So, as you can see from the fact that it's almost the end of August and I'm only now posting the May wrap-up, it's been a tad busy around here. Just a bit. But I'm hoping to slowly start catching up on these wrap-ups! We'll see how much I get done with college classes starting on Monday, but a girl can be optimistic, right?
Books I Read
5/5
Can we take a moment to appreciate Cait's incredibly good fortune when it comes to cover design? Seriously, both of her books are so pretty! Now can we take a moment to appreciate what a talented writer she is? I think I may have liked this one even better than A Thousand Perfect Notes, and that was hard to top. I'm not sure, they're both such different books. I loved the poetic style, as always, and the characters that just leapt off the page with personality. And the OTP!!! I ship it so much!!! It was such a sweet, feels-y book that made me shed a tear or two. Loved it!
Movies I Watched
3.5/5
So glad I finally saw this! It was one of those classic movies I'd been meaning to watch forever but never got around to. It was wild, but I liked the whole thing. Keanu Reeves' acting style takes a little getting used to, but other than that, it was great. xD
2/5
This was super odd. Definitely not a movie I'd watch on my own, but it was fun to watch it with others so we could insert sarcastic commentary every once in a while. I watched it with my brother and my now boyfriend since it was a movie we'd joked about seeing for like eight or nine months. Not a great movie, but a fun night!
4/5
It was so strange watching "Les Mis" without anyone singing. The acting was great, the story was amazing as always, and the characters were exactly as they should be, but it was weird for me. I definitely prefer the story with music. And it was weird having one of the plotlines cut, though I understand why they did it since this version wasn't a musical.
4/5
I loved this. It was super dark and unnerving, but something about criminals has always fascinated me, so I love stories following detectives or cops or lawyers. It was gripping the entire time and it was really well acted. I saw a couple of the plot twists coming, but that wouldn't stop me from watching the sequels.
4/5
Excellent biopic! I didn't know most of the backstory behind J.R.R. Tolkien, so it was interesting learning about his life. For those who are expecting a lot about Lord of the Rings or The Hobbit, it barely touches on those stories at all, so don't get your hopes up. But it was a great story about friendship and you can definitely see which of the people he knew influenced the characters. Quotes I Wrote
This is my life right now, so no quotes to share.
Obsessions I Acquired
"Hadestown" - Both versions of the soundtrack are excellent, but I think I do prefer the newer one since I've had some time to listen to both and get used to the different styles. It has very folksy, jazzy music with a dark tone. I love Greek mythology, too, so this pretty much checked all the boxes. My brother is especially obsessed with it, and even though I suggested it to him since I thought he'd like it, his continual obsession got me even more into it. This song is one of my favorites from the soundtrack:
Pictures of the Month
At a group vocal lesson to prepare for a recital. Our vocal teacher took pictures of us to prove a point that most of us still needed our phones to look at the lyrics and therefore had not be practicing enough. xD
Coffee with an old homeschool friend!
Prepare yourself for a slew of "Mary Poppins Jr." pictures!
Jane Banks and I were knee brace buddies.
Our vocal teacher with all of her students who were in the show.
Fancy dress day!
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious"
The last bank scene
"Step In Time"
"Finale"
Chimney Sweep gang
"Jolly Holiday"
Katie Nanna
Our fearless choreographer!
Why yes, Mrs. Brill did spend her cash on several loaves of bread from Panera in order to take a bizarre photo shoot with me.
Triplets!
"Jolly Holiday"
MPACT reunion picture!
With our director
Our assistant director and sound technician
This is one of my favorite pictures the photographer took!
Saw "Spring Awakening" at the Hershey Area Playhouse and it was so good! I loved all of the experimental choices when it came to staging.
Vocal recital! I was in several numbers, but "Sisters" from "White Christmas" was my favorite since it was the one I was most confident in. It's a great song for my vocal range and belt.
Group picture with our vocal teacher
Post-recital ice cream celebration!
Off to our first "Beauty and the Beast" rehearsal as a family!
I voted!
S'mores in the backyard with castmates
I got to see my friends Dana and Sam from writer's camp on Memorial Days, so we spent the day in Lititz eating tons of ice cream and walking the town.
Practicing our harmonies
Spring orientation at Ursinus college!
I loved working sound for MPACT's production of "James and the Giant Peach!" It was bittersweet not being in the show, but it was so much fun to still be involved and watch all of my friends perform.
And now for Scout photos!
With neighborhood dog friends
She got her hair all green and dirty after we mowed the lawn
"Mary Poppins Jr." has consumed my life (in a good way), so I have a feeling this post will be pretty short. Goodreads has so kindly informed me that I am nine books behind my reading challenge, which is not great, but I'm hoping to catch up on the books piled on my nighstand once the show is over. Then again, it'll be on to the next one by that time, so it might be a while before I catch up!
Books I Read
5/5
I got this as a stocking stuffer for Christmas last year, and it was the perfect book to read first thing in the morning and last thing at night. Lin-Manuel Miranda compiled his iconic "good morning/good night" tweets into a book with super cute illustrations. They're great affirmations to keep in mind throughout your day, so I read one each morning and night every day until I finished the book. It's very fun and inspirational. I instantly felt like I was in a better mood after reading them.
3.5/5
This was really interesting for both fans of musicals and those hoping to write one someday. I loved the analysis and learning more about the history of some musicals and how they've evolved from the early stages to the productions we see today. I didn't agree with everything the author had to say, but he made some interesting points. I just wished he would have had a little more variety in the examples he used. I could've used more excerpts from modern musicals, or at least those different from "Gypsy," "Carousel," and "Oklahoma." You could definitely tell those were his favorites.
Movies I Watched
2/5
Cheesy as all get out. Bad acting. At least the robot was cute. That's pretty much all I have to say about this one.
3.5/5
This was fun and goofy and totally relies on the audience's ability to suspend their disbelief. I still take issue with the fact that this school seemed to have no security checks at all when it came to confirming that the guy who shows up claiming to be a substitute teacher is actually the substitute teacher you hired. I appreciated the Adam Pascal cameo, even though I wished he was in it for longer than about five minutes, total. I'm curious to see how this compares to the musical itself.
4/5
This was one of the better older movies I've seen. Even though the whole thing was completely predictable, it kept my attention pretty much the entire time. I saw the ending coming from a mile away, but it was still interesting to see how it would get there. Any movie that can keep me engaged for an hour and a half despite it only being set in one room is a well-written movie.
5/5
By the time you read this, I will have probably seen this movie for a second time already. I knew it was going to be good, but it was so good. I didn't expect to cry much, but I actually cried a couple different times. I was very satisfied with it. I can't say a whole lot without spoilers, so I'll just leave it at that. Quotes I Wrote
This is my life right now, so no quotes to share.
Obsessions I Acquired
Billie Eilish - Her "When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?" album is so good! Her music is very eerie and off-kilter in the way Melanie Martinez is, though I think I like Billie Eilish's stuff even better. I'm not sure I have a favorite song yet, but the first one I was introduced to was "Wish You Were Gay."
Pictures of the Month
One of my "Mary Poppins Jr." castmates was Rooster in "Annie," and a photo of him as the character became a meme throughout the cast, so yes, yes I did make t-shirts with his face on them for April Fools' Day.
Another "Mary Poppins Jr." castmate was super sweet and invited me to go see "Be More Chill" with her since she had an extra ticket, and the whole experience was so much fun!
GUYS IT'S WILL ROLAND
My Playbill board is getting pretty crowded . . .
For my 19th birthday, we went out for sushi, watched "Sherlock," listened to John Mulaney sketches, got a free drink at Starbucks, and played games with friends. It was perfect.
I had a Broadway-themed birthday party and all of my friends dressed up as their dream roles.
Newsies!
With my LCT family.
With my Manheim family.
It was a great group of friends!
I got to catch up with Sam, one of my writer's camp friends. It had been way too long since we'd seen each other!
Spirit week at "Mary Poppins Jr." This was from dream role/show shirt day.
Gender swap day is always a huge hit.
Painting crew working on the set!
My whole family auditioned for "Beauty and the Beast." Yes, the whole family. I convinced my parents to do a show with Max and me since this will be the last one before I leave for college. My parents are townspeople, my brother is a featured dancer, and I'm a Silly Girl! This is one of my favorite shows, and it's so cool that the last show I'll perform in before college was also my first musical. I can't wait to get started!
Max and I had some car troubles, so we got to practice our practical life skills in finding someone who could help us jump it. We also learned how to check our oil, wiper fluid, coolant, and many other things. It was a great day of unexpected, natural learning. xD
Post-"Endgame" selfie, after we've dried our tears!
Impromptu game night with friends!
A bunch of "Mary Poppins Jr." castmates goofing off before rehearsal.
I dog sat a couple of adorable, snuggly, sweet labradoodles. I loved the quiet time and the cozy window seat.
This month's picture of Scout is brought to you by my mom, who snapped this adorable shot.
Now she's just published an interview she did with me, and if you're curious to hear more about the projects I'm working on, what fictional characters I relate to, and some of the obstacles I encountered in writing/publishing Instructions For Flight, you should definitely check it out!
What projects are you working on right now? Leave a comment!
