January 15- Now!

So I'm just gonna write about some of the highlights of the past week and a half, cause I'm super behind.

The first Saturday we were here, Michael Winter took us on another walking tour of Westminster. It was amazing coming off the tube and seeing Big Ben right away. Everything was so beautiful, and Michael knows EVERYTHING. I can't wait to go on the London Eye and see all the sights that way. We walked around and took lots of pictures...it was amazing, but pretty cold. Michael dropped us off at The National Portrait Gallery, where we saw an exhibit of Thomas Lawerence, an 18-19th century artist. I loved it - the way he paints different surfaces and textures was incredible - it all looked so tangible and real. It was honestly the first time I've seen an old painting of someone actually look like a real person. It was great.

At night, we went to see "Romeo and Juliet" (the ballet) at the Coliseum (they spell it weird), a really beautiful theatre in Westminster (the seats were really small and straight though). I know I'm a dancer, but I think even if I weren't, I would have loved it. Some of the stuff they were doing was unreal. Plus that score is incredible. The woman playing Juliet was wonderful - her expressions read so well - she was amazing actress, as well as technical dancer. The costumes were gorgeous, and the fight sequences were awesome. It was really enjoyable (though they made one or two odd choices with the end, and with some cloaked creatures that were supposed to represent death). We got home, and went straight back out to celebrate Ryan's birthday. After walking for awhile, we ended up in a club. I talked to some Australian dude, but most of the people were kinda sketchy. They played a lot of American remixes, and we danced for a bit. There was some drama, which sucked, but we all got back home safe. Ryan had a good time, so that was good : ) Sunday, Britt and I went to Mass at this Italian Church, with the cutest little Italian priest ever. But...the whole thing was in Italian. Then, we went to this nice, classy place for dinner all together, to celebrate Ryan's birthday.

Last week, we worked on Shakespeare's Sonnets and The Novel Project (we had to adapt a scene from Dickens' "The Mystery of Edwin Drood" in groups). I had Richard Digby Day as my sonnet teacher - he's the artistic director, and he's had an amazing career - he apparently discovered Hugh Grant and Ralph Fiennes. Britt had Hugh Ross, who is in a movie with MERYL STREEP right now. Gah! The sonnet performance went really well - I was really happy with it, which is awesome because a few of our teachers came to watch. We also had an introduction to some of our movement classes (all these people have had amazing careers, and the classes seem awesome). During the week, I shopped a little (got some cheap boots), had lunch with Sami (who is really sweet, super down to earth), and tried to find a gym. Saturday, Britt and I tried out the Virgin Active for free (this INCREDIBLE, giant gym). It was amazing, but super expensive. We're probably going to try to head to the YMCA from now on - much cheaper. Saturday night, I went out for a bit, but didn't actually end up doing much. Sunday, Britt and I tried another little church (it was really small and kind of in the middle of nowhere, but really cute). We explored, and found this place called the Shakespeare. The people burned Britt's pizza, so it took awhile haha. But we had fun - the place was neat, and they have random Shakespeare trivia contests for good prizes, so we're gonna try to get everyone to go one night. We also found this cool place where we can play gigs, once we have enough material.

This week started off with our normal class schedule (pretty intense, most days are 9:30 to at least 5, followed by "cultural outings" at night). Monday we had historical dance (we wore corsettes, and I couldn't breathe, but she made Britt my partner, so yay! haha), movement (we learned some combinations), historical theatre (I thought it was super interesting; we watched clips of "The Doll's House"), and speech (our teacher is SO hilarious - she can do any type of accent. She was amazing). Then we worked on the Novel Project from 7-9. Tuesday we had Physical Theatre (played lots of games, got lots of exercise), Shakespeare (with Michael Winter! He's amazing), and finally performed the Novel Project. The staff seemed happy with the work we had done, which was great to hear. At night, we went to see the farce, "A Flea in Her Ear" at the Old Vic. The show was hysterical, and we had front row seats! Richard and Michael gave us a lot of the history of the theatre at intermission - apparently the woman who used to own the theatre would cook sausages during the performances in her box - she was an eccentric haha. It was really interesting to hear who had performed there (Michael Winter directed "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" there, one of my favorite musicals). Wednesday, we had Dramatic Literature (we're discussing the Duchess of Malfi, which I was in freshman year, so it sort of dragged). Then we had a Master Class with Freddie Fox, who was in "A Flea in Her Ear". He was really witty, comfortable, and helpful. He talked about his experiences in film and in the theatre - and at the end we found out he's 21! Crazy. I asked him about how he keeps his energy up that whole time on stage (he runs in and out the whole show), and he said, "You just sense the energy and ride it...like a surfer, really." Hahaha. Yeah...it was cute with the accent : )

Britt and I went to lunch at a pub, which was nice. We headed to our first acting class - mine was with Kathryn, who is super intense. She was amazing - I think she's going to be exactly what I need. We started off right away with games and exercises, then sat in a circle and talked about her career (she played Portia at the Globe!!!) and acting. We did a really interesting exercise called "The Life and Death" exercise. She seems like she's really going to push us, and I can't wait to start working on my character. At night, we went grocery shopping and then I headed off with my Sonnet group to see "The Invisible Man" at the Meinier Chocolate Factory (an intimate, dim-lit space with benches). I enjoyed the experience, and I think I learned a lot from watching, though  I felt like the show didn't work for some reason. The cast was made up of some talented individuals, but I felt that they lacked any chemistry. It was alright. The special effects were cool, and I'm glad I saw it. 

Today, we had our first day of individual lessons. We started off with voice (where we did a lot of group body awareness stuff). I had my first audition class with my "tutor," Allison, who is amazing. She said she liked my sonnet! And I'm working on a great play with her - I'm going to come back with a lot of audition pieces. She also said my British accent was good - so I feel super legite now. Haha : ) I had Alexander Technique with Dee, my "tutor", who is also really great. She is being really nice to me - I stink at Alexander because of my ridiculous dancer habits. But it's making my back feel better already. I've got a break now, and I'll be heading to my dialects class next (I'm really excited!)

I miss everyone so much. I promise this blog will get way more interesting when I start writing day by day - all the little details are mostly for my mom (hi mom!) cause she wants to hear them. Everybody keep e-mailing me when you can! It makes me super cheerful.