Catching Up

Well, it's been a while. . .  I know.  Over the last two weeks, things have not really settled down at all.  I Do! I Do! just finished its second weekend of shows. The reviews have been okay.  The Houston press review was not that great, but he seemed like he just didn't like the script and the music itself, not necessarily our performance.  But, Buzz at Chron.com gave us a pretty decent review although, in reality, it seems like he gives good reviews to everybody.  Sometimes his reviews can be disgustingly positive, but then again, I'm certainly not going to send him an e-mail requesting that he be a little bit harder to please.  If I were to do that, you can be sure that his next review of my work will not be as fun for me to read!

A Gig I'll Never Forget!

Among all of the craziness that has gone on for me over this last week and a half or so, I got to play one of the coolest gigs that I've ever been a part of!  A couple of weeks ago, I got an e-mail from a performer named Merideth Kaye Clarke who toured with Wicked for a couple years as a chorus member first, and later as Elphaba.  She said that she had gotten my contact information from a friend of mine who had played the role of Glinda on the same tour with her and is now playing the same role on Broadway.  She said that she had been asked to perform at the Wortham Theatre in Houston for a breast cancer awareness fundraiser called "Pink at the Brown."  Now, I have to admit, when we first started talking about the performance, it didn't sound half as cool as what it actually turned out to be! 

It ends up, that we were going to be sort of the 'featured performance' in a concert that had performers from the Houston Ballet, the Houston Grand Opera, an instrumental group called La Camera, the Houston Boy's Choir, and the Houston Girl's Choir.  A truly unbelievable group of performers!  In our tech rehearsal the night before the performance, I started getting the idea of just how big of a deal this was to be here.  During this rehearsal time was the first time that I saw the list of the other performers, I also realized just how big the Brown Theatre at the Wortham Center actually is, and finally I realized that I'd be sitting center stage playing on an 8 foot Steinway piano!  This really was a once in a lifetime type of opportunity for me!

The night of the show was amazing! Merideth and I had been hanging out in one of the dressing rooms as the show started and then she mentioned that she'd like to see one of the ballet performances.  So, her and I both walked to the backstage area where we could see the show.  With as much time that I've spent in a theatre over the last several years, I haven't been able to be back stage during many performances, and especially not for a ballet.  After watching these performers go through their warm-up routines before taking the stage and then watching their true skill in their performances, I definitely now have a huge respect for what they do. 

Equally as impressive was getting to watch members of the Houston Grand Opera go through their warm-up routines moments before taking the stage.  I guess I just forget sometimes how cool it is to be backstage and get to see all of these things going on.  As a music director, all I know is when someone screws it up and misses an entrance.  Again, my entire perception of what goes on for a performer during a show has completely changed!

Then it was our turn!!!  Oh Crap!  It has been a LONG time since I have been as nervous as I was for this performance, and I was only responsible for playing ONE song!  I joked with Merideth that I wasn't nervous until she insisted that we go and watch the other performers.  :)   Although I was being a bit serious, I am so happy that I did watch the other performances.  Anyways.  I had gotten so nervous because the other two or three pianists who had played were just absolutely incredible, and from what we could tell backstage, the performance was sold out and there were about 5,000 people out there!   The curtain went up, and off we went.  We were performing Merideth's big song from Wicked, "Defying Gravity," and no matter how much we had practiced the song the night before, that was probably the fastest that she had ever sung it thanks to my nerves getting the best of me.  Actually, the song went pretty well and we were both happy with how it had gone, so it couldn't have been too fast!

To make the night that much better, my mom and dad were able to make it out!  My parents are so supportive of everything that I do, and I am so very thankful for that!  I had called my mother the night before and told her how excited I was to be playing this show, and sure enough, she texts me the next morning saying that her and dad would be there.  What a nice surprise! 

It truly was a remarkable evening, and I was so proud to be a part of it!  Not only was it a great night for me as a musician, it was also great to have a night to perform such a great song with an amazing singer while remembering my Aunt Cyndi who passed away in October 2009 because of breast cancer.  Before she had passed away, I had dedicated my performance of Beauty and the Beast to her, but on this night, through all of the amazing things that were going on, I honestly never stopped thinking of her. 

That's all for now.  Thanks for reading.

Peace Out,

Luke

Opening Weekend!

Tonight is the big night!  After three weeks of rehearsals and a busy tech week, we will finally get the chance to measure the work that we've done by having an audience in the house!  Tonight is considered to be our "Preview" show, so it's not technically our opening, so we've got one more run through to try to finally get things solidified before our opening night.  But, even though we've got another night to try and really get comfortable with some things, there will be a couple of people in the audience that will publish their thoughts on our show as a review.  So that definitely puts a bit of extra pressure on us to do our best.

It's been a pretty crazy rehearsal process for all of us.  As I mentioned in one of my earlier blogs, we've had to deal with three different books when trying to put the music together for this show.  Even in our run through last night, I still made a mistake in a crucial point in the show simply because I had taken notes on how the section was supposed to be played in one of the other books that I've been going back-and-forth to.  Of course that's irritating for myself, but also our cast members who have been more than patient and understanding with me as we all try to get our stuff together.  They understand the situation because these books also have different lyrics, harmonies, and arrangements between them.  So, sometimes when we're going through a number, one of the cast members may be singing lyrics from book one and harmonies from book two, all while I'm playing the arrangement from book three!  Get it?

But through all of this confusion, I feel like we've managed to put up a pretty good show!!  The cast has worked EXTREMELY hard.  Shondra and I both had very bad colds at the end of last week and into "tech weekend", Steve has about a thousand costume changes that all happen very quickly.  He has done a fantastic job of memorizing everyone of them.  i.e.- Which side of the stage to go out on; Which shoes to wear;  What shirt/coat to wear.  He has to remember all of these things while also remembering to listen to the music that I am playing to hear where we are in the music for cues of his.  I tell him every night that I don't envy him for having to do all of these things.  Last time I was in the cast of a show, I couldn't memorize six lines and two blocking ideas.  Forget me trying to do all that he does!!

Well, if you're reading this after coming to our show, or you're sitting in the theatre waiting for the show to start, I hope you enjoy it, especially after getting an inside scoop from the music director.  If you have not yet come to see the show, I hope you will.  It's a great way to spend an evening being entertained, and it is at a great theatre.  Feel free to leave any comments on this page about what you think of the show, and/or if I can expect to look for you at any of our performances!  Thanks for reading!!                                                                                                                                                                                                                            

Peace Out,
Luke


P.S. - A HUGE congratulations to Caleb and Brynne Choate for their new baby girl, Gracie Lynn!  Very happy for you guys, and I can't wait to meet her!

Back to Day One: "I Do, I Do"

The curse of doing what I do is that there are so many "Day One's." 

I've been very lucky for most of the last 4 or 5 years to have shows booked CONSTANTLY.  It became very rare for me to close one show and not go into rehearsals for another within the next week or so.  Well, over the last  month and a half, I've been involved with three different shows, but none of them were shows that I would be there for the entire process.  In the beginning of January, I worked for two weeks on Country Playhouse's production of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee."  (Which opens this week) I taught the music to the cast, and then left the show in the talented hands of my good friend, Jacob Carr.   After that, I went into a week of rehearsals and another week of performances for Cy-Creek High School's production of "Little Shop of Horrors."  The show had already been learned and put up, but I came in to play the piano and lead the band for the performances.  That show was also mixed in with a rehearsal and a couple performances as the keyboard II sub for the national tour of "West Side Story" at the Hobby Center.   Obviously with that show, I was not there for an extended period of time.

So, after looking at my last couple of  months, the last time that I went to the first rehearsal for a show that I would also be at the final performance of was "Forever Plaid: Plaid Tidings" at Texas Repertory Theatre back in October!  Well, tomorrow that streak ends.  Tomorrow is another "Day One" for me as I go into rehearsals for Texas Rep's production of "I Do, I Do".   It is a show that I've not done before, so I am very excited about that, but it always just feels so daunting to know that over the next three and a half weeks, we've got a ton of work to do!  The cast only has two members, so it's not terribly hard music, but there is a lot of it! My score is about 200 pages long, which is actually VERY thick for a two person show.  To be honest, as of right now, I can't recall the name of the woman who will be playing the female in the show, but I know that Steve Fenley will be playing the male role.  Steve is one of the co-founders of Texas Rep, and has been in what seems like every show there since the theatre opened 6 years ago.  He is very talented, and will be great in this show, for sure. 

Starting rehearsals does mean less time at home, of course.  The last several weeks have been very nice for Blythe and I to be able to be home around the same time, eat dinner together, and go through our nightly routine with Carter as a family.  (Which you all saw pictures of! Thanks for reading!)  Since August, the three of us have really come to enjoy those rare nights that we can all be home and take our time with dinner and getting Carter bathed and put down for the night.  This is the hardest part about doing these shows, and especially thinking of that first rehearsal.  There's no "light at the end of the tunnel" feeling because you haven't even entered the "tunnel." 

But, before we know it, spring break will be here. Then the show will be open. Then we'll be sitting at Jones Hall watching a Harry Connick Jr. concert, and not thinking anything about what we've just been through!!!

Well, I guess that's all for now.  Wish me luck as I start the wonderful rehearsal process all over again tomorrow.  I will surely keep you all posted with how everything is going.  Thanks for reading!

Peace Out,
Luke