5 Months

Well, before I knew it, 5 months had flown by. So much has happened, but that's obvious, right? (B/C it's been 5 months!) Since I last posted, the last of the "Rome to Roma with Jordin Sparks" videos have come out, which you can watch right here.
Other reasons why I've been super-excited include this glorious fact: I'm going to JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY!!! So happy. When I toured it in August (a bit after I last posted), it was love at first sight. It has the major that I want -- the Writing Seminars, the #1 creative writing program in the country -- and the extras that I want, too -- the Peabody Conservatory of Music is connected to JHU, so I can take lessons there if I wish it. Yes!!
I can't promise that I'll have a running commentary of my time leading up to and during my time there (cuz you know what happens when I promise that . . . it doesn't happen . . .), but once in a while I'll stop and think: let's update this thing!
Anyway, here's my current obsession: Step, by KARA!

Rome to Roma with Jordin Sparks (Part 2)

Here's comes the 1st "Rome to Roma" webisode, where we travel through Austria, meeting up with our MC, Tyler, and our celebrity, Jordin! By this time we 14 students were over halfway through our trip -- having already experienced Italy and a wonderful homestay -- we were getting tired, worn out, and frazzled . . . not to mention nervous for the cameras and Ms. Sparks! We really needed that jam session in Friesach, as well as the night we spent "clubbing" . . . which was not included in the video.
After the medieval dinner, we headed to a club that had been emptied for the night, just for us, and listened to some familiar and welcome American music. We partied for hours, getting all sweaty and gross, which was the only bad part; that night we were staying in a Youth Hostel, which lacked one crucial element of basic convenience: a shower. Yupp, we were all kinds of gross. Thankfully, the AUSTRIAN RAINSTORM we had to run through to get to breakfast the next morning washed us off -- literally. {By the time we got to the breakfast hall a mile away, we were all soaked, and I'm pretty sure there was at least an inch of water sloshing around in my shoes.} It was all great fun though, as is this amazing video. Enjoy!

Rome to Roma with Jordin Sparks (Part 1)

I'm finally back and at home, free from all of the craziness that has been my summer (for now). That means that I can get back to posting! Yes!
Today's video is the second posted on the P2P Sparks website, "Meet Rome to Roma." It's basically the same as the previous video, introducing we students, as well as Jordin. Ridiculous, but fun. I remember that when it came out, we were in Italy, no one had a computer, and we all had to rush down to the lobby to get an access code for the free WiFi . . . those of us that had iPod Touches or iPhones, that is. *sniff* Enjoy.

People To People . . . with Jordin Sparks!!

Oh, there has been so much happening as of late! I haven't even begun to process it, which is why this post has been a long time in coming.
Remember how I said that I was the lucky member of a special delegation for People to People this summer? Well, I thought I was lucky then . . . watch the video. Really. Just do it.
Then die of jealously. *giggles hysterically*



Yupp. That's us. We're going to Europe with Jordin Sparks!!
There's so much to do, so much to plan, so much . . . what am I even still doing on here? I've got to prepare!! *runs off to pack suitcase*

SNSD Awesomeness

Girl's Generation (SNSD) has finally dropped the official music video for their newest single, Mr. Taxi. Yes, they're skimpy outfits, and yes, sometimes the song sticks in your head so much and so late at night -- when you're trying to sleep, dang it! -- that you kind of want to fly over to Korea to smack these 9 girls upside the head. But that, in fact, is what makes their songs so enjoyable. For me, at least.

People to People, Brown, NBC, and Stephen Sondheim (what?!)

Seriously, how is it the 3rd month of the year already? It just doesn't seem possible at all, does it?

Anyway, since I've last written, there's been major news (not that anybody reads this, but oh well). You're looking at one of People To People's newest Student Ambassadors for 2011! *whoo whoo clap clap general awesomeness*
That right. Since my Select Choir director won a contest through P2P and NBC, she gets to take 13 or so students on a P2P European trip this summer, free of charge! We're going to France, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy, and you bet I'm gonna write about all of that! (especially since we're required to fill a journal up on the trip) Look forward to it! heee.

Also, I have applied and received my acceptance for Brown's Pre-College summer course this coming summer, which I'm super excited about. I've always wanted to do an official summer writing course at a college, and I was lucky enough to find one that took place after I come back from Europe. (You'd be amazed at how many take place smack dab in the middle of July, right when I'm going to be overseas -- including the one at Columbia, which would have been my #1 choice. But seriously, I'm sooo lucky, so I'm not gonna truly complain.)

This summer is looking to be insane, what with P2P, Brown, and surely a whole frickin' bunch of summer projects for the college-level courses I'll be taking next year. Let's list them, shall we?

1st Round of Auditions

I had promised myself that I wouldn't blog again until after the 1st round of auditions had taken place and I knew whether or not I had received admittance into the 2nd round. Well, due to several cancelations of after-school activities and such, the auditions were postponed a couple days, and then the posting of the callback list was pushed back since . . . well, the district cancelled school entirely.

But now it has been anounced that -- *drumroll please* -- I've been called back! Yes!

Okay, so not entirely a shocker, but still. You never know with this director; you can never tell what is on his mind.
I was out getting my driver's permit (finally), and when I came back, a voicemail he had left was waiting for me. It had informed me that I'd been called back for at least one part. He left the information by his room in the school, and to know what part(s) I'm called back for and to acquire the materials/music for them, I'll have to go into the building and look around this weekend.
We've already been out today, which was slightly horrible, since the wind and weather is so bitterly cold and snowy, so I'll have to wait until tomorrow to retrieve them. I can hardly wait!

Hopefully by the middle of next week I'll know, and will be able to blog some good news. Before then I might write another post, this time about the audition process that I went through for the 1st round.

Anyway, here's hoping for EPONINE!!  Wish me luck!  *^-^*



Here we have a much younger Lea Salonga (the same girl from the last video) in the 10th Anniversary Concert. Gosh, she's great. *sigh*

Supernatural Summer Tour 2010 (Part E)

Before we get to the main part of the post, I just want to mention that I will be INKPOPPER OF THE WEEK, this Monday, July 26, 2010. Yay! An interview (w/ some of my gorgeous pictures -- not of me, of course) with me will be posted on Inkpop's Blog sometime on Monday. If you're interested, please check it out! Also, I have two new works uploaded there, Loss, which is a piece I wrote this week for a writing workshop's anthology (Yes, I know what you're thinking: no more Buffy? *sniff* I've finished all the seasons.), and Black Tears, my novel. The latter also placed in the Top 10 of the Supernatural contest -- but only an excerpt, as the entry limit was 20,000 words, dangit. Now it's up for all to see, critique, and pick. *hint hint, nudge nudge*

On to the main event! lolz. This is the 2nd part of the in-Coldstone interview (once again, ignore the adorable-yet-completely-annoying kids in the background), and the last part that I uploaded to my Youtube Channel. {Just can't get enough of those links. *smilies*} After this post, it's completely original video -- new, and just for you guys. Enjoy.

This week's buddy icon is Honma Risa, who first played CereCere/Sailor Ceres in the Transylvania No Mori Kaiteban (Revision) in 2001. In 2004, she returned to play the role of Sailor Mars in Shin Kaguya Shima Densetsu, as well as it's kaiteban. This 2005 revision was also the last set of stages before SeraMyu went on a "temporary hiatus." . . . and hasn't come back yet.

Supernatural Summer Tour 2010 (Part D)

Next up, we move down the block from Anderson's Bookstore to the Coldstone Creamary shop. (It was between that and Starbucks.) There we had ice cream and I got to give a makeshift interview
*on a side note, Kimberly, my father and I all had the same exact flavor: Birthday Cake Remix. Cool or creepy -- take your pick. lolz*

I'd come up with a whole bunch of questions -- two pages, in fact -- but got a bit flustered when I found out that there wasn't enough time to ask them all. Honestly, I'm not that fond of being put under pressure, and kind of floundered around, picking questions off of the list at random, which explains why they're not the most insightful or creative in the world -- just basic. In short, the first question that caught my eye got asked. *sorry* But anyway, here is the 1st part of the 2 part "Coldstone Interview." Enjoy!

This week's buddy icon is from the live action series (commonly abbreviated as PGSM here in the States). It ran for one season, from 2003 to 2004, and enjoyed a fair amount of popularity -- what all the promotional toys and items, giveaways, and special events. It even had a special one-day stage show . . . which is where I took the image from. (I make all the buddy icons you see on this site myself. Hard work goes into each one, so they're made with TLC. lolz)
And hey, I even made the post on Friday! Whatta ya know. ;)

Supernatural Summer Tour 2010 (Part C)

More Buffy. That's been my summer so far, pretty much. I've made it up to the last few episodes of the 6th season, so there's only those eps and the 7th season, and then I have to face reality: summer projects. Ugh.
Anyway, this is the 3rd part of the series, the Q & A with the four authors. I have to admit that the questions from the audiance are much better than the ones I asked later, in Coldstone. But then again, the 4 had to catch their plane to San Diego, the last stop on the tour, so my 2 pages of questions kind of fell by the wayside. *More on that in the next post*

More Miyuki. This is either from Translyvania no Mori, or Death Vulcan, I can't remember (since I haven't seen them in such a long time. >_<  ) DV was a bit hard to follow, plus it never had its own album, so I tend to like TnM better. If you have no idea what I'm babbling on about, take note of this important equation:

     Sailor Moon + musicals  + vampires = Awesome

I know, I know. I'm a straaange person. lolz

Supernatural Summer Tour 2010 (Part B)

Okay, so the concept of "Friday" is a little lost on me. I was busy . . . watching a nonstop marathon of Buffy . . . which continued on into Saturday and most of Sunday. *shrugs* But here is the 2nd part (B) of the series (?).
This is where the four authors get to continue their talk (finishing up Derting and going on to the other three), telling about each of their projects and leading into the next part, which is all Q & A. Meanwhile, I sit on the sidelines, watching. ^-^

This week's buddy icon is of the late Miyuki Kanbe, who died two years ago on June 18. She was the 3rd girl to play the role of Sailor Moon in the musicals, chosen out of 500 potentials, and was only 15 when she acquired the job in 2000 (which didn't make her the youngest, since  Marina Kuroki, who took her place, was 12). She played the role throughout the Dracul arc of the musicals, from 2000 to 2001. 

Miyuki died in 2008 at the age of 24. Miyuki's Farwell

Supernatural Summer Tour 2010 (Part A)

Each Friday (until I go away for a few weeks for vacation, and then I'll pick up where I left off when I get back), I'll be uploading a different part of my "Supernatural experience." To make this a bit more interesting, I'll be putting up some that haven't been uploaded to my YouTube Channel (and most likely never will). Look forward to it!

Okay, let's start from the very beginning, the first part of the event in Anderson's Bookshop. This is the video in which I make my grand appearance. (lolz) You also get to hear me speak, which I'm afraid sounds a bit like I'm on something (or a Valley Girl, you take your pick). Gale, the wonderful woman who was at the event -- there was some other lady who supposedly coordinated it, but I didn't see scratch of her -- interviewed me, which was a big surprise. I didn't know what to say! After I say my piece, the four authors take their turn . . . . .

Also included in this special "Supernatural Friday's" series is a buddy icon for each post. None of them are relevant to the posting, but enjoy, anyway.

This week's is the lovely FuminaMoon. She played the perfect Serenity, but was a bit too stiff (and blank) for the part of Usagi. But then again, she had a lot to live up to, after Anza.

Supernatural Summer Tour (Part 2)

It's been a long time since the last update, I know, but here is the long-awaited part 2 of my "Supernatural" experience.

To start us off, here are the official blog postings of my trip, on the Supernatural Summer Tour website and on the InkPop blog. You can get the basic idea of the trip from there. ^_^

It was a wonderful experience, so forgive me if I want to keep the details to myself, to kind of savour them. (I will tell you that it was my first time at Coldstone -- and I went there with 4 famous authors! *sqee* BTW, I had the same ice cream as Kimberly (Derting): Birthday Cake Remix. It was great, but probably something like a million calories. Oh well. ;) )

Check out my YouTube channel for videos of the event at Anderson's Bookshop (my interview, the authors' interview) and at Coldstone (me, asking them questions). To see the full list, check out my Supernatural Summer Tour/Interview 2010 playlist. Enjoy!

Sierra Boggess on "Over the Rainbow."

This past weekend, the beautiful Sierra Boggess (the 1st Christine Daee in Las Vegas Phantom, Love Never Dies, and the 1st Ariel from The Little Mermaid on Broadway) visited Andrew Lloyd Webber's latest "talent search" show, Over the Rainbow. The gimmick with this one is that the winner of the televised contest will play in the lead role of Dorothy Gale in ALW new production of The Wizard of Oz. ( O_o )
Well, Sierra spent a few minutes talking to/mentoring the girls and answering their questions about theather life and what to expect, etc. Then she sang the title song from the new Phantom sequel, Love Never Dies. The video of the spot follows. Enjoy!

NYSSMA

Well, my select choir went to sing and be adjudicated at NYSSMA on Friday, and I'm proud to say that we -- on a Level 5 performance -- earned a Gold award. *the happy dance returns*

The song order:

• Animal Crackers I
• Moon River
• Sleep

The 1st and 3rd songs were compositions by Eric Whitacre, who one of our Select members had the opportunity to sing for in a concert at Lincoln Center last year. Personally, they aren't my favorites, but they do seem to grow on you after a while. *shrugs* Anyway, we had a great time, and were rewarded for our efforts. xD

The lovely Moon River wins for today's video, just because it's so much better than the other two songs. lolz

More Love Never Dies News

Here is a montage of all the LND clips that have been released up until now.




I must admit that I'm dying to see this show here in the U.S., on Broadway. But unfortunately, that will have to wait a few months longer than previously calculated.

It turns out that because of Andrew Lloyd Webber's prostate cancer/general health, he cannot travel over here to continue with setting up the show. At least, not until his doctors say so, apparently. So now the opening is pushed back from November 11, 2010, to some general time during Spring 2011.

Phantom: Love Never Dies (Part 2)

Yet another video (sorry!), but it was just released.
It's the new trailer, with footage from the London production. Even if you don't like the show in general, you have to admit that this song is amazing.

Phantom: Love Never Dies

It's opening night of the sequel to Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera.
Previews have been going on for the past few weeks, and the show officially opened tonight. Unfortunately, those of us who cannot travel to England are unable to see it yet. *sniff*
It opens on Broadway in November of this year, and then Australia in 2011.

Here are the two different versions of the 1st single:


(This one went along with the press release back in October.)


(This is the official music video to go along with the single.)

Sorry about the cut-off on the videos, but enjoy!

More Music

Next in my lineup of my new favorite artists is . . . Kanon Wakeshima.

She's most famous for singing two ending theme songs for the Vampire Knight anime: "Still Doll," and "Suna no Oshiro." (But since these are her most known works, neither of the videos I've procured for you today will be those.)

And yes, that is she, playing her cello.


真紅のフェータリズム (Crimson Fatalism)


鏡 (Kagami)

Oh, and I've been watching the Vancouver 2010 Olympics like crazy, so after they're over, don't be surprised to see videos of some of the figure skating. Fair warning there.

All Hail the New Bird Girl

For some strange reason, I decided to audition for "Seussical the Musical," my school's musical of choice this year. 2009's was "The Wiz." o_O And thus I ended up being casted as a Bird Girl, and now have to sing 3-part harmony while wearing giant feathers on top of my head. I'm so thrilled.

But though I might sound like I hate the role, it's actually going to be a lot of fun, getting to be someone different. It'll be an experience, at least. Hopefully a good one. *crosses fingers*

I've also finally picked out the song I'll be singing for NYSMMA (an edjudication, with an end possibility of getting to go to Area All-State and/or All State), which is Se' Tu Mami, composed by Pergolesi. It's really beautiful, and from the first time I heard it, it "spoke" to me. I've never had that happen before.
Hopefully that's a good omen!

On a side note, I've just finished the Mugen Gakuen and it's revision, and am starting on the 2003 Starlights. I miss Hikari. *sniff* But as such, my icon for you today is from the Ankoku no Black Lady Kaiteiban, a cute arrangement of images from "Knockin' Down Hesitation!"