Tuesday, March 3

Movement
Movement Professor told us that she had consulted her doctor recently, and he had recommended that she take daily multi-vitamins and Omega-3. Food is grown more quickly these days than it used to be, and as a result does not have as many vitamins in it. Movement Professor therefore recommended that we all supplement our diets with these things.

She also said her doctor advised her to eat 5 times a day, and to always include a carb and a protein. She told her doctor she wasn't sure that she could do that, but he said that the between-meal snacks don't have to be big. A snack might be a piece of cheese on a triscuit, or a few almonds and a saltine.

My left-handed cartwheels are getting a LOT better. The hard part is still form. When I learned cartwheels as a child, I learned that you start by facing the direction you're headed, and end up facing the direction that you came from. The way we're learning now, you face the side the entire time (like a star, an X, or the spokes in a wagon wheel) so that you can do multiple cartwheels in a row. My right side is getting pretty good at this, but on my left side I still end up twisting mid-cartwheel to face backward.

I'm getting better at doing my forward rolls the way Movement Professor instructed, so I started doing them from standing yesterday. I got a little nauseated from all the tumbling, so I didn't try dive-rolls, but almost everyone in my class did yesterday (I volunteered to be one of the people they were diving over).

Note to self: do not wear shorts again during tumbling. Scrapes up legs and leaves weird mystery bruises.


Voice
We worked with the diphthongs we'd made sentences for, and went back to the "apple" vowel. My sentence was "[Iceman] asked for his gal pal's hand on Valentine's Day." I thought it was pretty clever (since it's true).

Here are some of my sentences...

"like" diphthong
- I exercise my tight thighs at nine.
- I fly my kite high in the sky.
- I smile psychologically while saying like.

"pay" diphthong
- Dane ate Jason's cake.
- David stays away from the ballet.
- Make my grape flavored shake with whey. (I call this one "the Jamba Juice order.")
(All-the-Way pointed out that "The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain" -- used in My Fair Lady -- was good for this one as well.)

"oil" diphthong
- Disloyal boys annoy coy Joyce.
- Roy broils soy burgers in oil.
- The noisy boys have annoying voices.

the "sink/sing" sound (sounds like "ing")
- Starlings are singing and spreading their wings.
- Unwrapping things with inked paper and string.
- I'm thinking of things that bring the spring.


Other
Because this is tech/previews/opening week for Miss Julie, our afternoon classes (Acting and Analysis) were canceled. And we do not have Voice or Movement on Wednesday.

As a side note, I recently stepped on a scale and learned that I've lost a chunk of weight since November, just from eating a little more healthily and being active in Movement class. I suspect that I might be a little taller, too, so I'm going to have to measure myself one of these days.

I volunteered to be in costume at an upcoming dinner event that the Development Department is hosting to benefit the theatre. The theme is related to the play The Devil's Disciple, which is currently in rehearsals. The director, Tony Walton, will be a special guest. I got to go to the costume shop and try on some pretty dresses from the time period. I'm so excited! It's been so long since I've been in a cool costume for anything. (If anyone reading this blog is attending the dinner on Saturday, March 14, I'll be there. Please say hello!)


Voice Tutorial
I set up a tutorial to work with Voice Professor on my "forward placement" (I've also heard it called "head resonance") because it's very difficult for me to do at the moment.

I met with her yesterday during the time that I would have normally had Acting class. She says that the things my placement falls back on the most are the "sit" vowel, the second halves of diphthongs, and the consonants "k" and "g" (which I've been working to adjust since the fall... I know HOW to make them in my mouth as opposed to my throat, but I forget a lot).

She also said that she hears me occasionally put my tongue in the wrong place when I'm producing the sound of "a schwa with r-coloring", like the end of the words "sire" and "tender" (I was using Paulina's Winter's Tale speech that starts, "What studied torments, tyrant, hast for me?" for the tutorial). I need to produce them with the tip of my tongue, not the middle.

Another thing that's challenging for me is that I keep increasing my volume when I move my placement forward. Voice Professor is concerned that I'm mentally linking the two, and they're not the same thing.

That said, she seems confident that I'm going to figure it out. And if she thinks so, then I think so, too.