sunday breakfast and shows

 during the night i soaked a cup of almond flour in yogurt and then baked a pancake in the oven after adding five eggs. it was very good and we had it with honey and st. dalfour fruit juice sweetened jam.

chanda picked out the poem again this sunday:

'tis merry in greenwood

by sir walter scott

'tis merry in greenwood -- thus runs the old lay, --

in the gladsome month of lively may,

when the wild birds' song on stem and spray

invites to forest bower;

then rears the ash his airy chest,

then shines the birch in silver vest,

and the beech in glistening leaves is drest,

and dark between shows the oak's proud breast,

like a chieftan's frowning tower;

though a thousand branches join their screen,

yet the broken sunbeams glance between,

and tip the leaves with lighter green,

with brighter tints the flowers;

dull is the heart that loves not then

the deep recess of the wildwood glen,

where roe and red-deer find sheltering den,

when the sun is in his power.

it was a very busy morning getting ready for the play. i had to make a batch of chocolate chip cookies and put together a salad for selling at the concession we have during intermission. we also had to do morgana's hair, feed all of us, pack a lunch and make sure jack was set for the day. morgana left for the theatre at 11:30, chanda and i left at 12:12 thinking we could still buy flowers! instead we just ran for the theatre to drop off the food, make sure there was help backstage for the quick costume changes and then take our seats. 

  morgana's babysitting friends came to see her.

 and good friends came to see both shows (one o'clock and five o'clock . . )

 janet's pearly queen lambeth costume. she did half paint and half buttons. it looked so good on sarah. she's also wearing chanda's black beret with a feather sewn on.

 afterwards, we went out with deychen's family to "company" on ninth avenue just a block from the theatre. everyone had pizza, but morgana and i had salad (radicchio and artichoke).

back at home, morgana arranged her flowers into vases . . i am so tired!! and so relieved that we can return to a normal week. no more rehearsals! i can't believe it's over. i'm glad. of course i'm still singing all the songs over and over in my head . .

a bit of saturday . .

backstage pics

 chanda and i worked backstage tonight. our friend deychen went on as sally smith (and sang beautifully . . i could hear it all from the dressing room hallway).

 in between costume changes . . 

 I love this outfit she has on with the purple hat.

morgana was feeling a little under the weather at the end of the show and we took a cab home.

pre-show breakfast

 morgana slept late this morning, trying to sleep off the slight cold she has acquired. (unfortunately, i don't think it worked). when i returned from the impromptu garden meeting, we had a delicious breakfast that she had put together. she wanted to try making eggs like our friend carol: eggs folded over in a frying pan with a little ghee. it came out very well and she said it tasted just like carol's (well, there weren't that many ingredients . . she expected it to taste differently?) we had hibiscus tea with it and homemade crackers, and fruit shakes (each a different kind . . vanilla, strawberry and raspberry).

running lines with chanda before meeting deychen and traipsing off to the theatre (they like to take the high line every day).

opening night for "me and my girl"

 morgana went on as sally smith tonight. it was the first night they ran the whole show, so no one knew if it would come together, but it did. it was really fabulous and morgana gave a heartfelt performance. she made us all cry when she sang her solo "once you lose your heart." (to hear how the song goes, click on the arrow button next to the title on this amazon website).

 

 morgana and deychen in rehearsal for "the lambeth walk." (i found this on youtube just now when i was searching for the tune to "once you lose your heart.")

opening night preparations

 the "doo."

the dinner . .

velvet

 morgana's velvet dancers. every year around december or january, morgana's modern dance teacher puts on a show at new york live arts (formerly dance theatre workshop) that showcases her students' work. this year morgana's group piece that she created for her class last spring was included (she also did her solo).  it's called velvet, and uses the music by nino rota. you can see a little of it here. all the girls took it further by adding small details such as hand movements, specific looks, a flick of a dress . . . i wish i had attended the tech to show you, although i heard through a very reliable source that the tech was DREADFUL. it was the first time all of them had rehearsed in months . . which is one of the reasons why ellen does not like to include group pieces. however, they really pulled it together for the shows. i saw the saturday afternoon show, and they were beautiful and hysterically funny.

 my! how they've all grown! they've been working together and doing these shows since they were five!!! morgana joined them when she was eight.

here's a pic of morgana, chanda and deychen in the dressing room for the january 2006 family matters show. morgana's dance was called into the west (music by aaron copland) and deychen's dance was called cheetah . . i think this is when korrina began stage managing . .

 backstage shots . . 

 without the make up and the dress and the pose . . we're all very ordinary.

 after the 2:00 show, i went home to take care of the animals, and morgana went to a me and my girl rehearsal (she's sharing the role with her friend deychen for a nychea homeschool production). then everyone converged on the 14th street y between first and second avenues for the sokolow show, which morgana and her fellow ellen students did with the sokolow theatre dance ensemble. it was a very moving performance of several of anna's pieces, ranging from 1930 to 1989. along with martha graham, doris humphrey and jose limon and a myriad of other wonderful dancers and choreographers (i.e. mary anthony), anna ushered in american modern dance.