First things first: I left off in April telling you about some really exciting things coming up, the first of which was a six-week contract at New Stage Theatre in Jackson, Mississippi, doing The Marvelous Wonderettes. If you have a really stellar memory, you know I did the same show last summer--but this time I got to play a different role, which was way more challenging than I expected (the show is insanely complicated musically, AND I had to learn how to blow a bubble for the first time!)...but also a lot of fun! I played Suzy this time around--she's the "happy-go-lucky one of the group"...otherwise known as the dumb blonde. =) So much fun to play, and the girls I worked with were seriously amazing--three beautiful new friends who were such an inspiration. We had a three-week rehearsal process and a three-week (largely sold-out!) run, May 29-June 17. Also, southern hospitality is real--the board members and theatre staff were so incredibly kind and welcoming. It was a lovely start to the summer! Here are some gems from backstage:
We four had our share of adventures and fun, too--we spent a lot of time exploring Jackson...so much thrifting, amazing food, and a little bit of history...The Help was set and partially filmed in Jackson and it was pretty cool to see some of the spots from the movie!
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| My ultimate thrifting win!!! |
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| Brent's Drugs, where a couple scenes in The Help were filmed! |
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| One of our promo shots, taken at Brent's! |
We also made our way down to New Orleans one weekend towards the end of the run...New Orleans is the craziest place on earth. Bourbon Street is insane. But it is also so so beautiful and in addition to dancing, accruing beads, and tasting the local fare we got to explore a bit and hear some amazing music!
I got home to Jersey June 18, experienced summer and the beach and visiting family and friends very briefly, and moved back up to NYC July 4...just in time to join two of my fellow Mississippi Wonderettes for my very first rooftop fireworks experience! It was a pretty awesome start to summer in the city. =)
I fully expected this summer to be kind of a break for me--I've never spent it in the city; I've almost always been away somewhere working--but so far, this has been about the craziest summer yet. In between sweating my proverbial balls off (lasted almost a week without an air conditioner and then hauled my butt over to Bed & Bath in the Bronx to get one!), I'm auditioning whenever possible (there aren't many in the summer), working, taking classes, catching up with friends, seeing shows (everyone must see Newsies and Peter and the Starcatcher RIGHT NOW)...and most excitingly, rehearsing a workshop of a new musical!
The show is called Beyond This Paradise and you should go to the website at www.beyondthisparadise.com and read all about it! I'm alternating the role of Steph, the show's protagonist, which means I go on for 2 of the 6 shows. The show premieres at the 45th Street Theatre August 8 & 9, and participates in the Thespis Theater Festival at Cabrini Repertory Theater September 5, 9, & 10. I'll be going on as Steph August 9 at 1pm as well as one performance TBA during the festival in September--I'll keep you posted, and definitely let me know if you want more info about tickets!
You can also connect to the show via Facebook here:
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Beyond-This-Paradise/163968740315372
The cast and creative team have been posting pictures, videos, and general updates on there, and it links to the Facebook event as well. And hey, while we're at it...in order to move a completely original show like this forward, we need to start raising funds--for the set, costumes, rehearsal spaces, etc...but most importantly, to get the cast recorded to be able to send out our show to potential producers. If you can spare even $5 we would be so grateful and every little bit counts...check out our fundraising campaign with even more info at http://www.indiegogo.com/btpmusical. It would mean the world to me on a personal level because this has been such a special experience for me...I've done a lot of very fun shows in a lot of very fun places over the last couple years, but I've never felt so artistically fulfilled as I have with this show. It's an incredible, exciting process putting together a new show and I'm so grateful to be a part of this one. =) Also, see for yourself how awesome this music is...here's a video from one of our first music rehearsals, learning the title song (please excuse my music-learning face...I know I look miserable but I'm just concentrating really hard!):
In between our August and September shows, I'm actually heading home to the Philadelphia area (Malvern, to be exact!) to do another workshop. It's a new concept musical entitled In My Body, written by Dan Martin and Michael Biello, in collaboration with Flying Bulldog Productions. This one is just a two-day work session but I'll be working with some really amazing people and I am SO excited for what I'm sure will be another super fulfilling process. =) Check out the show's website here: http://www.flyingbulldogproductions.com/flyingbulldog/in-my-body.
Album 1: Wonderettes in Mississippi!
Album 2: New Orleans
Album 3: Summer in the city!
And, if you made it this far, here are a couple bonus video links from a cabaret we did during closing weekend of Wonderettes in Mississippi:
"His Name," by Scott Alan
"Bluebird," by Sara Bareilles
You can also check out my website (as always!) at www.kellykarcher.com for the most up-to-date professional news--I just added a bunch of pictures from Wonderettes, as well as press clippings...all of those fun things. =)
I also wanted to give a shout-out to all of you who I've been able to visit with in Mississippi and Virginia and Ocean City and back here in NYC over the last couple months...it's been so amazing to catch up with so many of you beautiful people! Hoping to see the rest of you soon... =)
xoxo
Kelly
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