To the Theatah!!

Earlier this month, I took Sammy and Brie to see "High School Musical Jr." at our local junior high. It was wonderful and, of course, who can resist a lead actress role named Gabriella?!

It was good for us to go, too, because Brie had recently "volunteered" herself and her dear mother for the Purim play "Fiddler on the Roof." Frankly, I was thrilled that she wanted to do it--I loved acting as a kid (and so did Tony)--and happy to keep her company! When I filled out the form about the kind of roles we wanted (no audition needed for this production), we said we were up for anything, but that we'd prefer to "sing with the cast." Brie received five adorable lines, which she mastered in no time. And I--thanks to a "clerical error"--got a larger role that included three singing SOLOS!! I had a minor coronary when I found out...no,  really! When do I sing alone in front of a crowd?! Never!

But the directors responded with marginally comforting things like, "You're kids will be so proud of you for doing this!" and "It's just for fun!" and "You can play it up and make it funny!" I was pretty sure at that moment that it was not a clerical error that landed me a singing part, but in fact, bad karma brought on by me listening to the Sirius XM Broadway channel all the time in my car. (sigh) So I (sorta) embraced my singing role and practiced (A TON!) for three weeks...even meeting the piano accompanist for a few extra run-throughs. I figured I had to give it my all, right? (And truth be told, I truly enjoyed running through the script with Brie each evening. She knew everyone's lines in no time and told me my singing was fabulous. Gotta love her positivity!)

Here we are the night of the show! Doesn't the shtetl (village) look amazing? As for our costumes, I pieced mine together, including a skirt from Gammy and the pashmina I bought in Vancouver. Brie's outfit came from a neighbor who dressed as a pioneer for school last year. We both used Sebastian's old burp cloths as head scarves. ;-)

And here are our biggest fans. Costumes were encouraged for the event, so Jason Voorhees and Thomas the Train came to see us perform.

Let the show begin! Oy, the nerves!!

I was really anxious, but during my first solo, Sebastian crashed my singing (with Sammy's Jason machete in hand) and made me laugh. It was a sweet moment.

My next two solos went well. I was pleased considering that I am NOT a pro. Tony did take a few videos...I will spare you all my vocal prowess.

Brie nailed all her lines and made everyone laugh. It was great.

"A real snoozer!" (Brie's funniest line.)

At the end, the girls reenacted the scene from "Fiddler" where all of the men dance together with bottles on top of their hats. Hilarious.

Foot five!

Here's a pic of our full cast. Woohoo!

After the show, Brie asked, "When is my next performance?" I think she may have caught the acting bug!!

And then on Wednesday night, Sammy rocked his portrayal of a peach-colored crayon in the second grade's play "The Day the Crayons Quit." Here is his class after rehearsal...

And there's my favorite peach crayon singing his heart out.

And dancing, too. The show was super cute.

Hooray for three nights at the theater. It feels good to break a leg!!