hello!
So it's been far to long since my last update. Sorry :( I'm a terrible person :(. I'll try to make this short and sweet (there has been a lot going on) :)
I went to the National Theatre to see The Cherry Orchard. It was pretty good, although I believe the stage was way to big to play Chekhov. Not to be a Debbie Downer, the set was AMAZING. It was so beautiful!!! In act 1 it was just a regular house...act 2the house split in half and opened backwards to reveal a riverside. VERY COOl. and then the set returned to the house. Quite neato. I did have some problems with the lighting however, instead of having the "sunlight" naturally build up through the windows, it would sometimes snap on in the middle of a scene. Perhaps it was the lightboard, (I know I've had some problems with doll's houses' lightboard). . . The acting was good. During the most powerful scene (the last one) somebody's cell phone went off in the audience, and I WAS FURIOUS. YOU ARE AT THE NATIONAL THEATRE. at least have the brain power to put it on silent. :(. Note to everybody who walks on Earth. Put turn your phone off when entering the theatre. or the wrath of me will come down upon you. and your children. for all of time. :D
The past few weeks I've visited Camden Market, Borough Market, and Portabello Market. and I bought a teapot (weird I know, but I couldn't resist). Yes it is purple, and I got it from Alice's, a well known antique shop at Portabello Market. It is soooo cool!!!!
On Sunday (July 17th?) I went to go see All's Well that End's Well at the Globe. It was hilarious!!!! If anybody gets the chance to see it, please do!!! Definitely worth it. I stood in the yard, and it began to rain, and I really felt like a commoner. The rain didn't dampen my spirits though! At the top of the show, the characters come out to talk to the audience. One (who was playing Diana) came to talk to me. She seemed happy that I was a SM major, and was enjoying my time in London. :D. At the end of the show, the actors do a court dance, but they added a bit of the chicken dance for a modern twist. It was very well received by the audience.
Last Friday (the 15th) me and some of my friends went to Windsor. We didn't want to spend all day in line for the castle, and fork out who-knows-how-many pounds, so we just walked around the small town. As we were walking, we stumbled across a BEAUTIFUL park. It reminded us all of a scene from Jane Austen. (and yes, we are all fanatics). When we returned we went to go see HP 7 part 2. and yes. it was worth it. :D.
On Saturday (the same day I went to Portabello Market), I toured the Tower of London. Very cool. A bit on the touristy side, but definitely worth it. I learned a lot about the history behind the tower, and what went on behind the dreaded walls.
For class, we had to go to an vegetarian Indian restaurant. The food was so good!!! They served us a pancake type thing filled with potatoes, and a tortilla dish. The class was split into tables of 4, and our professor sat with me, Jill, and Tim. When the waiter came to serve our waters, Tim accidentally spilled his water on our professor. The professor seemed so angry!!!!! and of course, knowing me, I just laughed and laughed and laughed. :D :D :D
This past week I've been ill, so I haven't been doing a lot, unfortunately. I did, however, get the chance to go to Westminister Abbey. A big tourist attraction, but worth the queue. I saw several resting places of important people, including, but not limited to: Aphra Behn, Q. Eliz 1, Q. Mary 1, Mary, Q. of Scots, Handle...the list goes on and on...
More later!
Friday, July 22, 2011
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Another Update!
I hope everybody's 4th was great! Mine was fun, considering I was out of the country. :D. My friends and I went to a bowling alley, and then a pub that played American Music. It was fun.
Here is some more cool news from me:
I saw Kiera Knightly. Yup. Saw. Her. She was in the Arcola Pub (The pub connected to the theatre that Doll's House is in), with her friends. I was busy painting the floor late that night, and when I went out to wash my paintbrush out, I glanced over, and THERE SHE WAS. Unfortunatly I didn't get the chance to talk to her (I didn't want to sound dumb, or bring unwanted attention to her), but all the same, there she was.
We hired a Deputy Stage Manager for Doll's House. She basically ran load in (when we get into the theatre), and called the show for us. Unfortuantely she isn't working for us now, but I did learn a lot from her. She had worked on Mary Poppins, and Les Mis, as well as Cirque de Solei. On Saturday, when she was done, I was asked to call Doll's House, and did so. QUITE EXCITING. and nerve-wracking... It went well!
I now have a girl from Spain living with us. She is younger (16), and is studying in London to improve her English. I'm not entirely sure what happened to the Japanese student we had here a few days ago...Perhaps she had to go home? Anywho, this girl is cute, smart, and fun. I feel like an older sister to her...
The tour of Parliament was great (sorry it has taken so long). Our guide, Jeff, works in the House of Lords and gives tours for fun twice a week. He had so many interesting stories about Parliament. For example, the Queen, when coming to give her yearly address to Parliament has to cross an entry way to her changing room from the outside. This has always been done by previous monarchs. This entry way, however, has been used to kidnap the monarch previously (I'm not sure which one), so in order to prevent that from happening, a member of Parliament (selected at random) is taken to Buckingham Palace as a hostage. If anything should happen to the monarch, that member of Parliament is killed on the spot. This started (I believe in the 1700s) and is still going on today. Although I was unable to take pictures of the inside of Parliament, I was able to get photos of the original hall (built over 900 years ago).
I went to Camden Market today!!!! I had to work a light board for a show (the original LBO was double booked and asked me to help her out), and the venue was in Camden. I went early to see the market, and got some comfortable pants and a jumper dress/skirt thingy. Quite excited to wear them in the States! The market was HUGE. I don't think I saw even 1/2 of what they had to offer (even on a Tuesday). The most popular thing to sell was women's dresses, t-shirts, and souvenirs.
I'm definitely thinking about coming back and living here once I graduate from Viterbo....I REALLY REALLY REALLY love it here. I'll definitely be sad to go!
Here is some more cool news from me:
I saw Kiera Knightly. Yup. Saw. Her. She was in the Arcola Pub (The pub connected to the theatre that Doll's House is in), with her friends. I was busy painting the floor late that night, and when I went out to wash my paintbrush out, I glanced over, and THERE SHE WAS. Unfortunatly I didn't get the chance to talk to her (I didn't want to sound dumb, or bring unwanted attention to her), but all the same, there she was.
We hired a Deputy Stage Manager for Doll's House. She basically ran load in (when we get into the theatre), and called the show for us. Unfortuantely she isn't working for us now, but I did learn a lot from her. She had worked on Mary Poppins, and Les Mis, as well as Cirque de Solei. On Saturday, when she was done, I was asked to call Doll's House, and did so. QUITE EXCITING. and nerve-wracking... It went well!
I now have a girl from Spain living with us. She is younger (16), and is studying in London to improve her English. I'm not entirely sure what happened to the Japanese student we had here a few days ago...Perhaps she had to go home? Anywho, this girl is cute, smart, and fun. I feel like an older sister to her...
The tour of Parliament was great (sorry it has taken so long). Our guide, Jeff, works in the House of Lords and gives tours for fun twice a week. He had so many interesting stories about Parliament. For example, the Queen, when coming to give her yearly address to Parliament has to cross an entry way to her changing room from the outside. This has always been done by previous monarchs. This entry way, however, has been used to kidnap the monarch previously (I'm not sure which one), so in order to prevent that from happening, a member of Parliament (selected at random) is taken to Buckingham Palace as a hostage. If anything should happen to the monarch, that member of Parliament is killed on the spot. This started (I believe in the 1700s) and is still going on today. Although I was unable to take pictures of the inside of Parliament, I was able to get photos of the original hall (built over 900 years ago).
I went to Camden Market today!!!! I had to work a light board for a show (the original LBO was double booked and asked me to help her out), and the venue was in Camden. I went early to see the market, and got some comfortable pants and a jumper dress/skirt thingy. Quite excited to wear them in the States! The market was HUGE. I don't think I saw even 1/2 of what they had to offer (even on a Tuesday). The most popular thing to sell was women's dresses, t-shirts, and souvenirs.
I'm definitely thinking about coming back and living here once I graduate from Viterbo....I REALLY REALLY REALLY love it here. I'll definitely be sad to go!
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Sorry it's been so long!
Hello Hello!
Im in the program for Doll's House. I didn't think I was going to make it, and was completely fine with not having it be there, but when I looked, I was listed as the Stage Manager!!!! So excited.
The other day, my director asked me to find Flamebar (a chemical to help fabric not catch on fire) and I asked her where we were going to get that in two days. Then I remembered where we were. :D On Saturday, I found the Flamebar, and dropped it off.
I got the opportunity to see Dr Foust at the Globe. Although there were some mistakes, it was very good. A great first Globe show!! After the actual show, the actors came out with red, skeleton dolls. They danced, and sang. They would be creepy if they weren't so cute! I do think that we (Grant and I) were sitting by assistant directors or assistant stage managers. They had Dr. Foust scripts out, and were furiously scribbling away in the. We believe it must've been the preview shows, because of the assistant's reactions.
Grant, (somebody I've known since highschool, for those who don't know him) is here in London getting his doctorate in theatre. He showed me the rail services here, and they are AH-MAZING!!! fantastic. They are so much cleaner, faster, and not as crowded as the tube. They also take about a half hour off my journey each day. :D. I'm using them all the time now!
At work the other day, I got to know Alexia, a girl who is interning (like me) but is from France. She is very cool, and quite fun. She's trying to improve her English, and the other day I taught her what "bellybutton" and "Sibling" was. She taught me that the French say "oi" instead of "ouch." Perhaps I'll learn more French phrases. :D
The other day, I went to the British Library. There, they had a special exhibition showing old manuscripts. I was able to see Beethoven's original manuscripts, parts of the Magna Carta, and a roll from King Henry VIII's prayer book. No pictures were allowed, unfortunately. :(
I'll try to update more! Hope all is well at home!
Im in the program for Doll's House. I didn't think I was going to make it, and was completely fine with not having it be there, but when I looked, I was listed as the Stage Manager!!!! So excited.
The other day, my director asked me to find Flamebar (a chemical to help fabric not catch on fire) and I asked her where we were going to get that in two days. Then I remembered where we were. :D On Saturday, I found the Flamebar, and dropped it off.
I got the opportunity to see Dr Foust at the Globe. Although there were some mistakes, it was very good. A great first Globe show!! After the actual show, the actors came out with red, skeleton dolls. They danced, and sang. They would be creepy if they weren't so cute! I do think that we (Grant and I) were sitting by assistant directors or assistant stage managers. They had Dr. Foust scripts out, and were furiously scribbling away in the. We believe it must've been the preview shows, because of the assistant's reactions.
Grant, (somebody I've known since highschool, for those who don't know him) is here in London getting his doctorate in theatre. He showed me the rail services here, and they are AH-MAZING!!! fantastic. They are so much cleaner, faster, and not as crowded as the tube. They also take about a half hour off my journey each day. :D. I'm using them all the time now!
At work the other day, I got to know Alexia, a girl who is interning (like me) but is from France. She is very cool, and quite fun. She's trying to improve her English, and the other day I taught her what "bellybutton" and "Sibling" was. She taught me that the French say "oi" instead of "ouch." Perhaps I'll learn more French phrases. :D
The other day, I went to the British Library. There, they had a special exhibition showing old manuscripts. I was able to see Beethoven's original manuscripts, parts of the Magna Carta, and a roll from King Henry VIII's prayer book. No pictures were allowed, unfortunately. :(
I'll try to update more! Hope all is well at home!
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