Carolina In My Mind

Thursday-Sunday was the quintessential Carolina weekend!

In typical William fashion, he fetched
me a gingerale from the bar, and provided
me with Dramamine. What a sweetheart.

Thursday night I went on the UNC Alumni Cruise around Manhattan. While I was rather seasick, it was still fun to see friends, and be surrounded by Tarheels!

Katie and me with the Statue of Liberty.
Yes we were that close!

New York

Jackson and Olivia are so special to me.

Friday, I flew to Charlotte North Carolina to reunite with my wonderful senior year roommates. I flew in early Friday morning, and my parents drove to Charlotte to spend the day with me! We had a great time together enjoying all things Southern like the shopping mall and Chic-fil-A. We visited my former New York neighbors, the Morgans, in their new home in Charlotte!







Friday night, I went to Carly's and was reunited with my girls! We had a wonderful weekend of catching up, margaritas, laughing, dancing and enjoying all being together again.

love these girls so, so much

our weekend in a nutshell

This weekend was a reminder of how much I love the south. It was so fun to drive from place to place, be in air-conditioned homes, and go to huge grocery stores like Harris Teeter! Though I may say my "A's" like a Yankee (according to Ashley), or be rude and abrasive to forward men at bars (apparently women don't put guys in their place at bars in the south), I will always be a southerner at heart.

Princess Jasmine, Polo, The Vineyard, The Tony's!

Me as Princess Jasmine

The first weeks in June brought some pretty exciting firsts. I booked a gig playing Princess Jasmine for a ritzy TriBeCa birthday party. Now I know what you're thinking...I do not look like Princess Jasmine. I'm a fair-skinned blonde, and far from looking Arabic. However, with a wig and a body suit, I looked pretty authentic. I showed up at the birthday party in full Jasmine attire (yes, I rode in a taxi dressed as Jasmine), and had to stay in character until every child had left. I sang "A Whole New World" and put on a little show for the 40 kids celebrating the birthday and their parents, and answered questions such as, "Where's Aladdin?" It was quite an experience. I'm hoping to book many more gigs as other characters because I truly had a blast!






On Sunday, June 5th, Fallon, Whitney and I decided to be super WASPy and go to the Governor's Island Polo tournament. Pretty Woman style, we put on our preppy sundresses, and took the ferry over to the lush, green Governor's Island. It was such a lovely escape from the city. The event was free, but the champagne and concessions were ridiculously expensive. Next year, we will pack a picnic basket and plan a bit more accordingly. It was such a fun event though, and there were some AWESOME hats!

on the ferry to Governor's Island

Polo at it's finest

me with the Statue of Liberty in the background

I made a last minute decision last weekend to go see "Now.Here.This" at The Vineyard Theatre. The Vineyard is a theatre near Union Square that debuts new shows in workshop format. The shows are slightly different every night, as the actors and directors make changes and improvements. I had been wanting to see this show, and I realized that Saturday that the only way I would be able to see it before it closed was to go that night. I got one of the last two tickets, and met Sherrie and Sarah there. I cannot imagine a more perfect show for me to see during this time in my life. It was by the creators of "Title of Show," starring the same cast. They told vignettes and stories from their lives, and nearly all the tales involved tears - either from laughing or crying. The recurring idea that wove all of these vignettes together was the idea that we are all a part of many elaborate journeys that lead us to what we call the "now." Of course I cannot do it justice in a blog post, but take my word for it when I say this show is not one to miss. After one of the most enjoyable 90 minutes I've had in 2011, Sherrie, Sarah and I went to Max Brenner's for Dessert and Drinks. That place is incredible, and one I would recommend to ANY chocolate lover. (Ima, it would be heaven on earth for you!)

Sherrie, Sarah and me at Max Brenner!
Chocolate fondu and chocolate drinks!

I had the incredible opportunity of going to the dress rehearsal of the Tony's for the second year in a row. Sherrie got two tickets through work! Just like last year, I was reminded of how blessed I am to live in a city of such talented people who are creating amazing theatre. It's so neat to see Broadway stars (a few of whom I would actually call friends) in person, honoring the arts from this past year.  Daniel Radcliff, Sutton Foster, Katie Finneran, Samuel L. Jackson, Vanessa Redgrave, Aaron Tveit, Brooke Shields, James Earl Jones, Hugh Jackman, Neil Patrick Harris, Patti Lupone and Angela Lansbury were several of the actors I got to share the Beacon Theatre with on the morning of June 12. After a tiring week of auditions, an experience like the Tony's Dress Rehearsal reminds me that it's all worth it.

Covenant House Benefit Concert

In February, I flew to Pittsburgh for an audition, and met the most wonderful man on the airplane! Neil Berg, a Broadway producer, happened to be seated next to me. Normally, I don't talk to my seat-mates on airplanes, but he seemed nice, and was asking me what I did. I explained to him that I'm auditioning, told him about equity, and the basics of being an actor in NYC. After a few minutes, I asked him what he did in the city. He told me that he was a Broadway producer. Wow - I felt silly. He was so kind, and told me right away that he liked me, and would love to help me out in any way that he could. He invited me to volunteer with his big annual benefit concert for the Covenant House.

Fast Forward to June 2, 2011 - Lincoln Center

"A Night of Broadway Stars" gala

I showed up around 3:00 to volunteer at the concert. I went in the stage door and was greeted by Capathia Jenkins (WOAH), who walked me to the stage, and announced that I was there. Neil proceeded to introduce me to the stars, and let them know I was there if they needed anything. I looked around and saw Natalie Torro, Danny Zolli, Rita Harvey, Luba Mason and others. I was on CLOUD 9. I sat and watched the technical run-through, and then Neil asked me to run a quick errand. After the errand, I headed into the pre-show reception and had dinner with all of the patrons who had paid $1000 for the same meal. I then sat backstage and watched the concert with one of Neil's assistants. All of these things were amazing alone, and made it a night I would never forget.

However, the most inspiring aspect of this entire night was learning about The Covenant House. I met kids, just a couple of years younger than me, who were homeless several months ago, and are now successful, all thanks to this amazing organization. I was so inspired by their passion for life, and their determination to overcome obstacles like I had never seen before. AND - THEY CAN SING! They sang a song at the end together, and there was not a dry eye in the house.  I'm planning on volunteering in the Covenant House nursery starting this fall, and I could not be more excited. It was so moving to see such talented and successful Broadway stars working together for such a wonderful cause. It's always great to be reminded of how many kind and giving people there are in the arts.

http://www.covenanthouse.org/news/view/formerly_homeless_youth_to_perform_with_broadway_stars_at_lincoln_center_ya

Neil Berg and me. 

A memorable Memorial Day weekend

city from Julie's rooftop

We kicked off Memorial Day by having drinks on Julie's awesome rooftop. That Saturday, my girlfriends and I decided to go to Long Beach! We packed up, and took the direct train from Penn Station! It was absolutely gorgeous, and the perfect day of fun in the sun. We lay out, read gossip magazines, and chatted, and then took a lunch break. We headed to Five Guys, then went back to the beach for more sunshine! Most of us got rather sunburned, but it was the perfect start to summer!

beach-bound on the train!

That Sunday, I had a lovely brunch with my UNC friends, and then spent the afternoon hanging out with Geoffrey and William! It was so nice to catch up with everyone.  My friend Meredith from UNC arrived that day to the city (she's interning here for the summer), so it was fun to catch up with her!

girls on the beach!

Memorial Day was one of the most relaxing days ever! I woke up, had a delicious brunch with Sarah, and caught up! We hadn't seen each other in SO long because she had been rehearsing for "The Importance of Being Earnest" in Summit. We caught up over scones at Alices. I then went to a Memorial Day cookout at Julie's, and then had a tennis match with Will. It was such a great weekend of not working, or thinking about auditions.