So I took a big spill on stage. Yep. Jumped up on the Drum Kit Riser and tumbled straight onto the floor. That happened. At the end of The Great Curve, I am supposed to hop up on the riser and continue some crazy arm movements. The carpet on the riser wasn't taped down and up went the carpet and up went Natalie. I basically fell onto my knees and over myself onto the floor, hopped back up, gingerly approached the riser and finished the dance. Oh my god - I've never been so embarrassed. The only thing that could be considered a saving grace was that a similar but less drastic thing happened to Steven as he approached his riser. The carpet slipped and he was able to recover. Oh man. I suppose when you're 80 or so shows into a run, its inevitable, no? Dad, time to finally get health insurance. :)
Anyhow, we finished the show just in time to catch Best Actor and Best Movie. See you folks in NYC soon!
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Blame Canada
We're in Edmonton right now. While the sun is shining and there's nary a cloud in sight, its pretty dismal. The temperature is somewhere in the 20s and there's a mall and several strip malls surrounding our hotel. I've never been more excited to go to the venue.
But I shan't complain. Why? We just returned from some glorious adventures in Australia and New Zealand.
If I could pick one city to return to in Australia it would be Melbourne. We met such warm and inviting people there who were gracious enough to bring us to their watering holes and introduce us to their friends. There's one building just north of the train station that has different bars on each floor. I'm not talking about hamburger and beer places. Think Roebling Tea Room on the first floor, Death and Co on the second floor, Union Pool on the rooftop - you get the idea. Needless to say, we spent two out of our three nights, bar hopping within the same building.
When I look back on these past six weeks, there are a hand full of days that I can safely put in the Utopic Experiences category. One of them was our day off in Auckland, NZ. A hearty group of us took a 30 minute ferry to Waiheke Island where we rented a jeep and a motorcycle (don't worry dad, i didn't even THINK about getting on the motorcycle). We picked up two bottles of champagne, tamarillo jam, apples, figs, kiwiberries, and OJ and headed to Ontenagi Beach. The sand was so fine and the water was quite shallow. The clouds periodically drifted past the sun so it never got too hot. Mauro and his girlfriend Su went for a long beach walk and returned with oysters that they found in some rock crevass. Steven whipped out his knife and Graham popped them open for us. Eat your heart out, Nobu!
At around 4:30pm we packed up and decided to drive all the way around the island, hitting every scenic point possible. The beauty of it was that EVERY MOMENT was a scenic spot! Every turn was of verdant undulation hills giving way to seascapes and valley vineyards. Graham, who cannot go 10 minutes without filming something, said "Oh god, someone else has got to drive. I gotta man the camera." As he was the only one able and willing to drive a left handed stick shift, I took on that responsability. So lush - so undeveloped - so perfect in its natural state; I half expected a T-Rex to come lumbering through the trees.
At one spot marked Picnic Area, we got out to have a look around and within moments, mauro had discovered that the receded water had left a minefield of clams. We can barely call it clam "digging" as our efforts required only some mild scooping. As soon as that discovery was made, the rest of the evening fell into place. Clearly the only thing to do was hop back on our vehicles and head to the nearest grocery store for some linguini. We MUST cook tonight!
As we drove away with a plastic big FULL of fresh clams and said goodbye to our corner of shellfish paradise, I said quietly "I am going to miss this day tomorrow" to which Graham replied "I already miss it." The rest of the evening making a feast of salad, clam linguini, and lamb chops. Quite possibly the best dinner of this leg of the tour. I've got Mauro's recipe for clams if anyone is interested.
But I shan't complain. Why? We just returned from some glorious adventures in Australia and New Zealand.
If I could pick one city to return to in Australia it would be Melbourne. We met such warm and inviting people there who were gracious enough to bring us to their watering holes and introduce us to their friends. There's one building just north of the train station that has different bars on each floor. I'm not talking about hamburger and beer places. Think Roebling Tea Room on the first floor, Death and Co on the second floor, Union Pool on the rooftop - you get the idea. Needless to say, we spent two out of our three nights, bar hopping within the same building.
When I look back on these past six weeks, there are a hand full of days that I can safely put in the Utopic Experiences category. One of them was our day off in Auckland, NZ. A hearty group of us took a 30 minute ferry to Waiheke Island where we rented a jeep and a motorcycle (don't worry dad, i didn't even THINK about getting on the motorcycle). We picked up two bottles of champagne, tamarillo jam, apples, figs, kiwiberries, and OJ and headed to Ontenagi Beach. The sand was so fine and the water was quite shallow. The clouds periodically drifted past the sun so it never got too hot. Mauro and his girlfriend Su went for a long beach walk and returned with oysters that they found in some rock crevass. Steven whipped out his knife and Graham popped them open for us. Eat your heart out, Nobu!
At around 4:30pm we packed up and decided to drive all the way around the island, hitting every scenic point possible. The beauty of it was that EVERY MOMENT was a scenic spot! Every turn was of verdant undulation hills giving way to seascapes and valley vineyards. Graham, who cannot go 10 minutes without filming something, said "Oh god, someone else has got to drive. I gotta man the camera." As he was the only one able and willing to drive a left handed stick shift, I took on that responsability. So lush - so undeveloped - so perfect in its natural state; I half expected a T-Rex to come lumbering through the trees.
At one spot marked Picnic Area, we got out to have a look around and within moments, mauro had discovered that the receded water had left a minefield of clams. We can barely call it clam "digging" as our efforts required only some mild scooping. As soon as that discovery was made, the rest of the evening fell into place. Clearly the only thing to do was hop back on our vehicles and head to the nearest grocery store for some linguini. We MUST cook tonight!
As we drove away with a plastic big FULL of fresh clams and said goodbye to our corner of shellfish paradise, I said quietly "I am going to miss this day tomorrow" to which Graham replied "I already miss it." The rest of the evening making a feast of salad, clam linguini, and lamb chops. Quite possibly the best dinner of this leg of the tour. I've got Mauro's recipe for clams if anyone is interested.
Friday, February 13, 2009
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Australia So Far
SYDNEY:
My dear dear friend Anni Lindner stayed with me all three nights that we were there. The band and crew quickly fell in love with her. Mark has a friend with a sailboat and so most of the band went for a 'three hour tour' of Sydney Harbor, basking in the ozone free sun, and getting a description of each neighborhood we were sailing past. Anni and I went out to lunch and caught up. We had about one whole year to cover in three days and boy did we make a valiant effort to cover all our bases.
Met the band in the lobby and off we went in a van straight to the stage door of the Sydney Opera House. The inside is laid out like a seashell, coiling around itself until you get to the stairs that lead up to the stage. In many ways, the actual house reminds me a lot of the San Francisco Opera House. It has a larger capacity and taller ceilings but it looks quite similar. From the first moment I stepped on stage to the last second of the final performance, I was constantly aware that this was perhaps my only opportunity to standing on that stage. As Jessica said to me on the phone, the majority of the human race will not get the chance to perform there. Its certainly not a guarantee. I don't think I could have been any more conscious of that. After the first show, I turned to David and said "thank God we get to do it all again tomorrow."
After both shows we went to an outdoor bar aptly called Opera Bar just outside the venue. We sat drinking in the view of the bridge and SOH and sipping our cocktails. Anni and I chatted away until the bartenders kicked us out.
Oh boy - just about to board a plane. More when we arrive in Brisbane.
My dear dear friend Anni Lindner stayed with me all three nights that we were there. The band and crew quickly fell in love with her. Mark has a friend with a sailboat and so most of the band went for a 'three hour tour' of Sydney Harbor, basking in the ozone free sun, and getting a description of each neighborhood we were sailing past. Anni and I went out to lunch and caught up. We had about one whole year to cover in three days and boy did we make a valiant effort to cover all our bases.
Met the band in the lobby and off we went in a van straight to the stage door of the Sydney Opera House. The inside is laid out like a seashell, coiling around itself until you get to the stairs that lead up to the stage. In many ways, the actual house reminds me a lot of the San Francisco Opera House. It has a larger capacity and taller ceilings but it looks quite similar. From the first moment I stepped on stage to the last second of the final performance, I was constantly aware that this was perhaps my only opportunity to standing on that stage. As Jessica said to me on the phone, the majority of the human race will not get the chance to perform there. Its certainly not a guarantee. I don't think I could have been any more conscious of that. After the first show, I turned to David and said "thank God we get to do it all again tomorrow."
After both shows we went to an outdoor bar aptly called Opera Bar just outside the venue. We sat drinking in the view of the bridge and SOH and sipping our cocktails. Anni and I chatted away until the bartenders kicked us out.
Oh boy - just about to board a plane. More when we arrive in Brisbane.
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