Photo Post for "Nothing Bad - A Werewolf Rock Musical"

So, I wasn't able to share all the photos from our Rock Musical during Fringe because I didn't want to give anything away but since we're not doing the show for a little while, I feel like it's ok to share.  It's out of context, right?  And you'll still be totally surprised if it re-opens and you come see it...it'll be brand new!

Welcome to Perfection, California!

Mayor White and some pretty amazing Werewolves!

It was a challenge to do the make-up so quickly, I only had 20 minutes to change everything and Kenni designed a really interesting look for the werewolves. I loved being able to play the opposite of what I was, although in constant control and power.  It was totally different than any role I've ever played before.  I started with a 50's vintage make-up style after perusing some different hair and make-up looks and settled on something glam but classic.  It's something I could easily do day to day and still look natural.  The 80's werewolf make-up was rocker-esque, especially my Joan Jett wig!

We did have a professional photographer come and shoot photos at our preview and then closing night so hopefully I'll have some more Werewolf photos to add to this post later on :)

Super-Set Birthday!

A couple weeks ago one of my co-workers had her Birthday Party at The Garage and instead of just playing music on an iPod there were Acoustic Performances throughout the night.  Talk about an awesome idea and it was the perfect opportunity to do a Live Performance and work on some music stuff.

Neil and I got together a couple days before the Performance and figured out what we wanted to sing and we decided to do 3 Super-Sets of Songs.  We had to figure out which key the songs were in so they could flow together seamlessly and at least stick with a similar theme.  Once we had practiced some songs and put them in the right key, we put together each super-set and practiced it as a whole.  In two hours we finally had a show.  The next day we rehearsed the sets all the way through, learning harmonies and our parts and a couple hours later, we were exhausted but felt like we had covered a lot of ground before the performance the following night.  The day of the Birthday Party we got together one last time to go over all the songs, completely through twice.  For putting something together in 2 days and just a few hours I was proud of our hard work and dedication!

Neil & I after our Performance at The Garage!

The night of Angela's Birthday in The Motor Club at The Garage, there were tons of acoustic performances and singers; it was such a fun and different way to bring music to a Birthday Party!  Around midnight, Neil and I took the stage, and started the first song of our Three Song Super-Set which was 'Summer of '69' by Bryan Adams and that flowed into 'Baby One More Time' by Britney Spears, and everyone joined in with us.  The last song in that set was an original by Neil, called 'Dizzy' which is one of my favorite songs.  The Party seemed to enjoy the original but we were happy to jump right into another song they could sing along with us, so our next Set started with Mr. Big's 'To Be With You' which everyone knew.  We slowed it down with U2's 'With Or Without You' and the Acoustic version of 'Livin' On A Prayer' by Bon Jovi.  I think that might have confused everyone because they knew the lyrics but couldn't figure out what it was right away.  The last Super Set started with a more recent song that had everyone singing and dancing, which was 'Call Me Maybe' by Carly Rae Jepson.  Neil and I took a queue from David Cook and did Mariah Carey's 'Always Be My Baby' which he sang on "American Idol" and we closed out our entire set with 'Don't Stop Believing', the "Glee" version so everyone could sing along with us!

This was definitely a creative way to play music and get everyone at the party involved with songs they may want to hear or dance to.  We all have our guilty pleasures and Neil and I were able to perform 9 of them in just under 20 minutes!  We both had a lot of fun and we'd definitely like to do our Super-Set again for our friends at a show :)

An 80's Cover Band and 90's Karaoke

A couple Thursday's ago was a surprise trip to The Canyon Club in Agoura Hills with Neil.  I had never been there but I know that all sorts of bands play there including Pat Benatar who I will definitely see there the next time she's in town because the venue was perfect.  

We went to Canyon Club to see an 80's Cover Band, that was a mix of Steel Panther and The Spazmatics.  One guy was dressed like Nikki Sixx, while another was Slash, then the guy from Devo, and the lead singer was dressed like some singing actor in a movie.  The show started out really good, everyone was singing along and dancing to the music, and they were playing songs that everyone knew and could have fun dancing to.  The problem was, everyone was drunk, a good 20 years older than us, and dressing pretty scandalous, but this was my first time at Canyon Club and I was warned before arrival.  They switched things around half-way through their set, and started to play a Gun's & Rose's song and all of a sudden, something was off.  We couldn't tell if it was the lead guitarist, or the lead singer who picked up a guitar, but because the guitar was off, the singing went off-key.  They had also switched drummer's and while the new drummer came on was actually pretty awesome, you could tell he loved to play and was having such a good time, in his excitement, tossing his sticks was causing the rhythm to be off.  It was kind of a mess and the problem was, the band never recovered, and the next few songs were totally off.  It was a shame because you could tell the bassist was trying to figure out where it was coming from and knew things weren't right but there was nothing he could do at this point.  I love hearing 80's Music and I think Cover Bands are super fun, and I love the cheese factor of the synchronized dance moves, costumes, and vocals, I just wish they had been able to keep it together for the whole show.  I'd definitely go see them again but hopefully they'll have practiced a little more and be prepared to rock out, in tune.

Then this past week at Karaoke it was a really quiet night and people got to sing a bunch since it was so slow.  I set myself to a 90's Women Musical Theme, and since I'm still building my History with our new computer, it couldn't be anything that was already on my list.  My first song was 'Who Will Save Your Soul' by Jewel which was followed by 'Head Over Feet' by Alanis Morissette; two women who made their biggest hits in the 90's but still continue to create music today!  My new song of the night, which I'm surprised I've never sang before was Ace Of Base's, 'All That She Wants,' and a song that isn't one of my favorites after singing it; I prefer to do 'Don't Turn Around' or 'The Sign' because it's such a crowd favorite.  Next up I did 'Here Comes The Rain Again' by The Eurythmics and I did some new harmonies on it and after letting everyone else sing a few more times I closed out the night with Natalie Merchant's 'Wonder' which is just a fun and happy song.  I'm always happy when people get to sing a bunch and since it was a slow night, I got to go home a little bit early and get some sleep before my crazy work weekend ahead!

I think it's time for an 80's Theme Karaoke night soon :)

80's Rehearsal

I'm always glad when I can start my week off with something creative, and it was great to have an Audition on Monday and continue to keep the groove going with Rehearsal on Tuesday!

Neil's going to be playing an Acoustic 80's Cover Song's Show at Universal Bar & Grill in North Hollywood on Friday.  He had his own rehearsal on Monday Night when he played a set at Skinny's, and has informed me I will be singing a couple songs with him at his show on Friday Night.  We sang together in November for his first show at The Good Hurt, and it was so exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time!

On Tuesday we rehearsed a few songs and listened to some music.  I love the 80's, personally, I think the best music came out then...well-written songs, rock and roll, passion, and there was something for everyone, not to mention, totally danceable and with-standing the test of time as a lot of those songs are still popular now!  Now I can't say what we're singing because it's a surprise for Friday, and I don't even know the rest of Neil's set, because it's supposed to be a surprise for me, so I'm really looking forward and excited about the show!  Lucky for me, I know a lot of 80's songs, so the songs we're singing were some of my personal favorites :)  I even pulled out a tambourine at one point, and added to one of the songs!  To be perfectly honest, rhythm isn't my strong point, and I played the piano, so I don't know why that is, but apparently, practice helps, and if that song stays in the set, I'll be rocking out with my tambourine!

We'll have another rehearsal later this week, because I want to feel comfortable with the songs.  It's amazing how at Karaoke, I can feel confident with the songs, but once I get in front of an unknown audience in a different setting, my nerves creep back in.  I'm a firm believer in, if you're not nervous, then it's not worth it!  It keeps you on your toes, and makes sure you're prepared for anything!  (I actually used to shake before and after every time I sang the National Anthem at Sporting Events at Winona, but not while I was doing it, it was weird, but I expected it.)  Nowadays, I get nervous right away, but usually everything fades and I completely forget where I'm at and just get into the groove, and that's the way I like it :)