Pocahontas Opening

Well, we made it through a week of dress rehearsals and the first weekend of shows. We are all very tired, but the shows have been going very well.

Grace was given a special job selling tissues. She went around say, "the show is really sad and you might want some tissues to cover your tears." I don't think there was a single little old lady who could resist - Carrie even heard some behind her in the audience say, "Look, I've got three packs of Kleenex in my purse already, but I just had to buy some from her." Those who declined got this response from Gracie, "Well, I'm serious! You're going to need them." She sold every back they had halfway through the second show! They would've had her sell other things, but our conscience wouldn't allow it since the other souvenirs were more spendy.

Opening night was extra special with Julie's sister Carrie and her family attending. Nick and Emma sent J.J. and Katherine "Candy-Grams" (little bags of candy with notes attached that get sent backstage during intermission to cast members). We had a great time with the Juchau family all week, visiting Bob's Red Mill, McMennamin's Edgefield and OMSI as well as enjoying a Thanksgiving Feast.

The Cobarrubias clan (with friends and relative that came to the show).

Here Grace and Joyce are getting an autograph from "John Smith" (Mitchell Booth).

Getting Ready for the Show

Day 2 of Pocahontas Dress Rehearsals have passed - we have only 3 more run throughs before opening night! With sound and lights still needing to be set, it's a little scary! The kids are amazing, though - costumes and sets are SO COOL! The dancing blows me away and the singing is really GOOD (and I'm a pretty tough critic). If we can get the technical stuff worked out, this show is really going to be amazing.

It took us three tries to get J.J.'s mohawk right. He's one of the very few kids that got to get this warrior haircut and he's pretty excited about it. He looks pretty fierce with his costume and makeup (no war paint, but he gets a bow and arrows).

Katherine looks lovely and is loving the really challenging dance choreography.

Grace has even been recruited this time to dress up and sell souvenirs! She is thrilled to have a special part!

CYT Showcase

Katherine took a class this term called "Sounds of Music" where they learned intricate harmonies. This fabulous group of girls gave a tremendous performance - so fun to watch (and listen to).

"I'm not That Girl" from the Broadway Musical Wicked.


"I'm Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta my Hair" from South Pacific


"Sisters" from White Christmas


Okay - think outside the Broadway box for a minute. Here's J.J.'s class: Cultural Dance and Conflict. The kids LOVED it - the parents were all a little uneasy. I love Heather (the teacher/choreographer) and her fearless creativity. J.J. had a blast learning the martial arts moves. I'll never forget driving home from CYT about the third week of class. After listening to Katherine's sweet voice singing her showcase song, I asked J.J. how his class went. "Oh Mom, I finally get to KILL someone! I'm so excited." Well, there you go! This is where boys in musical theater classes get to be boys.



I have to say I'm just as proud as "my" kids in the beginning voice class that I TA'd - they did so great. They sang songs from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and nailed everything we worked on. Happy night with lots of warm fuzzy memories. Now it's on to Pocahontas!

Pocahontas Auditions

After much practice and excitement, with J.J. and Katherine both spending hours and hours over the past 3 months, auditions for the fall CYT show have arrived! They both did so great and gave it their all - I am so proud. They both got callbacks and spent half the day Saturday learning dance steps, reading lines and singing their hearts out with their friends. Then we all had to wait...and wait...and wait - I think this is the hardest part. In the end, we learned that Katherine will be a part of the Algonquian tribe chorus and J.J. will play the part of Young Keokum (Pocahontas' friend). Below are their audition numbers.

Narnia Opening Night

Opening night was a success! Praise be to God who provided everything we needed, despite having only half the time (6 weeks!) to put the show together, plus cancelled auditions, rehearsals, and photo shoot because of the worst snow storm in 40 years, loss of rehearsal space because of broken pipes and exploded furnace, misprinted dates on posters, family emergencies (towed car, flood evacuation, surgery, injury, death of loved ones), and no power or heat for 10 hours of move-in (when lights and sound were supposed to be set up and adjusted) at the theater because of a massive wind storm. I remember before auditions were even scheduled, Sheri told me, "It's going to be ugly!" simply because of the crazy schedule that had to be tweaked according to the availability of the theater. Little did she know just how "ugly" it was going to get. And yet, God has made something beautiful out of it. Isn't life just full of contradictions?

Enjoy the photos!

Emily Walter, the Centaur.

J.J. telling Father Christmas (Ethan Morrow) what he wants for Christmas.

J.J. poses with Joann, the director.






Kyra, the Evil Elm Tree.

Jamie Julian - loved the "Hag" hair (I've never known a sweeter, gentler hag in my entire life!).

J.J.'s first experience with finger nail polish. Everyone said he was the cutest and funniest evil henchman alive.

Susan (Julia Reidlinger) and Lucy (Katherine) on stage after curtain call to receive their fans.

Sisters Emily (the Dwarf) and Amanda (Tree) Wright.



Megan Bradner as Owl.

After the show, all ready to head to the opening night party.

At the party - food, music, dancing, friends, games, karyoke...and parents with droopy eyelids struggling to last through midnight after a long week of dress rehearsals.

Crazy Weather

It all started with an inch or so of snow and an arctic blast of freezing temperatures. As everyone hurried home after church last Sunday (the 14th), the wind blew the snow across the surface of the streets like a ghostly fog. After a quick trip to the library, we made it home just fine and hunkered down for the night.

The next day we were bummed to hear that Narnia Auditions had been cancelled for the day. J.J. and Katherine had home school as usualwhile all the neighborhood kids got the day off (there was MUCH complaining about THAT). We had to melt the ice out of the bunny's water a couple times a day, and the packed snow from tire tracks and footprints became raised icy spots where the loose snow around had blown away. Sovann walked with the kids to BiMart to get essentials like coffee and milk. We watched a lot of movies and YouTube videos and the kids practiced their audition numbers a lot.

On Tuesday, we walked a mile in the freezing weather (the packed snow made it slippery, but not too hard to walk in) to swap Grace off to a friend and take their daughter to auditions with us. We spent the rest of the day at a makeshift audition location (a freezing cold church - they say the heat was on, but I couldn't feel it). I helped check kids in, recorded their costume measurements, and watched some auditions. It was so neat to see how much everyone had improved since a year ago. They crammed auditions and callbacks into one long marathon process (from 1:15 to 9:30), but we all survived and got home safely. Phew!

We were all so exhausted the next morning, and pretty sure that Katherine's Heartlife classes would be cancelled, that we all slept in and hung out in our pajamas most of the day. We all waited with baited breath for the Narnia cast list to be posted that evening. I tried to keep the kids on track with their schoolwork, but no one could concentrate. Katherine resolved to recite the Serenity Prayer every hour and we all prayed for patience. I forgot about Grace's dentist appointment, and while anxiously moping around Katherine heard a loud crash in the front yard. She looked out and saw a pickup truck had crashed through our fence. We got part of the license plate, but not enough to actually find the guy who drove off without even so much as a "sorry." Arrrgh!

As I was on the phone with a contractor friend to get a quote for the fence damage, Katherine started screaming, "I got the part! I'm Lucy! I, I, I...I can't believe it!" We hugged and screamed together (after hanging up the phone) and tears of joy were shed. Yes, the part Katherine had been hoping for, working towards, practicing on for the past year was really hers now. This is especially neat because this will be the only CYT production she will get to be in this year. The big difference that I saw was her confidence level. During callbacks, she ran up and said, "Mom, I amazed myself! I just sang every note the best I could and didn't once say (to myself or out loud) that I couldn't do that very well or didn't want to try."

We all quickly went back to looking at the cast list and found that J.J. also made it into the show!!! I am so proud of him for listening and following directions and trying so hard (even when tired and sometimes confused). He got the part of Wolf2, (which we think might be a speaking part) and is also a part of the "Cruelie Chorus." Here is his audition that a friend videotaped. I love hearing people's reactions to him more than anything else.

J.J.'s Showcase

Here is J.J.'s "Beginning Voice" class singing songs from The Sound of Music. He is on the right side of the stage the whole time.

This was the last performance of the night - "So Long, Farewell." J.J. is on the right again (look for him popping out on the "cucoo" part). His class also sang "Do, Re, Mi" but I didn't have the camera in video mode so I missed recording that one.

CYT Spring '08 Showcase

Here are the three dances Katherine's CYT class (Act Like You're Dancing) performed. All the kids chose different animals for each song. Sarah Hadley did the choreography.

This first clip is from "The Lion King" and Katherine is dancing as a monkey. She is mostly on the righthand side, with the short, dark pony-tail.

This is a song from the musical "Honk" which is the story of the ugly duckling. Most of the girls are acting/dancing as chickens. She starts center stage in the back row.

This last clip is "Under the Sea" from The Little Mermaid. Katherine, Abby and Malana were the octopi. Sorry for the wandering camera at the end - I was caught up watching Katherine (she blew me away - I never even knew she could dance like that)!

It's Almost Showtime!

Here's Katherine as "Mouse" with the bow I sewed. Behind her is "Swan" Lizzy. I also made David's "Snail'" shell.
Friendships are the best thing about CYT.
Tonight is the last dress rehearsal - tomorrow is opening night! I've been madly sewing costumes between homeschooling and keeping the house and life in general going. The show is going to be SMASHING! I am so proud of these kids and everyone that has worked so hard to make the show so awesome. It's neat to see the kids developing character and talent, too. Hope you all can come see the show. Click here to order tickets.

COME SEE THE SHOW!

Getta Loada Toad (pause music player on the right of screen before playing)


Katherine and J.J. are doing the choreography they learned at auditions.

Our kids get prizes for pre-selling tickets, and you will enjoy this funny, jazzy, poignant musical based on the childrens' book series by Arnold Lobel.
Show Dates:
Friday, May 23rd at 7:00 PM
Saturday, May 24th at 3:00 & 7:00 PM
Sunday, May 25th at 2:00 PM
Friday, May 30th at 7 PM
Saturday, May 31st at 3:00 & 7:00 PM
Sunday, June 1st at 2:00 PM
Contact me to order tickets (make checks out to CYT) or you can order online (I think there's a credit card processing fee) or buy tickets at the door (if they're not sold out).

Frog & Toad

Last weekend was a roller coaster for us. The kids both auditioned for CYT's next production: A Year with Frog & Toad. They both did awesome singing their 1-minute audition songs and we had a great time hanging out with friends afterwards at Wall Street Pizza. Next time we won't stay so late, though - the kids were really tired the next day, especially with the emotional drain and stress of auditions.

We were very surprised to find out, when we got home, that both of them were called back for a 4 hour audition the next day. This is a great honor - only those who are being considered for major roles get the full-day callback. I packed them both lunches and tried to fill them with self-confidence and reassuring advice. Katherine had been through this process once before with Charlie Brown, but J.J. had no clue what to expect (although he wasn't too concerned or nervous).

As I dropped them off the next morning I told Katherine not to worry, to have fun and just do her best. I looked at J.J. and said something about listening and following directions. I mentioned to Sovann that morning that I was a little worried about J.J. holding up for 4 hours of dancing, singing and reading lines. I even said, "I hope they don't have to call us and pick him up halfway through."

Well, to make a long story short, J.J. won't get to share his wonderful personality and charasmatic charm with the audiences of Frog & Toad. There were tears and gentle lectures and we all felt a certain crushing dissappointment. Katherine did great and will be playing the part of Mouse, who sings "Getta Loada Toad" with Turtle and Lizzard. She is very excited to be back on the stage with her friends.

I am so thankful for CYT and all the staff who run the Eastside Portland division. Our kids have made great friends and have a place where they can succeed at what they excell in. J.J. is very motivated to work on his listening and cooperating skills so that he can be in the next play. I am encouraged with how much he has grown already (self-control, singing ability and diction), and I'm glad for the opportunity for him to learn all this in a positive environment. As friendly, beautiful and talented as Katherine is, she still struggles (probably like most girls her age) with confidence and friendships, both of which I see developing through CYT.

The other thing I like about it is that it's something we all enjoy and can do together. Sovann and I love music and musical theater, and as great as band and choir and sports are, there's not any place where we can all be "on the same team." I'm a wimp when it comes to sports - dragging all the kids and gear to practice and games, sitting out in the cold. Sovann is so great at doing that stuff with the kids (another reason we make a great team).

So I found out I'll be sewing costumes for the play - I've sewn my share of mouse tails repaired furry costumes for Oregon Childrens Theater as part of a scholarship requirement when Katherine took classes there years ago. I think these costumes probably won't be quite so "animally", but I really won't know until we have our first parent meeting which is tomorrow.