Staying Positive

Just a quick bit of blogging today...I'm definitely being a "woman" today and that has left my immune system compromised. My boyfriend has a cold and I feel I'm coming down with something. So I'm doing everything I can not to get sick. I'm avoiding sugar, eating my nuts and yogurt and taking my vitamins. Wish me luck at not getting sick, I can't afford this one week before the big opening night...I guess rest and relaxation is all there is left to do to protect myself....yeah, wish me luck on that too...lol

Perseverance

If at first you don't succeed, try, try, again. That was a great motto growing up...I don't remember where I heard it, but I have a feeling it may have been from one of my childhood cartoons. Basically it put perseverance in my head and kept me positive enough to keep trying new things and perfect the things that I wasn't necessarily the best at. I'm a competitive person by nature, and even though sometimes I find myself insecure or a bit crestfallen at not being good or great at something, I still relish the challenge of continuing to try and learn. Opera singers continue to study voice, even when they've "made it" because there is always something to learn or "perfect"...you also have to consider that singing requires a great deal of muscle and agility that people don't realize. It's training just like any other competitive sport...You wouldn't run the Boston Marathon if you had never jogged a day in your life. So my challenge is to not rest on my laurels and really persist on to becoming the best singer I can be...really push myself even harder now that we're coming into the home stretch of my upcoming performance...yet at the same time keeping myself healthy and well rested so that I have the stamina it takes to truly give it my all. I know it sounds like I'm asking alot from myself, but there's no harm in trying.

The Good

Ok, so last night's rehearsal went very well. We had a sing through of the whole show before we ran through it physically and blocked the final scene. I did so well and the Maestro seemed pleased with all of our performances from what he heard from the sing through. I guess all the well wishes and positive thinking really came through...so thank you for the nice thoughts :)

Now to build up my endurance and work out the pacing of the music with the choreography & blocking...whew, this is such a challenge. It's one thing to sing a Mozart aria in German well while just standing there, it's quite another thing when you add in burlesque fan-dancing choreography...this role was definitely not meant to be danced...but I will do it! If I can do years of dancing and singing in musical theatre, then I certainly can figure out a way to to incorporate it into my opera singing...that's why we have rehearsals. Tonight I have a voice lesson and with my Teacher we will work through the entire show with the blocking and figure out the breathing, support and what I may need to cut in order to maintain good vocal technique. I'm so fortunate to have such incredible people in my life, without them I'd be lost.

As for the diet and exercise front, I've lost another 1/2 pound and my muscles feel completely jazzed from the class on Monday and last night's rehearsal. I plan on taking a ballet bar class today during lunch, but that's if my girl Challis makes it into the city in time...if not we'll hit the cardio or something like. It's nice to have a work-out buddy every now and then, but I've finally reached a place in my life that I enjoy working out on my own and getting into a zone where I can focus and think. Life is good!