**DISCLAIMER** The views and opinions expressed in this post are my own, and do not reflect the views or opinions of my employer.
DO NOT RESHARE ANY PART OF THIS POST WITHOUT EXPRESS PERMISSION. Thank you.**
This post covers Wednesday and Thursday.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
WEDNESDAY
The fire alarm did NOT go off! Yay!
I was up around 8am for breakfast and a bit of touch-up on my foodie finds.
I also screwed up my courage to post in the Trombone Chat (a forum for trombonists) about wanting to give masterclasses while on tour with Beauty and the Beast. I've done a few masterclasses in the past that were very rewarding, and I'd like to keep it up. When I was in school/college we had masterclasses but they were mostly for performance/playing, I don't recall ever having one that was a Q&A specifically. I could have really used some advice while I was in school! I hope that some students would find this type of thing useful.
Anyway, that, and then even though it was still hot out the high was "only" in the 80s so I went for another walk on that little college campus nearby. This time I was able to find the "garden," which really looks like a forest preserve. I didn't go in because I'm the type of person that would spend at least an hour in a forest. It took a good 20 minutes just to get there, and I wanted energy to practice today.
Turned back around and walked to the theater for a total of 2 miles. Went upstairs to eat a piece of fruit and cool off, then to the trap room to practice. I'm not sure how much practicing helps at this stage, but until I'm more used to the bass I think it's a good idea.

After that back to the hotel for lunch and chill. Because the band's afternoon rehearsals keep getting canceled I've ended up with more time than I know what to do with (that's not a complaint!) On one hand I'm getting some very enjoyable reading done, and doing a good job of planning for the upcoming July layoff including booking doctor and dentist appointments, booking all the flights and hotels and rental cars involved in visiting family, and trying to line up work for that period of down time. On the other hand, the heat wave is a huge deterrent to spending any more than an hour at a time outdoors.
I did go back to the theater later to put decorative stickers on my trombone cases. Some of these stickers are new, others I've had for a while. I'm generally putting memento stickers on the tenor case, and vintage flight stickers on the bass case. Still need a Delta sticker.


Dinner and time for the evening show, which was our first official preview show (unlike the invited dress rehearsal last night, these people actually had to buy tickets.) I guess I should have been expecting crowds but DANG. The lobby of the Proctors was absolutely packed. I fought through the crowd to get to the stage door, noting along the way that the line for the merch stand extended halfway across the arcade (which is a big long hallway so it was QUITE a long line.)
Backstage we discovered two lovely "opening night" gifts: chocolate roses from a keyboardist on Wicked who is a friend of our MD's, and a congratulations card from the cast of MJ the Musical!


The show went pretty well, with the only obvious snafu being Lefou missing the cue for his line and causing us to have to scramble to line up with him again. Since these are still considered "preview shows" I think no one stageside is surprised; it's a tough entrance for him, too. We all recovered quickly enough, and the audience absolutely loved the show from what I could tell, so it's all good.
But our producer(?), Michael "Koz" Kosarin, was there last night, so a lot of us were RATHER nervous. *I* think that we did well, but I'm just the trombonist. What did Koz think? He's someone very high up there in the Disney Entertainment food chain, so his opinion means an awful lot. We didn't receive any notes immediately after the show so I guess we'll find out tomorrow.
----------------------------------------------------------------
THURSDAY
I slept kinda poorly and was up early. Oh well. The heat wave seems to have broken at least.
Breakfast, and we got paid today which should have made me feel all Moneybags McGee but since I bought a new bass trombone all it did was make me cringe. The choice to buy that thing has set me back, but hopefully it was a good and right choice. Money isn't everything (is what I'm chanting to myself right now.)
For the same reasons I hesitated to call an Uber to go to the mall today. But ultimately it's either spend the $$ on the Uber to do two hours of shopping today, or use my own car and spend 90 minutes in Orlando traffic plus the two hours of shopping for the exact same items. In other words it would even out and it didn't matter WHAT I chose.
And so a short Uber later I was in Marshalls and had found the underwear that I prefer (no seams so it never shows under any type of clothing) as well as dry-roasted edamame which is a wonderful travel snack but has been hard to find lately. Then to a small mall which had a Boscov's and Macy's and other department stores, and after visiting each and every single one I still only found ONE pair of wide leg black pants. But hey, they were only $15!! That right there made the trip worthwhile. Then to Whole Paycheck for lunch at the hot bar ($10 which really isn't bad) and proteins for the week because I always underestimate that need when buying groceries.
Back at the hotel I got a text that the orchestra would have a "continuity rehearsal," which isn't "bad" per se but we probably did get some notes from the music producer. This made me feel pretty anxious, but I tried to soothe myself with a nap, reading my book, hot tea, and an apple.
Then right before dinner, I received the RSVP for the company party!
It'll be in Chicago. Because although we are doing 8 live shows here in Schenectady, they are all considered "preview shows."
And since Chicago is a Rule 24 city, some members of the band (myself included) will not get to perform on opening night, and we will be on a layoff and therefore not traveling with the company either.

(image of our Beast and Belle, courtesy Disney Theatrical Group)
Quick recap: not being able to perform for the opening night of the greatest show of my career, AND not being able to attend the company party (which is not only fun but also where a lot of important networking happens) is more than disappointing, it's UPSETTING. I've been unsuccessfully trying to apply a silver lining to this since we started rehearsals.
And then they sent the RSVP...which includes a ticket to the opening night show if you're one of the unluckies who is not performing!!
That made the choice for me. I GOTTA GO.
This whole tour is once-in-a-lifetime. This edition of Beauty and the Beast will only premiere ONCE in the US.
If it's within my power to go, I should go.
I'll have to make some flight changes and spend 2 days extra on hotels. I don't care.
Hey, look at that. Money really ISN'T everything after all.
Before the evening show we had a rather rushed "continuity rehearsal" with Koz (mentioned earlier in this post.) This guy is a LEGEND. He's been Alan Menken's music director for 25 years, and has won or been nominated for Grammys and Emmys for his work on all the classic Disney animated films. I knew he'd been at our show last night but didn't expect to actually be AUDITED by him today! I was both horrified and excited, and did my best to play as-usual around those feelings. It went "ok." I think. Who knows.
The evening show was very good. No snafus, everyone did their best, very enthusiastic audience. I'm not sure "enthusiastic" is the right word; for both paid shows so far, the audience ROARS with applause and cheers. I've done a lot of tours, and aside from the 30,000-person arenas where the circus played, I've never heard an audience make this much noise or show such...I guess you could describe it as raw enjoyment. It's very, very cool.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday: Another one-show day. I plan to do laundry and practice, and work on rearranging my travel plans so I can attend the company party.
Saturday & Sunday: Two shows each day, which will probably feel like a lot but it'll help us to feel more comfortable with the show.
DO NOT RESHARE ANY PART OF THIS POST WITHOUT EXPRESS PERMISSION. Thank you.**
This post covers Wednesday and Thursday.
--- --- --- --- --- ---
WEDNESDAY
The fire alarm did NOT go off! Yay!
I was up around 8am for breakfast and a bit of touch-up on my foodie finds.
I also screwed up my courage to post in the Trombone Chat (a forum for trombonists) about wanting to give masterclasses while on tour with Beauty and the Beast. I've done a few masterclasses in the past that were very rewarding, and I'd like to keep it up. When I was in school/college we had masterclasses but they were mostly for performance/playing, I don't recall ever having one that was a Q&A specifically. I could have really used some advice while I was in school! I hope that some students would find this type of thing useful.
Anyway, that, and then even though it was still hot out the high was "only" in the 80s so I went for another walk on that little college campus nearby. This time I was able to find the "garden," which really looks like a forest preserve. I didn't go in because I'm the type of person that would spend at least an hour in a forest. It took a good 20 minutes just to get there, and I wanted energy to practice today.
Turned back around and walked to the theater for a total of 2 miles. Went upstairs to eat a piece of fruit and cool off, then to the trap room to practice. I'm not sure how much practicing helps at this stage, but until I'm more used to the bass I think it's a good idea.

After that back to the hotel for lunch and chill. Because the band's afternoon rehearsals keep getting canceled I've ended up with more time than I know what to do with (that's not a complaint!) On one hand I'm getting some very enjoyable reading done, and doing a good job of planning for the upcoming July layoff including booking doctor and dentist appointments, booking all the flights and hotels and rental cars involved in visiting family, and trying to line up work for that period of down time. On the other hand, the heat wave is a huge deterrent to spending any more than an hour at a time outdoors.
I did go back to the theater later to put decorative stickers on my trombone cases. Some of these stickers are new, others I've had for a while. I'm generally putting memento stickers on the tenor case, and vintage flight stickers on the bass case. Still need a Delta sticker.


Dinner and time for the evening show, which was our first official preview show (unlike the invited dress rehearsal last night, these people actually had to buy tickets.) I guess I should have been expecting crowds but DANG. The lobby of the Proctors was absolutely packed. I fought through the crowd to get to the stage door, noting along the way that the line for the merch stand extended halfway across the arcade (which is a big long hallway so it was QUITE a long line.)
Backstage we discovered two lovely "opening night" gifts: chocolate roses from a keyboardist on Wicked who is a friend of our MD's, and a congratulations card from the cast of MJ the Musical!


The show went pretty well, with the only obvious snafu being Lefou missing the cue for his line and causing us to have to scramble to line up with him again. Since these are still considered "preview shows" I think no one stageside is surprised; it's a tough entrance for him, too. We all recovered quickly enough, and the audience absolutely loved the show from what I could tell, so it's all good.
But our producer(?), Michael "Koz" Kosarin, was there last night, so a lot of us were RATHER nervous. *I* think that we did well, but I'm just the trombonist. What did Koz think? He's someone very high up there in the Disney Entertainment food chain, so his opinion means an awful lot. We didn't receive any notes immediately after the show so I guess we'll find out tomorrow.
----------------------------------------------------------------
THURSDAY
I slept kinda poorly and was up early. Oh well. The heat wave seems to have broken at least.
Breakfast, and we got paid today which should have made me feel all Moneybags McGee but since I bought a new bass trombone all it did was make me cringe. The choice to buy that thing has set me back, but hopefully it was a good and right choice. Money isn't everything (is what I'm chanting to myself right now.)
For the same reasons I hesitated to call an Uber to go to the mall today. But ultimately it's either spend the $$ on the Uber to do two hours of shopping today, or use my own car and spend 90 minutes in Orlando traffic plus the two hours of shopping for the exact same items. In other words it would even out and it didn't matter WHAT I chose.
And so a short Uber later I was in Marshalls and had found the underwear that I prefer (no seams so it never shows under any type of clothing) as well as dry-roasted edamame which is a wonderful travel snack but has been hard to find lately. Then to a small mall which had a Boscov's and Macy's and other department stores, and after visiting each and every single one I still only found ONE pair of wide leg black pants. But hey, they were only $15!! That right there made the trip worthwhile. Then to Whole Paycheck for lunch at the hot bar ($10 which really isn't bad) and proteins for the week because I always underestimate that need when buying groceries.
Back at the hotel I got a text that the orchestra would have a "continuity rehearsal," which isn't "bad" per se but we probably did get some notes from the music producer. This made me feel pretty anxious, but I tried to soothe myself with a nap, reading my book, hot tea, and an apple.
Then right before dinner, I received the RSVP for the company party!
It'll be in Chicago. Because although we are doing 8 live shows here in Schenectady, they are all considered "preview shows."
And since Chicago is a Rule 24 city, some members of the band (myself included) will not get to perform on opening night, and we will be on a layoff and therefore not traveling with the company either.

(image of our Beast and Belle, courtesy Disney Theatrical Group)
Quick recap: not being able to perform for the opening night of the greatest show of my career, AND not being able to attend the company party (which is not only fun but also where a lot of important networking happens) is more than disappointing, it's UPSETTING. I've been unsuccessfully trying to apply a silver lining to this since we started rehearsals.
And then they sent the RSVP...which includes a ticket to the opening night show if you're one of the unluckies who is not performing!!
That made the choice for me. I GOTTA GO.
This whole tour is once-in-a-lifetime. This edition of Beauty and the Beast will only premiere ONCE in the US.
If it's within my power to go, I should go.
I'll have to make some flight changes and spend 2 days extra on hotels. I don't care.
Hey, look at that. Money really ISN'T everything after all.
Before the evening show we had a rather rushed "continuity rehearsal" with Koz (mentioned earlier in this post.) This guy is a LEGEND. He's been Alan Menken's music director for 25 years, and has won or been nominated for Grammys and Emmys for his work on all the classic Disney animated films. I knew he'd been at our show last night but didn't expect to actually be AUDITED by him today! I was both horrified and excited, and did my best to play as-usual around those feelings. It went "ok." I think. Who knows.
The evening show was very good. No snafus, everyone did their best, very enthusiastic audience. I'm not sure "enthusiastic" is the right word; for both paid shows so far, the audience ROARS with applause and cheers. I've done a lot of tours, and aside from the 30,000-person arenas where the circus played, I've never heard an audience make this much noise or show such...I guess you could describe it as raw enjoyment. It's very, very cool.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday: Another one-show day. I plan to do laundry and practice, and work on rearranging my travel plans so I can attend the company party.
Saturday & Sunday: Two shows each day, which will probably feel like a lot but it'll help us to feel more comfortable with the show.