The Show Must Go...Discos

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 07:58:00 -0500

END=BEGINNING

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 07:40:57 -0500

Saturday February 19th. The Finale baby! Tired=Yes. Excited=Yes. Empty=NO. Nervous=NO. Is this the End?=F*CKNO.

I won’t lie, the energy was extremely different this time around. Unfortunately, one of the cast members, who I became closest to, had to stand out for this performance due to getting sick. So everyone had to work harder so we can fill up the empty space now that there was one man down. It also gets quite emotional too considering it is the last performance and it does state the end of something…

…and time for the stage…

I gave it my all. We all did. I did have more fun on the night of the Premiere yet, according to the audience, including the theatre’s artistic director, I was much more real and convincing this time around, and they were touched by me. I guess I was much more connected to myself now that the end was close. My favorite scene of course, was when I sang Whitney’s famous “I Will Always Love You.” I tried to embody her as much as possible and project the LOVE she has given us throughout her career. R.I.P. Whitney Houston.

Thank you Vienna, the choreographers, the cast, all the people involved for the making of this Show, for this opportunity, for exposing me to what art can be, as well as opening new doors for the future. It might seem like the ~~END~~, but “The Show Must -always- Go Discós”. I don’t know where I will go next but I do have to keep on moving because this is just the BEGINNING of…

THE SHOW MUST GO ON.

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 06:56:04 -0500

I made it. After 2 weeks in Vienna, rehearsing daily for this spectacle, Friday the 17th had just sneaked up on me. The Premiere it was.

I picked up the Show’s program before heading to the Dressing Room to ensure that my Bio was correct. Well, since it was in German, there is only one thing I was able to understand which was very much important to me. And there they both were: Irene Deros a.k.a. Discós. I had to include her too.

20 of us in the Dressing Rooms either meditating, singing, stretching, or in my case just killing time with a few laughs so I can detach myself from any anxiety that was building up. 8:20 pm was our call time, and at 8:15 pm I decided to pump up my lips with the one and only RED lipstick Discós is known for. If nobody else was going to sport it on stage, I might as well have done it. 8:40 pm the lights dimmed, the dj played the first track, and we were on. I tried to be as present as possible because time flies on stage. So I made sure to keep on reminding myself that this is IT. I stood still, I danced, I humped, I became a ballerina, I hugged, I was Rose in Titanic, I danced the Macarena, I stared, I sang “I Will Always Love You”, I died during “Killing Me Softly”, and Bowed for “The Show Must Go On.” Next thing you know, we received a standing ovation. What a thrill. Now, it was just a matter of reproducing the same energy the next day for the final performance. In the meantime, it was time to parté!

Our after party was it’s own spectacle with the Gelatin artist collaboration performing, and many djs playing their best stuff.

I danced till I dropped while others were aiming for the sky.

YOU ARE ON.

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:10:00 -0500

“2 minutes left till the house is open and YOU ARE ON” he says. I get into place. I lay down, face up, in the wings, and I wait for my cue to enter. Within a few minutes it was all over. The dress rehearsal, considered as the final one, was finished. Now see you at the Premiere.

How did it go by so quickly? The passed 3 days, we were on repeat: rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. In the meantime, my “I am So fucking Happy” Tee made it into the viennese newspaper. Obviously the journalist who came into our rehearsal, took notice of my in your face T-Shirt while I was singing Whitney Houston’s “I will always love you” chorus. He quoted the choreographer’s corrections on how I should give more meaning to what I am saying when singing rather than ~~how happy I am~~. I guess fashion does play a role in the end.

Now it is all about the SHOW. 1 stage, 20 performers, 1 dj, 19 pop songs, and the audience. To all the performers, ” I wish you MERDE” as my dear friend Nubian Néné would say. And to those watching, I hope you like the show.

Oh yeah, here is a detailed breakdown of “The Show Must Go On” from Jerome Bel himself.

http://www.catalogueraisonne-jeromebel.com/player.php?ep=6a

TIME TO GET SERIOUS.

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:48:00 -0500

When does it all become real? How about when you are taken to the stage to only see this in front of you:

Here is the theatre we will be performing in, which can fit 700 people. Time to put my game face on. From tomorrow and on, we will rehearse on stage. It is only a matter of days before it is the premiere. It is crunch time and I can honestly say that I feel it. We just keep on rehearsing and make the detailed changes needed to make this work. Once again, I have never worked like this and sometimes I realize how hard it is to do conceptual work. Constantly be aware, conscious, and make sure to project the right feeling with minimal movement. Nothing less, and nothing more. It is time to get serious.

OH YEAH…and for those lovebirds, happy Valentine’s Day! May your love story turn pages!

PRESS PLAY.

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:23:00 -0500

Back to rehearsal schedule up until we perform. 5 days till “The Show Must Go On.” From now on, we have all the information required for each cast member to do his/her work. We just keep on repeating the show and making changes to better it. I tell you, keeping something simple ain’t that easy. Understanding the concept, and really putting the effort in projecting the appropriate feeling is work, even though it might not seem like it from the audience’s perspective. My challenge is embodying my character, creating awareness of my actions and my environment, so when it is time to press PLAY I am ready to be ON. In the words of Ru Paul: ” You Better Work”.

Half-Time.

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 06:00:00 -0500

It’s all about the half time. 1 full day off.

You would think when in a new city, explore it. But not Discós. I spent the whole day chilling with some of the artists I am working with. Our featuring half time guests were Tomate, a multi-media artist, http://www.van-monte.com), Zinzi and Milan, both contemporary dancers, and Sebastian, a performer/food engineer/shiatsu practitioner. We ate, we drank, we played, we became a family. The best part of this was to get to know each other on a personal level which in hand will create a better performance, in addition to possibly working together. Well, let’s just say some of us already have some ideas brewing up for the near future.

IT HAS BEEN 3 DAYS SINCE...

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 08:06:00 -0500

…my last update. Well, things have been moving. After a week of daily rehearsal, we finally learned the full piece. WOWZA! Do I ever love the feeling of playing out the whole show. Changes were made, ~~I’M TOO SEXY~~ is no longer mine. BUT I do have the honour to belt out a number that we all have sung once in our lives and yes, I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU. I am hugging more and more cast members, my macarena is stronger than it has ever been, and I will bow and bow and bow. I do get the occasional, “you are smiling too much…move a little more…don’t give it all away…project it…bigger…be present…feel it…”, but what can I do? I signed up for this.

I also returned to HUMANA(the amazing vintage store)…twice…in the past 3 days and got me some more looks. But, from now on it is all about the show. I need to give a little

I have also been missing New York ever since I have been reunited with La Draganda, my sista who has shared many New York dancefloors with me. So I want you to know, that I love you New York, but

Pick a Song, Any Song.

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:12:00 -0500

Day 3 of a 5 hour rehearsal, and we are moving along. Working with the show’s musical material is allowing me to live through some good times. Well let’s just say I dance to the macarena, I act like a ballerina, I fall into people’s arms, and I finally had the opportunity to act like Rose in “My Heart Will Go On.” What else can I ask for?

Other than having the option to pick my own Pop hit. I got something up my sleeve. I know it ain’t a Vanity thing, but damn, Discós is just Too Sexy For her…

PS:

It ain't a Vanity Thing.

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:28:07 -0500

2 days in and needed to get my vintage fix. My fierce La Draganda joined me on a 2 hour vanity kick, that led me on a red+black quest. What came home with me that day were

Then off to rehearsal. Discós can’t be late. Here is what caught my eye as soon as I entered the Museum Quartier

What you see is what I see. But no more. Look at the upper right hand corner and pay attention to what is now my present. It ain’t a Vanity thing, but The Show Must Go On. Breaking down barriers is what this piece is teaching me and simplicity is BIG.

"I'm So F*cking Happy"

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 04:38:55 -0500

“My Henrik Vibskov “I’m So F*cking Happy” tee with my blue high waisted jeans were the only way to go for my first day of rehearsal. And throw on a pair of suspenders..Why Not?

For the next 2 weeks I will be working in the Museum Quartier, the center for art in Vienna. That’s how they do here, they put art on a platform and it is held in a Quartier. Even though Jerome Bel was not there, his team, Frederic Seguette and Dina ed Dik were calling the shots. Just in one day I learned how to take the ordinary and put it on stage. Not the usual way of working for dance/theatre pieces, but I am open and ready to discover the unknown which is familiar since it is ordinary. Damn I am so f*cking happy!

There is a first time for everything. Going to Vienna....

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:55:20 -0500

There is a first time for everything.

Going to Vienna.
Taking the overnight train in a sleeping wagon.
Dancing the night away in my own personal wagon.
Editing my first little video.

Here is “One night in a Wagon” for The Show Must Go … Discós.

12 Hours to Vienna.

Sun, 05 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0500

One moment I am in ~~Berlin~~, the next I am on a 12 hour train ride to Vienna. Smart enough to get my own wagon (getting upgraded is a must when you can find 6 people/wagon), I danced the night away. Welcome to Wien!

It’s Discós time.

Sat, 04 Feb 2012 19:27:00 -0500

It’s Discós time.