Last week Disney's mega-musical, Frozen, opened its out-of-town tryout in Denver. Gearing up for its eventual Broadway opening in March 2018, Frozen is by far one of the most anticipated musicals of the season. Given its following and the lackluster buzz of other new musicals(let's be honest), it's also favorited for a slew of Tony nominations. 

But following opening night, the reviews of the productions weren't exactly stellar. In fact, some could say they were quite worrisome. 

There are some musicals that I adore for obvious reasons. Whether it's their epic score, relatable plot, incredible choreography, I usually know what exactly drew me to each piece.

Then are some that keep me thinking. I know I love them, I just can't figure out why., so you keep thinking about it, listening to it and it draws you back to the theatre for repeat viewings. One of those shows is closing today, Groundhog Day.

I’ll start this post with a story.  The day that the post about the ad favoring Union Actors over Non-Union Actors got posted I had an audition. It was at night in an unfamiliar neighborhood so my boyfriend actually went with me because he was worried about me getting home safe.  After the audition, we were walking back to the bus stop and I started talking about the article.  In his innocence, my boyfriend took the mainstream audience point of view. Believing that union was better.  

If you haven't watched the Drunk History of Alexander Hamilton with Lin-Manuel Miranda, you need to. First of all, because it's hilarious. Secondly, it gives us a brief insight into how much research Miranda did for the show. But most of all, it displays the character of the man itself, which is what I want to talk about today. 

As I stand on the precipice of adulthood (yikes) I’ve been trying to focus on the life I want. As actors, our bodies are everything. They are the vital instrument to our success. We need to take care of our brains, our lungs, our stomachs, our muscles, and every vein and vessel that come with it. Typically, people don’t think about taking such in-depth care of their bodies. As actors, I’ve found that we are more in-tuned and sensitive to what our bodies need.

Okay so let’s start off with a familiar situation: A show. You’ve been cast, you’ve had the table reading, you’ve done the rehearsal, etc. It doesn’t really matter what level you put this hypothetical production in, the point is that you’re surrounded by a bunch of people who are equally interested in doing what you do as well. People, ergo, who are ‘in the industry’. Now – what do you do?

A couple of years ago, I wrote my first piece for OnStage, discussing the song cycles and concept albums that deserve staging. Inspired by Kate Bush’s concerts in 2014, her first in 30 years, which contained the vivid story of The Ninth Wave, state of the art effects, and stark choreography, I took a look at some other song cycles that deserved the same level of attention. In my search for material for a Part 2 over the last couple of years, many of my favourite artists have released their own stage shows from concept albums or otherwise: Shara Nova (formally Worden)/ My Brightest Diamond and her baroque opera YOU US WE ALL, David Bowie’s LAZARUS, to name a few. Broadway is no stranger to contemporary artists writing shows; Sara Bareilles is responsible for WAITRESS, Vienna Teng’s THE FOURTH MESSENGER has been well-received during its multiple tryouts, Sting gave us THE LAST SHIP, Tori Amos’ THE LIGHT PRINCESS did well in London, David Byrne gave us HERE LIES LOVE, and Cyndi Lauper wrote the fun KINKY BOOTS.

I will open this, as with many of my articles with a small disclaimer (because I know I am one Theatre Professional, I don’t know everything). I have recently been hired by an Off-Broadway show from behind the table as an ASM (Assistant Stage Manager if you’re a muggle). “The Show-Off” by George Kelly and starring the fabulous Annette O’Toole. It is by far one of the funniest shows I have seen in a long time by the way, so I highly recommend it, and it opens soon (shameless plug). But I have not worked with many big time names in the entertainment, just enough to write an article about the Do’s and Do Not’s of when working with a celebrity. Because there’s a pretty good chance you will if you work on Broadway – it’s one of the best ways to sell tickets; cast a star that people know.

When a piece of art is finished, it is easy to get hung up on the idea of that being exactly what is presented to the world. But, is this always for the best?

I was involved in a project earlier this year. We presented our project idea and were excited. However, as time went on, nothing was coming together. It got to two weeks before our showing and we didn’t have anything. So we started a brand new project. Which ended up miles better and engaging more people. Consequently, that is simultaneously the best and most stressful project I have ever been involved with.