dream big

news article

2010-04-24T06:26:00.000-07:00

my friend nicole sheahan writes for the 'mormon times' and just published this article (http://mormontimes.com/mormon_voices/nicole_sheahan/?id=14513) about some of my adventures.

thanks, nicole!

auriables

2010-04-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

in toronto i was in the habit of baking treats for the cast every so often.

one of the cast favorites was home-made oreo balls.

or, as i have officially re-named them in honor of my dear friend claire george, 'auriables'.

i happened to smuggle some cream cheese on board last time we were in the states and made some auriables for the cast as a transatlantic surprise.

here's where they hid...

mmm... auriables.

you ought to be in pictures...

2010-04-24T04:55:00.000-07:00

bought this bad boy in st. maarten.

i'm having the best time taking photos of europe...

capturing moments in time, the faces of friends and beautiful things.

here are a few recents...

{bicicletas en barcelona}

{daddy/daughter moment at the bus stop in gibraltar}

{my gorgeous friend 't' in gibraltar, u.k.}

{cutie little rolie polie man shootin' the breeze in cadiz, spain}

{darling ocean-view, open-air cafe in madeira, funchal (portugal)}

{nueva cathedral in cadiz, spain}

{ toothless little gummy bear i caught smiling at me on the street in barcelona}

{geometrics in barcelona}

{rock of gibraltar}

{candid munchkins in gibraltar, u.k.}

{columbus circle in barcelona, spain}

ambiancefulness

2010-04-23T05:58:00.000-07:00

i'd forgotten how charmingly quaint everything is in europe

from the cobble stone to the side-street cafes and the minis whizzing by on the small, windy roads.

it's all so ambiancefully picturesque.

i'd forgotten how at home i feel here.

granted, all of these cities are new to me, but all the little details of europe-ness are just as i remember them.

european adventureland

2010-04-23T05:44:00.000-07:00

well, we did it.

we officially survived 6 sea days in a row!!

it was nice to have some extra time to work on projects and catch up on sleep. and by catching up on sleep, i mean forcing our bodies to deal with the fact that we were losing an hour on our clocks every night.

does the term 'jet lag' apply here or would we call it 'sea lag' in this case?

katie and i woke up early, as we pulled into portugal, to watch the lights of europe come into view.

it was gorgeous.

already this week has been glorious, with too many incandescently happy/beautiful moments to put onto paper.

adventures so far have included...

cable cars (with full ariel view of gorgeous european cities)

a madeiran flower festival parade

tobogganing down a mountain

being chased by a monkey

catching a glimpse of africa from the rock of gibralter in the u.k.

authentic spanish flamingo dancing in concert

spending time with beautiful people.

be careful what you wish for...

2010-04-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

on my dream board last summer, I had a section full of pictures of places that I wanted to visit around the world. it was quite the random assortment of countries... spanning from russia and italy to africa and the caribbean.

little did i know, at the time, that in my near future awaited the cruise contract of a lifetime. a contract that would take me to just about every single one of those random countries. not only that, but a contract that would let me fulfill a lifetime dream of mine (being a disney princess) while make little one's dreams come true every day.

now that is nothing short of amazing.

i really believe that all we have to do is dream big, believe in those dreams and allow them (by our belief) to come effortlessly into fruition.

many times, God's (the universe, or what have you) dreams for us are often greater than the dreams we have for ourselves, so He'll add in a little bonus here and there.

may these be the first of a lifetime full of dreams come true.

dream big!

and be careful what you wish for... 'cause you just might get it.

t-minus 7

2010-04-04T14:21:00.001-07:00

the count-down has officially begun. 7 days from now i will be sailing across the atlantic, headed towards the adventure of a life-time. a few nights ago we had an hr meeting detailing our ports of call; what to do, sights to see, food to taste.

i can sum that up in about ten words...

tower of pisa

freshly-made margarita pizza

tobogganing in madeira

...among other ridiculous things.

now that rehearsals have significantly died down, life does NOT suck. (emphasis on the 'not')

here is a little photo over-view of the past couple of weeks...

(a gorgeous day in st. maarten)

a starfish (the size of my face) that dad and i found on castaway cay (disney's private island)

with t, my wife and mosef on an excursion to st. john

snorkeling with k dub in st. john

my daddy came to visit. we had the BEST time. long talks, walks on the beach, introducing him to life on the magic.

love you, d!

a few of us went to lunch in st. thomas. this was our view from the cafe.

disney magic ambiancefulness (TM)

the cutest ship in the caribbean

voguing with my hotties (jto, andrew and lk) at our opening night party for villains

villains!!

2010-03-21T12:49:00.001-07:00

this tuesday we will soft-open jeff bowen and hunter bell's disney original musical "villains"!!!

we've been working so hard for so long and teching our brains out these past two weeks. we can't wait to perform for an audience this tuesday.

i feel so privileged to work on such an amazing new show with such an amazing cast and creative team.

here's a sneak peak from our photoshoot the other day...

pain and panic

disco doggy diva (from project cruella)

"villains tonight!"

adventures of the twins continue....

2010-03-21T12:36:00.000-07:00

last week this dude came to sail with me

my twin and i always have epic adventures together, and this week was no exception. lets just say that our adventures included: a free upgrade to a stateroom, invitations to the officer's lounge as well as sessions, a free trip to disney world, riding around florida (in style) in this bad boy...

running out of gas, riding in the back of a police car and making friends with sharon...

fine dining...

plenty of tropical moments...

making memories with my M24 family (rue paul's drag race pizza party)...

and experiencing my disney life with me...

...'cause that's how we roll. i love you, benj!!! i'm so proud of you and i can't wait for our future adventures together!!!

my cozy little nook...

2010-03-21T12:21:00.001-07:00

i decided that if i'm going to be living in my little cabin for 9 months, i may as well make it home...

my entry way

rounding the corner

my little bathroom

desk area

my comforter (courtesy of urban outfitters), battery-powered tea candles and wall hangings (courtesy of wal mart... don't judge, if i could have target-ed it i would have, trust me!)

come visit sometime!

opening week!

2010-02-25T08:57:00.000-08:00

these first 3 weeks have been a whirlwind. i don't quite remember what it's like to be a normal person with a day off of work. the other day i was walking to rehearsal with a friend and thought to myself, "today's saturday. i guess any normal person would be hanging out tonight. remember when we used to have a weekend? remember when we used to make plans to do fun things when we had free time?"

this week we're opening 5 shows with a few other supplemental shows on the side. our openings have been very smooth and have been really well received by the guests and the other crew. everyone's been really kind and very complementary. it's been so fun to actually perform for real people after 4 months of rehearsing.

i have had the chance to get off the ship and relax a bit. i got off about a week ago down in st. maarten, earlier this week in key west and again today in nassau. nassau isn't typically a port in our itinerary but, due to weather conditions in grand cayman, we were diverted to stop here today.

tonight we open disney dreams. it's such a darling, magical show. i'll be thinking of you all tonight as i'm waltzing around the stage with my prince charming.

wish me luck!

it's time to let the magic begin...

2010-02-05T16:34:00.000-08:00

here i go! this is my home for the next 8 months, and it all starts bright and early tomorrow morning when i board the ship for 2 weeks of "crossover" (that's ship talk for 2 insane weeks of waking up at 5 am every morning to tech the shows on the ship). dear crossover, lets be good to each other. :)

disney magic, here i come.

i'm setting my back to the land and my face to the seas.

i am determined to "enjoy, not simply endure."

baby jane...

2010-01-20T20:07:00.001-08:00

on new years eve, these beautiful people became parents.

katharine and john welcomed this sweet little girl into the world...

{baby jane}

kitty and john, i'm so proud of you both and love you so much!

wish i could be there to hold her.

i can't believe how quickly time flies. it seems like yesterday kitty and i were galavanting around europe with our families and missing teeth...

love you, kitty!

niagara falls...

2010-01-20T19:14:00.000-08:00

this past sunday, a group of us rented zipcars and headed to niagara falls.

i had never been to the falls before. it was fun to add it to the pyramids and the great wall as the third of the "7 wonders of the world" that i've experienced.

the day was super foggy and a lot of our pictures turned out looking like we were hanging out in a cloud. but i had such a fun day with my magic 24 family!!

{tiffany, claire, moi, jeanna, nikki}

the white hat gang

the falls...

nik nak and i

mosef and justin

my little ginger aussie had never experienced snow in her life. so, i took it upon myself to engage her in her first snowball fight. and we built a darling little snowman, whom she affectionately named "george". i promised that next time, i would demonstrate what a "white wash" is. muahaha. little does she know...

the clan

vote!!

2010-01-20T19:02:00.000-08:00

my dear friend, the beautiful rachael kemery, is in the final runnings for the doritos superbowl commercial contest of 2010.

PLEASE vote for her here: http://www.crashthesuperbowl.com/#/video/5511

i'm so proud of you, rachy!

ladies who brunch...

2010-01-20T18:53:00.000-08:00

{tiffany, moi, claire, katie}

i just love these ladies.

a few weekends ago, katie introduced us to a new brunch place called "saving grace". in a word: life-changing.

the place was small and vintage. the food was delicious and inventive.

such a fun outing with my girlies.

my delicious hot apple cider

claire-bear's gingerbread latte

new years!

2010-01-20T18:25:00.000-08:00

when it comes to partying, magic 24 does not mess around!

our very own john o' malley threw a studio 54 new years eve party in his apt.

our crazy eve was complete with appearances from grace jones...

our host, andy warhol...

and none other than liza minelli...

new years eve wouldn't have been complete without banging pots and pans with my girls... running through the streets like crazy people yelling "happy new year!".

bring it on 2010! i know you have amazing things in store...

to do...

2010-01-20T18:08:00.000-08:00

this christmas there was a blizzard in nyc. amidst the snow flurries, an impromptu snowball fight erupted among strangers in times square.

i. love. this.

remind me to do that when i move to the city.

http://blog.ricecracker.net/2009/12/20/snowball-fight-times-square/

lookie what i did, ma!

2009-12-22T17:07:00.000-08:00

"villains" was featured in playbill.com

check it out here...

http://www.playbill.com/news/article/135149-Bell-Bowen-Camp-Cohn-Narver-Create-Villains-Tonight-for-Disney-Cruise-Line

and check out our promo video...

magic 24 christmas party

2009-12-21T12:26:00.000-08:00

yesterday afternoon, we had our magic 24 christmas party. i tell you what, this cast knows how to throw a par-tay. the green room was beautifully decorated, complete with a "fireplace" with sound effects and everything, stockings and a christmas tree with white-elephant gifts underneath it. there was quite a spread of delicious treats, covering two tables and two counters...

santa paid a visit...

we lined up and took turns sitting on his lap. i, of course, didn't pass up my opportunity to tell him what it is i wanted for christmas this year. "i want things to work out for my big brother to star in this t.v. show in china." santa promised that, "if he was a good boy, he'd see what he could do." of course, he's going to make it happen. haven't you ever seen miracle on 34th street?

santa's visit was magical. bill (our hades in "villains". he's brilliant) and his darling wife katherine are a professional "santa and santa's helper" duo. they are no joke. we're talking his suit cost $700 and he's the best santa i've ever seen in my life! he came in and gave every single one of us a hug and took pictures with everyone. again, we were all 5 years old all over again (this seems to be a reoccurring theme).

santa also oversaw our white elephant gift exchange. for my gift, i gave a $15 starbucks gift card and a ridiculous picture of myself in pigtails, with drawn-in unibrow and blacked-out teeth, which i signed "happy holidays! love, cinderella"...complete with the official cinderella signature. when ed, the director of twice charmed, chose my gift, claire and i just about peed our pants. it was too perfect. he's now threatened to keep it in his office forever. the gift was a hit...

following the gift exchange, santa, and his beautiful little helper, led us all in a christmas sing-along. he sure can tickle those ivories! santa can do it all.

we all just kept looking at each other asking, "how do you top this? this cast does it all!"

i feel so lucky to be here with this cast full of kind, charming, hilarious people. i love my new disney family. i love all of the toronto adventures i've had so far and the adventures that are certain to follow.

merry christmas from toronto!

happy holidays from cindy and charming...

2009-12-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

we began and finished "twice charmed"... all in a week and a half. it was quite the whirlwind. lots of character work still to do. but, it'll be fun. i'm really lucky to have a prince charming that i really enjoy. james larsen, you are the best!

in case you were wondering, i'm in heels. james is 6'6". yay for tall, dashing, performing boys.

olympic torch

2009-12-21T11:23:00.000-08:00

this past thursday night, the olympic torch passed through toronto. we caught it on day 49 of the relay at the intersection of wellesley and young... a block from our apt. building!!

i love the olympics and have never seen the olympic torch in person.

toronto has been one adventure after another for me, so it's only fitting that i saw it here with a group from my magic 24 cast!

we were freezing our buns off waiting for the torch to come, so we made friends with the local policemen...

the welcome wagon...

o canada!

the olympic cauldron will be lit in vancouver on february 12, 2010.

disney magic

2009-12-21T10:48:00.000-08:00

about a week ago, our mainstage magic 24 cast had a character training with our resident character trainer bill sykes (i know, you can't hear it without thinking of the poor little orphan boy who just wanted some more porridge. and yes, that's actually his name.)

bill began the training by showing us a video of live footage capturing characters interacting with children. they were hugging and smiling and the images were set to a soundtrack of magical, heart-warming disney music.

after the video, bill shared personal stories of characters who went out of their way to reach out to children, changing their world forever. he shared stories of children overcoming cancer because they were promised that they'd get to "go back and see mickey again" were they to get better, and that dream gave them reason to live through each day of chemo.

faith plus a dream= miracles.

just as he finishes sharing these stories, tugging at our heart strings, magical music starts bursting out of the speakers in the room... and who should burst through the door but mickey, minnie, pluto, goofy, chip, dale, donald and daisy.

tears. just a room full of 14 fully-grown adults weeping tears of magical disney joy.

1. i have never been that close to these characters that i've grown up loving all my life.

and i tell you what... we were fully aware that our character cast had arrived a full week prior and had been rehearsing in secret next door, but for those 5 minutes of bliss, that was mickey freaking mouse. no man behind the mask. there was not a doubt in our minds that that was really him. it was magical.

2. i was filled with the greatest sense of pride and gratitude that, for the next year of my life, i get to be a part of this magic. the kind of magic that made us feel the way we did when mickey burst through that door. for the next 10 months, i get to help adults and children alike feel that every day as a i cruise around the world. my. job. is. the. bomb.

3. our character cast had stayed late into the evening hours rehearsing so that we wouldn't catch wind of the special appearance they gave us- learning dances that were never to be performed again on the ship or anywhere else. they did it just for us. so. neat.

magic 24 character cast, we love you guys! thanks for allowing me to be a 4 year old again for a full 5.23 minutes!

(keir, katie, jen, moi, gina, james, ryan, mo, katherine, bill, rayna, julia, prescott and david)

...and there you have it. tissues and all.

cruella photoshoot

2009-12-21T10:23:00.000-08:00

just before our "villains" rehearsals came to a close, a small group of us were taken to a big warehouse here in toronto. the building, formerly a movie theatre, has been converted into a large photo studio.

after being gussied up in our "doggie" fashions, the six of us girls were led out into the studio for a cruella photoshoot (villains has a "project cruella" section... a la "project runway"). we were led into a giant room where one of the corners, including the walls and the floor, had been freshly painted white. there was a large screen set up and cameras and lights everywhere.

we were each filmed/photographed individually in each of our fashions and then photographed together.

it was such a fun day. i'd never been a part of a photoshoot like that.

and, to top it all off, they fed us yummy ethiopian food for lunch. i love the diversity of toronto.

life at disney is hard...

(rayna, tiffany, claire, gina, moi and katherine)

your resident "disco doggie diva"...

monster ball

2009-12-21T10:07:00.000-08:00

a few weeks ago i saw GaGa in concert with these lovely people...

(andrew, moi, john and zach)

the concert was everything i had hoped it would be. i'm a big GaGa fan.

the concert was...

outlandish

brilliant

fashion-forward

crazy

sexy

touching

ispiring

hilarious

in two words... performance art

favorite quote of the night, "people ask me what it feels like to know that some people will hate what i do. and i tell them, 'i don't care if my fans love me. i care if my fans love themselves.'"

a lot of people think that GaGa is some un-talented, outlandish performer who does crazy things just to get attention. they simply don't understand that she is absolutely brilliant. she does what she does because growing up, she felt out of place. she felt like a "monster" of sorts. and she wants her fans to feel that they're accepted. that they're not alone.

besides that, you should hear her acoustic stuff on the piano. brilliant. her voice is amazing and she is a brilliant musician.

i love that i got to experience the brilliance of GaGa with my boys in toronto

show me your teeth!!!

ragtime

2009-11-27T19:12:00.000-08:00

...aching to see this revival on broadway. keeping my fingers crossed that it will still be around when i get back from cruising next year.

stunning. revolutionary. inspiring.

ragtime.

an evening with jason robert brown

2009-11-27T18:38:00.000-08:00

the adventures of claire and becca continue!

this past money night, we spent an evening with this guy.

he was a little conceded. he was a lot a bit brilliant. he is a r.i.d.i.c.u.l.o.u.s. musician.

his songs and lyrics are so accessible and thought-provoking.

i've been a fan for a long time, so it was really fun to see him live.

he played...

"someone to fall back on" and "i could be in love with someone like you"

-from his album 'wearing someone else's clothes'

"being a geek" and another song that i forget the name of

-from a musical he wrote called '13'

"still hurting", "summer in ohio", "goodbye until tomorrow", "moving too fast" and "i'd give it all for you"

-from 'the last 5 years'

"honeymoon in vegas"

-from a new musical he wrote called 'honeymoon in vegas'

he invited a girl named chilina kennedy to sing a few of the songs/duets from the last 5 years. she's done a lot of theatre here in canada and she was brilliant. her voice reminded me a lot of sutton foster and there was such an honesty to her story-telling.

thankful...

2009-11-26T22:07:00.000-08:00

today i'm extremely grateful for a lot of things.

here are just a few...

a wonderful job

my beautiful toronto apartment

new friends at disney

the journey i'm embarking on this year

parents who love their children for who they are

brothers and sisters who are my best friends

love and acceptance

dreams

let the season begin...

2009-11-26T21:30:00.000-08:00

happy thanksgiving from canada!!!

a group of us woke up to have breakfast together and watch the macey's thanksgiving day parade (which i l.o.v.e.)...

sailor mickey made his debut in the parade representing disney cruise line!!

what a guy...

our cast had the day off, so we all spent the afternoon relaxing and preparing yummy dishes for our thanksgiving feast. let me tell you, it was quite an affair. everyone looked lovely and there was quite a spread with vegan and non-vegan dishes alike...

the dessert table (i contributed home-made strawberry cream pies with home-made graham cracker crust and vanilla gooey cake)...

i feel so lucky to have spent thanksgiving with such great people...

(mo, justin and i)

(jules, lindsaykate and i)

yesterday, on our way home from work, jules and i bought some colored construction paper and craft supplies. later on in the evening we had a girls night with lindsaykate during which we made little indian

and pilgrim head dresses for everyone to wear at our thanksgiving feast.

they were a hit!

...the indians

...the pilgrims

hunter felt it his duty to tell the story of the pilgrims and indians as it really happened...

i ended the evening by soaking in a nice hot, candle-lit bath listening to christmas music.

so fancy and festive.

radio city rockettes

2009-11-21T18:21:00.001-08:00

this past wednesday night, my friend claire and i went to see the radio city rockette's christmas spectacular. we were so stoked when we found out that they toured to toronto. neither one of us had ever seen them live. we excitedly reminded each other all day at rehearsal that we were seeing the show that night.

let me tell you, the rockettes do not disappoint. it was everything we'd hoped it would be. precision. absolute precision. wow. we were seriously giddy all night as we watched. my two favorite numbers were the toy soldier number and the ny sightseeing number. it was absolute perfection.

claire and i decided that we're going to be rockette holiday singers when we move to ny. it's gonna happen.

...the delightful little aussie herself

here's to a fancy, festive night on the town...

the distance you have come...

2009-11-21T17:09:00.001-08:00

"all journeys have secret destinations of which the traveller is unaware." -Martin Buber

i'm getting really excited about all of the parts of the world i will see this year. i'm so passionate about traveling. i love seeing and experiencing different places and cultures. i love tasting the food, walking the streets and smelling the smells; looking at architecture, listening to the melody of the languages spoken. i love it all. travel has played a huge part in shaping me. i feel that seeing the world has opened my eyes to different ways of thinking. it's given me my sense of adventure and a passion for life, the beautiful world we live in and all that they have to offer.

i sat down today and listed all of the places i've lived and visited in my life and the new places i can add to the list during my cruising this year. here's a re-cap...

i've lived in:

utah

england

pennsylvania

ukraine

canada

states i've visited:

utah

california

nevada

oregon

idaho

montana

colorado

new mexico

massachusetts

ohio

virginia

maryland

pennsylvania

new york

new jersey

washington d.c.

florida

countries i've visited:

u.s.

canada

england

ukraine

scotland

wales

france

spain

czech republic

denmark

norway

finland

bulgaria

greece (crete, cyprus, patmos)

egypt

israel

china

hong kong

mexico

south korea

australia

new places i will visit this year:

u.s. virgin islands

british virgin islands

bahamas

caribbean

sweden

russia

italy

portugal

gibraltar

malta

tunisia (north africa)

germany

estonia

i love that this will be a year of unexpected surprises, friendships and adventure.

ode to canadia...

2009-11-15T15:00:00.000-08:00

disney does it right, friends! i think a couple of us screamed when we got to our apartments and realized that they are private suites that look like this...

we may or may not have a complementary cleaning service once a week, a washer and dryer and (if you look closely you'll see it) a plasma screen t.v. juuust spoiled!

our building is in a part of toronto called yorkville. it's just south of the ritzy shopping/restaurant district and just north of the main/downtown shopping district (which is fun to walk through on our way to work).

the city is enchanting...

it's the perfect blend of old and quaint and contemporary chic...

littered with beautiful, historic churches reminiscent of the ones i used to see growing up in england...

the space needle and some beautiful building on the walk home from work...

there are so many beautiful little side streets around town...

and there's so much to do in the city. here's a fancy museum we walked past today...

more pictures to come, lovelies. the city is enchanting. it's like a mix between old england and a quieter, cleaner nyc. it's fun to walk through the city and take the subway every day.

i feel so lucky to be here working on such a fun project with such great people.

get out your villain umbrella...

2009-11-15T14:40:00.000-08:00

over the course of the next 3 months, our disney magic 24 cast will be learning about 5 shows. the show that we're currently rehearsing is a brand new disney show called "villains". on the first day of rehearsals, we did a read-through of the show and i fell instantly in love with it! it's a captivating, contemporary, tongue-in-cheek comedy that includes all of the most famous disney villains.

the show was brilliantly cast with amazingly talented actors and the creative team is just ridiculously awesome. i love what i do.

the genius behind the show itself... the writers: jeff bowen and hunter bell (of "title of show")

the brains behind the story-telling: our director allison narver

our lovely, talented choreographer karma camp

the brilliant, class-act of a musical director: ben cohn (taking a break as associate conductor for wicked in ny and simultaneously finishing orchestrations for clay aiken's new album while he's here working with us in toronto... he's kind of a big deal)

can't wait for you to visit and see the show. you're gonna love it!

snail mail

2009-11-15T14:22:00.001-08:00

there's something charming about getting snail mail, don't you think?

maybe it's the gesture of someone taking the time to write something by hand just for you. maybe it's the fact that it comes straight from their hands into yours... like a direct, personal connection to someone you care about who lives far away.

well, i officially live in toronto, ca now! i have a new mailbox. and a new address.

here it is...

303-11 st. joseph street

toronto, ontario

m4y3g4

if you ever get bored and feel like sending snail mail, i'd love to hear how you are!

moonstruck

2009-11-13T17:10:00.000-08:00

as i was finishing up the last few weeks at tuacahn, i got a call asking me to be a soloist in the 2009 governor's gala.

it was a fun night. and i can't complain about getting paid $500 to wear a ball gown, work with wonderful people and sing two songs with a live 20 piece orchestra.

i sang "memory" from cats (by my lonesome) and "loathing" from wicked with this lady...

carmen rasmusen herbert

it was a fancy affair... black tie, $500 a plate (the governor ended up raising over $1 million that night!)

a group of us backstage at the gala

with jun and alex boye (his wife gave birth to their first baby the day before the gala! congrats alex!)

with josie and nathan herbert

with gev (you might recognize him from sytycd) we spoke russian together :)

codes was at the gala at senator bennett's table!

and my gorgeous family came. hot mommas!

i have to add that i got to rehearse a few times at the governor's mansion (beautiful!) and that jeanette herbert was a class act, dedicating a lot of time to be involved in the entertainment portion of the gala. it was fun getting to know her, the governor himself and their beautiful family!

my rachy

2009-11-01T21:21:00.001-08:00

my favorite friends are the ones that, no matter how much time has passed since we've seen each other, we can pick up right where we left off. my friend rachael is one of those friends. we met in high school and she and her twin katie have been two of my favorite people ever since. the picture above is a picture taken, in high school, of rach and i in musical rehearsal.

we haven't lived anywhere near each other ever since we graduated from high school, but we've managed to see each other and catch up a handful of times here and there. she and michael have been so great- taking time out of their busy lives to drive miles and miles just to see me perform. this is a picture of us with my brothers and sisters at newport beach last summer.

earlier this summer i flew to nyc for a call-back. my friend cy and i hung out in times square after a show one night and whose life-sized face should i see on a billboard? yes, ladies and gentleman... michael rady. rachy's michael.

michael's playing the part of jonah miller in the cw series melrose place. i've been watching the show online and he's brilliant. follow the show at cwtv.com

michael's character on melrose is engaged. i think he might get a little inspiration for the role from his real engagement to rach! aren't they adorable?

lucky guy. look at how gorgeous rachy is on the red carpet!

my favorite thing about these two is that they are two of the most grounded, kind, salt-of-the-earth people i've ever met. rae rae and michael, i love you guys! i've always known you were rock stars and i'm so excited that the rest of the world has discovered what i've known all along.

this is it

2009-11-01T18:29:00.000-08:00

my family went to see "this is it" this past week. if you haven't seen it yet, you HAVE to. especially if you're a performer. you'll never be the same. michael jackson is without a doubt one of the greatest inspirations the world has ever known. he changed the performing world forever. watching him inspires me to work harder, to be more, to own my talent, to be the best.

go see it, you'll love it! can't stop thinking about it. it's a 'must own'.

a change of scenery...

2009-10-06T15:08:00.001-07:00

a 6 month contract in st. george, utah has been fun (don't get me wrong) but i'm ready for a change of scene!

i google-imaged a handful of the 28 or so cities i will visit on the cruise... and i got really excited!

bahamas (a.k.a. paradise... where the water is turquoise)

naples, italy (a.k.a. my dream country)

copenhagen, denmark

rome, italy (a.k.a. my dream country... AGAIN)

white cliffs of dover, england (something i used to sing about during assemblies at my all-girls school in england when i was little)

villefranche, france

villefranche, france again (the picture was too beautiful not to post)

stockholm, sweden

st. petersburg, russia (where i'll get to speak russian again!!)

you want to come visit me now, don't you? i thought so.

hcg

2009-10-03T00:46:00.000-07:00

ever heard of it? it'll change your life.

i'm not a fan of diets, in general. but after comprehensively reading about hcg and hearing testimonials from people i trust, i felt differently about this one.

my mom's been doing hcg for a while now and she's looking and feeling great!

reader's digest version: hcg is a pregnancy hormone that draws out and flushes from the body abnormal fat cells while altogether re-setting the body's fat-storage mechanism.

benji and i were so impressed with our mom's success that we decided to do hcg together. it's been quite the bonding experience. today marks our 17th of 30 days. we've already seen great results!

hcg has been an amazing life experience. it's shown me what a strong person i am. i have so much will-power. living on 500 calories a day isn't easy, especially when everyone around you is living on such a drastically different diet.

hcg has also been one of the biggest mind-battles that i've ever encountered. hcg helps you to not feel hungry, for the most part, while living on a 500 calorie diet. but everyday is a battle of mind over matter. so many days, especially while performing and before i was into the routine of hcg, my mind would tell my body "you've eaten barely anything today. you must be starving!" but it's been empowering to know that i'm in control of not only my body, but also my mind. in a way, it's made me feel more whole and at one with myself.

it's been so worth it. this is my time. i deserve to be castable and feel confident in life and when i walk into an audition room.

hcg has become a fun joke among my friends. i really miss normal food and i've taken to smelling everything that my friends eat. and i mean everything. but not only that, sometimes i make them eat things just because i can't. :) one night allysa, dan and i decided to make a maverick treat run. i wasn't about to actually buy food. so, they laughed at me as i made the rounds to smell the krispy kreme, muffin and beef jerkey bins.

some people pay hundreds of dollars to get hcg shots from a clinic. not a fan. us schwartzes prefer to order ours online and take drops under our tongues. much cheaper, much easier... less contact with needles! hcg comes in a little package that looks like this...

we do the mixing ourselves. the first time benji and i did it was in a hotel room in california. we happened to leave the hotel door open and were positive that anyone walking by would think we were running a meth lab straight out of our room.

we administer the drops from a syringe. it looks something like this...

tuacahn hosted a party one night at a beautiful mansion and i snuck away to take hcg. a few of my friends were intrigued and followed me to the bathroom to observe...

if the idea of shedding abnormal body fat appeals to you, i definitely recommend hcg. i'm not gonna lie, it's not for the faint of heart. it definitely takes dedication. but it's worth it. it's an amazing life experience. and regardless of what shape or size you come in, hcg will work for you. i can promise you that.

for more information go to: http://hcgdietinfo.com/HCG_Diet_Simeons_Manuscript.htm

feel free to email me (uksource@gmail.com) or message me on facebook if you have any questions.

"a dream is a wish your heart makes"

2009-10-01T16:30:00.001-07:00

it's official. and i'm excited to announce that for the next year of life i will be playing cinderella on disney's "disney magic" cruiseline!

after our closing at tuacahn on oct. 17, i'll spend 3 weeks at home with my familia and then hop on a plane to rehearse in toronto, canada. we'll be in rehearsals for 4 months, at the end of which we'll sail the high seas to the caribbean, mediterranean and the baltics.

here's a sneak peak at my home for the 8 months at sea...

i'm really excited about this gig for a couple of reasons...

1. it's been a life-goal of mine to be a disney princess

2. i'm going to some of the most beautiful/intriguing/romantic parts of the world, most of which i haven't previously experienced

3. i'll be surrounded by adorable children and i'll get to make their dreams come true every day

4. i'll be the coolest aunt. ever. i'll be on my niece's "cool" list for years to come

5. i will be a part of the original cast of a brand new disney original show called "villains". in doing so i'll get to work closely with Jeff Bowan and Hunter Bell of the hilarious, well-loved off-broadway show "title of show"

6. the pay is wonderful and will allow me to save a pretty penny so that i can finally move out to ny!

8 months at sea is a long time, so come visit!!

check out destinations: http://www.cruisecheap.com/ships/disney-cruises-disney-magic-cruise-itineraries.html

check out this promotional video of my main feature aboard the ship; a disney original musical based on the story of cinderella, "twice charmed"...

e.m.c.

2009-10-01T16:25:00.000-07:00

got my emc card in the mail! my roomie kristin took a picture of me signing it...

for those of you who might not know "emc" stands for "equity member candidate". i now have half the points i need to get my equity card.

"i can do this, i can do anything!"

2009-10-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

benji came down to visit me this past weekend and it was EPIC. we had so much fun. sunday afternoon we headed to vegas. we spent some time walking around some of the hotels... including my favorite; the venetian...

we went window shopping for clothes that were way too expensive for our pocketbooks... like this HOT $1500 D&G jacket

that night we went to BRITNEY!! she pretty much lip-synched the whole concert, but you can't help but worship her. the concert was amazing!

as we were walking out of the concert we accidentally met these three fellas, who offered us a limo ride to a club where some britney peeps were partying after the concert.

coolest brother/sister combo. ever.

we met some new friends at the club... including lance bass from n'sync (don't judge, emily!)

...and a drag queen named syren or "scott", who is originally from SL

that night we slept in our FREE hotel room in mesquite (thank you tuacahn and "dixie direct") and woke up early the next morning to go jump out of a plane...

that's right... we went SKYDIVING!!!!! we're pretty hardcore. coolest life experience EVER. i was the first out of our group of four to make the jump. that meant that i was the one that hung off the side of the plane, for at least a minute before jumping, while the plane circled into position. i was actually surprised by how calm i was. so. much. fun!

benji and i made a skydiving pact. right before we jumped out of the plane, we both looked over our shoulders at the camera and yelled, "i can do this, i can do ANYTHING!" ...and we can. and we will!

we owe these guys our lives...

on the way back to st. george we got pulled over going 15 over on the freeway and the cop let us off!!! i love us.

everything's a little more fun when benji's around. i can't wait 'till i visit benji in LA and he visits me in NY. so many fun life adventures still to be had!!

...and it's all going to begin in the caribbean. becca/benji life adventures to be continued...

coming up!

2009-09-11T15:20:00.000-07:00

everyone keeps asking what my plans are after tuacahn. things are still in the works, so i don't want to make an official announcement just yet. it'll be coming soon! but, here's a little hint: it's going to take me around this...

i remember...

2009-09-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

8 years ago today i was living in pennsylvania. we walked from class period to class period in disbelief- eyes glued to the tv screens. a few of my friends had fathers who were fire fighters. they were sent immediately to ny to assist.

i'll never forget the candle- light vigils in which i participated. never forget the love i felt for my country. never forget the tears i shed for the families and friends who lost loved ones. today, i'm remembering...

my favorite little brother...

2009-08-11T01:17:00.000-07:00

19 years ago today, a little guy was born and it changed my world.

his name is patrick james. pj... or, as i like to call him, squeege.

you've probably already heard of him. he is, after all, a rock star.

seriously. you're gonna wanna lick his vocal chords. they're stupid.

squeege, it's your birthday!!

do you love it?....

here are a few simple reasons why i love pj:

1. he makes me laugh more than anyone else i know. and he's constantly taking pictures that crack me up. like this one taken on the top level of a double decker tour bus in nyc...

2. wherever pj goes, he always makes friends with the classiest people...

3. no matter where we go or what we end up doing, we always end up taking crazy pictures...

4. pj helps me reach higher heights than i ever thought possible...

5. we're both destined to take this place by storm...

can't you tell?

squeege, i think i've told you before but i don't think you'll ever understand that you're one of my favorite people on this planet!

i still remember how excited i was for you to be born. mom was HUGE when she was pregnant with you. she used to write checks on her beach ball-sized belly.

you were the cutest little boy. you had so much energy. you used to run into walls, i could see you processing how much it hurt, and then you'd surprise me by laughing instead of crying!

i used to look at you when you were little and wonder what you were going to be like when you grew up. i wondered what you would look like and what kind of things you'd enjoy doing.

i can't believe that you're already 19 and more talented and handsome than i ever imagined. (wow, handsome? am i your g-ma? lets just admit it in 2009 laman's terms... you're a little hottie!)

pj, i'm so proud of you. i'm proud to be your big sister. i'm proud of your talents. i'm proud of the way that you use them to inspire people.

but most of all, i'm proud of who you are as a person. when you came out of the womb, 11lbs 11oz. with full-on muscles and went around running into walls as a toddler, i knew you were going to be a strong boy. but i never realized you'd grow up to be one of the strongest, most courageous people i know. i love that about you.

one of my favorite things about you is that you have a HUGE heart. you're always the one to snuggle up to the brother/sister/friend who you know is hurting. you'll risk getting in trouble with mom and dad for spending too much on their credit card just to treat your friends to dinner. or spend an entire paycheck on me or gretchen to buy us something you know we'll love. and our nieces can't get enough of or say enough about their uncle pj. they love you because they can feel how much you love them.

you will always be my favorite little brother. and that has nothing to do with the fact that you're my ONLY little brother. :)

i love you, squeege!!

HAPPY 19th BIRTHDAY!

you're going to do amazing things. that's just who you are. and i can't wait to be there to see all of them.

dream big!

and "stare at the blank page before you... the rest is still unwritten..."

rock stars

2009-08-09T21:56:00.000-07:00

i'm friends with a whole bunch of rock stars. here's a shout-out to just a few of my musical theatre rock-star friends:

tay tay is about to open the broadway revival of finnian's rainbow (http://www.playbill.com/news/article/131796-Complete_Casting_Announced_for_Broadway%27s_Finian%27s_Rainbow_Revival)

kevin is about to be part of one of one show in the 1st national tour of wicked

the brilliance that is presty sadlier is a part of mrs. sharp (http://www.playbill.com/news/article/131556-Krakowski_Is_Mrs._Sharp_in_Musical_Torn_from_Headlines)

and this beautiful human being... cy bird... is about to go out on the national tour of annie

i'm so proud of and excited for you all. loves!!!!

dream big!

biker gang...

2009-08-02T01:29:00.000-07:00

i've always thought motorcycle gangs were pretty lame. or maybe just a little intimidating. i guess i've always been confused by their lifestyle on the road and why it is they ride so dang close to each other cross country.

tonight james and tyrell (two of the crew boys) left the theatre on their motorcycles at the same time as me. we rode most of the way home all together. it was so fun. exhilarating, even. and then i realized... i am totally a proud member of the tuacahn biker gang.

i love being a biker chick... even if i only ride a scoot scoot.

happy christmas!

2009-07-26T23:44:00.000-07:00

this weekend we celebrated christmas in july... organized by the wonderful, talented emily province. thanks em! thursday night the ladies of 6 fierce (that's us) hosted a ginger bread making party complete with hot cocoa, marshmallows, poinsettias, candles, christmas tunes and mistletoe. friday night was christmas eve. we hung our hand-made stockings, put our secret santa presents under the christmas tree and wrote letters to santa while indulging in christmas goodies by twinkle light (my personal christmas/romantic favorite).

the next morning we all came over in our jammies and opened presents and stockings (emily must have been up all night because she wrote replies to everyone's letters to santa), ate christmas pancakes and played games. the house was filled with adorable little "orphan" girls and friends that i love. it was amazing to me how much it felt like christmas... until i stepped outside into the 107 degree sunshine. my very first christmas in july. i loved it!

this was the sign hanging on emily's door. it read, "no need to know... it's christmas and you're family. come on in!" so sweet.

a few of the gingerbread houses

(dan's red top projects, kristin's beautious cabin and kyle's famous tucahn mountain... in honor of the 2009 cast of tuacahn)

the christmas morning scene

emmy... my favorite orphan

too legit to quit...

2009-07-26T23:31:00.000-07:00

it's been my observation that all of my friends who are great performers have very homey little dressing room stations. i recently came to the realization that i can't be a legitimate, professional performer unless i have a placemat at my station. so... ta da!!

...i think that was the next big step in my professional career. i'm legit now.

thank you target.

peep show

2009-07-26T23:00:00.000-07:00

...this picture makes me ha ha.

it's official...

2009-07-26T20:52:00.000-07:00

... i've been seriously neglecting my blog as of late. i guess i never expected to have quite this much fun at tuacahn this summer. just... so. much. fun.

here's a little list of things that i've LOVED...

barbeques and ultimate frisbee

lasermania goodness

4th of july party at 6f (better known as 6 fierce)... my apt. with my amazing roomies!! followed by kyle fowler fireworks extravaganza (i might add that this was the first party i've hosted with alcohol. granted, i took shots of yummy gatorade while my friends had chocolate cake shots. i had a good laugh getting to know their drunk personalities)

appearing as lady gaga at the boys' white party

tuacahn scavenger hunt (the funnest, craziest, most illegal night of my life!! check out my videos on facebook for a good laugh)

vegas, baby! with jenn, kristin, dan, kyle, dan's friends and i

christmas in july- with our cast family (a more complete blog post to follow)

hole in the wall restaurant in vegas. yummy, quaint italian place.

roomie photo opt. on the 4th!

my home made strawberry cream pie with graham cracker crust was a hit. the boys tried to steal it.

part of the 4th of july clan

jenn, jake and i got into a spur-of-the-moment cupcake fight. and yes, that is jake... just dominated on kitchen floor.

white party!

gaga and back-up dancers jesse and terranze

gaga and the beautiful aaron and darby meadows

bbq and ultimate frisbee

with caroline (molly) on christmas morning

merry christmas... everyone!

gingerbread making party

gaga and terranze

you know your party was a hit when...

lasermania... a morning complete with laser tag, bumper cars and glow-in-the dark mini golf

tuacahn scavenger hunt

team thayne!!

classy...

2009-07-17T00:54:00.000-07:00

i'm obsessed with this blog that i found. it reeks of class. can't get enough...

the sun'll come out...

2009-07-10T12:55:00.000-07:00

going on for mrs. pugh and star-to-be tonight. allyson's surprising her boyfriend and attending her best friend's wedding in manhattan this weekend. have so much fun allyson!!

here i go, wish me luck...

moments that change you...

2009-07-09T11:44:00.000-07:00

gonna make a change, gonna make a difference...

2009-07-08T00:39:00.000-07:00

i was glued to the funeral services at the gym today. it was really touching. it's hard to believe that mj's really gone.

no one will ever come close to touching michael jackson's talent.

he really was the king of pop. one of the greatest performers that ever lived.

i remember listening to his songs when i was little. i loved him. his music makes me feel alive. he inspires me to be a greater singer, dancer and overall performer.

i also remember, as a little girl, being really confused by footage from his concerts where girls would pass out and be carried out on stretchers. people just love him.

i loved seeing captain eo at disneyland and i loved watching moonwalker with rob when i was little. smooth criminal was my favorite- michael jackson in a white suit with a white hat and smooth moves.

it think mj's the reason i developed jungle fever.

dear michael, rest in peace. you changed the world. you made a difference.

baby momma...

2009-07-08T00:10:00.000-07:00

tonight i got the happiest phone call that i've received in a long time. my best friend katharine is pregnant!!!!!!!!!

here are the beautiful expecting parents...

it's hard to believe that this girl...

kitty and i on loch lomand in scotland when we were just little midgets with missing teeth

has grown into this girl...

when did we grow up, kitty? i love you very, very much and i can't wait to be an aunt again!!

congrats kitty and john! i love you both.

warning...

2009-07-06T16:54:00.001-07:00

today i cried at the gym in the cardio cinema while running to this movie...

it's a great flick.

warning: running on a treadmill while crying can be dangerous!

meet my boyfriend...

2009-06-27T23:30:00.001-07:00

his name is thomas. he's a hit with the ladies...

and we have a lot of common interests. watermelon being one of them...

and we both love scoot scoots...

tommy t, i love you. i can't wait to see you walk and see all your new teeth!

saucy...

2009-06-26T16:38:00.000-07:00

another tabitha and napoleon special, of course...

the day i found love in st. george...

2009-06-21T19:27:00.001-07:00

dear dot,

i love that you are red. i love that you let me explore whenever i want to. i love that all i paid for you was $50 worth of insurance for 6 months. i love that you attract fun, new friends into my life. and i love that you give me freedom.

xoxo,

my daddy and me

2009-06-21T19:09:00.000-07:00

just some fun in the leaves with my favorite guy.

i'm getting choked up and i haven't even started.

my dad is the greatest man i have ever known.

my handsome daddy, benji and me

my dad travelled a lot for business when i was growing up. so, he did extra things to let us know how much he cared. i can't count the number of times i woke up to find a note from my dad hanging on my mirror in the bathroom letting me know that he loved me.

when we were little, my dad took each of us kids on a "club" every month. we always looked forward to clubs. it was a one-on-one chance for fun with dad. lunch, bowling, movies, swimming and laser-tagging always turned into talks about life with my dad: what made me happy, what made me sad, which friends i loved to play with, my favorite parts of being a british school girl- he cared about all of it.

and i'll never forget the valentine's days in high school when my sister and i found love notes from our dad written in red dry-erase marker on the mirror with roses left on the counter from our favorite valentine.

i owe so much of who i am and my good habits to my dad...

when i was about 7 years old, it was my turn to sweep the kitchen one night. i remember vividly, my dad coming into the kitchen and showing me how to methodically sweep the kitchen- section by section. 7 years old. my dad is the most methodical man i know! which is one of the reasons he leads such a successful life. but my favorite thing about my dad is that despite his methodical, genius mind for business and despite his successes in that realm, my dad understands that life is about people and relationships.

i loved wearing around my daddy's shoes.

i want to be like him in so many ways...

he's the most driven man i know. (i guess that's where we get it from)

he's always been the first to admit when he's wrong and ask for forgiveness (i think this is one of the greatest gifts he's given to me as a father)

he's always changing, always growing into a better man (throughout my life i've seen him change before my eyes. he's taught me that it's never too late to change and his example has given me permission to become more than i now am)

he's great with people. (because he genuinely cares about them)

his love and passion for life are contagious

his family is his life

he's a hard worker

he has a reverence for things that are sacred

he dreams big! (that's definitely where i get it from)

dad, look at where you were 40 years ago and look at how far you've come. look at the life you've built for yourself. and look at all the people who love you most...

i love you, dad. thank you for being one of my best friends, my biggest supporter and my greatest confidant.

xoxo,

what does it feel like...

2009-06-18T11:17:00.000-07:00

there is a film called "once" that premiered at the sundance film festival this past year. if you haven't heard this song, you're gonna need to take a second to listen to it. it's beautiful.

here's a little clip from the film...

what does it feel like to you when you're in love?

opening night!

2009-06-14T17:35:00.001-07:00

finally! no more rehearsal. for a while, at least. thank buddah!

here are some photos from our annie and footloose openings...

not even all of the beautiful flowers... compliments of wonderful directors and friends.

the talented corrine ivey helping rusty get 80s fabulous.

my birthday was the same night as our annie opening. daddy warbucks found out that no one had gotten me a birthday cake, so he brought one on opening night. what a guy.

the man himself. ron and grace. daddy warbucks and annie.

the trio. jenn and stacia.

jesse, josh and terranze

derryl yeagar. our director/choreographer for footloose.

not sure how we ended up in a classic prom pose.

scott anderson. our director for annie.

25 years of wisdom...

2009-06-14T16:42:00.000-07:00

here are a few life nuggets...

1. you can achieve anything you want in life if you work hard and believe in yourself and in what you're doing.

2. i'm not sure how they did it, but my parents really do have all the answers.

3. as much as i love people, i need some good "becca time" every week- preferably a little bit every day.

4. intimidation doesn't exist if you just realize that, deep down, all people want the same thing... to be cared about.

5. with regards to dating, i will always trust my family's opinion. they know me best. this rule recently saved me from a miserable fate.

6. being open-minded allows you to live life with an open heart and learn from everything and everyone along your path. it's the only way to go.

7. reading makes you smarter and being smart and well-read will get you far in life.

8. money really does make the world go 'round. it doesn't necessarily buy happiness... just less stress.

9. be diplomatic. don't burn bridges.

10. networking is easy if you just decide to be genuinely interested in people.

11. your true friends love you anyway...

12. personally, put others first. professionally, cover your own butt.

13. text messaging is not a means of courtship.

14. the best friendships are the ones you can "pick up as if no time has passed".

15. always be determined to improve and better yourself, but never ever forget that you are enough just the way you are.

16. i don't care how secure you are, validation is key.

17. never underestimate the mind of a child.

18. boys like a good old-fashioned chase followed by some encouragement. let them come to you. the good ones always do.

19. life has a lot of ups and downs, but everything about it is more fun and meaningful if you treat it as an adventure to be learned from.

20. in general, i'm a pretty easy-going person. but, you want to see me get ugly... mess with one of my family members.

21. excuses are only good to the people who use them.

22. i am determined to be a great cook.

23. sometimes a sincere, "i'm sorry" is the only response. nothing else is required.

24. my story is different.

25. dream big.

tabitha and napoleon

2009-06-14T16:18:00.000-07:00

step into my office. lets just talk about these two for a sec.

tabitha and napoleon are married. they're in love with each other and with what they do. they met at the university of nevada in las vegas where she was a communications major and he was pre-med studying cellular and molecular biology. apparently it takes a couple this beautiful and that brilliant to come up with the ridiculous stuff that they come up with.

their routines stand out heads and shoulders above the rest on sytycd. someone needs to throw a shoe at them.

here's my recent fav. i had to remind myself to start breathing again when it was done...

once in love with amy...

2009-06-14T15:46:00.000-07:00

i'm sad that this is a day late. we opened annie and footloose last night and the night before, so things have been a little crazy.

yesterday marked the birth of a girl that i love and admire.

happy birthday, ames!!

amy married my oldest brother, rob, 10 years ago this december. it's crazy how time flies.

we love having amy as a sister. she's such a caring person.

she's always interested in what's going on in our lives. she has a way of getting giddily excited for us when she finds out about our little successes. makes us feel like a million bucks every time. amy's also a strong person and she's well read, which is something i love about her. after all, it takes a brilliant woman to keep up with rob's mind.

but most of all, she's an amazing wife and mother...

3 children later, she still manages to get more beautiful every time i see her.

here are my adorable nieces...

bubby, ba and es on a sunday bike ride

i liked amy the moment i met her. from the beginning, rob and amy were that couple that everyone wanted to spend time with. it's always amazed me how much they compliment each other. it was easy for me to see, even as a 15 year-old when they started dating, that amy completed rob. she was definitely the missing piece to his puzzle. and now, 10 years later, their marriage continues to inspire me.

one of the most beautiful families i've ever seen. ever.

happy birthday, ames!! i was thinking about you yesterday!

lets call a spade a spade, shall we?

2009-06-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

who hasn't received an item of clothing which has a tag that reads "one size fits all". um, i'm sorry... have you SEEN the american population lately?

this is the tag inside of a hat that i bought in australia last year. at least the australians are honest...

first preview

2009-06-09T10:55:00.000-07:00

tonight is our first footloose preview for a sold-out crowd here at tuacahn. i'm excited. and getting nervous. i know i'm going to be standing stage right, getting ready to run on for my solo in the opener, and wanting to wet my black pleather skirt.

with so many performers out of work, i realize that i'm lucky to have a fun job for the summer. i'm lucky to get to sing my face off every night playing the part of rusty. it's such a fun part.

so, this summer i'm going to love every moment as it comes, knowing that i'll never have it again. 'cause after all...

to everyone who has a dream...

2009-06-08T00:20:00.000-07:00

tonight a little group of us got together at aaron and darby's house to have a cookout and watch the tonys. i loved it! it was the first time i'd ever watched the tonys all the way through.

i loved seeing angela lansbury win her 5th tony. i loved liza minelli in all of her craziness. i loved the three little billies that were just speechless up on that stand- especially the one on the left, who happens to be the billy i saw a few weeks ago, because you could tell he understood the weight of what had just taken place. we laughed really hard when bret michaels got clobbered by the set piece as he exited the stage. and i loved all the performances from the broadway casts.

but my favorite moment of the tonys was karen olivo's acceptance speech. i love her. i saw her in both "in the heights" and "west side story". she is fierce. so, along with karen olivo, i dedicate this little clip to everyone who has a dream. some people will tell you that it will never happen. sometimes you let yourself believe that you don't have what it takes. but if you "stick with it and surround yourself with people who love you, you can do anything."

just the two of us...

2009-06-07T00:28:00.000-07:00

there's a boy i love.

his name is benjamin harrison schwartz.

he was born 27 years ago today.

he is my dashing older brother...

he also happens to be a chinese pop star...

his fans love him so much that they made him into a cartoon...

how many people do you know that have been made into a cartoon?

benji loves his family. he is always reminding us how awesome our family is and how special the time is that we get to spend together. and our nieces love him...

benji has always been my biggest inspiration. when he was little he started singing. his voice is beautiful. i wanted to be just like him, so i started singing too. later on he started to love dancing. i felt betrayed. i couldn't dance to save my life. but again, i wanted to be just like him and i couldn't stand getting left behind, so i started to dance too...

our performing took us on adventures through hong kong, china and korea together. and now it's taking us on a life journey, which we get to share together although we're miles apart.

benji, thank you for always seeing a greatness in me that i couldn't always see in myself. you've always dreamed bigger dreams for me than i dreamed for myself. and you're always encouraging me to do great things.

you are the greatest champion of my creativity. i dare to dream big because your dreaming big and following your heart has given me the permission to do so.

you've never been an average kid. you've always been destined for great things. you're one of the most brilliant and driven people i know. but what i love most about you is that no matter where you go, and no matter what amazing thing you're doing with your life, your heart is always at home. you make me, and everyone else in our family, feel like we're the most important people in your life.

you're one of my favorite people, benj. everything's a little more fun, socially diverse :) and yet loving and sentimental when you're around. you're one of my best friends and i can't wait to see where the future's gonna take us... just the two of us.

my knight in shining armor

2009-05-31T19:11:00.001-07:00

my big sister brooke has a best friend. her name is courtney. she is the gorgeous blonde mommy in the picture above... compliments of the facebook. her husband's name is shaune and they are two of the greatest people i know. these are their adorable boys- caden and dexter.

courtney is one of the kindest, most giving people i know. when she and shaune found out that i needed to get to vegas to catch a flight to ny, courtney jumped at the chance to drive me to the airport. not only that, but with caden- 4 and dexter- 2 along for the ride, she drove me to vegas (arriving at about 11:30 thursday night), stayed there until midnight the next day and drove me back to st. george on friday night so i could make it back in time for rehearsal the next day. we got back home about 3am saturday morning and courtney was up at about 5:30 that morning to go for a long run (she's training to qualify for the boston marathon). as if that wasn't enough, she also brought me some delicious truffles with a sweet note to help me get through my 2am-2pm annie rehearsal on saturday.

courtney, you are my hero! thank you for always being so interested in my life. i had so much fun talking with to on the way home from the airport. you are amazing! my new goal in life is to be like you when i grow up.

welcome to my future home...

2009-05-31T18:51:00.000-07:00

...and there she is. in all her glory. the beautiful nyc. i love her. i got to visit for 11 hours on friday. it was heaven.

i got to play with heidi, cy and preston after my audition and before my flight back to vegas. presty, heids and i went to lunch (with teddy and peter- the adorable kids that heidi nannys). i just have to take a second to say how much i love heidi. we are so similar and she just gets me. and even though we live on opposite sides of the country, we have this uncanny way of finding excuses to visit each other. it's happened 5 or 6 times in the last 8 months. we're really good at it. i just love you, heids!

cy also came to meet us after his audition. the day i was there he had a call-back for the national tour of annie... which he booked!!! i'm so proud of you and so so excited for you, cy. what a guy.

it was so fun to be with friends in my favorite place. i love you all!

presty and i always find our way to pinkberry! we're addicted.

this is teddy and his awesome scooter. he is one of the boys that heidi nannys. he doesn't know it yet, but he is also my future husband. and we will live here...

this is his parents house which he, of course, will inherit and in which we will live.

the pictures are blurry, but you get the point. it was two stories and incredibly beautiful. talk about a ny dream home on the upper west end.

yes, please.

hangin' out in central park with presty, cy and heids

life lesson #1...

2009-05-30T19:27:00.001-07:00

dream big and...

about a week ago i checked my messages while on a break from rehearsal. i had a message that went like this, "hi becca, this is megan from telsey casting. i'm calling to schedule you for an appointment for legally blonde. give me a call back at..."

so, after peeing a few drops, i called her back and learned that the broadway national tour was looking for an immediate replacement for the kate/chutney track. miracle of miracles, my director let me go. details about the trip to follow. who even knows what will happen. and truthfully, it doesn't really matter. lesson learned... dream big and expect the unexpected. life has a synchronistic way of opening doors when you least expect it.

dear civilians...

2009-05-30T13:03:00.000-07:00

about a week ago i was explaining to my performing friends that i prefer to date guys that aren't performers. one of the girls exclaimed, "you like to date civilians!!?!" it's true.

yesterday, in the city, presty and i chatted over pinkberry about how funny it is for us to explain our broadway auditions to friends and family who don't quite understand the business.

our favorite, endearing question from such people is, "did you get it?" what follows is an explanation of why such a question makes us giggle a little.

broadway shows are required, by the actor's equity union, to hold auditions every 6 months. they aren't, however, looking for replacements for their shows every 6 months. when we go in for auditions, often it happens that, if they like us, they put our headshot and resume on file. at a future date, when they are in fact looking for replacements, they may call us in to audition for them again.

for example, my friend michelle once went into an audition for the musical "wicked". she sang for them and did a great job. they smiled, gave her the usual "thank you" (unless you have an agent, you never get anymore feedback than a smile and a "thank you" at the end of your audition) and she thought that was the end of it. a year later, they called and asked her to come to a call-back for one of the lead roles. still months later, they asked her to come back and eventually she was cast in the broadway production (which she turned down because she was pregnant with a beautiful baby boy- what a rock star).

as you can see, there are a lot of factors that play into a broadway audition. getting cast in a broadway show has a lot to do with talent, timing and connections. the road to broadway is quite the adventure! i love it. i'm loving the journey. and i love that there are a handful of friends who are in the same boat right now, sharing the adventure with me.

cutler cuties

2009-05-24T21:04:00.001-07:00

this is a picture of my older sister brooke, her husband spencer and their beautiful family. brooke and spence are amazing parents and they have awesome children. brooke writes emails to the family pretty often sending pictures, telling of their adventures and documenting funny little happenings with the kids. i look forward to those emails so much. brooke is an amazing writer and my nieces and nephew are hilarious so it makes for great stories!

if you have 30 seconds, watch this little video. it'll make your day, i promise.

the beautiful kirstie. she is one of the sweetest, most attentive big sisters i've ever seen. and she has a laugh that is contageous. she is such a good girl. she takes after her mommy.

this is one of my favorite pictures with hanna. i love her camera smile. it makes me laugh. hanna loves her brother and sister and she's such an adventurous little girl. she attacks life with energy. i love that about her.

this handsome little dude is thomas. tommy t just started walking!! i can't believe it. what a guy. i'm in love with him. he's a snuggly little guy and his smile can light up a room.

bring it...

2009-05-24T19:26:00.001-07:00

tomorrow marks our first tech rehearsal of a two weeks worth of tech here at tuacahn. bring it on!

warning!!

2009-05-24T19:17:00.001-07:00

this morning, as i was cleaning my cereal bowl, i found this by the sink...

yes, ladies and gentleman. that is a cockroach!! i wanna die just looking at that disgusting picture. it's even worse live. one of the boys apartments are infested with them. luckily, we live on the 3rd floor of the apt. complex, so we're hoping that they won't make it up to our place very often. my roommate jenn was less than pleased when she found out...

some of her friends lovingly refer to her as "momma jenn". she's always the one to make sure her friends are wearing sunscreen before they leave the house on a sunny day. and if there's ever a problem in the apt., she's not afraid to call a roomie meeting to lay the smack down (i love her so hard. she's the absolute best!). we've already had one about making sure dishes get washed and put away. i love all of my 5 roomies, but some of us are better at washing our dishes than others. so, mid-morning, this morning, this little note appeared on our fridge...

i laughed so hard when i read it! i love you, jenn!! hopefully our tidy little apt. will help the roaches feel unwelcome.

did you say it?

2009-05-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

i'm not a faithful grey's watcher. i've only seen two episodes. they both happened to be season finales. but i have to say that after watching the season 5 finale, i really want to see the rest. it rocked my world. a big group of us got together to watch it on ben's tivo and, by the end, we were a room full of blubbering fools. there wasn't a dry eye in the room. i am in love with the message of the episode. it was summed up beautifully in meredith's final monologue.

"did you say it? i love you. i don't ever wanna live without you. you changed my life... did you say it? make a plan. set a goal. work toward it. but every now then, look around. drink it in. 'cause this is it. it might all be gone tomorrow."

-meredith grey

if you need to be reminded how precious the people you love are, or how special the time is that you get to spend with them, just watch the following clip...

st. geezie with my smetchy

2009-05-24T00:38:00.001-07:00

gretchy drove down from provo after school yesterday to come visit me. she showed up at tuacahn while we were in annie rehearsal (sometimes annie rehearsals make for really long days) and i literally lit up! it was so fun to have her here. we had so much fun and it was so nice to be with someone who has nothing to do with performing. i love that. it helps remind me that there are more facets to my being than becca the performer. gretchy helps ground me. i love talking to her.

we went to the pizza factory and got our favorite dessert called "only on a sunday". it's a big, warm, not all-the-way cooked chocolate chip cookie with ice cream and caramel. heaven.

we spent some much needed sister relaxation time in the hot tub. and had a good laugh about the drunk kid who hit on us and was very vocal about his frustration when we blew him off. thanks for the excuse to get in the hot tub, gretch... i really needed that!

as we were falling asleep in my room last night, gretch looked up at my wall and said, "um... do you see those glow-in-the-dark markings on your wall?" i had never seen them before but there is definitely a glow-in-the-dark handprint next to a hook (yes people... full on hook. we're talking like a captain hook/peter pan hook) and something else (we couldn't figure out what it was). creepy. i'm kind of scared to sleep by myself now. i need my smetchy!

thanks for visiting, gretch. i'm excited for you to come back down so we can have more sister adventures!!

we drove by this sign and couldn't resist a benji shout-out!

your sassy sisters miss you, benja!!

life is good when gretchy's around

talk about brilliant

2009-05-23T21:52:00.000-07:00

i know i already posted "thinking of you" by katy perry. but i couldn't help but post this acoustic version. she is a brilliant artist and i heart her.

photoshoot

2009-05-22T12:03:00.001-07:00

yesterday we took publicity photos for footloose and annie so a few of us got into hair, makeup and costume for the first time. 80s fabulous...

erika, tino, troy, veronica, casey, alexis, tim and i

a few of the orphan girls. adorable.

roomies

grace. she is one talented 12 year old. love her. and love our secret handshake.

kristen and josh (our aussie rooster)

ladies and gentleman, derryl yeagar. love this man.

10 little things that put a smile on my face...

2009-05-17T21:45:00.000-07:00

1. ambiance

2. horse's noses

3. watches with clicky faces

4. twinkle lights

5. palm trees

6. pink berry

7. ichatting with benji

8. folded chips

9. babies in onesies

10. the smell of my storage room

footloose fun

2009-05-15T09:47:00.000-07:00

yesterday i had a wig-fitting consultation and i got to play dress ups...

here's my 80's fabulous rusty wig

and here's my boylan sisters wig and dress. love it.

our cast is bomb....

we're really good with shopping karts...

...and we frequent this place.

two people (of the many in the cast) that i heart...

my willard, tim roberts. heart. him.

my roomie jenn aedo

the whole gang at our sunday cookout

one-trip wonder woman

2009-05-13T21:23:00.000-07:00

...this is me whenever i get home from the store or any other place from which i acquire a lot of purchases (minus the adorable bags. maybe sometime i'll have to get me some of those). in fact, this was me just a few minutes ago when i made a trip to walmart with some friends.

i am definitely a one-trip woman. i hate making multiple trips from my car (or friend's cars as is currently the case- i'm car-less at the moment) to my house with bags of groceries. so, i end up muscling all of my bags at once- even if it kills me and my fingers turn a near-amputation purple-y color. good things and big achievements don't come easy, people! oh, the satisfaction of getting them all in one foul swoop! yep, can't beat it. and i will continue to do it... even if it kills me.

my smetchy...

2009-05-12T22:07:00.001-07:00

this is my little sister gretchen. she is 3 years younger than me. i call her smetch.

i don't think she knows it, but she's one of my heroes. smetchy is such a deep, grounded and intellectual person. every time i talk to her, it makes me think- in a great way. watching her live life makes me want to be better- the best version of myself. she is also hilarious. she's very witty an she's always making us laugh.

one of my favorite things about smetch is that she's one of the most compassionate people i know. she feels so much. if anyone close to her is ever hurting or sad or excited, gretchen is right there feeling it along with them.

smetch and i didn't always get along growing up. we're very different and because of that we butted heads a lot as children. but we've started getting a lot closer as we've grown into adults.

this past year, we spent a lot of time together at byu. i was able to be there through some of her hard times and she was there for me in mine.

i'll never forget a special moment i had with my smetchy a couple of days before i graduated. i don't consider myself to be a super emotional person, but one night i was overwhelmed by the emotions of graduating and leaving behind a lot of people that i love to move on with the rest of my life. not only that, but i was also dealing with the craziness of finishing finals, moving out of my apartment and hopping on a plane to ny for a week only to move to st. george less than 24 hours after my return.

that night, i drove over to where gretch was hanging out with some friends. she came out to my car to spend some time with me. i opened up to her about all of the crazy mixed emotions i was feeling. she let me cry and she just listened. she gave me a hug, told me she loved me and told me what i needed to hear- that everything was going to be ok.

it seems like a simple thing, and i'm sure you can recall more than one occasion when someone did the same for you. but i'll never forget that special moment with my smetchy.

i love you, gretch and i'm grateful that you've become one of my favorite, best friends!

dear mommy of mine...

2009-05-10T14:10:00.000-07:00

this is a picture of my gorgeous mommy and me. what a babe. it's mother's day today and i think it's hilarious that all of my friends are trying to boast, on facebook, that their mom's are better than everyone else's. i don't really care to participate in such meaningless banter (especially because i don't want them to face the harsh reality that all of their mothers pale in comparison to yours truly's.) ;)

i love that today is mother's day. and i feel like, especially because of the chapter of my life i just closed and the new one i've begun, i have some things that i want to say to my mom...

dear mom...

thanks for renting a video camera when we were poor because you thought i was going to take my first steps... even though i never did that day.

thanks for reading little house on the prairie, the boxcar children, eloise, in the eye of the storm and lots of other books to us when we were little. you always did the voices just right and listening to you read always calmed me.

thanks for teaching us kids to be kind and to respect each other so we could become the best friends that we are today.

thanks for homeschooling me in england when i had a hard time adjusting to a new country, a new school, new people and a new culture.

thanks for caring enough to call the "stupid policeman" when i took gretchen on a 3 hour walk to pick benji up from school and you couldn't find us.

thanks for being a patient mom and for creating an environment of love and acceptance where we all feel safe to be who we are.

thanks for laughing at my british impersonations when i would come home from school in england. you're the reason i'm good at dialects.

thanks for letting me call you 15 times every time i cook to ask ridiculous questions.

thanks for singing the titanic song in your "singing bush" voice, on command.

thanks for letting me be your only child of 7 who will physically fight back and wrestle you to the ground :)

thanks for clarifying that i can't get pregnant from being mean to my brothers and sisters.

thanks for warping my idea of dating and relationships with your "friendship hill" diagram. ;)

thanks for being so well-read and knowing about everything that's going on in the world... you've inspired me to do the same.

thanks for always being interested in my dating, friends, school and every other detail of my life.

and most of all... thanks for always encouraging me to dream big and for being excited along with me as i watch those dreams become my reality.

i couldn't ask for a better mom!

thanks for always supporting me...

it takes a babe like this (combined with a handsome daddy, of course)...

to make a family as beautiful as this...

and lets be honest...

...what other mom could be as classy and yet as ghetto fabulous as my mom?

i win.

love you, mom!

my daddy's kind of a big deal...

2009-05-07T09:19:00.001-07:00

last week my dad was in ny at the same time i was. i was singing and dancing and he was... well, at the stock market. he and his company rang the opening bell for the stock market last friday morning! how cool is that? yep, my daddy's kind of a big deal. he's the handsome guy with the white hair 3rd in from the left on the back row. what can i say? i'm a big fan. love you, dad!

my favorite little midgets

2009-05-07T08:29:00.001-07:00

have you ever felt that little kids are just so dang cute that you don't even know what to do about it? sometimes i just want to bite them! here are my favoritest little girls in the whole world! from left to right this is: marta (ba), hannah, kirsten, esther (es) and mila (bubby). aren't they gorgeous? they are my nieces and i love them so much! esther, marta and mila live in london and kirsten, hannah and baby thomas live in north carolina so i only get to see them about once a year. but oh do we have fun when we're together! i miss you my favorite little midgets.

our little girls at the beach

thomas. my little snuggle buddy.

my new home!

2009-05-06T21:38:00.001-07:00

say hello to my new home for the next 6 months! i'm performing in annie, footloose and aida at tuacahn in st. george, utah. i love this place. the red rock is stunning. i love driving through it every day to get to rehearsals. it's been 87 degrees and sunny all week and i can't get over the fact that i'm finally living in a place with palm trees!! rehearsals have been really fun so far. a little tedious, but fun. and we haven't started rehearsal before noon yet! i love my life.

our cast has bonded really quickly. i love them and i'm excited to spend the next 6 months with them.

stash and i in front of our apts. i love having you here with me, stash.

stash, ben, chloe, allison and i on our first day :)

the trio and allison at our first footloose read-through. we're already besties. this trio is gonna rock your world!

some of the clan on the first day at lunch. brian, terrance, jesse, tim, george, kylee, jenn, ben, stash, domonique, allison and i. here's to making memories!

ladies and gentleman... my big brother!!!

2009-05-06T20:00:00.000-07:00

for those of you who might not know, my big brother benji is living in taiwan. he's currently in the top 12 of taiwan's hit tv show "super idol", which is the chinese equivalent of "american idol". yep, he's kind of a big deal. they absolutely love him. the picture posted above is one of the many cartoon characters that benji's fans have made of him wearing his outfits from the shows. isn't it adorable? he's so cute i wanna squish him. my brother is a freakin' cartoon! what a guy. here's a little clip where you can hear benji's flawless mandarin, beautiful vocals and see how much his fans love him... just remember that i'll always be your biggest fan, benj!!

how embarrassing...

2009-05-06T09:48:00.000-07:00

so i warned you that becca has her blonde moments. my family and friends have had such a hay day telling people about my two recent incidents, that i figured i might as well share them and get the embarrassment over with in one foul swoop... and have a good laugh myself.

after graduation about a week and a half ago, we wanted to take a picture of me jumping in the air in my graduation gown. so, naturally, i decided to climb on top of a huge wall surrounded by bushes right outside of one of the buildings on campus. keep in mind that i had to climb on top of a trash can, then a railing and then shimmy my way onto the wall, which left me on all fours before i could get enough balance to stand up. it was in that very moment of patheticness, whist down on all fours, that who should come walking up the stairwell down below me but the dean of my college accompanied by dallin h. oaks (an apostle of the church of jesus christ of latter day saints). i happen to know the dean quite well because he toured with the young ambassadors to china back in 2005. they looked up at me and the dean smiled.... and then the smile melted into a look of confusion. and luckily, he look away and just kept walking instead of inquiring after the new graduate perched 15 feet above him in the air like parrot. how embarassing. this picture says it all...

embarrassing moment #2. ben, cory and i sat down to dinner at jr.s last friday before seeing billy elliot (just fyi, never eat at jr.s... no matter how amazing cory stephens tells you it is. it's nothing more than a glorified denny's. their cheesecake, however, is delicious).

i just want to preface this story by saying that it had been a long day of shopping and running around and i was tired. so there we are, looking at the menu (which was frustrating in and of itself because nothing looked good and i just wanted to get ordering out of the way). it comes time for me to order, i glance down at the menu and say flippantly, "i'll have the chicken par-ma-gee-ana" the waiter looked at me with a knowing pitty smile and said, "the chicken parmagiana?". i'll never live that one down.

is he diggin' your treats?

2009-05-06T09:34:00.000-07:00

the other morning in the city, i was waiting for ben and cory on the street near the subway. as i was waiting, i was people watching, of course, as people came up out of the subway stop. and as i was watching and waiting, i encountered a classic straight/gay moment that made me smile.

one guy came out of the subway all spiffed up in a suit for work. as he walked by me, he gave me a smile and checked me out a little. i smiled back and he went on his way.

another guy came out of the subway and we happened to catch each other's eye, so i gave him a little courteous smile. he, on the other hand, looked caught off guard. he gave a bit of a confused look, an awkward, forced smile and turned the corner as quickly as he could. i should've taken the hint from his tight pants and pretty hair. he was definitely gay. don't worry mr. cute gay man whoever you are, i wasn't trying to flirt with you, i swear!

i do find it funny that i get hit on in ny more than any other city i've been to. however, this past visit, we spent a lot of time in the theatre community so i got a little overlooked because i was hanging out with cory and ben. better luck next time, i guess...

ny treasures

2009-05-06T08:35:00.000-07:00

one of my favorite things about new york city is that it's full of little treasures. there are so many whole-in-the-wall restaurants that are hugely ambianceful and make some of the best food you've ever tasted. there are also adorable little shops, amazing hole-in-the-wall jazz clubs and so much more! i love exploring the city and finding new treasures every time i'm there. here are a few of the treasures we found last week...

"baked by melissa". located 529 broadway (on spring st. btw. broadway and mercer). they are the tiniest, tastiest little cupcakes in the city. adorable. while buying some i met melissa herself, who is a doll. if you're ever in the city, try them!

my new d&g sunglasses, which i bought on canal street (real d&g, of course). we found lots of fun purchases on canal street that day

the shake shack. best burger you'll ever eat. or so i hear. i was sick with food poisoning the night before everyone ate here, so i wasn't quite ready to handle a burger. but everyone raved about this place and i intend to try it next time i'm in the city.

5 napkins. so ambianceful. really yummy gourmet burgers.

cosi. a fancy cafe downtown with amazing pizza!

max brenner. this place is unreal. yummy food and famous for their chocolate desserts, which will change your life. they literally bring you a shot of melted chocolate with every dessert you buy. try it, you'll love it!

and, of course, central park. cory, ben and i took a walk here one day. it is b.e.a.u.t.i.f.u.l. a great place for walking and reflection. it's amazing how you can get lost in there and forget that you're in new york city. i love how lush and green it is. made me miss the east coast. this will be my sanctuary when i live in the city.

new york

2009-05-04T22:59:00.000-07:00

this is a little picture i took peering out into the city from central park last week while i was in ny. yes, ladies and gentleman... new york city... my ambianceful city! it was so good to be back there. i love it. i love the people watching. i love the architecture. i love that the city is centered around what i love to do. and i loved sharing the week with friends that i love so much!

i was in the city to perform in the byu bfa senior showcase. there were 19 of us featured in a showcase that we performed for casting directors and agents at the sage theatre. it was a really successful week! and we were excited to have had representatives from telsey, tara reubin, theatre works and other prestigious agencies and casting companies who attended.

we saw four shows while we were there. i saw in the heights (my second time. life changing), west side story (cy, cory, jeff, courney and i bawled), 9 to 5 and billy elliot. i loved all of them. my favorite moment of all the shows was watching stephanie j. block sing "get out, stay out." oh mylanta! i wanted to jump to my feet and give her a standing ovation as soon as the number was done. her vocals were unreal and her acting was incredible. dear stephie block... thanks for changing my life last week!

i got to see heidi while i was there too! she saved me from the hostel and let me stay with her for most of the week. thanks heidsies, i love you!

besides staying with heidi, we stayed here...

the central park hostel on 103rd... right by the projects

in the heights with courtney, jeff, chelsea, presty, cory, ben, emily, jenny, kevin and cy

daniel, ben, cy, julie, cory, alexis and i after the showcase at sage theatre

times square with my boysies ben and cory. i love you boys!

west side story with jeff and courtney, cory, ben and cy

john came to visit me while he was in the city :) thanks johnny!

billy elliot with ben, presty (who was dying of swine flu in this picture), jenny and cory

unwritten

2009-05-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

this is a picture of my 7-year-old self getting ready to dive into a fjord in norway. here i am 17 years later, and i'm still feeling a lot like i did in this picture. here i go, jumping into the unknown. the rest of my life is still unwritten...

wicked

2009-05-02T15:00:00.000-07:00

my friend cody invited me to go to wicked with him and his family the night before i flew out to new york. we had so much fun! cody and i ate at cafe trio before the show. it was so ambianceful and yummy. if you ever need a great place to eat in slc, try it out!

i loved seeing wicked again. that show is brilliantly written. it's so clever and witty. it was really fun to see it with cody for his first time. defying gravity and for good really got me that night. maybe it had something to do with graduating and moving on with life!

thanks for such a fun night and for being such an inspiration to me, cody!!

codes and i at capitol theatre