12 on 12 June 2011

This particular 12 on 12 was difficult for me because it fell on a Sunday and a day off.  So while I had an entertaining evening, everything prior to that was quite boring.  And unfortunately, I didn’t quite get 12 photos, only 11 this month.  And as you’ll see, I got a bit creative with the photos I did take.  I promise, it was one of those days where I honestly did next to nothing.  And how does one take a picture of nothing? So here goes…

I started my day watching the Angels play the Royals – we lost big time 0-9! Ouch…Then I started a new book – it was loaned to me by a friend at work…Early evening, I got in my car to head to Garden Grove where my friends were performing in a production of Chicago!  To save the money on the ticket, I volunteered to Usher!  But back to the car… this is my view of my 2005 Ford Focus…I was a bit early, and since I often forget to eat when I’m home and don’t realize it until I’m away, I stopped at the Del Taco near the theater…My total came to $6.30 so this is what I handed the cashier.  She took it, gave me my drink, then my food, and closed the window.  I stayed put, she came back out and asked what I needed – I asked for my $5 in change. It also sort of justified me taking a random photo of my money!  Does no one know how to make change anymore?  Here is where the show was supposed to be performed.  However, the Gem had a fire a week before the show was to open.  They lost all their costumes and some of the scenic.  The fire also closed the building.  Thankfully, the community rallied – the amphitheater next door loaned them their facility and a local community college helped rebuild every single one of the costumes to their original design, in 3 days!  My old friend Dan, was the audio designer for the production.  It was really great seeing him and catching up on life and his happenings…Dear friend Tim, was playing Amos!  I had last seen him onstage in the SCLO Production of Grease over 10 years ago so it was fantastic to see him grace us with his talent again!  He’s such a talented guy!Good friend Gemma was playing the girl who says “pop”!  (She was also in SCLO’s Grease – crazy small world)  She is such a terrific dancer.  Your eyes are just drawn to her when she’s onstage!  I even ran into Joe Mulroy again (I swear he’s stalking me!) in the audience.  And if I’d just remembered to take a photo with Joe, I would’ve had 12!  Alas… It was a wonderful evening!  I’m am so glad I was able to find the time to see the show. When I got home, the laundry I’d done over the past couple of days was waiting for me on my bed.  Before I could sleep, it needed to finally be put away.  You can see the many empty hangers waiting for the clothes that would complete their purpose in the universe…Finally, I pulled down the calendar and began reviewing my month of May as I was determined to finally start catching up on my blog.  Thankfully, at least I’ve gotten in the habit of archiving everything on my calendar before sitting down to summarize them in blog/journal form.

And so completed my day (with only 11 photos).

June 12–June 18, 2011

Now that “Star Tours – The Adventures Continue” is officially open and before I forget (again!), I wanted to finally talk about the photo shoot I got to participate on with Darth Vader and the Stormtroopers!  It was so much fun and so much interesting work for the two days I got to be there (it was a 3 day shoot and Grad Nite got in the way for me).  My guys were fantastic and really rolled with everything the director threw at them.  They stood their ground when they were asked to do something out of character (and I backed them up – it was after all my reason for being there) and added their extra personalities (within character of course).  So even though the hours SUCKED, we had a terrific time.  And the video turned out so less cheesy than I thought – we are all quite proud of it!  Check it out here Darth Vader Visits Disneyland!

Sunday was my 12 on 12 day – see my next post for all fun tidbits but the highlight was seeing my friends in their production of Chicago!  The rest of the week was pretty typical, with a few fun bits thrown in for good measure.  On Monday night, my visiting teachers took me out for dinner.  I decided on Wahoo’s (for you Jordan!) and we had great food & conversation.  In fact, before I knew it, we’d been out for over 90 minutes.  I am really enjoying getting to knew these lovely ladies.

At work on Wednesday, I cleaned up the office we used for Join Jack’s Crew – it was bittersweet collecting up all the leftover items to be returned.  But I was able to keep a few things for myself (and the nephews) so it won’t be forgotten anytime soon.  After cleaning up the office, I headed to Ruby’s Diner in Orange for a work dinner with the Entertainment Salaried Staff of Disneyland.  The bosses wanted to thank us for our hard work over the past few months and give us a chance to see and chat with our fellow staff.  It was actually quite lovely and I got to catch up with some folks I don’t get to see much anymore.  We even got a “gift” – a bright orange safety vest with our name embroidered on the back.  It was our bosses sneaky way of getting us to support the new practice of the whole of the entertainment department wearing these vests from dusk til dawn (even though most of the locations are lit – but I won’t get into that!). 

My final Grad Nite of the season was Thursday night.  This too was bittersweet.  I love the show, the cast, the crew and the fun we have each week; I hate the hours and don’t particularly enjoy the grads…I wasn’t near that annoying at that age! ;)  So I took lots more pictures.  And as Grad Nites go, it can’t be a smooth evening.  Since we started rehearsals fighting the rain, the universe decided to end the event with some rain as well.  It kept things interesting all night.  I even started both my shows a smidge early in hopes of avoiding the pending rain.  Thankfully, it worked both times!  In the end, I would say it was a successful Grad Nite event!  And changes are afoot for next year’s event so while we don’t know what the future holds for us, we can hold on to our memories!  Thanks Grad Nite Cast & Crew for an excellent run!

Rene & Traci hamming it up just before we open to the Grads…Tyler and Adolfo hanging out at the audio board…Me and the Mouses – Mickey and Minnie…Sue – the Event Show Director…Jessica – My Castle ASM…Dance Shills and the Grad Nite Host…Dinner Time for the Techs… …and the Pyro team…It’s all about the looks on faces when I catch them mid-sentence :) …Chris – doing the sprinkler…Hanging “backstage” waiting for the Grads…Now it’s dinner time for the performers…Lighting guys Adam and Nick… (also the rain had started so the boards were covered for the first time of many)The Castle in the rain and pink light with polka dots…Joshua – what is your hand doing under there? ;-pThe rain has forced Joshua to take drastic measures…Adolfo sleeping through the rain and loud music – only as an audio can…The rain isn’t bothering Tyler or Nick – they both are wearing the “ah well, nothing surprises us” expressions…Tori loves Grad Nite!!  as seen by the intense smile next to her lanyard!!

12 on 12 May 2011

I started my long day with a little Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix… still very much enjoying reliving Harry’s adventures!

But then this day was all about Grad Nite… at 8pm it was off for Grad Nite #1 – this is my “credential” – it really doesn’t get me anywhere but helps my performers (who are dressed in street clothes) not get stopped by Disney security.

This is Adolfo – he’s my audio guy.  He’s holding an antenna for our headset system like a top hat over my head :)

Here are a couple of pyro technicians – they are setting up some of the pyro that is set just behind the stage.

They work hard… and safe, notice the protective hand and eye wear!

Erin is proudly showing off some product (I believe this might be one of the flame effects).

These are my lighting/video guys – Joshua, with his eyes closed, and Nick.  In addition to running the show each night, Nick designed the show and Joshua programmed it.

These are my “shills”, four of which also double as my acrobats.  They are here to get and keep the dancing going all night long!

Ah, Traci, ever lovely – no matter the hour!  She’s one of the many ASM’s involved with this event and is Entertainment 2 for the night!  She gets to run around all over making sure everything is setup and people get their breaks!

Rene at his finest!  He’s the guy in charge of the Grad Nite event.  He’s been my partner in crime for the last few months as he’s also the guy in charge of Join Jack’s Crew! 

This is our break area – can’t say where (cuz technically it is backstage) but we can find food, treats, and drinks to last us throughout the night.

I have given up caffeinated Diet Coke but it’s a staple of Grad Nites.  You may also notice the empty chips bag and the ever present radio – also both staples of the event.

Adolfo, again, hamming it up for the camera – it’s getting late in the night, or should I say morning?

This is a nice shot of the DJ, shills, Grads and Castle.  It is my view for most of the evening. 

June 5–June 11, 2011

Softball Sunday – Playoff Edition!  Our first game was at 6pm against the team we’d play most this season and the team we were mostly evenly matched against!  It was a tight game, the wind was super intense making the ball move in unpredictable ways.  I played a different position almost every inning – loved it!  I even got on base most of the innings as well.  It was a great game and in the end, we won!  The final game was scheduled for 9:15 at a different field.  Since we had time and had to travel, most of the team decided to grab a quick bite together at the Red Robin between the two locations.  It was like our end of year banquet but before the last game! :) 

The final game was against the undefeated team in the league.  We didn’t really stand much of a chance but we put up a good fight!  We had a couple of great innings but a couple of not so great innings.  The wonderful thing about our team is no matter what, we always enjoy ourselves – always joking and keeping it light!  In the end we lost but coming in 2nd place in the top league was our best finish ever; we can’t be too disappointed. 

And so our coed season ended but we have the memories of a terrific season.

At work, this was a long week for me – two Grad Nites, back to back, followed immediately by two nights of MMY/Magical.  At this point in the run of Grad Nite, it’s getting tougher to stay up all night and get back to a “normal” schedule the following day(s).  The Grad Nites themselves were pretty uneventful.  The second night this week was the “LA schools” night – always good for extra drug busts and fights and this year was no exception.  Within the first 30 minutes, we’d already had 3 busts of controlled substances at our venue at the Castle.  Times like this make me worry for the younger generation and our future leaders!

Friday was not a good day for me.  It was one of those days where at the end of the day, I just wanted to curl up and cry.  Thankfully, I had a great team around me and we made it through 2 cancelled shows for 2 different reasons and my lost BlackBerry, amongst other issues.  The first show of MMY was a comedy of errors centered around the façade lights not responding to our command to turn off.  Several attempts later and an oddly placed cancellation announce and we were done.  Fireworks went okay but without projections as we still couldn’t get the Small World façade lights to respond.  Finally, just before the second MMY show, we got the lights to go out!  After some quick pre-show checks, I started the show only to have the projectors not have any output.  And we couldn’t find the cause of the issue so once again, I got to cancel the show.  We just weren’t meant to show Guests MMY this night.

Thankfully, after a full night sleep, I got to reset and start over on Saturday.  My BlackBerry was found and I had no issues for the night.  It’s amazing what a new day can do for one’s outlook.  I’m reminded of Anne of Green Gables – to paraphrase – tomorrow is a new day, fresh, with no mistakes in it.  So wise and so true!

May 29–June 4, 2011

No softball this week as it was Memorial Day weekend.  However, I got a chance of a lifetime.  A few days earlier, my friend Sandy, asked if I wanted to join her for the Prince concert as the person she’d bought the tickets with could no longer attend.  I couldn’t say no to Prince!  He’s a legend and so very talented!  She had to work earlier in the afternoon so I met her at Disneyland and then we headed to the Great Western Forum in LA for an evening of incredible music! 

After some interesting people watching in line we were let into the arena.  We grabbed some food and headed to our seats – and they were some amazing seats – on the floor, eye level to the stage (which was a raised platform in the shape of Prince’s symbol).  The show was scheduled to begin at 7:30; well, the opening act didn’t even take the floor (actually they performed in the tunnel opening at the entrance level – very strange) until almost 9pm.  They did a quick 3 numbers and then we waited another brief amount of time before Prince took the stage.  He did not disappoint!  It was quintessential Prince – the outrageous clothes, the heels (oh the shoes – first gold pumps and then knee high fuzzy wedge boots with lights in the heel), and the awesome music!  He played all the classics and then some.  Overall he played until after midnight – 4 encores, and we think the 4th was unplanned – the crowd just wouldn’t leave so everyone came back out and just jammed for another 10 minutes or so.  An amazing night – I’m so glad I got to share it with Sandy!

Monday (Memorial Day) was closing night for Join Jack’s Crew.  It was bittersweet – I understood the reasons for closing but am going to miss everything about the show: the cast, crew and laughs we shared.  I was Entertainment 1 that day but spent all of my time with the pirates.  I helped set up the tables & chairs for our potluck, got the food organized, and then enjoyed & shared stories with my amazing group!  We took a cast photo before the first show of the evening.  And since I called the first two shows, I thought it fitting to call the last two shows.  I so much didn’t want it to end that I let the opening improv banter go on an extra 5 minutes for starting the “show”.  I was just having to much fun and laughing too much to make it stop!  Needless to say, all great things must come to an end.  I will, however, always hold a special place in my heart for my pirates on Join Jack’s Crew!

Here’s Kevin hanging with his buddies ready for 3D…Waiting for the daily goat parade…Yeah! The goats are here…The men (and women) in black, otherwise known as my awesome Crew!!!Some of the creative and production staff with a few out of dress pirates…More food being enjoyed by the cast & crew…Catching up and sharing stories…Ralph & Traci – he missed the cast photo but I captured him here!Traci & Knuckles – he’s a funny guy…Glenn, Sharon and Furgus…Crow’s Nest & Knuckles (leashed!)…You can climb a gate but can’t escape!

Keeping the spirit of busy going, on Wednesday, it was time for the next production in our season line up at OCPAC (SCFTA) – Burn the Floor.  I met up with Sarah beforehand for dinner at Claim Jumper.  We ordered the same meal and enjoyed lovely conversation.  And for a change, we even splurged on dessert.  We then walked over to the theater to meet up with Karen & Jamie.  The show is an amazing ballroom dance concert with 2 live singers and a cast full of talented dancers.  And my sister got all excited when she realized two of her So You Think You Can Dance stars were in the show!  After the show, Sarah and I ended up chatting at our cars for another couple of hours.  It was a great night out!

The rest of the week was a typical work week – time spent on The Magic, the Memories, and You! and Magical fireworks and Grad Nite.  Nothing too exciting or out of the ordinary to report on this week.