Opening Weekend of BYE BYE BIRDIE!!!

“Bye Bye Birdie!” opened this past weekend in Maplewood, and what a GREAT opening weekend it was! We worked our BUTTS off…especially last week (tech week), and I think this could be one of the best shows I’ve been in, thus far!

Opening night, Duane, his cousin Phil, and a bunch of my friends from school came to see the show. It was a great crowd, and the energy and excitement was shared by the audience AND all of us on stage. I can’t state enough how AMAZING the teens are in this show! They are dedicated, and talented, and disciplined, and genuinely nice...fun to hang out with, and fun to talk to between scenes.

After the show, we all went to TGIFriday’s for food and beverages. We didn’t stay ultra late (11:30), because I needed to get home to welcome my dear friend, Tena, who came up for the weekend to see me perform. She arrived around 12:30, and we stayed up, drank wine, and caught up until about 1:30.

We slept in on Saturday, and putzed around during the morning, then headed to the Mall of America so Tena could buy a GREAT new eyebrow brush I discovered at Mac. It works like a mascara brush, and the COOL thing for me is that I don’t end up looking like a scarecrow when I use it (like I do with an eyebrow pencil!). After a brief run through Macy’s, we headed back to Eagan for lunch at Pardon My French. I had a DELIGHTFUL puff pastry crust filled with pork, spices, and mushrooms, and ended the meal with a chocolate pear tartlette…yum!

After lunch, we headed to Trader Joe’s to stock up on…everything, then came back home to rest and relax. Tena and Duane then went to Café Latte for dinner, and I got into costume and makeup (I do it at home, because there are too many loud, energetic teenagers in the dressing room at the theater, and they make me a little crazy…I’m old, what can I say??!!).

Saturday night’s show was AWESOME as well. We were a little “off”, but pulled it together in act II. In addition to Tena and Duane (second of three performances he "gets" to attend…what a guy!), my cousin Ashley and her boyfriend Ryan came up from Des Moines to see the show. Maureen, a coordinator friend from another PYP school in the cities. was there as well. Kelly, from Custom Education Solutions, who I’ve gotten to know through various workshops came with my friend Angie (from school), and I got to meet their respective “significant others”.

After the show, one of the cast members had a party at her house on Lake Phalen. Very gorgeous, and big, and the cast actually ALL fit inside! I took Tena and Duane, and it was a GREAT time, even though we had to leave early, since we’d made plans to meet Ashley and Ryan for breakfast at 8:00 the next morning (ack!).

Sunday, in addition to Duane and Tena, and Ashley and Ryan, Robin, Dave and the girls joined us for breakfast at Original Pancake House in Edina. It was EXCRUCIATINGLY early, and I was COMPLETELY wiped out, but it was fun to do some more catching up.

Tena left after breakfast (insert sad face here), and Ashley and Ryan went back to Des Moines. Duane and I spent a few mellow hours on the sofa, then I headed back to Maplewood for the matinee. Beth, an AWESOME Tupperware friend, was the only person I knew in the audience.

Up until the last song, this was probably my best performance yet. Unfortunately, the FABULOUSNESS didn’t pertain to my final number “Rosie”. Somehow “la la hmmm hmmm Rosie” just doesn’t pack the same flowing narrative as “now my life is Rosie”!

I’ve never “gone up” on the words to that song before, and actually messed it up TWICE…the first time because the words just weren’t there, and the second time because I was FREAKED OUT about not knowing the words the first time, and they escaped me again. Ugh!

Overall though, it was a GREAT weekend, and I’m looking forward to TWO more GREAT weekends of performances. Here are some photos Duane (and Lisa, a mom of one of the teens in the show) took on Friday and Saturday night. People are taking TONS of photos, so I should have a few more to post after the second and third weekends.

Here’s hoping YOU have been able to do something YOU love recently too (and that you aren’t COMPLETELY exhausted right now too!!!)!!!!