Snow, Snow, and More Snow = SNOW DAY!!

Boston, Massachusetts

We finally made it!!  We arrived in Boston and still had two days off to spare.  Little did we know, we were getting ourselves into a long two weeks of snow and long drives to the arena. 

Traffic was awful and it took two hours just to get to the arena on opening night and that was jus the beginning of it.  Most of the time, the bus didn’t even show up and we were taking taxicabs or the train to get into work.  It definitely made for an interesting time especially when more snow hit. 

Blizzard!!

As if Boston didn’t have enough snow already, we were in for more. 

Topping off at about three feet of snow, we even had a Snow Day!!

Who gets snow days at work?!  WE DO!! 

It was perfect timing to since we were snowed in after we got back from our shows on Valentine’s Day we were not only able to celebrate the holiday, but also spend some extra time with the lovely break workers from D15. 

Saying Goodbye to them was definitely hard, just like every other time, but we are really hoping to see them all again soon!  

Keeping our heads high and pushing through we were starting the second week in the city with 16 shows.  Luckily, we started getting lunches on three-show days since our tour schedule is so busy and it gives us something else to look forward to in order to get through the days. 

A few other treats came this week too along with my birthday :)   

Thinking happy thoughts and smiling through the birthday wishes from home, we went to the Beehive.  It just happened to be on the one day we had off that week and it was on Mardi Gras.  So, the Beehive was perfect for everyone since it was a restaurant, a jazz bar, a lounge, and a club all wrapped into one.  It made for a good night and fond memories.  

By the end of our two weeks though, we were all ready to move on to the next city and get out of all this snow. 

Show Buzz #4

D34!

It was starting to look and feel a lot like the Christmas season on tour even though we were down south.  The Christmas trees and lights were starting to make their appearances in the make-up rooms and hotel rooms and we even had the pleasure to go to a crewmember’s house for a homemade Christmas dinner!  We were definitely getting spoiled with homemade cookies and apple cider.  There were even Christmas trees in every room of the house!  Also, as a little treat from our PD, he starting pulling people out to watch the shows so we can get an idea of what we are part of being on Frozen. 

Adding to our Christmas treats and the holiday spirit we had Christmas class and documented it with pictures and videos.  Everyone showed up and skated in their very best red and green attire with bows, Santa hats, and jingle bells.

Topping off that week in Fayetteville we had our first company BBQ on the road! Yes, it was cold now, but the ugly Christmas sweaters and homemade hot chocolate kept us warm as we huddled around the grills for warmth. 

We thought it was cold then, well we were in store for even colder weather heading north for our last long bus ride of the calendar year to Philadelphia where we had our first three days off of the tour!  We hadn’t had more than a day or two off since before we started rehearsals and the crew and FCP were lucky to have just a day off once every few months.  Everyone was ready to relax for a few days before starting our crazy schedule. 

We also wanted to take those days and enjoy what we could of the holidays! After all, it was Christmas Eve! Then, we opened the show on Christmas Day and hit the ground running after that.  We were all in high spirits though after exchanging Secret Santa gifts and White Elephant Parties along with the surprise little gifts in the make-up rooms.  This kept us going through the 28 shows in 11 days and of those shows was a 15-pack to start it all off. 

Knowing that New Year’s was approaching gave us something to strive to because then we knew the rest would be easy and soon the engagement would conclude and we had four days off in our future!

It was definitely well deserved for everyone and most of us too advantage of the time and went home for the first time since the middle of July.

It was hard to believe though that when we opened in Cleveland, that was our 200^th show!  We weren’t even half way through the year and did that many shows!

It was just a crazy concept.  Coming off of two crazy weeks, we had two lighter weeks ahead before moving on to Illinois. 

From there, it was luxury-style living with apartment-like rooms for the week and all the room we had at the hotel made up for the lack of room that we had at the arena.  We were literally in closets for the make-rooms and costume rooms, but that did not stop the never-ending lines of audience members coming into the building every day. 

We did manage to make it through and being able to watch U.S. Nationals along with the X-Games, and Miss Universe helped pass the time and provided us with some pretty good laughing sessions as well. 

Before we knew it, we were off to the Windy City.  Unfortunately, we did not get to stay at the Embassy Suites that everyone raves about though. However, we were still able to enjoy the usual highlights that the city has to offer. 

Aside from the fancy lights, shopping, and deep-dish pizza Chicago-style, we were plagued by snow.  It not only affected the show schedule cancelling a show and adding it to a day off, but it also kept us in the city for additional days before we could move on to the next city on the schedule, but that also meant that we were able to attend the Black Hawks vs. Coyotes hockey game!

So, it has been a crazy year already and even though we have a lot more cities to go before we can say we completed Year #1 on the New Show, we are here for the rollercoaster ride that lies ahead.  

Places to see:

Raleigh – 150 shows, 4 shows added, Christmas at Brian Moore’s house 

Fayetteville – Christmas class, Christmas BBQ, ugly Christmas sweaters 

Philadelphia – 28 shows in 11 days, Christmas Eve and Day, New Year’s Eve and Day, Secret Santa, White Elephant Party

Cleveland – Opening Night was 200^th show, 4^th street is a line of bars, restaurants, and little shops closed down to traffic, Chocolate Bar

Rosemont – 9-pack, Steak ‘N Shake, Longhorns, outlet shopping

Chicago – The Bean, The Sky Deck at Willis Tower, The Skating Ribbon Trail, 12-pack, The Magnificent Mile, Black Hawks vs. Coyotes hockey game  

Special Thanks:

Thank you to all the D-15 and D-32 skaters and crewmembers that have come to D-34 to help us out!  Your time an effort has been greatly appreciate and we hope to see you all back in the near future!  Until then, Good Luck on your shows and your Frozen family will miss you!

The Windy City – Round #Two

Chicago, IL

It’s crazy how much a city can change from season to season.  Being here last year when the sun was shining and it was about 90 degrees outside is so different from snow and freezing temperatures. 

However, all the feelings from being here before came back the moment I stepped out onto the ice at the United Center.  The lighting, the make-up and costume rooms, and the local workers, and even the very hallway I spoke to my Dad in before I took the ice to make my professional debut were all still the same.  Everything came rushing back even the anxiousness and rapid heart beating; it was time to start the show!

Of course this time I knew a little bit more of what to expect, but like any larger city there were important eyes in the audience and lots of families and friends visiting, making it that much more exciting!

Also, knowing that we had a little bit of time off to explore the big city again was quite rewarding and with the amount of snow we received this week we had our first show cancellation giving us a little more time to venture out.

Of course we revisited the Bean and the Magnificent Mile for some shopping, but we also found the Maggie Daley Ribbon Trail to skate on.  It was an outdoor ice trail in the downtown area.  So, go figure on our one-day off in between all the added shows and rescheduling from the cancellation, we decided to do more skating.

You could say we really weren’t skating; it was more like racing around to see who could get around the trail the quickest before we got too cold and our toes felt like they were going to fall off.

But then it was time to get back to business and just like the snow changed the show schedule for the week, it also affect our travel day as well.  It turns out, that we were in Chicago for two more days after the show ended and one of those days we were lucky enough to get to go to the Chicago Black Hawks game versus the Arizona Coyotes!

Now, hoping for better weather and a clear path to get on our way heading even further north into more snow.

See you in New England soon!