Memphis TN and St Charles MO

We were all very excited to leave our hotel in Galveston and head to the double tree in Memphis(No cockroaches and no criminals!) The beginning of our bus ride was pretty amazing. We got on a ferry and all got off of the bus and enjoyed being out on the water. Alaggio even brought his flute out and played the themes from Titanic and Little Mermaid while some of our group went upstairs on the ferry and struck a "I'm on top of the world" pose! We were all so excited when we looked out on the gulf and saw dolphins swimming along side of us! After we got off of the ferry we rode by some of the worst destruction from Hurricane Ike. It was so unbelievable seeing how debris spread everywhere. There were beach homes that were completely destroyed except for the stilts that they were built on. There were businesses that were demolished and random cars tipped on their side. I can't even imagine what these people went through. Within a half hour we went from the joy of seeing dolphins to sadness of seeing all of the destruction.

After a 12 hour bus ride we made it to Memphis and were thrilled to see Matt David as soon as we got off of the bus. Matt used to play Mr Brownlow on our tour, but left and is now touring with the Drowsy Chaperone. It just so happened that both the Drowsy and Oliver cast were staying at the same hotel on the same night :) Most of the cast and crew went to BB Kings to have dinner with Matt. We had an amazing time, we enjoyed the best ribs again and also a fantastic band. We all soon forgot about our long bus ride and got happy rocking to the music! It was really a lot of fun!

This morning we got back on the bus. We weren't exactly excited to be on the another long busride, so of few of the girls decided to make it a little more memorable! Erin helped Jenn squeeze into the upper luggage rack which is probably only about 1 foot in height! Then Erin decided that she wanted to try it, lol! The pictures explain this all alot better, it was so funny! I also was able to get a curtain rod and suction cup hooks to hang my valance that Erin and Jenn got me for my birthday. My seat looks so homey now!!! I love it!

Tomorrow we head out to Waukegan IL where the wind chill is supposed to be between
-20 and -40 degrees!! I made sure to pull out all of our warmest clothes for this trip! My brother is in Illinois for work so Colin and I are really looking forward to seeing him at the show :)

Back on Tour

I have to admit, this time it was extremely hard for me to come back on tour. Colin and I loved being home and I especially loved spending time with Steve, Brittany, and Morgan. We had to leave on the day of Morgan's first cheer competition for the year, so I was especially down having to miss that.
We headed for the airport at 5:30am and got on our flight to Atlanta where we had a layover. At the airport we met up with Stacie, Alaggio, Will, and Jeremiah who were on our flight to Houston. Once we all met up at the Houston airport the bus came to pick us up and bring us to Galveston. It was so sad seeing all of the damage that the hurricane caused in September. Homes and businesses were damaged and some totally destroyed. It was amazing to see all of the damage. We remember reading about this in the newspaper and seeing it on tv, but to be here and see the extent of the damage was unbelievable.
After checking in at the hotel we rested up a bit and then headed to the theatre for the show. We walked around a bit downtown and saw some places that were in business and looked like nothing happened and others that were completely boarded up or partially torn down. We went into a small grocery store and met the owner who told us about the hurricane and the damaged it caused to his store. He even showed us pictures of what it looked like after the hurricane. There was stuff everywhere, the streets were full of debris. He said that his store had 9 feet of water in it! He and his family had to get rid of everything and powerwash the whole building. Then they needed to order all new supplies. Miraculously it only took them 7 weeks to reopen although there still is a lot of work to be done. We were truly touched when we saw a woman come in to buy cleaning supplies for her apartment upstairs and Bob told her that there was no charge for the cleaning supplies. He had been through so much, but is still trying to help others get through their difficult times.
The shows went well but our time in our hotel was less than pleasant. The hotel was pretty run down. We have a nice view of the Gulf, but unfortunately so do the cockroaches and sketchy people who are staying in the hotel. Both nights we were treated to police cars combing the area. Tonight was especially exciting while we witnessed a footchase ending with the police coming up empty handed. Then they got back in their cars and headed to our hotel for a while! Sue and Stacie were fortunate enough to have some visitors in their rooms when they returned(not criminals but cockroaches!) There were several shady people walking around the hotel at night obviously doing some drug deals. So I'm sure you can understand why we are getting very little sleep and are really looking forward to bus call at 6:30am.
Things will get better from there. We're heading to Memphis again and staying in a very nice hotel. The best part is that Matt David is going to be in Memphis too with his tour (The Drowsy Chaperone)We're all so excited to see him!!

Back on Tour

I have to admit, this time it was extremely hard for me to come back on tour. Colin and I loved being home and I especially loved spending time with Steve, Brittany, and Morgan.

Home tomorrow!!!

Tomorrow Colin and I head home for a 6 day break. We're really looking forward to just relaxing at home. Brittany is still home from college, so we can spend time with her and also squeeze in one of Morgan's lacrosse games and watch her cheer at a basketball game :)
We really enjoyed Milwaukee. We had a lot of downtime and the hotel was very comfortable. The worst part was that they are doing major renovations to the hotel, so the last two mornings we were awakened by power tools! Luckily the front desk offered ear plugs which helped a little, lol!
The shows been intersting lately because some of the understudies have been able to step in for one reason or another. Alaggio wasn't able to make the Sarasota shows due to bad weather in Idaho. Adam stepped in as Noah and Ashley filled Alaggio's part in Fagin's gang. Last night Stacie had a stomach bug, so Michelle was able to step in as Widow Corney while Ashley played Mrs Bedwin. They all did a fantastic job, we were proud of each of them! It's so interesting to watch each actor's take a part. None of them played the part the same as the original character, which made it fun to watch. So much fun that we sat in the front row last night! Sue, John, Elizabeth and I discovered that they didn't sell tickets for the seats right in front so we decided to make ourselves comfortable in them. It was great seeing all of the actors expressions up close. Even better was watching as each noticed us sitting right there. A couple of actors almost broke, but being the professionals that they are they held it together :)
Colin has been fighting a cough, but luckily has been able to go on each show. He was so exhausted today I wondered if he would actually be able to make it through. Luckily he was able to and I was so proud of him! Hopefully after a week home, he'll be able to rest up and feel better. There are several castmembers who are feeling the same way, so I think this break is going to be great for all!
Well we need to catch the shuttle for the airport first thing in the morning so time to hit the hay!
Missy

Happy New Year!!

We're back on tour and after spending a couple of beautiful days in Sarasota FL we just celebrated the New Year in chilly Milwaukee Wisconsin.
We stayed at the Sarasota Hotel and Marina in Florida and enjoyed sunny skies with temperatures in the mid to high 70's. We spent a little time at the pool Monday before the show. They had a nice little tikki bar and Sue bought Pina Coladas for us to celebrate my birthday. The weather was so gorgeous on Tuesday that I decided to stay back from the matinee show and sit out by the pool. Boy how I wish I could go back!!!
We flew into Milwaukee yesterday afternoon and arrived to 11 degree temperature! Quite a shock to the system!! Last night Colin and I enjoyed a New Year's Eve dinner with Sue, Mikey, John, and Quentin at a yummy Italian restaurant. The best part was that it was right across the street from the hotel so we didn't have to walk far in the cold. After dinner I talked John and Sue into walking to the park where they had all sorts of Christmas lights up. The boys and I enjoyed it, but John and Sue were more than ready to get back to the warmth of the hotel! We all celebrated the New Year in our room. When we first got to the hotel I got a delivery from my wonderful husband-a bottle of champagne for my birthday :) We decided that we would pop the cork and celebrate New Year's on New York time. We were all exhausted and didn't want to wait for Central time! The boys had a good time playing on their DS's and Colin's Ipod Touch, but once we said enough with the electronic devices they decided to have a pillow fight! It was really quite humorous watching them go after each other! We ended up staying up til midnight our time thinking that a lot of people would be out and about the hotel celebrating, but when we went out in the hall there was no one to be found :( Ok, so we felt like quite the losers lol!
Today we enjoyed a day in our nice hotel room at the Hyatt Regency. Big comfy beds and brand new renovations to our room. It was just what we needed after a crazy week of traveling! We were happy to get a visit from Elizabeth(one of the musicians who left the tour) this afternoon who came by with Efrat and Chaz. After visiting for a while we headed to an Irish Pub down a few blocks with the parents, boys, and Chaz. Now we're back in our beds at 8pm relaxing again! Life is good!
Happy New Year to all!!!