Eartha Kitt

A few weeks ago we had the privledge to see the incredibly talented Eartha Kitt at Jazz Alley. You may know her as the Cat Woman paired with Adam West in the 60s (she was the one with the definitive meow) or perhaps her rendition of "Santa Baby" that gets played over the holidays. There's her role as Madame Zeroni in the hit movie Holes and her voice acting as Yzma in the Emperor's New Groove (both the movies and the television show). She just won a second emmy at age 81 for her voice work on the tv show.

But did you know about all the other work she's done? A dancer, a caberet singer, and a broadway star?

My husband and I first saw her as the fairy godmother in the touring musical Cinderella and we were amazed at this woman in her 70s dancing around and showing of these amazing legs! At 70!

Well, she is now 81 and she can still dance and her legs are just as lovely. Her show was amazing and we felt privledge to be there. She was so funny and honest and just wonderful. If you ever get the chance to see her live, don't miss it!

Jazz Alley is a great venue and while the food was pricey it was worth every tasty bite!

New Puppy! Welcome Fiyero

When my husband and I started dating he came with a dog and I came with a bunch of cats. One of his friends once told me that he must really love me to move in with cats. That was seven years ago and while his dog and several cats have passed on, the last four years have been empty with just cats in the house.

After a lot of discussion we decided not to go with another Sheltie. We didn't want Sabrina's awesomeness to color a new dog, and as she had always been more Collie like then Sheltie like, we started looking for Collie breeders. There aren't a lot of them available and while we talked to breeders in Oregon, Washington and Canada it took us two years to find a breeder that we liked, was a responsible breeder and go though the adoption process. If people parents had to think about having a baby as much as we did answering the application questions there would be less bratty kids in the world.

We were ecstatic to pick up a puppy last Friday from Marko's Collies and bring him home. He is such a sweetie and his puppy training is going well. I've been reading a great dog book "Be the Dog" that focusing on being the pack leader for your dog. The author is local and I heard him talk on NPR. I need to find one of his cat books and see if I can't break some of our bad kitty habits.

Fiyero is a show puppy, so the dear husband will be showing him. Mama is a champion and Dad is only a few points away so we have high hopes for puppy. We chose a name from the musical "Wicked" and if we ever get a girl she'll be Elphaba. Yup, we are that cheesy.

High School Musical!

Ok, I have the best husband in the world! Not many men would be happy to accompany their wife to see Disney's High School Musical - the Musical without any children as a scapegoat for attending. And have a fun time too:)

The best part about attending shows that attract kids is their pure enjoyment. Little boys were excited to be there, tween and teen girls were excited to be there and the number of families (mom, DAD and kids) was just great. I love to see a new generation be exposed to the joys of musical theater. I think the best example of this was when Troy is singing "Get Your Head in the Game" and he ponders if he should try out for the musical and this little voice shouts out "Yes!"- it came from the main floor but we heard the excitement up in the balcony.

The set design was just great, they managed to use rotating locker segments to dress the scenes fantastically. The voices and talent of the actors was just great (and I did compare by watching HSM 1 & 2 the next day). Reading the cast list I got a jolt to see that Mr. Bolton (Troy's dad) was played by Ron Bohman who has been Phantom in Phantom on Broadway. Yow-za!

There were some minor changes in the stage version, but a nice summary is on Wikipedia. The most notable change was the kiss at the end! Shocking!

My only disappointment was in the swag, nothing was quite to my taste but I take comfort in knowing that the Disney machine has enough merchandise out there that I should be able to find something. To date my best show swag has been my embroidered Lion King bag. It's awesome and is the best work back I've ever had! Next up on our show schedule - Shrek the Musical.

My Fair Lady

We caught My Fair Lady at the Paramount. Parking was an adventure, we ended up in the same garage twice, which was not cool, but the show itself more than made up for it. The parking debacle really made an impression on how valuable the free parking with our 5th Ave season tickets is!

The sets were amazing as were the actors. We love the movie version (but don't get us started on how Julie Andrews was robbed) and the set and costume designers brought out the best elements of the movie. Including the stunning white dress Eliza wears to the embassy ball.

While our Professor Higgins had an excellent voice, I didn't feel that Rex Harrison talked his way through that much of the movie. We had an extra treat in that the actress playing Eliza also starred in the new Mary Poppins musical in London. I can't wait for that show to make it to town and it was great to have a chance to hear her voice. An interesting bit of staging (and different from the movie) was how Alfie Doolittle's song and dance was transformed in to a giant stomp-like piece. It was intense and very well received by the audience.

We were so glad to be able to see My Fair Lady done by a professional company.

I picked up an awesome souvenir shirt that says "I'm a Good Girl I Am". Which I'm sure all of our friends will agree!

Cabaret was Ooh La La!

On our actual anniversary (when State Patrol caught me speeding 5 miles out of town!) we got an email to upgrade our Cabaret tickets. I called immediately and we were booked for the "Kit Kat Klub" complete with cabaret tables where the orchestra pit normally is AND a bottle of wine to drink during the show!

This was our "surprise" show, neither the DH or myself had seen a movie, knew any plot or had any kind of expectations. We loved it! This actually ended up being one of our favorites of the season.

We got all dolled up and I did a bit of research for 1930s fashions and I even had a dress in my closet that was totally period appropriate. Ice blue, halter neck, dipping in the back and matching vintage fur. Check! The DH was his usually dashing self in his tux.

At the intermission someone asked the DH if we were part of the show! Even better (and the highlight of my night) was after the intermission. The MC character was vamping with those of us in the Kit Kat Klub seats. He started with an older lady and was all "darling, look at you, why it looks like your head is erupting". She did have an odd feather collar. We were in the center, and he chose to vamp with me next!!! He was "darling, look at you, you look fabulous, just like a whore. And look at you (to the DH) you're just happy to be with her." Then he proceeded to call me a whore a few more times. Then he went to the other side and started teasing this gay couple. He made a rhythm joke and I laughed, and the MC looked back at me and said "the whore gets it". It was awesome!!!!! Normally I would object to being called a whore in front of that many people but in this case it was great. Plus I felt extra good because there were a lot of dressed up women in the Kit Kat Klub he could have called a whore instead.

It was amazing being 4 feet away from the stage. We could see every detail, bump and grind. It was quite a saucy show but it was right up our alley. I called the 5th ave and moved our season renewal from the balcony (which we had enjoyed and re-upped for) to the main floor.

The staging was amazing. At the end of act one when they dropped all these Nazi posters I had this conflicted feeling, I wanted to applaud the actors and their performance but I just couldn't bring myself to clap with the propaganda banners hanging. It was such a horrible feeling that trying to imagine living during the 1930s when it was happening must have been just awful. Thankfully, the MC came out and mocked the salute which changed the mood enough to allow the audience to applaud. The other touching moment was the story line between the German landlord and the Jewish fruit shop owner. Their duets and acting were so moving!

We would defiantly see this again!

Mame! and Matchbox 20

Back to back Saturdays couldn't have been more different. First up we saw Mame which was one of our "surprise" shows at the 5th Ave. We didn't have any idea what we were getting in to but we both loved it! As part of our season tickets we got an extra "bonus" ticket so we took a friend who just started a neat new job. She loves Mame and was very excited to go. Over dinner she was telling us about a reviewer who called it dated. Fie I say! As a younger theater goer the costumes were amazing (so sparkly!) and I already know all about what it's like to live today. I find it to be enjoyable to have a peek back to the past. I loved the idea of the young nephew following his aunt and her friends around learning all kinds of new vocabulary words :)

The following Saturday we caught Matchbox 20 at the Key. The show started promptly at 7pm (which is always nice). This was the third time for us and they put on a fantastic show as always. The crowd was really diverse- we saw 'tweens with their families, young twenties, guys without girls, girls with out guys, and couples of all ages.

The opening band was from New Orleans and called New Math. They only played for 20 minutes but the amount of energy they used was phenomenal. It was like Sting (in his Police years) mashed with Stomp. At the end all the musicians were on the drums while the drummer was standing on a drum on top of the piano and then he jumped off! That must have been some seriously reinforced musical equipment. I would see them again and wouldn't be surprised if they make it big.


Next up was Alanis Morissette and she played for about 45 minutes. I'm not a fan, but I usually like what they play on the radio. I was really impressed with her performance. She seemed so genuine as she sang. And she sounded amazing! You know how sometimes you buy the CD and see a show live and think "wow, they sure digitally enhanced that performance". Alanis did a great job warming the audience up and I really liked the way she introduced her band members one at a time in between songs so they each got a moment of glory.

And then...there were up! And for 2 glorious hours Matchbox 20 played. It was a 5 hour show with all three bands (and the breakdowns between sets). One of the things we love about them is the light show and they did not disappoint! The start was a giant spaceman complete with countdown clock. The Exile in America Tour was mainly old material with a smattering of new songs thrown in. Post reunion, it was nice to notice that Rob Thomas highlighted his band members better and each of them had solo spots. What was really cool is that they have USB bracelets that you can order with a sound recording of your particular city, so soon we'll be able to relive the magic. Now if only they would release the video....

We saw Matchbox 20 on our honeymoon so we always see them when they come to town, and luckily for us it always hits around our anniversary. As we sat there in the audience waiting for the show to start we had that moment where seven years may have passed by but it felt like we'd barely left that first show.

Belated Theater Reviews

Yowza! How is it mid February already? In an odd paradox I have felt incredibly busy and laid back all at the same time. But let's finish off last year.

From my previous posts, I got a really neat vintage jacket to wear. That led to the decision that I really want a full length vintage fur some day. A friend gave me a short jacket that had been given to her and I wanted to get it cleaned. I asked a coworker who I figured probably had something in her closet and lo and behold she lent me a beautiful fur that had been her mother's that she'd had reworked. Sadly, the weather was awful that night and I didn't dare risk wearing the jacket out. But I did have the DH take my picture from the safety of our patio. Some day I hope to have a theater jacker this lovely. I wore my other jacket instead and got complimented at the theater for wearing something unique.

We saw two shows in December, the first was Whistle Down the Wind. I was on a huge Andrew Lloyd Webber kick whilst in middle school and high school, so I first got the soundtracks for WDTW and Sunset Boulevard from my local library. I have always wanted to see both shows (despite not the nicest reviews when they first premiered). If you've never seen the 1950 black and white film with film legend Gloria Swanson you should! So I was really excited to see WDTW. Now Sunset just needs to come through town...

Now, I am not an overly religious person. The DH and I were married by an ordained librarian who got his license from the back of a Rolling Stones magazine in the 1970s. We believe in something, we just don't like trying to define it and getting up early on Sundays. Hiking on Easter is a great way to feel connected to the world.

Anyhoo- WDTW takes place in a small town in 1959. Three siblings whose mother has just died mistake a runaway convict hiding in their barn as Jesus. Yes, that Jesus. As the minister says in the opening scene, "will you recognize him when he comes again"? All the children in town put their faith in the man in the barn. But of course all the grown ups want to catch/kill him, being that he is a convicted murderer. Despite feeling predictable, and the cynic in me knowing he couldn't possibly be Jesus (thought the ending left that unclear), somehow the show managed to touch me unawares. It wasn't until I was discreetly wiping away tears during the climax that the subtlety of the various plots hits. I knew it was especially touching when I found myself getting teary again as I described it to coworkers over the next few days. Click here for a synopsis.

Sadly, I think the plot of the show was off putting to liberal minded Seattle and our Saturday evening show was half empty. That was a shame because the acting, staging and vocals were amazing.

We saw a second show at the end of December, Jersey Boys which has gotten a lot of buzz. We chipped in for half of our niece's ticket and my brother in law came a long too. It was a good show. A lot of fun. I got a shirt that says "Big Girls Don't Cry". But it didn't have the emotional impact or staying power that Whistle Down the Wind had. If I had to choose between the two of them to see again, I would choose to see the Lloyd Webber production.