We have been practicing being concise in our statements and questions on this trip so I will try to do the same here. These highlights, in bulleted form, do not do justice to all of the profound and life-altering thoughts going through my head, but if I attempt to divulge them, I will be typing straight for the next three days. So here is my attempt at being concise:
Monday
1. Had a mini internal breakdown during Claudia's master class just thinking about how many amazing singers there are out there and how competitive it is. This had nothing to do with what Claudia was saying, she is wonderful, it just happened to happen at the same time as her class.
2. Claudia is such a passionate, sincere, caring person. She is so giving and real and honest and concerned about your best interest. She is such a cool lady. I am so glad that she gave that chunk of her time to spend with us.Highlight of something she said: You have to love your voice. If you don't love it, nobody will. Own your voice, you have something to give.
Tuesday
1. Caroline Worra. Wow, I learned SO much listening to her story. Her talk was packed with good advice, tips, and encouragement. In the briefest of summaries, my highlights were: everyone's path is different, learn all you can; keep learning, be patient; it takes time. Indian food with her afterwards was a definite bonus.
2. Porgy and Bess. WOW! Amazing show! Apparently they changed the show slightly, made some cuts to make it more musical theatre-y than full out opera. I haven't seen the original so I don't know, but I know I LOVED it! Very impressed with the guy who played Crown, the bad guy, spending so much time with us on the sidewalk afterward. He was so friendly and kind.
Wednesday
1. Naomi Ruiz. Same as with Caroline, I learned SO much! Naomi was so charming and engaging. I loved hearing her story and how different it was from Caroline's and others' we have heard. Highlights: "No" doesn't necessarily mean "no." You have to pick yourself up again and keep going; don't lose heart. Again, be patient; persevere. (She, like Claudia, also said that you have to love your voice). Finally, stay positive. It sounds simply and obvious, but it is so easy to forget. She said it a bajillion times.
2. Elixir. Speechless. It was so wonderful and amazing. I have many thoughts about this experience so I am just going to stop at "wonderful and amazing."
Thursday
1. Ken Benson. I didn't know what to expect for this interview. He was very personable and interested in helping us which I appreciated very much. Because his perspective is so different from the others we talked to previously, we got a lot of new information, some which has already launched a short-term goal into my brain: learn the common concert soloist repertoire such as Faure Requiem, Mozart Requiem, Handel's Messiah, etc.
2. Had my voice lesson with Susan Eichhorn. I really liked it. I know it was good because she addressed things that I already knew I needed to work on but she came at it from a very different way and gave me totally knew techniques for practicing and fixing those things. I was able to connect what she was saying with other things I have heard before so that was really helpful. Sadly, I didn't get to ask much about life or the business because there was no time.
3. Juilliard Vocal Recital. I really enjoyed it. Both had very contrasting tones from each other. Lovely rep choices. A lot of Russian.
Friday
1. Hustle class with Logan Tracey. Very informative. Useful information that I wouldn't have thought of and is very important to know about, such as taxes, how to organize your business at home, social networking tips, etc. You can tell that Logan is an actress. Very comfortable in front of the group, funny, relatable. Highlights: (again), patience. Also, don't apologize for what you're doing. You are an actor. You are a singer. That is what you are and that is what you do. Don't be embarrassed about it. Lastly, life is a string of choices. If something didn't work out, make another choice. For example, if you hate your temp job, QUIT IT! Find a different one!
2. Talking to a total stranger, finding out she's an actress, ending up sitting down to lunch with her (at a really great Mexican place) and talking about life in the acting biz.
3. Mitra's friend Rob, the Paul Taylor dancer. It was fascinating to just hear about dance in general. It is a related but very different art from ours, yet the proposition of patience and perseverance prevailed.
4. Anything Goes. It was so great! I loved it. I loved the big exciting dance numbers, the swanky, witty, fun music, the style of the 20s/30s, and the actors were all wonderful.
***Famous people sitings:
1. David Alan Grier in Porgy and Bess. I know him as the cop in Jumanji.
2. Dimitri Hvorostovsky the baritone. Right outside of the Met.
3. Ned Rorem at the Julliard Recital.
4. Richard Kind. We passed him on the sidewalk this morning. He had papers in his hand and was talking to himself as he was walking very quickly. He was probably memorizing lines on his way to a job.
Up late tonight, packing, and early rise tomorrow to go home. My brain is filled with new knowledge and I am excited and encouraged, though still scared and intimidated, about this path that I am pursuing. I just wish I had more than one day to rest and process before being bombarded with the return of the semester's tasks and assignments and deadlines. This trip has been life changing for me.
- Emily
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