A young soprano in a big city

I just arrived back at the hotel after a second eye opening day in the concrete jungle. I was just thinking how we only arrived here yesterday, yet it feels like I have been here for so much longer. I am surprised at how easily I have adjusted to the city. We talked about how people say that their heart beats with the city, and it's really true. I actually don't feel threatened in the city, and I feel more confident in my ability to get around.  I really love it here.

Yesterday we arrived to the city in the afternoon. Dr. Rieck and Mitra took a cab to the hotel, and we had to find our way to the hotel using public transportation carrying all 50 Lbs of my luggage with. That was my first time going on a subway and using the metro cards. I watched other people to see how they did it, and tried hard to keep up with the fast pace. When the subway first started I actually fell over because I didn't expect how quickly it would move. It was a huge culture shock and very overwhelming for me. Everything moves so fast here and everyone is very assertive. Once we got to the hotel I felt relieved. We then went to a curry restaurant and I had my first lamb curry, and it was delicious! After that we got settled in the hotel and then went out to dinner. I was surprised at how different the waiters act here than back at home. I felt like they wanted us to eat and leave right away. We then went to the show "Passion" and it was amazing! I really enjoyed how well the musical flowed, how the music foreshadowed events, and showed both the positive and negative effects of passion.

This morning I woke up early and we went to a baptist church. I was interesting to experiencing the different culture and the huge role that gospel music has in the service. We then got bagels (which where very good) and headed to Opera America to have a vocal coaching with David Sytkowski. I sang "Lascia ch'io pianga" and he gave me wonderful tips on the recitative using the importance of the Italian language, use of the score, use of word stressing, and so much more! We also got to talk to him and his friend Vince B. Vincent who is a young professional singer. They gave us such wonderful advice on making it as a performer, and what life is like in NYC as a performer/pianist. We then left for the Paul Taylor Dance Company performance. This was a very cool performance. It was amazing to me how they where able to communicate the story through movements making me laugh one second, then stunned the next. After that I decided to try and get tickets to spider man, but the tickets where to expensive so I went off with Laura to Time Square where we found lunch at a pizza place. We walked  around a bit until we found Laura's friend who she knew. He lives in NYC and is a student at AMDA. We went with him to see his dorm and walked around the neighborhood a bit. We went to this bakery with this amazing banana pudding! We then treated ourselves to manicures! It was really nice to walk around the city and see that part of NYC!

I am still getting used to the fast pace, the assertiveness,  the transportation systems, and the diverse culture, but I really feel love it here. I am learning so much about what the performance industry and am looking forward to seeing my first opera at the Met tomorrow!

Kelly