It's just one of the perks.

Hi Friends,

First off for my two followers, you may have noticed that my blogsite is different to that I would just like to say.... I got bored. :)
Secondly, being a TAD has many rewards. One is having an impact on someone's life and potentially being a role model. It's always really cool when a kid comes running up to you with something urgent to say but when it comes down to it they're just seeking your approval or attention.
"Miss Jennifer! Miss Jennifer! Miss Jennifer!" etc
"Yes?"
(pause)
"Is your hair real?"
You can also insert the following: "You look like Ariel.", "I like your cowboy boots!", and "Break a leg!!!!!!"
Seeing the kids faces light up like that really makes me feel good. Last week was sooooo awesome! The kids got their script on Monday, learned their blocking on Tuesday, and could've performed on Wednesday...offbook. The kids in Stillwater, Oklahoma were so fun and talented, I def felt blessed to perform with them later that week. Ok, now that we got the REAL important stuff out of the way, now I can talk about what REALLY matters.

People give us free stuff.

Now when I say free stuff I don't mean things like pencils or cheesy refriderator stuff. I mean we get FREE STUFF! Last week Loretta and I got to enjoy some of the local food with no charge to us. One day after rehearsal our Contact, Stephanie took us out for dinner at Eskimo Joes. Our meal consisted of an appetizer of delicious cheesy fries, a yummy sandwich and quite possibly the best chocolate milkshake Fo Free! Plus I got to keep the cup that my sweet tea was in. Sweeeeeet! We also got a free meal at Jossepi's which was a local italian restaurant and I LOOOVE Italian food. After the shows on Saturday, one of the families who had kids in the show took us to Mexico Joes where I got this awesome Hawaiian Enchalada. Again it was FO FREE! Side note: I got to keep my cups from these places too. No more old Shoney cups at my house. Woot woot! As if that wasn't enough, our accompanist took Loretta and I to go see Annie at a local theatre at no cost to us. Then the day of the show comes around and we get free snacks in the greenroom, chocolate rice krispy treats from the "Chocolate Factory" that were the size (and weight) of a brick, bags of assorted lindour truffles, $20 giftcards to Sonic, Eskimo Joe keychains (I've been looking for a new keychain for a while since my Puerto-Rico one broke at training.), annnd an extra LARGE cup from Eskimo Joes. Incase you haven't guessed, Eskimo Joes is a big thing in Stillwater Oklahoma. Huge infact. I'm really glad that most hotels have a gym so I can run off all that food.

As hard as it was to say goodbye to our loving kids and sponsors, the parting gifts helped. :)
I'm shallow.
Hahah!

-Jen

I like to respond in ALL CAPS!

Hey friends!

Oh.

My.

STARS.

Sooooo much has happend that I don't even really know where to begin, but I shall try.

(ahem)

We had our first week of camp last week in Austin, Texas and it was CRAZY! We made a few mistakes but thankfully we had our trainer, Kepler, help us out but sadly he couldn't fix everything. At the auditions, Loretta and I both miscounted the number of Camelotians, Knights and Squires. We accidently cast 20 Knights and Squires rather than 12....whooOopsie! Oh and speaking of knights, I was incharge of who got what color knight; we have a blue knight, a red knight, a black knight etc. Welp. I possibly cast an actual black kid as a black knight. Big. Whoopsie. In my defense I honestly cast him as that character because the black knight is kind of a rockstar in my opinion and this kid acted it from the moment he walked into the audition room. It was very innocent and I gave him that role because he played it the best. It wasn't until later that I realized after I gave him that part, had rehearsal and realized what happend and HOW it might look. You just gotta laugh it off and just go with it.

Actually, Loretta, Kepler, and I had to do that A LOT last week. We weren't able to put up the set until the day of the show because the theatre had a concert the night before. Also the stage was extremely small so we could only put up the side walls of our set and they just barely fit. There was a scorpion in the dressing room sink. Come show day, the cast wasn't very (how can I put it?) dedicated so NO ONE knew their lines. It's one thing when your stressed about forgetting just your line onstage or tripping infront of everyone but its an entirely different, overwhelming feeling when you know that the ones your onstage with don't know their lines. Needless to say a few lines where dropped during the performance which shaved off about 15 mins. Did I mention that the one sound cue in the show the sound guy missed and left the 4-6 year olds onstage BY THEMSELVES waiting for their dance music to start for 3, thats right 3, minutes of silence? Thankfully we had an amazing accompaniest who made something up on the spot and the kids just went with it! What was really cool about this theatre other than the fact that it looked like a castle, was through the magic of technology the parents of some of the kids who are in the army over seas got to watch their kids perform. Way cool! Like I said, it was a CRAZY week. After the show we met up with some fellow TADs who were only an hour away for a night out on the town. We all went downtown for dinner (courtesy of Missoula Children's Theatre) and walked along the strip, it was a lot of fun. :)

Now Loretta and I are in Stillwater, Oklahoma, where it is sunny...most of the time. Haha! When its not sunny we're under "weather advisories". You know the usual TORNADO WATCH. Remember we're in Oklahoma. Our first night here we stayed at the Motel 6 which wasn't very accommodating unless you were a colony of bugs. Thankfully our Presenter hooked us up with these awesome rooms at the Microtel which just so happens to be 4 minutes away from the theatre. This place is SO nice. Its clean, bugless, has an outdoor pool, good looking hotel lobby guys, AND Panera Bread is right across the street.

It's the little things.

We also have an amazing cast this week! Each kid is so well behaved and talented. I have to up my game. I'm the "professional" and I fear that their making me look bad. These kids are so great and I'm constantly laughing and enjoying performing with them. It's funny, I feel like each week I'm gonna see at least one of my friends traits in a kid. Last week there was a kid that looked and acted just like my friend Alan. It was uncanny! I wanted to just hug him/take a picture but neither of those are allowed for MCT actors. LAME! This week our Merlin reminds me of Tyler and our Ghost reminds me of my other friend David. So far I feel like my friends and I are STILL acting together which warms my heart and makes me feel at home in so many ways.

Today a girl in the show, who happens to have a speech impediment and is kind of a loner told Loretta that we were her favorite team and that already this week she's had more fun then in past camps.

This is what it's all about, making a difference. When Loretta told me that, it completely put things in perspective for me. Yes travelling for hours and hours is tiring. Yes bugs are gross. YES, I miss my family and friends. However, this is why I'm here and it humbles me everyday and yet fills my heart with so much joy. Just like this little girl, many other kids are going to get their moment in the spotlight and feel like what they have to say is important because it IS important.

I have the best job in the world.

:)

The End

-Jen

PS: I counted 13 words in this blog that are ALL CAPS.

Dear Diary...

Hi Friends!

I haven't been able to keep you all posted on what’s going on here because there has been a lack of internet. Worsties. However, now is not one of those moments so I just wanted to fill you in on what’s going on here in Montana. Loretta and I have been keeping lists of things we did each day and calling said lists our "Diaries" so I'm only going to fill you in on some key points that have happened this week. I apologize ahead of time because this may be a rather long post.

May 30, 2011- June 9, 2011

-Took 3 flights to get to Missoula Montana but I met some fellow TADs (Tour Actor Directors) while waiting for the plane(s). Let the bonding begin! Got here and while waiting at the baggage claim I quickly realized that my luggage was not there. Turns out someone else just so happened to have a red suitcase with elephants on it JUST. LIKE. MINE and stole it! Whatever happened to plain black bags?

-Got to dorm and had "girl time" with Loretta which consisted of Ordering Pizza, Foosball, BUNK BEDS, walking to the store, and picking lilacs for our room.

-Stepped in poo.

-The lady who “stole” my luggage got home and realized that it wasn’t hers so she brought it back to me at the dorm with everything in it; a definite miracle from the Lord.

-Orientation, Tour of Theatre, Built Set, all before lunch!         

- Noodle Express for lunch! I never had it before and it was delish. :)

-Blocked 1/2 of the show, tried on costumes, lines, signed my Contract....EEEEEEEE! This is legit.

-Made more friends at dinner.

-Walked in the rain THEN got our truck which we locked ourselves in (not really but REALLY).

-Had a truck meeting followed by an "Image meeting".

-Went to Wal-Mart for snacks and when we got back to our dorm at midnight the fire alarm went off. We all then had to wait outside in the cold while we watched 3 fire trucks and police show up. Loretta and I  were prepared though, we brought snacks! She brought her chips and salsa and I brought Teddy Grahams which I haven't had in YEARS. Wonderful. :)

-Music Lessons, Blocked the rest of the show and learned choreography, then went for a brisk run around the Montana University which was beautiful with all the mountains. The sun stays up way past 10pm which is a little weird but a good weird. :)

-Had an English Muffin with strawberry jelly for breakfast. It's the little things that count.

-Ran through the show with other King Arthur TADS and we played all the roles which was so fun!

-It's offish...I have a core group of TAD friends. :)

-Ran through the show twice with TADs.

-Talked to my Dad on the phone.

-Loretta sang "Good Morning" from Singing in the Rain at the crack of dawn.  Nice.

-Line checks. OMG!

-Inventory of costume pieces. Loretta and I have 315 costume pieces in our show.

-Pita Pit for lunch. Again another place I never ate before and it was so good. I kept getting the name wrong, Pita Palace, Pita Place, Pita Express, were just a few of the things I thought it was called.

-Small world: My friends, Morgan and Ross, and I were talking about theatre and they just so happen to mention that they did summer stock in West Virginia. I then quickly realized that they worked at the theatre in Beckley with some good college buds of mine (Andy, David, and Patrick) and that I saw their show. Seriously, everyone knows EVERYONE in this business, it’s SO weird. Needless to say we talked about how much we loved those guys and shared stories. :)

-Talked to my Grandma on the phone.

-Teaching meeting after dinner from 6:30 to 10:00 but Loretta and I rewarded ourselves with some McD's and a dance party in our dorm and in the dorm hall. :)

-Bagel and cream cheese for breakfast.

-Loretta and I realized that boys want to kiss Loretta for her personality and me for my lip-gloss. HA!

-Practiced teaching King Arthur TADs the show pretending they were kids but some stayed in the teacher mode.  Rude.

-Lunch: Tacos. >:( If you didn’t already know, I’m not a fan of Mexican food but I can muster it if I have to.

-More practice teaching TADs as kids but these weren't King Arthur ones so that helped and we got a lot of good feedback from Dylan the Tour Director so that was good. :)

-Dinner with group of friends and I had 2 cookies. I deserved them.

-Workshop on how to run an MCT auditions for the kids.

-I HATE WAKING UP EARLY!

-Financial meeting, teaching acting workshops with Don and Michelle. My friends and I have been playing a little game during these workshops/meetings because certain people have been asking the same questions or the answer to their questions has already been answered. Not really mature but it helps us stay awake in the early mornings. One day a girl asked 20 questions in the time span of 10 am-12pm. No. Lie.

-Meetings, Lunch, meetings, dinner, meeting followed by a Pep Talk from our Tour Director about how we really do make a difference in kids lives. Tears were shed.

-Meeting with Don and Michelle followed by makeup and acting workshops.

-Jimmie Johns for lunch. Seriously my world of lunches has expanded so much and I haven't even left Montana yet! No more Subway for this gill.

-Worked on lines, workshops, Theatre games to teach the kids, PAC workshops, another truck workshop, this last one had pictures!

-More rain.

-Workshops about the website, schedules, presenters, music lessons, presenter's info, script box, THEN a Harassment meeting so we’ll be prepared.

-There was blackberry cobbler for dessert at the University, not like Dad's. :(

-Talked to Dad on the phone again. :)

-Military Bases, Merchandise, T-shirts and Tech workshops all morning.

-Cookout which was brought inside because of the rain but it was still fun.

-Team building games and then Abuse Awareness workshops. Taught REAL kids that are locals here in town which was a great way to follow up the Abuse Awareness meeting. :(

-Dinner with friends and then we watched "The Little Red Truck" movie in the theatre and it was sooo fun! Loretta, Carrie, Casey and I went to a local ice-cream place called the "Big Dipper" and then met up with some friends since it was their last night before they left early in the morning. It was nice to hang out with people without the stress.

-On the way back to the school I got lost and made a U-turn and BEFORE I was completely turned around I realized whoops this is a one-way. At that EXACT moment a cop who was incognito pulled me over. THANKFULLY he understood that I was lost and surrounded by one-ways and construction, so he only gave me a "warning" THANK GOD!

-The last day of training was more relaxing for Loretta and I. We had done our teaching practice the day before so we only had to observe others and take notes. We spent the day mostly getting little but important things done like picking up cds and dvds, t-shirts, and working on lesson plans for the kids this coming week. Thats right, THIS COMING WEEK! Oh my stars so much to do! Meals were kind of sad because Loretta and I missed Casey and Carrie who left that morning but we got to talk to fellow TADs and get on the internet. Before we all leave the Theatre through us all an ice-cream party. It was so fun and nice to say "Goodbye" to everyone before we left. I also won a giftcard from Big Dipper! Don't know how that happend but I'm looking forward to some more Huckleberry ice-cream when I get back.

                                                     What a way to start off a roadtrip!

OK! You’re now all caught up! If you read all that I am impressed. You can tell I've been a bit busy so hopefully my next blog won't be this long and detailed. Thanks for reading and being a true friend. :)

-Jen

Rearview Mirrors and Gas Pedals

     It's the night before I leave and I should actually be asleep since we're leaving for the airport in a matter of hours. The crack of dawn to be exact and I just can't sleep. I feel like I'm in Elementary School and the next day is "Cheerleader for a day" at the school.  The Varsity Cheerleaders would have one day in the summer where all us little girls came in (pom-poms in hand) ready to learn cheers and stunts. It was SO fun! The only thing thats different is this new job isn't for a day but for a whole year!

   As excited as I am, I also feel a little bit scared and sad. I'm just in a cage of emotion. Ha! The reason why I'm scared is because I've never really been away from home. Sure I've gone on trips but  I always knew I'd be back home in a couple of days. This is different. I won't be able to see my family until November. This is going to be so difficult because my Dad and I have such a close relationship. We discuss so many things and he has been there for me with a loving hug through EVERYTHING. It's gonna be weird not seeing him everyday. It'll probably hit me tomorrow night and I won't be able to say "Goodnight" to him.
I'm really going to miss him.

     I'm also going to miss my friends. Let me tell you something; I have the absolute BEST group of friends. You think yours are better? Well....your wrong. Throughout this weekend I have been biding farewells lots of my friends here in town but last night was aweful! Some of my friends and I had just come back from a wedding where we laughed, danced, sang in the car, and laughed some more. As I was leaving it started to hit me that I won't be able to see them for awhile and yet I still feel like I'm going to see them tomorrow. This whole thing feels very surreal. What will probably happen is while I'm teaching the kids, I'll see two girl best friends giggling and holding hands, then I'll probably start sobbing. The ugly cry at that. I've always had a hard time losing people, you know friendships or relationships when they change but whats nice about this is I'm not actually "losing" anyone. Yes it will be hard not seeing my family and friends everyday but that doesn't change our love for one another. Cheesy I know but its true. Nicholas Sparks once wrote, " The reason it hurts so much is because our souls are connected. Maybe they always have been and will be." My family and friends have impacted my life so much and in so many ways so saying "Goodbye" to them is extremely difficult to comprehend.

     So yes, I am sad but that feeling gets equalled out with my overall excitement. I can't wait to actually meet my tour partner, make some more friends, and see what the Lord has instore for me this year. I pray that I will be able to and have the strength to pursue Him and His will this year. I know that throughout the year I'm going to be looking back and missing a lot of people at home, there's no question about that. However, my foot is on the gas pedal and I'm ready to go.

 -Jen

Blog #1

Hello?

Hi. I've never done this sort of thing. Virgin. I'm not a writer at all. I've written papers when I was in school and in the past have tried to keep up with diaries but I always hate what I write. In the moment I feel like I'm being poetic or deep, then I go back and read what I wrote and it always sounds stupid/dramatic. Worsties. Thank goodness this isn't a diary! I wanted to start a blog so I could "document" my adventures for this coming year, it's gonna be a good one.

Let me start off with a little bit about myself, cheesy I know but this IS kind of an introduction blog so don't judge me. My name is Jennifer and I am an actress. (This is where you say "Hi Jennifer" just like you were at an A.A. meeting) In May 2010 I graduated from Liberty University with a BA in Musical Theatre and Acting and since then I have been auditioning in New York, for Cruise ships, and Disney. It's already been an exciting year! Well this past February one of my Best Gills and I went to an audition in Tennessee. (Thats right I said "Gill", it's "Girl" without the "R". My friends and I refer to ourselves as Gills. The reason being is because the main gill named Allison decided a long time ago that words are just betta without the "R's" and she was right.) Anyways the audition was intense! Each person had 90 seconds to perform a song, monologue or whatever they wanted infront of about a hundred theatre companies. Like I said, it was intense but so much fun! Well to make a long story short, I got a professional theatre job!

Starting May 31st, I will working for the Missoula Children's Theatre in Montana as an Actor/Director. On May 30th I will be traveling up to Missoula, Montana, thanks to three very long flights. Its gonna be nuts! Oh but I'm not done yet. Once I arrive, me and a few fellow MCT performers will go through training for about two weeks and then we hit the road. I'm mostly going to be in Texas this summer with other stops in Kansas, Arizona, and Oklahoma. I got my boots already to go! Then we get our schedule for the Fall and I have no clue where I'll be then. I guess you'll just have to keep up with my blog to find out. ;D

So traveling is key for this job but thats not it. My partner ( who seems super nice!)  and I have to teach about 60-80 kids a musical in less than a week! Here's our schedule: Sunday we drive to our new destination, (Do you get the title of my Blog now? Ha!) Monday we hold auditions for the kids, Tuesday-Friday are rehearsals, workshops, and good times, and finally Saturday is performance day. Crazy right?!?! I'm stoked! The show we're doing is "King Arthur's Quest". My partner and I get to play the Keeper of the Keep, the Giant, and the Dragon which means we switch off every show. One week she performs onstage with the kids while I direct and then vise versa the next week. Its a lot to take in but I'm SO excited! This is just such a great opportunity to really make a difference in the lives of some kids who may just need to explore their creativity or need a friend. I just hope the kids at school like me. Maybe we can trade puddings at lunch?
-Jen