From Cerritos, our little troupe journeyed to our final California stop at the Cal Center for the Performing Arts in Escondido, CA. Since we were not able to do load-in at the theatre the evening before our performances, we had the night off and were left to our own devices in Vista, CA. I was able to meet up with a good college friend, Diane, and reminisce about our UNR days and memories of our stay in London for the celebration of the millennium. It was a pleasant, but early evening as I had an early call the next morning.
The following morning was an EARLY and TOUGH morning indeed - 5:15am van call, 6:00am load-in, two back-to-back performances and load-out. It was a very rough morning for all of us, as we were not able to get any breakfast or coffee until an hour before we had to go onstage and by that point, we had already been awake for 2 1/2 hours! And to top it all off, it was another on-the-road birthday...this time for Kevin, our dear Mayor of Paola. Not exactly the way that anyone would want to celebrate their birthday, but memorable nevertheless.
The grueling schedule and circumstances of the morning were particularly hard for one of my castmates, Jessica (Bambalona), who is a Type 1 diabetic. Her blood sugar rollercoastered from super high to super low levels and the poor thing keeled over during our load-out. Performing with a diabetic definitely keeps me on my toes during the show, but I do not have any qualms about it. I have learned how to tell if her blood sugar is going high or running low by watching her body language and face coloration. Strega Nona will always have Bambalona's back if something were to happen during the show!
Despite the rough start to our day, we played to two sold out houses at the 1500-seat Cal Center. During one of our performances, one of my castmates (who shall remain nameless) farted onstage right before I was supposed to sing one of my final musical numbers. I had an extremely difficult time getting enough air to sing as I was trying desperately not to laugh and not to breathe in the horrid stench. Not exactly the ideal conditions for performing, but memorable nevertheless - it still makes me laugh just thinking about it!
We left the lovely Cal Center and ventured to a Mexican restaurant where we enjoyed lunch courtesy of our producers. And then...we were Arizona-bound! Finally, we were going to be travelling and performing outside our home state of California. After a long journey, we arrived in the quaint town of Blythe, CA...or Blythe, AZ, depending on which side of the town you are.
Next stop - Higley Center for the Performing Arts in Gilbert, AZ. Until the next adventure...
Ciao!
XOXO-
Janine
The following morning was an EARLY and TOUGH morning indeed - 5:15am van call, 6:00am load-in, two back-to-back performances and load-out. It was a very rough morning for all of us, as we were not able to get any breakfast or coffee until an hour before we had to go onstage and by that point, we had already been awake for 2 1/2 hours! And to top it all off, it was another on-the-road birthday...this time for Kevin, our dear Mayor of Paola. Not exactly the way that anyone would want to celebrate their birthday, but memorable nevertheless.
The grueling schedule and circumstances of the morning were particularly hard for one of my castmates, Jessica (Bambalona), who is a Type 1 diabetic. Her blood sugar rollercoastered from super high to super low levels and the poor thing keeled over during our load-out. Performing with a diabetic definitely keeps me on my toes during the show, but I do not have any qualms about it. I have learned how to tell if her blood sugar is going high or running low by watching her body language and face coloration. Strega Nona will always have Bambalona's back if something were to happen during the show!
Despite the rough start to our day, we played to two sold out houses at the 1500-seat Cal Center. During one of our performances, one of my castmates (who shall remain nameless) farted onstage right before I was supposed to sing one of my final musical numbers. I had an extremely difficult time getting enough air to sing as I was trying desperately not to laugh and not to breathe in the horrid stench. Not exactly the ideal conditions for performing, but memorable nevertheless - it still makes me laugh just thinking about it!
We left the lovely Cal Center and ventured to a Mexican restaurant where we enjoyed lunch courtesy of our producers. And then...we were Arizona-bound! Finally, we were going to be travelling and performing outside our home state of California. After a long journey, we arrived in the quaint town of Blythe, CA...or Blythe, AZ, depending on which side of the town you are.
Next stop - Higley Center for the Performing Arts in Gilbert, AZ. Until the next adventure...
Ciao!
XOXO-
Janine
I know who farted :)
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