Celebrity Constellation...final week of rehearsals

This is the last week for the cast of the Celebrity Constellation to be here in rehearsal so this week they are doing their final run-throughs. There are several cast members who I have worked with in other casts. It was fun to cheer them on today.

Stefanie Schapker

Tracey Applebee and Remy Papworth perform a little Fosse

Matt Morgan and Stefanie (Matt was in my Infinity cast last fall-he just got off the ship a couple of weeks ago and is going back out with this cast. Go MATT!)

Jeremy Hardy (Jeremy was in my Infinity cast a year ago)

One of my favorite numbers in their Broadway show is "Our Favorite Son" from Will Rogers' Follies. What a fun song! It's even better with the red white and blue costumes. Kenny Packer is the singer.

Return to the Jedi

After a long road trip home, I arrived in time to have some great play time before bed...including water fights outside, chase, lots of tickles, and a little bit of the "Home" show.

After the kids were asleep I went in to check on them and saw this...

Sam loves his Star Wars pillow (now, this is not a Pottery Barn new edition...it's actually an original! It was mine when I was a kid). Sam looked so cute and went to sleep with his light saber in his grip. My little Jedi...who insists on sleeping on the floor of the girls' room instead of in his own room, in his own bed. He's afraid he'll miss something important. He is so me.

It's great to be home with Sheryl and the kids. I am also very excited to meet Miss Ellis Berry. Jeff and Anna had a little girl on Friday. Everyone else in the family has seen her but tonight I will get to meet her for the first time. I can't wait!

Have a great week, blog family.

Destin

I've been in Destin all weekend for the Destin Charity Wine Auction. The weather was perfect and it was a really neat event. I'm excited to be home...will be there for the next 5 weekends! YAY!

The white sand of Destin has always been dreamy to me. It looks like someone dumped sugar out all over the beach. I love it!!

Here are some pictures from the event tonight.

I met some really nice people tonight and wondered HOW I could figure out a way to live in Destin forever. What an amazingly beautiful city! They raised almost $530,000 for charity tonight. That is AWESOME!

London, Chicago Auditions for NCL JADE

Casting Breakdown

Norwegian Cruise Line JADE Production Cast

Singer/Actors for “Smokey Joe’s Café*” and “Shout”
Dancers for a new show*

*directed & choreographed by Patricia Wilcox

Singer/actor Minimum pay $800/wk; includes travel, room, board & transportation
Dancer pay $700/wk; includes travel room, board & transportation.

Six week rehearsal period and six month contract; rehearsals begin approximately July 13.

General Manager: Gary Musick Productions
Contact: Mindy Johnson McLemore

Track Breakdown below and at www.garymusick.com/jadeauditions.html

Singers should prepare a selection of sheet music in the style of one of the above shows. An accompanist will be provided. No CD’s with tracks please.

New York City Auditions
Ripley Grier Studios; 520 8th Ave

Tuesday April 14—Dancers
9:30am registration
10am to 3pm Open Call
4pm Callbacks

Wednesday April 15—Singer (open call)
9:30am registration
10am to 5pm Open Call

Thursday April 16—Singers, agent appointments
Agent submissions only
For appointments contact Gary Musick Productions
615/259-2400 or auditions@garymusick.com

Friday April 17—Singer callbacks
10am-5pm
Be prepared to move

London Auditions
Pineapple Studios; 7 Langley Street, Covent Garden

Monday April 27—Dancers
9:30am registration
10am to 3pm Open Call
4pm Callbacks

Tuesday April 28—Singer
9:30am registration
10am to 2pm Open Call
2pm to 6pm Agent submissions only

Appointments will be for agent submissions only.
For agent appointments, contact Gary Musick Productions
615/259-2400 or auditions@garymusick.com

Wednesday April 29—Singer callbacks
10am-5pm
Be prepared to move

Chicago Auditions
Lou Conte Studios; 1147 W Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, IL 60607

Thursday May 7—Dancers and Singer/Actors
9:30am dancer registration
10am to 1pm Open Call
12:30pm singer registration
1pm to 5pm Open call and agent appointments*

Friday May 8—Singer and Dancer callbacks
10am-5pm
Singers: Be prepared to move

Appointments for Agent submissions only
For appointments contact Gary Musick Productions
615/259-2400 or auditions@garymusick.com




TRACK BREAKDOWN:

SHOUT! THE MOD MUSICAL - CHARACTER BREAKDOWN

BLUE GIRL: 25-30. low Bb to High C, with a high soprano belt
Blue is sophisticated, poised, cool, and aloof. A blue-blooded fashion model
Don’t Sleep in the Subway, You’re My World

GREEN GIRL: 35-40. Mezzo with a big belt.
She is a good-time girl. Bluesy, middle-class, and zany, she is a bit frayed at the edges, and hopelessly single. A comedian is needed.
Goldfinger, I Couldn’t Live Without Your Love

ORANGE GIRL: 33-37. Soprano with belt -- low Bb to High Bb.
The mother of the group. Orange is domestic and maternal, wise, soulful, and mature. She is slowly asserting her new-found independence.
Wishin’ & Hopin’, You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me, All I See Is You

RED GIRL: 20-27. Soprano with belt -- low Bb to High C.
The baby of the group, Red is quirky, enthusiastic, and naïve. A hopeless romantic, she is insecure about her looks.
How Can You Tell, To Sir With Love, Those Were The Days

YELLOW GIRL: 25-30. Alto with big rock diva belt -- F below mid C to belt Eb.
Yellow is an uninhibited and brash American. She is a ray of sunshine with a surprising vulnerability.
Son of a Preacher Man, Shout


SMOKEY JOE’S CAFE - CHARCTER BREAKDOWN

DeLee – Alto - G below middle C – E.
Sexy, strong dance ability (shimmy girl), youthful
Caucasian
Falling, Trouble, I’m A Woman

Patti – Alto - G below middle C - E.
Blues ability, gutsy, strong and confident
Caucasian
Kansas City, I Keep Forgettin’, Pear’s A Singer, I’m A Woman

Brenda - Alto - A below middle C - E.
Sassy, sexy
African-American
Don Juan, You’re the Boss, I’m A Woman

BJ – Alto - G below middle C - E.
Gospel, soulful quality, earthy
African-American
Fools Fall in Love, Kansas City, Saved, Hound Dog, I’m A Woman

Michael – High Tenor - Bb above middle C.
Elvis Type, sexy, strong dance ability
Caucasian
Ruby Baby, Kansas City, Teach Me How To Shimmy, Jailhouse Rock

Adrian – High Tenor - Bb above middle C.
Soulful, confident, charming
African-American
Young Blood, There Goes My Baby, Stand By Me, On Broadway

Ken – Tenor - G above middle C.
Fun, mischievous
African-American
Dance with Me, Poison Ivy, On Broadway

Fred – Baritone - E above middle C.
Mature, lovable
African-American
You’re the Boss, Stay A While, On Broadway

Victor – Tenor - Bb above middle C.
Young, comical, playful
African-American


New Show - CHARACTER BREAKDOWN

DANCERS—seeking male and female dancers for a new show. Dancers must be technically strong; versatility a must. Acro a plus but not necessary. Women bring flats and character shoes. No singing required. Seeking all ethnicities.
Director/choreographer: Patricia Wilcox

Jeff and Denise...Nease

Congratulations to Jeff Nease and Denise Hoey who were joined in marriage on Saturday at the Hermitage Hotel in downtown Nashville. It was such a special night! It was fun to have some of our Gary Musick performers there too.

Jeff, me, Denise, Sheryl

Jeff and Denise

Denise, Katelyn and Jeff

Sheryl and I pose with some of our performers...Katelyn, Taryn and Joelle

Congratulations to you, Jeff and Denise! It was a beautiful night!

Things That Make You Go Hmmmm

The wedding last night was BEAUTIFUL! Denise looked incredible and everything was just perfect. We had a blast dancing at the reception and seeing lots of friends. It was an odd collision of all my worlds. I performed the ceremony but it was full of performers from all over. I really enjoyed it because I really love Denise and Jeff and I believe God brought them together.

Now, back to the title of this blog post...

Maddie loves playing "concentration"...a card game that exercises your memory muscles. I am trying to figure out her strategy. She is freakishly good at it. And she told me yesterday that if she thinks real hard her eyes can see what's on the other side of the card. Um...ahem. So, I said, "Prove it." And...she did...like 12 times. She's got some system...and it's my goal to figure it out. (She TOTALLY got my competitive gene). The girl beats me hard--every time.

For the last week there has been a chorus of birds that began their arias around 4am- right outside our bedroom window. Yesterday I mentioned that it made me want to join the NRA and I had fantasies about 4:30am of strangling each little precious bird. God help me. I'm pretty sure the birds overheard our conversation because, for no reason, this morning there was silence. Ahhhhhh.

This morning Michael Easley continued the series at Fellowship on 1 Thessalonians. He taught today from chapter 4. I've always thought that was a curious little chapter. After my father died, I read it over and over. I'm curious to see what your thoughts are on it. Anyone wanna step out there? Michael offered several different theological viewpoints and then shared his leaning. Interesting.

And, finally...(get your tomatoes ready to throw at me)...this whole Susan Boyle thing. Well...it's a phenomenon for sure. I've heard people say it's the most inspiring thing they've ever seen. Some have said it's because she has faced so many trials in her life and now is getting her just reward. It IS inspiring to hear what she has been through...her selflessness in the face of great difficulty. I can't imagine that anyone would ever discount her heart and precious spirit. But, after the 100th time I got an email saying it was the best thing they'd ever seen... I have to say (and no offense)...but her voice makes me go hmmmm. I totally get the inspiring story and the emotional impact of that. But I don't get the voice. Am I crazy?? (wait..that's a rhetorical question.)

Gary Musick Open House

This week we had a big open house at Gary Musick Productions. We invited our corporate and entertainment related clients. The office got a face lift and the warehouse was decked out with some of our new scenic package productions...

The conference room looks great!

Part of our Hollywood package

some examples of Styrofoam carving

Our giant instruments are popular in Nashville

part of the Hollywood package

One of our business sets that we call "Curves" complete with changing LED lighting

part of our contemporary club set

It's been a long week but a great week! I am excited for the weekend. I am in a wedding tonight. Jeff Nease (comedian on ships and in land shows) and Denise Hoey (singer and co-worker) are getting married at the historic Hermitage Hotel today. The best part is..Denise Hoey is becoming Denise Nease. Gotta love that! Congratulations, Jeff and Denise!

Big Week

It's a big week for us here at Gary Musick Productions. Yesterday we produced the scenic work for the MPI meeting at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. Since someone from Disney was speaking we created an "Animal Kingdom" environment. It was awesome!

We're also having a huge open house tonight for all our corporate and entertainment clients. It should be fun.

Here's our new logo...unveiled this week. Also-some pics from the MPI event yesterday!

Don England (MPI President and Business Development Director at Gary Musick, Gary Musick, and me)

Bird's eye view (the meeting was set onstage)

Don

These animals were all carved out of Styrofoam by our artists at Gary Musick.

Don and some of our MPI buddies along with the main speaker from Disney.

Infinity NEW cast

The new cast has been going through the gruelling work of putting up all their shows out on the Infinity. They were in great shape by the time I got out there to help. Such a strong cast! So much fun! I was so proud of them!

The pictures and clips below are from one of our shows called "Celebrate the World". It will at least give you an idea of what the show is like. It's a beautiful show!

"One Vision"

"Paris"...Aaron, Laura, and Eric

Laura sings "I Love Paris"


Mark sings Nessun Dorma

Mark sings Nessun Dorma

Love these costumes during the Venetian section

Funiculi

Eric sings in the Irish section

China (Stacey)

Country Section "Betty"

Country section "Let 'er Rip"

Aaron sings "Rio"

Backstage--happy campers

Emma, Aaron, Laura, Mark and me

The singers and me

The cast on formal night

Aaron Colby, Jenn Cloer and me (Aaron and Jenn kept me sane. Jenn is the choreographer-amazing! Her husband, Travis Cloer, used to be a singer for us but is now starring in Jersey Boys in Vegas and is incredible. If you're there, don't miss the show.)

I took some video during one of the costume runs but we didn't have spotlights that night so some of it is dark. Also, aerialists didn't perform that night--always beautiful!

Funiculi Funicula

Nessun Dorma

Nessun Dorma reprise (the money notes!)

Irish section...love this part!

China (there are also aerialists flying during this song but they didn't during this costume run)

Kalinka--Russia section

Kunya Sobe

Rio

This cast is going to be wildly successful out there. I love so many of them! Have a great opening week, guys! Break a leg!!