the majority of the attention, and if they're an only child then they were seemingly the center of the world for a while to them.

so a lot of them dont know how to share attention and they don't know how to not be told exactly what to do. they don't know how to have fun if they're not told how to (unless its like, roblox, not even Minecraft a lot of them don't know how to play Minecraft!) working summer camp, I had so much trouble getting kids to be engaged in stuff that they liked. the kids who signed up for theater classes cause they like theater barely wanted to do theater. the only classes I didn't struggle to get them engaged with was the art classes that everyone wanted to sign up for, photography (it was mostly older kids and more importantly I think, using ipads), and oddly enough the asl class (I think because that one was so specific compared to the other classes that it rlly was only kids who were interested, and I think kids find sign language cool in general. like "wow I can talk with my hands!" or "oh cool we heard abt this in that one book we read!" sorta thing).

im sure you know this, and idk how coherent this ramble is. ive just been thinking abt this for a while cause of just how insane it is to me. cause from what I've seen these kids arent rlly learning all those skills they missed out on. they're just gone.

#max rambles

[loverboybrightsideghost]

reading and listening to les miserables is not enough i need to eat it

#CHOMPS DOWN REALLY HARD ON THE BOOK #jk that would be impossible bc the book is far bigger than jaw is physically capable of unhinging #i couldn't if i tried #I NEED TO WATCH ITTTTT IN THEATERRRR NOOOWWWWWWWWWWWW WAHHHHHHHH #this year literally all the musicals at the theater are ones that i've been absolutely obsessed with at some point and i'm sad bc i can't s #see any of them :( #i did get to go to a musical as a field trip in school and it was fuckingn amazing so that was cool at least #bluebird.txt #les mis #COME BAAAAAACKKKK I WANNA SEE ITTTTTT #i think there's still one musical left i MIGHT be able to see so fingers crossed 🤞🏼🤞🏼🤞🏼

[what-has-two-legs-but-cant-walk]

rating my teachers based on ableist shit they've done

there's actually like a lot so here's the cut

ASL teacher: Literally just ignored my 504 the whole year. Thought it would be fun to teach me due to the fact that I wear noise cancelling headphones for a disorder that LITERALLY MAKES NOISE PAINFUL 4/10

Gym teacher: He teaches gym so I mean half of this isn't his fault but I still had to to the (WEEKLY???) pacer test even though I'm an asthmatic cripple. Oh and he didn't follow my 504. 6/10

History teacher: Fucking love her will absolutely give her money when I'm older and have spare money she's a fucking queen I love her fuck yeah she's literally so amazing, and she also cares about kids' mental health to the point that she would let you sit out of class if you were overstimulated or something. LOVE HER 10000/10

Science teacher: A shitbag who basically said that my 504 doesn't matter because he didn't see how that would affect my education and that "there's always other science teachers if you're going to act this way" when I called him out for violating my 504, but he's gotten nicer over the year so that's good I guess 2/10

Band teacher: Literally made me do shit that I was physically incapable of, but she's really nice to me and our relationship has gotten better. She also goes out of her way to help disabled kids (the ones she likes when she's in a good mood) 5/10

English teacher: Very good at following my 504. He's a very neutral energy, I don't have much to say here. 10/10

Maths teacher: First thing she ever said to me was a """joke""" about how she wasn't going to follow my 504, she treats me like I'm lesser than my peers due to my 504, and she gets mad at me when I request to speak with my case manager. Also, not ableism, but made me feel very unwelcome as a Jew in her classroom. 0/10

The other maths teacher: Idk?? Violated my 504 once, and now doesn't ever talk to me. 2/10

Theater teacher: I love him to bits but if he does, or references, any more plays with slurs in them I'm gonna tell his wife. (No but really I've heard him say the r, i, and c slur like, maybe 50 times this year. I'm so fed up). Amazing with my 504 though. 9/10

Marching band/choir teacher: He's so fucking nice and I love him but he's always been a bit of a dick to the kids with PTSD, so, not the biggest fan. (actually that last bit is a lie he's my favourite, i'm just mad about how he treats mentally disabled people) 7/10

Marching band teacher: Love him but we started off really rough with him trying to teach the cripple out of me, so, like, that wasn't great. He's wonderful otherwise. 8/10

Percussion instructor: Amazing, didn't get mad at me when I had to quit perc due to hyperacusis, is (accidentally) transphobic though. 6/10

Choir teacher: I love her, but she has a very very bad poster in her room that's basically "Deaf people can't do music" so I don't ever feel entirely comfortable around her. 7/10

Dance instructor: Amazing, helps me work around ITW so I can still participate, and is helping me get set up in physical therapy. 10/10

Musical theater director: Terrifying but nice, makes wayy to many abuse jokes though. 4/10

All of these people are employed and paid by my school

#i've rated them on what they've done that affects ALL disabled students not just me #504 #section 504 #teachers #ablesim #ratings #itw #text #mine #hyperacusis

[julies-butterflies]

Honestly, your writing reminds me a lot of the buffyverse. Just the perfect balance of humor and sadness and romance and heart that just feels like a vivid window into the world you've created.

God the Body...the best forty minutes of television I may never watch again. I've rewatched Willow and Tara's kiss (because I'll adore them forever), but just...the weight of it. It took me a full month to work up the nerve to watch the episode, to be ready to cry that much.

What you said about not wanting people to suffer, because of your work...It's never once felt like that for me. And I've cried a LOT while reading your work. I'll try to explain it the best I can

Grief can be so isolating, and disorienting. Your world goes topsey-turvey, supports you took for granted go flying into the abyss and suddenly it's a minefield of those glass shards. And no one's grief is identical. No two circumstances are the same. It's not possible for anyone else to know exactly how you feel, because no two hearts break alike.

Sometimes, it's because people just don't understand. Sometime's it's because they no longer want to. But some days, that feeling of aloneness can be crushing.

Then one night, I stumbled upon Let These Shadows Fall Away Like Dust. That one hit me way harder than I was ever expecting. The question of how to grieve the living, the dilemma on when forgiveness is deserved...Alex's anger, his devestation, the rawness of it all....That's my broken glass. Those are concepts I've been struggling for over a year. I'm still picking up pieces every day.

I sobbed, because it was such a relief. To see the feelings that had been scrambled up in my mind just reflected there, on my screen. The reminder I had desperately needed, that I was not alone. That even though my circumstances were different, I was not the only one trying to unravel those messy emotions.

Then again, I also read your deathfic for fun, so maybe I'm not the best judge of this. I tend to like angst. I tend to get a lot of "WHY WOULD YOU MAKE IT THAT SAD" in group chats :D

Please don't feel any pressure to respond to me quickly or anything. I never mind the wait. I'm so sorry for the rough times. Wishing that you and your family gets whatever you need to help ease your storm. Sending love and support as well.

(sorry for all the metaphors. I'm super sleepy and apparently, I resort to purple prose when tired lol)

I know exactly what you mean about Emily. I understand why people don't like her, but I just love to see her written as such a grey character. It's just so much more powerful when the love is so clearly there.

I mean, that's what a tragedy is, really. Love cut short. Grieving a future that could have been everything, if fate had not been cruel. I don't know if you know musical theater, but I like to think about the Barber and His Wife, from Sweeney Todd: the whole tragedy of that show, is that they were happy all together, and then permanently broken. How their paths keep crossing, but they never connect to heal. Never lost, but never found.

And that's the tragedy of Luke and Emily: too stubborn and too late. You find that grey area, the messiness so well, and just bring it all out so wonderfully. You do the same with Bobby/Trevor, ESPECIALLY in the horror and the wild. God, that absolutely devestated me. I'm not a big fan of horror in general, and I haven't explored the genre that much but...if all horror is like yours then DAMN, I might just have to become a fan.

This got super long (lol) so I'll wrap it up now but! THE SIC FIC QUEENS TOGETHER???? When I tell you I lost it.... all too well Bobby and what you've lost reggie in the same story are killing me. I am hooked and incredibly hyped. Loved both updates so far, and cannot wait to see where the story goes!

Oh yeah and I forget: I have to ask, do you have a fan cast of the one, the only, the incredible Keith Richards? (and that goblin is so cute!!! I really want to pet the blood thirsty monster. So badly)

Love, your totally-not-undead-pen-pal, :D

-Vampire Anon

Know musicals? Vampire Anon my beloved, I am a musical theatre bitch. Take a look at my high school graduation cap! (Anastasia is my favorite musical... something about the themes of home, love, and family, the idea of always finding a place in the world even after enduring incredible hardship, that anything is survivable with faith and love in your heart... I'm also a Romanov history bitch, and Christy Altomare is such an incredible talent and human being.) Literally, talk to me about musicals anytime!

And yeah, I definitely see your metaphor... the tragedy of The Barber and his Wife was how close they came to each other throughout the whole show, existing within reach the entire time, after being separated for so long. But it wasn't the same; it never could be. Time and trauma had changed them both into something unrecognizeable, and when they came face-to-face, they could only hurt each other. At a certain point, the ghosts of your past are meant to stay ghosts. Sure, you might want them back more than anything --- but what would it mean? What would you truly be getting back?

Luke's "back", of course, and he comes home to visit his parents multiple times... but they're not the same people he left. They're older, greyer, changed by grief... while he's just the same. A snapshot forever frozen in time, a memory crystalized in amber. You can't hold memories in your hands. You can't pull them close and refuse to let them go. Eventually, they'll slip away... and to Mitch and Emily, a memory is all their son is, now. That's what's so heartrending about the situation we see in the show, especially --- so much love still exists between all of them, but it has no place to go.

Okay, sorry, it's 3am here and I'm rambling too, haha --- mentioning musical theatre was a mistake.

I'm so glad my stories have been able to connect with you, especially 'shadows' --- that one resonated with a lot of people, more than I ever realized it would. It's not the most personal story to me... but definitely one that needed to be told, and the emotion in it... hits home for a lot of people. It means so much to me knowing that story, and Alex's internal struggle, has made people feel less alone.

I think I'm going to have a hard time looking back on that one, though. We were staying at my aunt's house for the weekend where I wrote most of it; I read a few excerpts to her, and she said she liked it. She was always interested in my writing... I kind of wish I'd gotten the chance to share more of it with her.

Like you said. Grief's a funny thing. Disorienting, relentless, and crushing.

Please just remember, though --- whatever you're dealing with, you're not alone. You don't have to cut yourself on those broken pieces... one day, you'll wake up, and realize you feel whole again. It will never feel the same, and the pain will always be there... but healing around it is what makes us stronger. You don't owe anyone your forgiveness; it's okay to grieve when you've lost something, regardless of whether death has taken them from you. Grief doesn't have to be earned, it simply has to be felt.

You'll be stronger for it, in the end. I'm sorry you've been hurting so much.

Anyways! Oh gosh! On to lighter, happier topics! Please tell me...

What are your favorite fics? (Like, my fics, obviously, which fics of mine do you just go gaga over? Please praise me or else my ego will shrivel like a worm on hot pavement.) No, okay, I'm kidding --- what are your top fics for this fandom? Like, what are the ones that really resonate with you, that you could read over and over? The JATP fandom has so many greats, but I'm always drawn back to Some Killer Queen You Are by pearlcaddy (buffyverse meets jatp!! iconic!!), Lantern's Light by thefairhero (literally the SOFTEST reggie), the sky's not empty tonight by firefall (just... devastating and beautiful in a dozen ways), and literally anything by foundfamilyvevo.

How long have you been in the JATP fandom? Who are your favorite characters? What's your favorite JATP song?

And finally, most importantly... what are your favorite musicals?

(also... since u asked... behold keith richards and tremble)

#vampire anon my beloved #also... vampire anon... you're a writer #i can tell!! i can read it in your words #youre so eloquent and put things so beautifully #do you write fic?? have you posted any for jatp??

[sonjaohno]

Democracy in America

Hello dear friends and family,

October is off to a crisp start and I've been busy squirreling away at the library. It's already been one month since I arrived, which makes it high time for some reflection. I've been working hard to come up with clever answers to the question of "what my impressions are" mainly because (and a list of so-called impressions follows):

I thought Finns were insecure, with their country branding workshops and whatnot, perennially worried about what other people (read: the Swedes) think of us, but I can tell you, Americans are worse. In all the years I've lived in Berlin, not once has a German person (nor a Berliner—these are two completely distinct groups of people) asked me to tell them what I "think" about their country, or what my "impressions" are. Maybe they know better than to ask. Maybe they really don't care. Americans, on the other hand (including New Yorkers, though a similar non-equivalence exists here), cannot get enough of foreigners' interpretations of their country. I think it's because they genuinely don't know what to think about their country themselves and are waiting for somebody to tell them what the hell is going on here. So, what are my impressions so far?

America is home to some really great things. So far, my top three list is i) cinnamon-flavored chewing gum ii) hazelnut-flavored filter coffee (a mystery but a delightful one) iii) pecan-pumpkin-spice-flavored filter coffee (again, I don't know who came up with this or what they do to make coffee taste like a Hallmark card but I fuckin love it) iv) ditto, snickerdoodles (both the word and the pastry). Oops, that's four.

There is, however, clearly something wrong with a country that has to keep toothpaste under lock and key at the drugstore. I mean, toothpaste is expensive here—$5.99 for a tube, are you kidding me?—but it's still not exactly a luxury item. I literally have to ring a bell at Duane Reed to get an employee to open the toothpaste safe for a tube of Colgate. I wondered about this out loud to a New Yorker, who told me it's because the Duane Reed I went to is located at a "minor transportation hub," in the corner of W 110th and Broadway, which presumably means that this ludicrously wealthy Upper West Side drugstore frequented mostly by Columbia students and faculty is some kind of a crime hotspot. I should probably start carrying a gun.

Americans are loud. I feel like shushing people all the time, which makes me feel like a bad person. If anyone asked me to, I'd be more than happy to provide instructions for adjusting the volume of one's speech to different situations. It'd go something like follows: i) When outdoors, use what you would consider an "indoors voice." ii) When indoors, use what you would consider a "library voice." iii) When in the library, shut the fuck up. Pretty simple, huh?

The American economy would collapse if people stopped living on takeaway meals and coffees. I have never seen people so comfortable dishing out $20-50 per day for food they don't like and coffee they don't need. I mean, I'm not even able to get out of bed without several cups of coffee in the morning but I'd find it really hard to justify a $10 daily budget for iced-mocha-swirly lattes and another $10 for dumplings, when you can just pack a sandwich. The number of students able to afford this kind of lifestyle is just astounding. (This is Columbia, I am aware that the people without trust funds constitute a minority.) I feel positively frugal with my leftover lunches and thermos bottle of coffee (this week it's Donut Shop Roast, which disappointingly does not taste like donuts).

Americans like to think of themselves as libertarians and are famously opposed to state-imposed regulation—but I've never felt as regulated and rule-bound as I have here. It's just that the rules aren't handed down by government officials but by the various enterprises, including private businesses and universities (the latter is included in the former but deserves a honorary mention of its own), who would rather impose elaborate codes of conduct than leave people to their common senses and be sued when something inevitably happens. As one particularly pointless example, I have to complete an online covid-symptom checklist every morning before I'm allowed to enter campus—a "Daily Attestation," it's called—where I solemnly swear that I did not have a cough or a sore throat that morning, either. The only conceivable purpose of this useless exercise is to ensure that if somebody does show up on campus sneezing and wheezing their viral particles around, Columbia can't sued for not having done everything in its power to prevent the virus from spreading. Airing out rooms, though, is strictly out of the question—presumably because it's against some other rule designed to stop students from committing suicide by jumping out a third-floor window. As a person who is physiologically unable to follow pointless rules, I find this kind of self-serving, counter-logical box ticking absolutely infuriating.

It's not all bad, though. Yesterday I went to a Japanese jazz speakeasy around Midtown. We had to stand in line for about an hour, between a group of 17-year-old musical theater majors and 27-year-old jazz enthusiasts. The former were bursting out in spontaneous, perfectly synchronized song every few minutes, the latter were debating scales or keys or some such—I'm telling you, it was like walking into a badly-written scene of Glee. It was worth it though. At one point, during a several-minute-long drum solo, I experienced what can only be described as a moment of pure transcendence. People were all around me were yelling over the music and gesticulating wildly and, for a few seconds, time compressed to something graspable; a thing crackling with energy. An oceanic feeling is, in the words of turn-of-the-century mystic Romain Rolland, “a spontaneous … feeling of the ‘eternal’ (which can very well not be eternal, but simply without perceptible limits, and like oceanic, as it were).” If eternity can be found in a midtown basement, Manhattan can’t be all bad. (Below a video clip I took discreetly when entering.)

P.s. A friend of mine said that I should write an Alexis de Tocqueville -type report about my time in America, which explains the title of this post. For the literary agents and non-fiction editors reading this blog (jk, apparently it's my mum and three of her friends who read these entries—hi!!!), you can email me at sonjaohno at gmail dot com for a book deal.

#manhattan #midtown #sonja travels #nyc #america #alexis de tocqueville #oceanic feeling #romain rolland

[shiisiln]

I'd love to hear any stories you might have from your time in Don Giovanni, if you've got any to share. I love watching the opera, but I've never heard what it's like to perform it.

Oh heck yeah! 

I was in the chorus for productions with the Cedar Rapids Opera Company 4 years in a row. They would bring in professional opera performers for the lead roles, and then audition for the chorus and bit parts from the community and the local college theater programs. My voice teacher got me into the auditions and they liked me enough to bring me back to sing alto parts (because there are never enough altos)

Don Giovanni was fun because there wasn’t a lot of chorus material, so we didn’t have a lot to memorize. In the first section, we played the rich socialite groupies who hung around ol’ Gio, in the second part we played the ragged poor, and in the last part we were basically zombies dragging him down into hell.

(At one point they wanted to film some promotional material so we made a video called “How many zombies can fit in a smart car?” where we all piled into one of the chorus member’s tiiiny ass car and sang our part from the finale, in full zombie regalia. Fun times.)

We had costumes and wigs provided, but we had to do our own makeup, which was always fun. My favorite memories of the opera are from just dicking around in the changing room with the other chorus members, joking and helping each other change quickly, and occasionally rocking out to Queen music in full period dress.

(I still know how to tie a bow behind my back because of all the experience I’ve had putting on faux corsets, lol.)

The dude who played Don Giovanni was great, amazing charisma and presence. (Pretty much every single Lead that we had in every production was super nice and friendly. I’m still friends with some of them on facebook, and it’s wild to see national news coverage of people who I got to be on stage with.) There was one scene where I was in a group of beggars that he casually tossed a chicken bone to, which was our cue to get offstage, and one night he accidentally chucked it with into the orchestra pit. Poor guy was very embarrassed about it, and we all had a good laugh at his expense.

I thiiink that was the year we worked on a raked stage, which meant that it’s tilted towards the audience, to give the illusion of more space. That was also the year I first had to wear heels on stage, and I was terrified the entire time that I would tumble into the pit and spear myself on a piccolo. Thankfully that never actually happened.

That was also the year that the opera got protesters! A local church group got all up in arms about it being blasphemous, and while I can understand their angle- (we had a scene where Gio is dicking around in a church and mockingly gets up in front of the cross to pretend he’s Jesus) like... the whole POINT of the story is that he’s a bad person and gets what he deserves, right? He literally gets dragged to hell in the finale.

They handed out cards saying “the wages of sin are death” and I joked with the other chorus members that that LITERALLY could have been the tagline for the whole play. 

The music is all fucking amazing too. I never really appreciated classical music until I got to sing it. It’s not very accessible to a wider audience but I absolutely recommend giving opera a try to all my listeners. Watching it live is the best experience but with covid that’s obviously not feasible, so if you can find filmed productions that would also be good. The music is definitely more enjoyable with the context of the story and characters.

(I recommend Carmen as a starting point. It was my favorite to perform and probably remains my favorite in terms of music and story.)

I’ll end this long-winded rant with a story from my last production, Turandot. The male lead sings Nessun Dorma, which Pavarotti was famous for performing (and is one of my absolute fucking favorite pieces of music). As the chorus, our job during that part is to support the lead’s voice, then fade out when he delivers his solo.

During one practice with just the chorus, we got to that point, and then every single tenor in the audience just went OFF singing the solo. It was hilarious, but also really heartwarming. You could feel how passionate they all were about the music, and about the performance. It’s a really special environment.

Thank you so much for asking! I have a very genuine love for opera and I love getting to reminisce on those performances~

#religion tw #acey don't look #I need to find time to get involved in it again #it's harder now that i work full time. opera #thescarletpaperback #opera