First Holdover Show

Last night, my three best guy friends Steven, Ross & Scott dropped in for a surprise visit at about one in the morning. They tend to do that, and I absolutely love them for it. Especially since I hardly have time to see my friends away from the theatre when I'm doing a show. We went for a walk at 1:30 in the morning, and they had me cracking up the entire time. I've really missed my friends that aren't in theatre with me. Despite the fact that I'll be really sad when this show is over, I'm really excited to have more time to spend with them before they go away for college.

Tonight was our first holdover show. Which means we only have four more shows left. I'm really sad and am definitely not ready for this show to end at all. I've had such a great time with this cast and doing this show. I'm going to miss everyone so much. Luckily I'm staying in town for college so I'll get to see a good number of these people after I'm done with this show. However there are a few people who are going away for college. Ginny's going to another college in state, but its still a good way away from where I'll be at. Bart & Bradley, however are going WAY far away for college. Bart will be going back to his 2nd year at Boston Conservatory & Bradley will be starting at AMDA in NYC. ): I'm going to miss those guys so much its not even funny.

Anyway. Tonight after the show, a few people went to see our director play in his band, but you had to be 21 to get in. And then some more people went to see Ginny's brother's band play at another venue. Pretty much Brien & I were the only ones not going to see a band play and were looking to get some food. So Brien said he'd go to Sonic with me if "we longboard first." I agreed not thinking about the whole "WE" part of that sentence. I've skateboarded before, but never on a longboard. And that was years and years ago. So I was pretty much freaking out and thinking I was going to kill myself. Or him. Haha. But once I got past the fact that the board bends a lot, it wasn't so bad. After a little while we went to Sonic & then down to the Riverwalk Park for a little more longboarding. Even though it wasn't with a whole big group like most nights, tonight was still a lot of fun. And I got to see my best friend for a little bit before I headed home, which was a plus. (: She was downtown with some friends so I got her some food from Sonic & took it to her after Brien & I left the Riverwalk.

Another good day (:

It is SO hard to watch someone you like be with their significant other. That's all I'm gonna say about that. On to my good day! (:

Make up for the commercial!

So today was the filming date of the commercial I was cast in. Yesterday they called and asked if I had a girl friend to come and be an extra in my shot. So I start talking to girls in my show and realize that they're all either too young (you had to be eighteen I believe) or were out of town at the beach. So one of the girls in my show suggests this girl named Cayla, who is mutual friends with a bunch of people in the show with me. I'd seen her play a show at the river a few months ago & briefly met her after she came to see our show, but we'd never hung out or anything but I figured I'd give it a shot anyway. So she agreed to meet me today @ the shooting location and do it with me. (: So we met there this morning and went in & straight to the wardrobe lady who made me try on a whole bunch of different shirts & then finally picked one. Right after that we went to lunch & it turns out Cayla knows the guy that was doing sound for the commercial. So we sat and ate chinese food with the crew & then went to hair and make up. Finally we went up to the library where my scene was being filmed. The shot was set up like she and I were having a conversation at one of the tables. The camera was behind her so basically all you see is the back of her head. So when she camera starts rolling, she and I are supposed to be adlibbing, and then I look at the camera and say my line. Every single take we had the same exchange. "So Cayla, are you excited about your show tonight?" "Yeah, I'm hoping a lot of people come out!" & then I say my line to the camera. But there was one take where instead of saying what she normally did, she goes "No, not at all." Haha, so of course I forgot my line for half a second and then started laughing and we had to stop rolling & start over on that take. But in all it only took about 4 takes. After the shoot, I was supposed to make plans with Brien to hang out for a bit, but of course he ended up sleeping in late & then eventually bailing on me. Lame. Haha.

Bart, Michael, Lainey, Lauren, Emily, Brien, Addie
& Morgan publicizing the show on the news! (:


Lauren & Lainey showing off their
chalk advertisement for the show downtown.
"HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL 2
@ Workshop Theatre till Aug 2nd
(803) 799-6551 for tickets!"
(or workshoptheatre.com)

At six I headed over to the theatre to walk around the town with the cast and hand out flyers to publicize our last week of shows. There ended up being a news crew downtown so they had a short spot on the news to publicize. Right after that Michael, Addie, Emily, Brien and myself went to this little venue downtown to see Cayla play, along with a few other bands. It was a lot of fun & all the bands were really good. (:

Me in the alley next to NBT


Michael & I had an impromtu photoshoot
in the alley before Cayla's show! (:

Good day? I think yes. (:

myspace.com/caylafralick (:

My awesome Thursday

Thursday was absolutely the best day of my summer. Avery (in my show), Meredith (best friend), Scott (friend) & myself all went to Warped Tour in Charlotte. It was incredible. We got there and walked around for a while, picking up stickers and other random free stuff. & I got two shirts, one being a green Warped Tour shirt & the other a PETA shirt that says "animal testing breaks hearts." While we were randomly standing there looking at shirts and stickers, Avery tapped my arm and pointed at some girl and asked if it were one of the girls from Meg & Dia, & it was but neither of us wanted to walk up to her and ask for a picture (I know we're chickens haha)

Meg & Dia (:

Only a little while after we'd gotten there while we were planning out who we were going to see throughout the day, I got a call from an agent my former drama teacher got me in contact with about a commercial I'd submitted my picture & resume for. He said I'd booked the job and told me a little be about the people I'd be speaking to in the coming days & when and where I was going to be filming at. So that was an awesome start to my day.

Caleb from Forever The Sickest Kids

The first band we went to see was The Devil Wears Prada, which is a little more hard core than I usually listen to, but they're still good. The crowd, however was insane. I don't mind the pushing & moshing and whatnot when I have real shoes on but I had flip flops and the number of people stomping on my feet was just a little too much. Haha. So Avery and I left to go check out some other stuff before the next band we wanted to see was going to play. A little later on we went to the Smart Punk Stage to wait for Forever The Sickest Kids' set. While we were waiting we watched the end of Dear and the Headlights' set and all of Lights (who was amazing and adorable, even more so in person). Then came FTSK. We were right up front as close to the stage as we could get (considering there was a three foot gap between the crowd and stage with bouncers there to kick out crowd surfers. lame.) Their set was AMAZING. They're even cuter and better in person. Then we made our way over to the stage right next to that one to watch Meg & Dia who are also adorable & super talented.

Dia of Meg & Dia

Right after that Avery & I decided it was about time for us to leave considering we had another show to do back at the theatre (which was another hour and a half or so, not including traffic, away from where we were). We hadn't seen Meredith & Scott since Devil Wears Prada, & we had her keys & shirts and even her & Scott's phones so we had no way to get in touch with them to give their phones back. I called people who I knew had seen them through out the day but couldn't find her. So we decided probably the easiest thing to do would be to hide her stuff in her car (she doesn't have automatic locks on her car) and leave a note only she would read. On the way back to the entrance, Jonathan (lead singer of FTSK) walked by and I literally freaked out, but couldn't work up the nerve to ask if I could get a picture with him. So we just pretty much walked him walk by.

Jonathan (Forever The Sickest Kids)

At this point its already raining. But when we were walking past all the merch tables, I spotted There For Tomorrow under their tent so Avery and I stopped for a second so I could get a picture with Chris, their drummer. I didn't get to see TFT at Warped, but I saw them in Augusta in February the day before Valentines Day this year at an AMAZING show with them, We the Kings, The Cab, The Maine & Versa Emerge. THAT was an incredible show.

Chris & I

Anyway, after I got my picture with Chris, we headed to the parking lot and were putting Mere's stuff in her car when I got a call from her on some random person's phone. So instead of leaving her stuff in her car, we planned to meet at the gate and pass her stuff through the gate. While we were sitting and waiting for Mere to come out, Lights walked out and past us and ONCE AGAIN we didn't say anything. Lame. I will never again let a performer walk past me without getting a picture with them first. So finally we got Mere's stuff to her and headed back home.

Once we got back in town Avery & I stopped for sushi (yummm) at what is quite possibly the best sushi restaurant in the state. Then we went to the theatre where I got my favorite parking spot ever (number 22). & then we did the show, which was an awesome show. In the middle of the show, Meredith sent me a video message of 3oh!3 performing "Don't Trust Me" since I had to miss their set, which was seriously one of the coolest things ever to open my phone and see that. After the show we all went to eat at the local post-show hang out place, Yesterdays, for a late dinner. & then over to Corey's house to watch Madea Goes to Jail. But right before we went over there, Eddie's car got towed so we had to take him home and then as soon as we got to Corey's we realized that Eddie had the movie. So we ended up just hanging out for a few hours. Then I took Brien & Becca back to their cars at the theatre and headed home for the night. It was seriously one amazing day/night.

Ruined

My worst trait is the one thing that is constantly making me ruin EVERYTHING for myself. It doesn't matter if its a friendship, romantic relationship, or anything else under the sun. I worry about things to the point where I absolutely turn every situation that I want to go right in the complete opposite direction. If I like someone, I worry about things like if they like me or if I'm getting on their nerves or if I'm doing every little thing right until they really are annoyed with me or until they can't stand to be around me anymore. Right now a similar, though more complicated, thing is going on with me. And I absolutely want to kick myself for once again ruining something that could have turned into a relationship, whether romantic or just friends. And this is a person that I really enjoy being around. Even if it weren't going in the direction I wanted it to go in, I still would love to be around this person and be friends with them. But now I have a huge feeling that because I once again over reacted and froke out about every little thing, that friendship is going to be completely gone.

I've always been a believer that if you let go, what is supposed to happen will happen. I'm always giving people that bit of advice, but when it comes to me following my own advice, I fail miserably. In the past few days, one phrase has been coming up from all around me by people that I know. It's pretty much the same idea. "Let go & let God." I'm finding it so hard to let myself let go. I know that as soon as I do, things will probably work themselves out. But I can't let myself be out of control. And I hate that. I wish I were one of those people who could just let things happen and roll with it. But as soon as something does start happening I have to make sure that things continue in the direction I want them to. Which is where everything starts falling apart.

Cast party & late night adventures

Everyone hanging out & dancing @ the party (:

Tonight was the cast's first big cast party where majority of us attended. There have been several night where a handfull of us have hung out (at least four of our six nights together a week, we hang out), but never an organized party with food bringing and DJing and such. There was a lot of food and dancing and acting crazy, cause we all know theatre kids aren't shy. I had tons of fun. It was by far the most fun I've ever had at a cast party for any show I've done.

Mr DJ, Jon @ the cast party!


Corey & I in the middle of a photoshoot @ the
cast party. With Bradley creeping in the back (:

Jake (who plays Troy in our show) asked me and a few others if we wanted to go to what he calls the Blue Lagoon. Basically what it is is a lake in the middle of the woods. There's a cliff you can jump off of into the water if you want or you can just walk down the rocks to get in. Well me, Jake, Gabby, Danny, & Brien left the party early to go tonight (technically last night considering its 3:30 in the morning now) & our director, producer, choreographer and stage manager all gave us crap about making sure we didn't kill ourselves or come to the show tomorrow (technically tonight) complaining about a sore throat or broken ankle or anything. Haha. But luckily all of us survived. None of us that were actually in the show (me, Jake & Brien) actually jumped in. Danny jumped in & Gabby sat out of the water all together since she didn't have her swimsuit with her. The walk to and from the car was absolutely terrifying though. This place is way back in the middle of the woods and takes a good walk to get to it. The guys kept talking about all the scary movies we've ever watched and kept freaking me out. Then after we'd only been in the water not even for ten minutes, we heard a noise that we swore sounded like a person yelling. So we all hopped out of the water and headed back to the car shortly after it. But it was definitely worth it. It was a great way to end an already great night.

Jazzy & Ashley dancing the night away @ the cast party (:


Corey, Ginny, Bart, Raime, Matthew, & Mellie (:

Show time! (:

Jake, myself & Mellie @ Raime's on July 4th!

The title of this post has a few different meanings. First the not as obvious (but still pretty obvious anyway) meaning. I don't know how many of you out there have done a show before, but it seems like when you're doing a production, every little thing flies by so fast. Its like we're living in hyper time. Kinda like in that movie Clockstoppers. Maybe its because we see each other so much that everything progresses so much more quickly. I mean I see these people more than I see my own family. In the past two weeks, so much has happened its not even funny. And not just as far as progressing the show towards getting everything ready for opening night. But even with things going on backstage. Relationships that are formed off stage between cast members progress so much faster. I've known one person in this show two years, there's a good handful of them that I did the show with last year, and then the rest of them (which is most of them) I've only known since this spring. And I feel like I've known them my whole life. These people have become such an important part of my life and its ridiculous how quickly that happened. Just a few months ago, I didn't even know most of these people. And now I can't imagine being without them.

Spending the fourth of July with my cast members.
L to R: Bart, Michael, Raime, Kristie, & Mellie.

& now for the other, obvious reason for the title. My musical opened last night!! We've been working so hard. I haven't had a whole lot of time to update this thing, but even if I did, it would only be a bunch of random show terms so unless all of you people who read this are theatre people, you probably wouldn't get what the heck I was talking about. But I will run through a few of the cool highlights of the past month or so. First, our set is really really cool. We've got a lot of these gigantic, complicated rotating set pieces. Probably the hardest part about rehearsals was getting all the set changes going smoothly. But now that everything is rolling (literally, for the most part), it looks really cool.

Brushing my teeth while my cast members grab
some breakfast @ the four a.m. news show shoot.

On July 3rd, we had a live news show promotion scheduled at FOUR IN THE MORNING. Mind you this was after we'd already had rehearsal until 11 the night before. So a whole lot of us went over to one of the girls' houses and watched a movie and then headed right back to the theatre at three the next morning to get ready for the news show. But as soon as we got there we learned that the guy who was supposed to be running the segment hurt his back (? or something like that) earlier and the week and wouldn't be able to get there, but that they would send a film crew to take some shots of the show and air it later in the week. So our director decides that since we were all there anyway, we were just going to rehearse at four in the morning and then have the night off. And honestly, it was the best rehearsal we'd ever had. The film crew kept calling and saying they were going to be later and later, to the point where we just decided that we had been waiting for too long, so we were just going to leave at the end of rehearsal. But of course as SOON as we were dismissed, they showed up (& with the news guy who was supposedly hurt) and we had to stay for another hour or so for them to get the shots they needed for the news segment.

Bradley, Corey, Lainey, Bart, Raime, Michael, myself & Hermon
@ IHOP after the early morning rehearsal/news shoot.

Afterwards we headed to IHOP together and it was the most hilarious thing ever. We were all exhausted & completely life inappropriate. You know when you're so tired that everything around you seems really funny & you forget that the people that HAVEN'T stayed up all night exist too? That was our entire cast, who took up the majority of the seats in the IHOP downtown. Too funny.

Brien & I on opening night! (:

So last night was opening night and it was the best opening night we ever could have asked for. Of course, it was consisting mostly of our closest friends and families so they weren't too hard to please. But every person I talked to after the show absolutely loved it and only had good things to say about it (except for the occasionally bad sound quality due to us using a CD track instead of a live band). Afterwards a bunch of us went out to get dessert and then headed off to Raime's (the same girl that I'm always referring to when I say I stayed with a female cast member haha) for the night. There was so much craziness going on. It was literally the CRAZIEST opening night post show that I've ever experienced. I won't go into detail, but it was crazy. Just believe that. Haha. We've got another show tonight and then a break until Tuesday, so I'm thinking I'll be coming straight home tonight. I am so tired. Haha

With Lee after the first show!