O.H.I.O.

And we are off to the booming state of Ohio.

Here we come flat land and country roads!!

Right on a college campus in Dayton, the arena really brought back the college feeling for me with all the athletic events taking place while we were also occupying the arena.  This event center was huge compared to the field house that I grew to love for four years, while I was in college.

There definitely was not a shortage of places to eat either around the area which definitely made it nice. Of course a a large group dinner at Texas Roadhouse was very tasty and the cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory was delectable.

The cold weather on the hand, well that was a different story.  Coming from mostly warm temperatures, the first snow fall of the year definitely was a bit hard to handle.  At least we know there are warmer temperatures to come in the future.

There may not have been a whole lot to do in Dayton, but the Air Force Museum was definitely a nice find if you like planes and aeronautics history.  Honestly, any place can be entertaining or relaxing whichever you prefer, it is just all in what you make of it.

Just a Chance to Look Back

Glancing back over the last couple months...

Pictures are worth a million words.

Here's to the memories that we have created and the new ones waiting to come...

We all Made it Back

Well, after our stay in Montreal it was time to venture back to the states.  It was a very long bus ride, but we all made it through and got caught up on some sleep.  Then, the next challenge was making it past boarder control.  Let's just say those guys definitely were not the nicest group of people that you have ever met in your life.  Anyways, we all made it back into the states without a problem and were on our merry way.

Finally arriving at our destination around 6 or 6:30 in the morning we pulled into the hotel parking lot.

It is nice coming from such a busy city like Montreal to Auburn Hills, Michigan and being able to relax and catch up on some much needed sleep.  

It definitely looks and feels a lot more like Fall here.  The leaves are changing, there is a chill in the air, the wind is blowing, and the leaves are already crunchy!

This time of the year really reminds me of home and all of the festivities going on back there; fall festivals, cross-country races, football games, breaking out the boots and hoodies, bonfires, corn mazes, and pretty soon haunted houses and hay rides.

Pumpkin patches and scare crows are popping up everywhere.  It is just a matter of time until the Trick-Or-Treating starts!!

Show Buzz #1

D20 Show Buzz November/December 2013

Stephanie 

Common misconception…”You’re going to Florida aren’t you?” Well, apparently our version of Florida was Rockford, IL.  It was definitely a place where you learned to make the most of everything.  You also learned that it was safer to take the shuttle back and forth to the hotel because the taxi rides were 30 minutes longer than they should have been or everyone face planted into the seat in front of them or the dashboard in the front seat. 

At the end of two weeks, rehearsals were completed and the dress rehearsals finished up.  The costume changes were just as much of a workout as the actual skating was. 

Then, off we went to the first city and all we kept hearing was, “This is the biggest venue you will play at.”  Kind of scary if you ask me to start in a place so big, like the United Center in Chicago, IL.  It was a lot to take in all at once and the seats just kept going and going all the way to the ceiling. 

Some of the cities have come and gone so fast you forget where you are.  From Chicago to Montreal each city becomes a blur.

Chicago…The Bean! The Sear’s Tower, Shopping!

Louisville…The Famous Bat Museum, Fourth Street Live, Old Town Louisville 

St. Louis…The Arch, City Museum (Big Kids Playground!!), Cardinals baseball game, city parks and fountains died red for the Cardinals

Knoxville…Presentations (Sight-seeing…we saw a lot of the arena) haha

Montreal…Everything is French!! Opening Night Party and Auction!! Mount Royal, China Town, Notre Dome Church (replica), Old Montreal

As for fun within the cast and crew there are a few games that get everyone going during our three-show days or our last shows in a city while we are trying to pack out. 

Finding someone in the curtains to either the makeup room or in the hallways of back stage trying to scare everyone that walks by is a normal occurrence.  The trick is…look for feet or skates under the curtain.

Games during shows normally take place to raise money for extra activities for everyone to take part in.  They are simple games that make it absolutely hilarious because everyone ends up doing exactly what the rule says not to do.

Imagine not being allowed to sing along to music while you are backstage getting ready, or not being allowed to say sorry throughout the entire show, or not being allowed to say yes or no, or having to dance in response when a guy talks to you, or responding to a guy when he is talking to you while you are in the downward dog yoga pose and if you fail to do any of this you would have to donate to the group.  In the end, normally there is at least one person that surpasses everyone in how much money he or she is going to owe.

There is also the ritual pack-out-show song that is sung at the beginning of the show by the beauty characters and by all the girls in the makeup room at the end of the show.  

Leaving the Country!!

We headed to Montreal and it was my first time to leave U.S. soil and go to another country.  That being said, I had no idea what to expect at customs when we got off the plane and I definitely did not think that French was going to be so prevalent here either.  

Sight-seeing was a must: Mount Royal, China Town, Notre Dome Church (replica), and Old Montreal were just a few places and if you weren't out admiring the view, taste-testing all the different types of food definitely took precedence.  Dessert crepes are just one of the things that stand out.  

It was also our Opening Night Party and Auction that we got to celebrate.  The auction spiced some things up when the biding kept going back and forth between a few people just trying to out-bid the other in order to win the person or item being auctioned.  Now, the fun part of waiting to see what the buyer is going to have the auctionee do to suffice the price they paid to have the opportunity.  

Aside from all of the fun, this was also a city that taught us how much show tracks can change for many reasons and that it is inevitable that when one person is sick, sooner or later the entire tour will have the same illness.  Oh the joys of tour life.

Back to the South!!

Starting into the fourth city and it feels like we have been in the north and south and back again.  This time we were in Knoxville, Tennessee.

Instead of the like the last few cities, we were actually outside in a suburb and were able to see some grass and trees not too far off in the distance.  It was more of a homie-feeling for me; that along with the fact that I got to see my Mom, Dad, and Grandma for the first time since I left for tour in August.

It was just what I needed in between the presentations.  Even though we were not competing at a competition, it was still the feeling that I got and all the nerves came back again just like they did when I did take the ice to compete. Everyone gave it their all and spent extra time on the ice rehearsing.

Even though we mainly saw the inside of the ice rink this week, the company BBQ was a nice break to give us a chance to enjoy the sun and relax.

We also had some fun playing games during the shows like not being allowed to sing along to music while you are backstage getting ready, or not being allowed to say sorry throughout the entire show, or not being allowed to say yes or no, or having to dance in response when a guy talks to you, or responding to a guy when he is talking to you while you are in the downward dog yoga pose and if you fail to do any of this you would have to donate to the group.  In the end, normally there is at least one person that surpasses everyone in how much money he or she is going to owe.

The Arch!!

So it is safe to say that everyone knows St. Louis, Missouri for the famous St. Louis Arch.  It is a main tourist attraction for the city and it definitely caught our attention and served as the location for the yoga classes that are being offered on tour thanks to one of the fellow skaters.

A few blocks up the street was Busch Stadium where the Cardinals call home and by showing team spirit the water fountains in the city park were died red since the team was playing at home that week we were there.  For some of those on tour, this was their first-ever baseball game experience.

It was also a chance to see that no matter how far away you may be from home and your family, this is your tour family now and they will do anything they can to make you feel like you are a part of something including celebrating your birthday.  No special day goes without being recognized.

Also, having a little more fun, we decided to go to the City Museum and it is like a big-kid playground. There are 10-story slides, a bus that hangs out over the building, a ball-pit, an airplane that is suspended in the air, caves, and dungeons that you can maneuver through.  It's a blast, but definitely a workout and you will come home with some scrapes and bruises.  Be ware of young children...they will get ya in the ball pit! Haha!

Home of the Louisville Slugger

Overlooking the waterfront, the view in the hotel was breath-taking.  The weather was warm and the people were humble and nice.  The arena was just around the corner and the people were so friendly.

Louisville, Kentucky was city number two on the list of places we will be visiting on tour.

The famous Bat Museum and Fourth Street Live seemed to attract most of the attention on our days off.  We may have been downtown, but it was relaxed compared to downtown Chicago.  Old Town Louisville was filled with vintage-style houses and churches.  The water always had boats and barges running along the shore.

It may only have been the second show city, but it felt like we had been training and performing for a few months at that point in time.  Rockford seemed to be so long ago.

The Windy City

We were off and running just like that.  Our first performance was in the largest venue that we would play at all season...The United Center in Chicago, IL.

It was time to get down to business now.  Unlike Rockford and the laid-back kind of style there, Chicago was full of hustle and bustle, but that also gave everyone on tour something to do in our free time.  If groups of people were not sight seeing places like The Bean, The Sear's Tower, or taste-testing Chicago-Style deep dish pizza, everyone was taking advantage of being downtown and the shopping that the city had to offer.

Then, it was show time and there were some pretty important guests that stopped in to see how everyone was doing and within the first week of shows, we had to change languages.  It was time for our first spanish show!!

Thank goodness for spanish in high school and college, but oh wait...completely different trying to sing and skate in spanish versus just trying to speak the language itself.

First show city complete!!

Where it all Began

Well it was officially time to take off on the plane to head to Rockford.  Saying Goodbye to everyone was by far the hardest thing that I had to do.  It was all so new to me including just traveling alone.  This was the first plane ride I was on by myself and only the second one that I had ever been on.  Trying to drag all my bags through the airport was a sight within itself and then dealing with my luggage getting lost on the first day was not exactly the best way to start things off.

Everyone seemed really welcoming though and was willing to help with everything.  I will say trying to learn all of the performances was a bit overwhelming to take it all in also.  My brain just was not completely compared for and one minute my body was going one way and my brain was telling it to do something else.  In the end though, two weeks of all-day rehearsals finished and we were off to our first show city.