So I find myself sitting here in front of my computer on the third official day of my vacation and needing to go to bed to get up at 730am to drive to Peachtree City to rehearse for the TV show Drop Dead Diva. I'm excited about working on a TV show but most excited to be working with people from my L.A. life again. Tyce Diorio messaged me the other day on FB asking about dancers and asked if I'd want to dance...immediately followed by "It's easy". Lol. I've known Tyce since we were both on Starsearch many years ago and I appreciate the amendment to the offer, considering I've seen his work many times and know it can be quite rigorous. I'm honored to be working with him. Also coming to town is my dear friend Marlon Palayo who is one of the most amazing dancers in L.A. and perhaps the world. I first met Marlon when I choreographed for Hysterica Dance Company and then had the pleasure of working with him on Cher's Vegas show as well. Talented, humble, and super dooper sweet. Other Atlanta area dancers working on DDD are the one and only Elysandra Q, Joy Spears, and Corey Willis, all of whom are half my age. Oye! what have I gotten myself into.

and now I rest

Koru is over and now I can rest, but notice the time of this entry and you can see that I'm still a night owl. I've taken the week off to recoup some of the sleep I lost while editing, rehearsing, editing, sewing, editing, making lists, and editing. The show was a big success playing to capacity crowds at the 14th St. Playhouse. The dancers did a great job as did the choreographers, staff and crew. I have gotten amazing messages, texts, and even hand written letters expressing beautiful experiences that people had during the process of making and performing Koru. The words written in these touched my heart so much it made my eyes leak. It has always amazed me how dance affects people. Whether watching it or doing it, it can move the human spirit, elevate it, challenge it, excite it... Making this show did all of these things to me but receiving these expressions of emotions on how being involved in Koru affected people sent me to another level of respect of how dance touches. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to create, collaborate, encourage and be inspired.

Long time no blog...

So I've been busy like nobodies bizness for sure. I am approaching the final week of production on Koru which marks my third annual production with dance 101. Can't believe it's been almost three years. Show is coming along...I just finished editing the opening video which I love. As I do editing. This time I'm dabbling in Final Cut Express version and have completed two videos on it with the rest of the stuff on iMovie. I got to know iMovie while on the road with Cher. It really help pass the time from city to city and is a fantastic mode of creative escape. I am accepting work as an editor...FYI. Also for connecting videos I've researched and downloaded some wonderful clips from the early 1900's of dancers and other vaudevillian acts and set them to various tunes of that era. It really ads a nice flavor to the flow. I am also choreographing two pieces for Koru, one a group dance derived from my Old School Jazz class mixed with my Latin Jazz class, the dance is set to a Jethro Tull song and goes into The Salsa Kings "Salsa Brava". My dancers range from mid 20's to mid "not 20's" and are of varying levels. I love my students and love seeing the smiles on their faces when they dance. It's coming together nicely and is lots of fun. My second dance is a contemporary duet set to Thom Yorke's "Atoms for Peace", love it. It shows a relationship growing, healing, rebirth...some fun partnering bits and playful energy. This show has a vast array of dance styles and should be really entertaining. I'm proud of the efforts the students are putting into this production, some of which have never been on stage before. How cool is that?! Lot's of life has been happening to. I've been surrounded by it and trying to keep it at bay without fully rejecting it for I am human and do pay attention to what others are going through. It's difficult to control my compassion, to not give so much energy to it and have none left over for myself. I'm successful for the most part, sometimes, and not at all....in varying degrees. At any rate, I am still breathing, still loving and still dancing.