NYC...

So, I have been in NYC for the past three weeks almost! And it has certainly been an experience - one that i don't think i will forget! NYC is the busiest and noisiest city i have EVER been to. Initially it was a little overwhelming but now i am used to it (although i do think the metro system here is rather illogical compared to everywhere else in the world!). I have done a lot of the touristy things - seeing the Statue of Liberty and lower manhatten on a boat, going up the Empire State Building, seeing Central Park, going to Times Square, The natural history museum, MOMA, The brooklyn museum, the national library and seeing lots of other things! And then there is the show: Good Good Trouble on a bad bad Island. It has been an experience, but it hasn't been all fun and games! There was the incredibly short rehearsal period, which seemed very comfortable and not too short at all, depsite the box like rehearsal rooms! However, having our 3 hour tech halfway through the rehearsal process, having to contain a full run and pre-show/post-show practice, with only half a sound design, no chance to practice board-opping and missing two actors was more than a bit chaotic - but we did it with time to spare! (I swear i will have grey hair by the end of the fringe festival!). Working with an all-male team up here has been interesting, and it isn't something i would like to repeat again in a hurry - i FAR prefer working with directors like Susan! It has made my 'Alice' experience look even sweeter, if that was even possible! The guys who were up here got into an awkward habit of changing things without telling me, which made me want to bang my head against a brick wall, but boys will be boys i suppose. The shows here are stressful - you have to 'get in' within 15 minutes before they let the audience in, and get out at the end in the same time. When something breaks, like the sound did before the 2nd performance we did (for which i was also short of two stage hands and recieved none of the help that the rest of the team had promised...) it is SO stressful. But, it is all a good experience, especially operating sound. This show really tests my communication and multi-tasking skills, as well as my people skills - i have definitely learnt through this experience! But i do love the script a lot.

When not doing my show, i have been volunteering as a box office assistant to earn free tickets to see Fringe Shows - so far i have seen 4, two good(Pigpen Presents The Nightmare Story, and The conveniences of modern living), one okay (The Hyperbolist), and one quite terrible (Uba Bounce) - its always a bit hit and miss with fringe! But i am LOVING seeing all this theatre - its given me some awesome ideas with shadow puppets, and integration of music into effective storytelling, and the use of lamps/torches to light an entire show, and just playwrights to look out for in the future. I am looking forward to seeing some other good shows during the 9 days i have left!
I am getting more ready to return back to the uk in 9 days time. However, it is not working out perfectly. I may have to go almost directly back to Canterbury, and i am worried about being there and being lonely and not being on an exciting adventure anymore, and reverting back to who i was. But, no one can predict the future - i'm just going to have to go with it for a while. I am going to miss the USA endlessly. But all good things have to end.

Ciao Ragazzi xxx

The Craziest thing i've ever done...

Working the lovely outdoor box office with Ashley

So... I did something crazy. But, it is crazy in a good way, rather than a bad way, and i am almost certain i won't regret it! Guess who is going to now be spending a WHOLE MONTH in New York City Stage Managing a show? You've got it - me! I have officially extended my visa and (hopefully) rebooked my flights and rearranged my entire August all because I got given this amazing amazing opportunity to SM a show at the NYC fringe. It couldn't have come at a more perfect time, because i am not nearly ready to leave this country or these people yet. It has been tough to leave here, and the goodbyes are still continuing (which is super sad...as the liklihood is i won't be back very soon, as least not next year. Financially - and in terms of my education - it just isn't viable) but it makes things easier that i will at least still be in the country! I am going to be staying with Janine and Drew (Dan, one of the playwrights, parents) in the Upper West Side of Manhatten, which is exciting. And although it is exciting, i am also rather nervous and daunted - this really is a big deal. It was an opportunity i couldn't really pass up! These past couple of weeks have been crazy but good - i did very much enjoy working Box Office for Hamlet (mainly due to the wonderful people) - it consisted of sitting outside for about 6 hours every evening, which was tough in the heat and with the bugs, but it wasn't too boring and it all went very smoothly. We even got to babysit a baby one night, which was fun! We played lots of games of cards lol, and read lots, and chatted - it was, in general, good. So, this is short and sweet, because i leave at 6.30am ish tomorrow morning to go to D.C with Katie (yay, excited!), but i wanted to update just so i remember what this part of my amazing american journey was like!!

Ciao ragazzi xxx

Time is really coming to an end...

Me and Katie at Busch Gardens

So, now it has become weeks or days rather than months that I have left here until i will be winging my way to Spain and then back to the rainy UK to finish my damn degree! It is (i've been trying not to count, because it makes me sad but...) 3 weeks until i leave the US, two weeks and two days until i leave here - and that just seems too soon. I am dreading returning, i really am - not because i don't think life is going to be alright, just that i would prefer to be here, in the company of wonderfully talented likeminded people, than being in Canterbury where everything is very much on the rocks right now. It's really scary going back, far scarier than coming here.

Virginia is pretty damn amazing. Doing this internship was a GOOD IDEA. Although it hasn't made leaving the USA any easier at all (in fact, it has probably made it more difficult!) it has taught me that it is the country i like, not just Milwaukee and my student situation. I love the American theatre scene, i love the people, i love the culture and everything about this place. And i could see myself spending a lot of time here in the future. Endstation is a FANTASTIC company to work for, i couldn't wish for a better situation here - there is just the right amount of challenge about the work that i do, always room to make mistakes and for it to be okay, and they are a more than fantastic bunch of people and super supportive. I would recommend anyone to get an internship here. Alice is now at the stage where we are almost closing - in fact, we close tomorrow :-( From then on, i basically become a box office/anything that anyone needs help with intern, which is cool - i am sure i will be kept busy!

Alice has been a fantastic show - i have 140 cues in a 37 page script, which is pretty good going, but i feel, after doing this, i could do more difficult shows with even more cues than that. Tech went pretty smoothly, despite the fact it felt like the longest tech EVER, due to the 50 thousand days it took (And the three dress rehearsals and preview!). I only had a couple of mini freak outs, and there was one particularly fraught day where i was worried, but i have been through FAR worse tech wise (nothing will ever beat the hell of Annie!). It was lovely to have supportive people around convincing me that i was doing a good job - I feel secure in the fact that soon i will feel comfortable enough doing this stuff on my own, but its nice to have someone holding my hand until then. And this feels like the safest place in the world to experiment like this. We have all sorts of cool things during the show: a mechanical pig, remote control hedgehogs, AWESOME UV bubbles and UV lights and a pretty damn awesome cast! This is definitely one of my favourite shows that i have ever worked on - on a par with Lieutenant of Inishmore!

I remember mentioning that i was going to Busch Gardens in my last entry - well, katie, tania, matt and myself did go, and it was VERY VERY cool! I totally got over my fear of rollercoasters and went on no less than three - riding 'The Griffin' at the centre of the front row over the vertical drops and twists and loops was terrifying but exhilerating, and despite the pain my back was in for the next few days, it was TOTALLY worth it! I would not hesitate to go on rollercoasters again - it DEF makes themeparks more fun. It was nice to spend some time outside the rehearsal room with the cast, making new friends and going on an adventure. It's one of the memories i will keep with me for a long time. I have developed a new 'why not?' attitude which has really opened up my world - kareoke every week is pretty exciting, and i really like the culture here in the South. But i like the north just as much too. They are very different!

So, tasks i've worked on as well as Alice over the past few weeks have indeed been very varied! I have painted and glue gunned tea cups to make a lobby display, i've written out numerous tickets, i made a furry remote control hedgehog complete with sparkly green nose, i've checked the mail lots and lots (Postman Jess!), sorted out adding a bunch of people to the mailing list, scanned stuff, printed stuff, and generally done lots of little things that wouldn't get done otherwise! It has been good fun :-) It reminds me of doing a little bit (or a lot!) of everything last year for Stage Spiders!

Anyway, i have to vamoose now (i forgot i hadn't sent out an e-mail i was supposed to send, eek!). Hopefully i will update once more before i get back to the UK.

Ciao ragazzi xxx

Wonderful, wonderful times

Katie (who is playing Alice) and I at the Amherst Centennial


You know, life really is good at the moment. After a bit of a challenging 'up and down' first week, I have totally accepted this new life, and, after three weeks here (no time at all!) , i am 100% settled in and really enjoying myself. As summer 'jobs' go, this is 1500 times better than the 'abuse' Camp Beaumont put as through as group leaders a couple of summers ago, and about 100 times better than working 12 hour days, 5/6 days a week with kids last summer (although that was at least worth it, money wise!). The people here are wonderful - really, really wonderful. They are very accepting, very welcoming and incredibly hard working, and i am totally enjoying working with such a new theatre company - it's so interesting to see how everything comes together and although the learning curve isn't incredible in Stage Management, i am certainly learning a lot in other areas. The interns are a brilliantly quirky bunch, which is also wonderful - i feel very much at home here! Often it hits me how lucky i am to be able to be here, and be with these people, and to have these opportunities that i get every single day. Not many people have got to do what i have gotten to do, and i love it. FACT.

So, what have i been up to? Well, mostly stage management, with a bit of reading and Sunbathing (and snake/bug avoiding) and enjoying group meals at Prothro (the cafeteria here - it is pretty damn good for a caf!). I have also been for a bit of Mexican food (a new love. My parents lied to me and said it contained lots of lime and therefore i won't like it. There wasn't lime in my food, therefore i loved it! Hopefully there will be more mexican food in my time here!) and, last night, even a spot of Kareoke with almost the whole company - very entertaining, and i had chicken wings i think for the first time, and i also had a very quick introduction to country music. I was amused! There is no doubting that this is part of the south of north america! The rest of my days are spent hanging out in random places with people, and then, occasionally, i am trusted to do other things with the company. I've done quite a bit of stuff with box office/marketing and i even got to help do some painting of the scenery for Alice the other day! We also had the Amherst Centennial, where the group performed some stuff from Alice, and we boiled to death in the 33deg C heat! And it's only going to get hotter - eeek! I have got a little bit addicted to the show '16 and pregnant' (TV gold, in case you are wondering!!!) and i have developed a like for Goldfish crackers, which i am very glad that i only discovered now!

And what are my plans for the next couple of weeks? Well, on Saturday i am going to Busch Gardens Virginia with two cast members from Alice (Katie and Tania) and Tania's boyfriend. We are going to stay overnight in Richmond before going, and i am very much looking forward to being able to relax and have fun before we go into tech next week. We had our first rehearsal in the space today, and although it was a little stressful, it was also nice to be in there so early. Then, the show opens on July 1st, so i am excited for that - although i think that technically, its going to be a little challenging! Time is flying by, and soon it will be time for Hamlet to be performed (i am sure i will be doing something backstage for that... or box office... its an outdoor performance, so in this heat it will be interesting!), and then on the 28th July i leave here for my adventures to Washington D.C, New York and Spain - i can't wait!

I have realised over the past couple of days or so that i really don't miss the UK, despite the fact that i've been away for 6 months continuously now, 10 months alltogether. I don't miss it even a little bit. Sometimes i miss my family or friends (or cadburies chocolate) but never the UK. I don't really want to go back. I don't think it's where i am meant to be: i think my future is in the USA. I'd really like to live in Chicago. Actually, i'm really worried about going back to the UK, in the fear that things will go backwards and be really tough. I hope this won't happen. Also, the pain of not being in Milwaukee has lessened conciderably and i am starting to get over it. This internship was a GOOD IDEA all round!! I suppose i don't know that next year won't be amazing, but if it was a choice between the UK and the USA, i know where i'd rather be!! Here is home.

Anyway, i better go now, i have the job of checking the mailbox every monday wednesday and friday, and that means i have to get up before 11am! After that is intern lunch, so its worth getting up for, coz those things are always fun! I'll keep you updated on my adventures here!

ciao ragazzi xxx

Goodbye Milwaukee, Hello Vegas, Goodbye Vegas, Hello Virginia!

So, i think the title captures my life for the last couple of weeks - it has been a whirlwind!!! It has been a time full of highs and lows, and a definite rollercoaster ride but i survived it and am now here in a rather humid and thunderstormy Virginia! I have got to say, i NEVER pictured myself being here when i first set off for America last August, but this really does feel like the right place to be and the right thing to do. Beginnings are always daunting, and endings are always horrible, but America is where i should be right now, and, as always, i am loving almost every minute of it!

Mine and Janine's last photo before i left for the airport

So, as predicted, leaving Milwaukee was TOUGH but unlike most people, i do feel like i got some sort of closure on that section of my life. The last week in Milwaukee was a crazy whirlwind of attempting to pack all my stuff into one suitcase, getting my hair cut, and trying to absorb as much of Milwaukee and see as many people as physically possible! I spent time hanging out at peoples houses (or people hanging out at the dorms - poor them!), getting ice cream from Cold Stones (one of my favourite places!) and going out and having fun in the evenings. Then, i had an awesome 'leaving' night out on Friday night with (almost) all of my most favourite people - we went to Alterra, and then to The Black Rose and then downtown. It was a slightly drunken night but very much fun - it made me wish so hard that i had more time to hang out with these people, but leaving was inevitable. I don't want to relive the goodbyes - they were constant and sometimes very emotional, and it got to the point where i just didn't want to say any more, as everyone knows that your friendship afterwards will never be the same again. But, its over now, and as much as saying goodbye hurts, I am still glad that i spent that time with the people i did, and i will never forget the fun we all had! On Saturday night, whilst everyone else left, i spent the night at Janine's house - we went to Bayshore where i bought shorts, and ate mexican food, and met up with John and Emily and their 'crazy about British people' friend by the lake front which was so much fun. And then, in the morning, i left Milwaukee for good. I was sad on the plane, but it felt like closure. And i know that i will keep in touch with the people i want to keep in touch with, and that we will meet again one day. It all feels like some surreal dream that i stepped into and i am left thinking 'did that really happen???' but i am so glad that it did!

James, Jack, Jess and Myself at the Grand Canyon

So then it was time to go with Jess, James and Jack to VEGAS!!!!!!!! I was initially a little apprehensive about going, but i am SO glad i did - it was an amazing vacation, and just what i needed! We did some awesome things - a night out in bars and clubs on the Sunday, looking at all the amazing hotels (and the fountain show and the pirate show!) and going to see Cirque de Soleil on Monday, riding in a red convertable Mustang, going to the grand canyon and doing the sky walk, seeing the Hoover Dam, having dinner at a revolving restaurant 106 floors in the air looking over the lights of Vegas on Tuesday, even more Hotel viewing and watching the boys do the 'sky jump' on Wednesday - it was AWESOME - definitely the kind of vacation people dream about!! We had very little sleep but that made it even better - it has definitely been my favourite vacation in a VERY long time. Memories to treasure, lol :-) The only bad thing was i got conjunctivitus in one of my eyes, which made it watery and stingy and sore, but, after ignoring it for two days or so, it went almost away, which meant no expensive doctors treatment, yay (and it's all better now :-) )! It didn't impact on my experience too much! I was glad that leaving Vegas wasn't difficult though (although overnight flights are DEF not my thing!) - i am so done with difficult goodbyes for the minute!

So then it was onwards to Virginia, the next part of my American adventure, a part that i never thought would exist! I arrived at Roanoke airport after little to no sleep, and after a two hour drive, was thrown straight into the Stage Management side of things, which was wonderful! Here i am kind of sharing a room, kind of not (my area is the walk through area to a room off to the side, so although the sleeping area isn't the same, we still share a door!) - luckily, i am used to the lack of privacy after this year! Everything here has felt like a wierd dream - the weather is humid which is affecting my hair BIG TIME, and there are bugs and lots of thunder storms and just about everything i am scared of lives here, eeek! But it is very beautiful, and the landscape reminds me of the UK :-) And, as always, i love SM-ing (although i think i am missing doing charity work again... i will have to start up some good old volunteering when i return to the UK!). Not having a car is going to be interesting, as we are in the middle of nowhere, but hopefully i will find ways round things, i am pretty adaptable! As always, a new place is going to take a little bit of time to get used to, but i can tell that this is going to be a very comfortable summer and i am going to like it a lot here :-) I just can't wait to get properly into things!!

Anyway, that is all for now - i will update again soon!

Ciao ragazzi xxx

Close the the end of my Milwaukee experience

Hanna, Meghan and Me by the Giant Bubble in Chicago!

So, the end is now so near - i have a week left here, then i have to leave Milwaukee for good. I can't even lie and say that this is bittersweet because it is not - i am so sad to leave. It seems crazy to leave a place that i love so much, a place that makes me so happy, but it is something that has to happen. I still have a couple of months left in America, and i have that to be thankful for, and the fact that i was given this wonderful experience in the first place. I just don't know how to say goodbye.

Things are brilliant at the moment. Sweetest Swing closed on 2nd May, which was really sad due to the fabulous cast and crew team that made me feel so welcome. I got some wonderful gifts, including snoopy socks, 'cheese puffs and a box of wine,' and some lovely chocolates (along side the more than 60 dollars worth of opening night gifts... thank you so much!)! I ended up enjoying the whole backstage experience, and the routine of doing 20 shows of the same thing was pretty fantastic too - i can so see myself doing this professionally in the future, if i am good enough. It is more difficult to do in the UK, but maybe i'll live here permenantly at some point... who knows. But anyway, Sweetest Swing being over does mean, however, that i have got a lot more time back, which is wonderful! I am enjoying the social side of things, getting my assignments done at the last minute, because i know what is more important in life now!

I have been out drinking with people a couple of times since i last updated: on Jess's Birthday we had a fabulous day of eating chinese and then playing 'Pub Golf' on Water Street, which was rather drunken for everyone but a lot of fun, despite the fact i didn't follow the rules...! Then i went out also on Thursday, this time down North Avenue, popping into Lineve's birthday party - that night we went to a couple of nice places, then one crowded not-so-nice place - but i still survived, yay! Mainly, i have been spending lots of time hanging out with Jaclyn, Luke and Meghan, chilling at whoevers house, or getting Italian food, or going to the beach. It has been wonderful, and i am going to miss them so much when i have to go home. One evening a group of us had dinner together in the Gasthouse (me, Luke, Janine, John, Emily, Mark, Eric) and then a couple of us went to see Hayfever, which Jess was in, which was more than awesome, and made me laugh a lot! Despite it's problems, i like the theatre department here :-) I wish the theatre department at Kent and the theatre department here could join - then it would be perfect! Jess and I went to Noodles a few days ago for a impromptu off campus meal (where she discovered her ambition at the moment is to be a travel agent), and then yesterday michelle, her friend, and me and Jess went to Culver's and sat in our pyjama's there for three hours, which was pretty fabulous! The same day, the Brits (minus James, plus Michelle!) went to Cafe Hollander for dinner, where i had friday fish fry for the first time here! All in all, it has been a lot of fun, and i am going to have to find this side of things when i go home, otherwise i will be very sad.

Today has been another awesome day: Myself, Meghan and her roomate Hanna went to Chicago for the day. We drove down (road trip!) and then got the metra in the rest of the way. Chicago is a beautiful beautiful city and i love it! We went to Navy Pier, and Millenium Park, and for a long wander around the city and the theatre district, and we ate real Chicago deep base pizza which was delicious! It was a day full of lovely memories, one of the best i have spent since i have been here. I know i am repeating myself, but i am going to miss this so much. I will have to start doing more random roadtrips from Canterbury!

On a more academic note, classes have now finished!! I have one (practical - forum theatre yuck) final, and two more papers in (one of them a huge research document, the other a little research paper) and then my time at UWM is done!! My directing scene, in the end, went awesome, despite my actors getting nervous and skipping a whole bunch of linea (they covered it well!) - i got some brilliant feedback, everyone laughed, and i got full marks so i was very happy with that! I'd like to do some more directing in the future, i do really enjoy it - i have learnt a lot with directing this year, so maybe i can put it into practice next year :-) I am going to miss my directing class, they were awesome and we all got on so well! The rest of my classes ended without event really - Participatory doesn't end until Monday, but thats it. It feels like the end of an era. Myself and Jess have organised a beach picnic for our final friday, which is when everyone will say goodbye and have the last bout of fun and games! Until then i have a fun packed week, so its all going to be very exciting - i just can't believe it is over already :-(

So the plan afterwards is still to go to Vegas for a few days (ooo exciting! I can't wait to see it, and the grand canyon too!) and then to get an overnight flight to Virginia, where i will be Stage Managing 'Alice in Wonderland' for the next couple of months, near the blue ridge mountains, where the pace of life is hopefully quite slow! I won't know anyone there, so i think it will be a refreshing experience! During that, hopefully i will have time to pop to Washington D.C for a couple of days. Then, straight after, i am going to try and spend a couple of days in New York, even if i am on my own, because i will be gutted if i don't see it. Maybe i will find someone to come with me? Then Spain for a week, and then it is all over, and back to the monotony of working and yucky stuff like that. It will be okay, i will make it be okay, and it's not like i have nothing to look forward to, but i think I may have a tough time adjusting initially.

To end this (possibly) last Milwaukee entry, i wanted to list my favourite memories from this year - the ones that i want to keep with me for the rest of my life:

- The run of 'What I did Last Summer' with Colin and Meredith, play scripts, gossiping, starburst bracelets and our collection of Ogs!

- The moment when i got the last cue right in Paradise, standing my ground, and all the cast celebration and eating out that went on.

- Blackout Saturday before we all went home for Christmas, with the gift of the best hat in the world.

- Eating Beaver Tails in Ottawa, and going on busses and seeing Alison, and the houses of Parliament, and home cooked food, and walking the dog, and all the museums, and eating pick and mix and feeling totally happy.

- The moment when our Storytelling group cracked our devised 'lost' performance

- Coffee/hot chocolate/cooking dates with Meghan.

- Laughing with Katie in our room, especially about 'the letter' but mainly about her crazy stories!

- When Sally (actor) got the arms going in different directions thing and she was so, so excited, and i was so happy i had finally taught someone something :-)

- Seeing my actors perform my scene in front of an audience who laughed and laughed.

- The dressing room banter, white pyjamas and moving numerous white blocks lots of times!

- Singing 'I don't wanna miss a thing' at the top of our lungs whilst driving home from an epic day in Chicago - to start our journey and end our journey. It was our song, and totally right for the day. Amazing.

- Seeing the snow for the first time.

- The GLACURH conference, complete with chants and programs, and teeming with inspiration.

I am sure in the next week i will find more to add to this - these are just a few of the highlights. Ahhhh America, you have been everything i expected and wanted and even so much more than that. Next time i update i hope to be in Virginia, starting a new adventure. So until then-

Ciao ragazzi xxx

Busy Busy Busy!!!

Myself and Dad having Lunch at Uni (mum taking the photo!)

So, I am still terrible at updating this thing - nothing has changed yet! In fact, the busy-ness has been so extreme that I have had this window open with busy, busy, busy written at the top of it for at least a few days now. But this is how i like it, and i would not change this experience for the world or trade to be anywhere else but here - here is perfect for now.

The show that I am doing at Chamber as ASM has opened now, and is going to run for the next two weeks (after tech and an 8 show week last week!). This is definitely the longest run of a show i have ever done, but i am loving it. I have got some very good feedback from the work that I have done, and I have to admit my 'scrubs' costume is actually very comfy, although very white and a little see-through! I was terrified initially of the audience, but things have turned into normal now and i don't mind the visable scene changes as much as i thought i would. It will be strange going back to it tonight after two days off, but I am sure it will all go fine *touch wood!* I think i am destined to become a Stage Manager... this could be a good or bad thing, and i still am very interested in Applied Performance, but i can see stage management being a big part of my life onwards into the future.

Talking about Stage Management, I have a summer internship! This is going to be in Central Virginia and I will be working on a family production of Alice in Wonderland which i am very excited about! The place is supposed to be absolutely beautiful too, right in the mountains near a lake, so i am very excited about not living in the city for the summer. I am hoping that I will meet lots of lovely people and be able to visit a completely different part of America - i am sure it will be wonderful, and i am definitely not ready to leave America yet, so this is really good for me.

I plan to have left America at the end of July/beginning of August - i will then be heading to Spain for a week, then home to the UK for our joint 21st's in Canterbury and for Over The Wall and to earn some money, which will be very much needed after this year!!

My parents have also been to visit really recently. They came for two weeks and they LOVED Milwaukee, just like I do, which makes me very happy. We went out to eat in lots of nice places and chilled out together and they did lots of exciting activities although i couldn't join them on many of their adventures due to classes and being in tech. It was lovely to see them and spend some time with them, although i had to say goodbye to my social life for a little while!! Now they have been stranded in Canada by the Icelandic Volcano and i believe they have had to take a week off work - what a fantastic opportunity for them to see more of the world! I wish i could join them, but that is impossible with my crazy schedule, and I liked it here. There are always moments when you are sitting somewhere and you think 'oh my goodness, i'm in America, how did i get here???' - it is lovely to feel that way. Next time i will see my brother and sister and parents is in Spain in August, so that will be nice - it will have been 8 months not seeing my siblings, which is quite a long time!

I have lists of things to do before I leave Milwaukee. I want to go to the Art Museum, have frozen custard, see Chicago, see Madison, go to the Safehouse again, go and see the baseball, go on a brewery tour etc! I hope i will be able to fit it all in - i really don't want to leave here!

Classes are still going well - we are doing Boal in Participatory and i am not sure that i like him, but I have told myself i will not pass judgement until after this semester is over! The emotional content of this class has made it very intense recently, and it is rare a session goes by without someone crying, which is horrible because this class used to be so fun! My Directing Scene is going okay, I have now blocked all of it! I love my actresses, they are awesome, but i don't think i am cut out to be a director - i have the ideas, i'm just not that good at conveying them on stage! But you never know, i do enjoy it, so it might be nice to continue as a hobby now and then! The Penelope Project is also going well - we went to visit Luther Manor recently for a long term care training session, which was eye opening and i learnt SO much! I wish i was here longer so i could continue on the project. Improv comedy, as normal, is hell, but there are some positives - due to Sweetest Swing i have gotten out of doing the evening show for the class, which is fantastic. We have an afternoon show today, without an audience i think - like a dress rehearsal, so that should be interesting!

Anyway, i have to go now, i have got to get ready for my rehearsal and class and show tonight!

Ciao ragazzi xxx

And the craziness continues...

Brenda, Amy (and Emily) and myself getting ready for another exciting show....!

So, another update!! There hasn't been very many exciting or different things going on, but its probably worth updating anyway :-) The first thing is, i have literally failed to take photos this month/semester - i am going to have to attempt to remedy that soon (and i'm sure i will, as my parents are coming to visit in less than 2 weeks!) but, you know, one doesn't want to seem like a tourist, teehee! At the top of this entry is a picture of my (rather blurry) ASM/PA team (and Emily, one of the Stage Hands) who worked on Our Town! Apparently Dustin was incapeable of using the camera without making it blurry - it was most strange! Our Town has now finished - i spent approximately one evening mourning it being over, then I moved on, which is pretty good going!!! It was definitely an adventure - I was lucky to have the support of Colin during Tech Week, and between myself, Amy, Brenda and Colin we ended up doing extraordinarily well and being ahead of ourselves for the entire week :-D This was a small miracle, given the circumstances, but in the end it turned into a really good show, despite the impossible cue sequences (visual cues happening at the same time and exact sound effects and lights was fun...!) and tempremental furniture! I had a few issues to contend with, but nothing too major, and it all went delightfully smoothly! It was a nice 7 show run (longest run i have Stage Managed so far!) and i only got bored of the show over half way through the run, which is quite an achievement for the stage manager! Must say something (good) about the play! We went out for pizza after the final show, which was a nice parting-ways thing, although me and Amy were disappointed that Brenda didn't join us. It was a good show, but i am not particularly sad that it is over!

I started my next show, Sweetest Swing in Baseball (which i am ASM-ing) on the Tuesday after the Sunday of closing. Luckily, we were only in the prep week stage (lots of taping out the floor, organising things and making up my book) so nothing too strenuous, and i am looking forward to this new adventure in a professional theatre! We have the first proper intense day tomorrow (1.30pm-10.30pm... long day!) so I am kind of looking forward to that. I am looking forward to feeling settled in to this show, normally takes a couple of weeks. Also, embarrassingly, there will be costumed scene changes, which will involve me dressing in hospital scrubs. Oh the joy! I will try and provide pictures :-) We open on April 16th, so thats pretty soon!

At the moment we are on 'Spring Break' - this means all the lucky people with no commitements swan off home or on vacation, and people with stuff to do are left in a ghost town! Jess has gone to Miami, lucky thing, but i have rehearsals so i am here. I haven't been bored though - i have had three blissful free days to catch up on life - the important homework projects i need to work on, getting my hair cut (finally!), going grocery shopping and just pottering around. I met up with Janine today for hot chocolate/coffee, and to see a show (Kill the Rich! Kill the poor!) which was a good show and a lot less shocking than it was made out to be - i suppose us Brits like cutting edge/dark theatre! Now that today has finished, my next totally free day is May 8th.... dear god. It's going to be an intense few weeks, but hopefully i can hold it together and enjoy it before the wind-down towards the end (sob, sob).

After noticing i have basically no clothes as i have bought none since two tops and a pair of jeans in early September (!) me and Jess went to Mayfair (big shopping mall) and shopped for an afternoon! I bought two new tops, a pair of jeans and a pair of shoes, and then we went out for a massive Salad (delicious, but enough for about 4 people...each!) at The Cheesecake Factory which was wonderful! Meghan and me went out the following day and ate at Shiraz, which is a fantastic place with wonderful middle eastern food - I definitely want to go there again pretty soon! This month has been characterised by going out to eat: during show week, myself and Jess went to 'Noodles' for pasta and then to 'Coldstones' for ice cream yummmm, and then a few days later me, Jess, James and Jack visited Coldstones - it really does have the best ice cream in the world! We ate a lot of ice cream on show week too :-) Ice cream is the best food ever!

Internships wise.... not a whole lot of news! I have had two interviews now, but i am waiting to hear back from them both (they will call me either way) but one is a week late with their news now (apparently they really can't decide!) and the other one is meant to call me early this week... so hopefully that means tomorrow! I don't hold out a huge amount of hope, but i will be very sad if i don't get one (although i will accept it... one has to! it would probably save me a lot of money!) . We have booked our hotel for our LAS VEGAS!!!! trip in May (YAY Grand Canyon!), and I hope to see San Francisco after that before i go internshipping! If i don't manage to get an internship, i will probably go and (drag Jess :-P) to see Washington D.C and New York and then call it a year.... I can come back and travel a lot more when i am richer! The summer so far, when i get home, includes a trip to Italy/Spain with family, the 21st birthday celebration with bash and jess, and a tour of UK/Ireland to see Mallory and Sarah (canadians from Camp Beaumont yay!) (and maybe even a visit to Paris to see Alison, although i think our times my clash :-( ) so hopefully that is a good incentive to get home, and will make the transition easier - i even missed my jobs for a little while earlier today! I could live here forever and be happy... but i know that is not to be!

I think that is all to update you on for now! I hope you are all well and enjoying life :-) Spring and summer are definitely on their way, and everything is good. I am continuing to live life for the moment and i am trying not to be too dismayed by time going as quickly as it is!! This year has been everything that i have dreamed - it is still so surreal at times, and sometimes you think 'oh my god, i am actually IN America doing this stuff!' and have to have a reality check, but it is all wonderful. It is making me appreciate everyone and everything around me so much more. I am happy!

Ciao Ragazzi xxx

I apparently have gotten terrible at updating...

Me and Cedric, the snow sqirrel we made!

So, apparently i haven't updated this since the 2nd February! That is terrible and I do apologise - I really want to be able to remember this year in years to come, and this is a perfect way to do that - if i remember to update! Things are going so well over here - I am more in love with America every single day, and every day i spend here makes it harder and harder to ever think of leaving. I have never felt so connected to a place in my entire life, and I just don't know how to leave something that I love so much!!!! The ups far outweigh the downs (of which there are very few) - this really is the land of opportunity, and i am taking every opportunity possible!!!

'Our Town,' the mainstage show i am stage managing, is taking over my life at the moment - it is a mixture of brilliant and frustrating, and it comes with its own challenges, but i am definitely learning a lot. It has made me question whether i necessarily want to go into Stage Management - I love it, but i am not sure it is the love of my life! I am going straight from this show into 'The Sweetest Swing in Baseball' which is a Stage Management internship with Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, which i am very much looking forward to - it will be nice to see what the professional world is like! I haven't heard back from any of the stage management internships i have applied for over the summer... but no news is good news, right? I am crossing my fingers and toes that i get something. If i don't, i have to leave the USA in three months, and that is WAY too soon - I have never felt so sure of something in my entire life!

My classes are going pretty well. I'm not a big fan of directing, but i am looking forward to directing a scene from 'Charity' by Leonard Melfi, especially as the characters in it are kind of crazy, and its funny and lighthearted... which involves being taken hostage for love... wierd! Participatory Theatre is a perfect introduction to Applied Performance, which i will be studying next year. It is a little pretentious at times, and a little too focused on politics, but my class are awesome and it involves playing lots of games, which i obviously like a lot! My Friday comedy class has gotten so much better, and sometimes i quite enjoy it now! It is always a laugh, and again, my class is full of lovely people, so that makes the fact that i have to be funny MUCH easier to bear! My independant project (research assistant for 'The Penelope Project') has also taken up a lot of my time, but i am enjoying researching about devising and its use with the elderly - this will hopefully help me next year too! I like that i am getting credit for my Stage Management stuff this semester too!!

The best thing about this semester is that i seem to have gained a social life! I never have any evening at the moment where i have to sit around and mosey on the computer, unless i want to! This weekend, on Friday night, we had a cast party - a 'bachelorette' party for one of the characters - there were only 5 of us, and it was really nice. The weekend before I went round to Luke's house with Jackie, Colin and Bethany and some people i didn't know that well (Sam, Casey, Kari) and chilled out and drunk and played board games and it was really, really nice. The weekend before that we met up with some of the guys from the Friday comedy class, went to a party and a midnight 'comedy sportz' show and drunk (as usual) and that was also very nice - i learnt how to play beer pong, and flip cup and other games! We fitted 7 of us in a very small car, and it was very much fun. I've met up for coffee (hot chocolate) with Meghan a couple of times, and Janine/Bethany/Brianna/John too. It has been lovely, and i will really, really, REALLY miss this side of things when i am back in Canterbury. This year has definitely shown me what i was missing last year, and has definitely changed me - i am starting to see this change even now. I am glad i have (hopefully) grown up a little bit!

I get daily pangs of 'OMG i can never leave this place, when i leave i am going to die' but i am sure it will all be okay in the end.

The snow is starting to melt now, spring is around the corner, and my parents are going to be here for a visit in less than a month! Although i'm not going away for Spring Break due to rehearsals, i am sure it will be worthwhile and i will find lots of things to do!

All in all, i am so much happier than i ever have been here, i am never homesick, and everything is fabulous. As much as i love you all, I am willing time to go slower, so i can absorb every minute of this experience and stay even longer!

Ciao ragazzi xxx

It's been a while...ooops!

Me and Jess on the Saturday night before I went home for Christmas

So I haven't updated this blog for AGES and that is no good at all! Life is extremely busy over here at the moment, but this is more important than doing my epic amounts of homework - I cannot believe the workload this semester! I arrived back here on the 12th January and had a very quiet and very surreal week and a half - no one was around (I had the floor to myself entirely!), nothing was open so I had to live on microwave meals (which was probably healthier than what I normally have to eat from the cafeteria...) and I had lots to do paperwork wise, but not a lot else - it was nice in some ways, but sometimes I got a little bit lonely. During those weeks I went to the theatre with Janine to see 'Yankee Tavern' which was really good (although no one else thought so...) and I met up for lunch with Colin, and I had quite a few stage management related meetings, so I wasn't entirely rattling around on my own! I was ready for semester to start, but now it has started i want to go back to having not a lot to do! My classes this semester are good: Participatory Theatre involves playing a lot of games, which is fun and feels like a bit of a break compared to the rest of my life! The Penelope project involves a lot of sitting at home and researching, but i am getting to research about devising atm, which is quite interesting, so that is alright! Directing is A LOT of work (and that is an understatement...) and i am pretty sure i don't want to ever direct again, but it is kind of interesting most of the time - it will be better once we get on to practical work! Advanced Games and Improvisation is the most bittersweet class in the world - i hate it and love it at the same time. It's all about improv comedy, which i SUCK at, but the class itself is fun because everyone is trying to be funny, so it involves a lot of laughter! I will DIE if i have to perform in an improv comedy show, which i think is on the class sylabus... oh dear. The rest of my life is chock a block full of Stage Management for 'Our Town' - and oh my goodness, it is CRAZY. There is always so much to do, and there is never an end to the jobs, and sometimes people are difficult to organise - but its a challenge, and its fun, and i am embracing the opportunity to Stage Manage such a big production! With Stage Management, things get better and better as you get to know people in the cast and crew, and I can just tell that this show is going to get better and better! Rehearsals are going well so far (It's 'mime day' tonight lol - should be interesting) and i think it is going to be a good show! I am also doing some volunteering this semester (finally!) with First Stage. It is AWESOME, and the creative drama stuff they do is amazing, and it is so inspiring me for next year. I get to do lots of improvisation as a mouse and 'Dr Rocket' and the kids just are great - so unlike the unruly ones i worked with last year - they REALLY want to be there. I am working with 4-5year olds, and 8-9year olds, which is coool, so i get a really nice variety! It means getting up at 7am every Saturday morning, but it is worth it! I hadn't realised how much i have missed children's theatre until i started doing it again! In other news, i have an interview on Thursday for an internship during this semester (yes, i really am going to die of busy-ness), and i am thinking of applying to do an internship during the summer - they will be able to extend my visa for that, so that would be amazing. I am still in love with America and want to stay here for as long as possible - if I never had to move back to the UK, i would be happy! Unfortunately, needs must, and i have to finish my degree (and earn some money!) but next year is officially going to be hard. I like having lots of social stuff planned, like last weekend i met up with Meghan and we went out for soup, and then next weekend i am going to see the basketball with the internationals and me and Meghan are going to cook something on Sunday evening... I will really miss that side of my lifestyle here! Anyway, i better go now, i have lots of homework to do before rehearsals tonight!

Ciao ragazzi xx