Michael Ball - Mini Break Celebration

I am going to celebrate my first Mini-Break with a Michael Ball celebration. Please enjoy these beautiful clips of a beautiful artist. To quote someone completely inappropriate at this moment ~ One day he will be mine. Oh yes, he will be mine. Yeah, Wayne's World doesn't really fit but I swear one day I will move to London just so I can see him whenever I want... that would be a dream come true. Besides, I may be a southern belle but I was born to be a Londoner.

Enjoy poppets!

Empty Chairs, Empty Tables


Tonight (with Lesley Garrett)


First Interview on Terry Wogan (with Andrew Lloyd Webber)


Interview on Terry Wogan


The First Man You Remember


And Her Mother Came Too


Seeing is Believing (Aspects of Love)

Straight from London, U.K.

One of my cast members just got back from London and Paris for her vacation. I admit that I was jealous because she took the trip that Dani and I were planning on doing this past March. My team knew about the disappointment of us not going to get to see Michael Ball in concert and even though they have no clue who he is, they felt bad for us.

Long story short, Erin brought me back a Michael Ball CD!! Now, I know most of you are thinking "big deal, it's a CD"... well it is a big deal because out of the 6 years that I have been hunting for his music I have only been able to find 2 CDs stateside. It's not common to be a London stage groupie here!! Anyway, she was sweet enough to scower London for the perfect gift and it turned out to be Love Changes Everything: the Essential Michael Ball. Go listen and enjoy.

Greg Page - The Yellow Wiggle - Retires

It is with a bit of sadness that I post about Greg. I know it is a children's show but I love sitting with Sami watching The Wiggles. They are funny and have no problems making fools out of themselves for the educational value of children. It is one of the few shows that is entertaining for both parents and children.

Below is the post from The Official Wiggles Website regarding Greg's decision to stop performing. Thank you for keeping us all in the loop with such detail as we can now properly wish Greg to get well. The website said that this posting is official as of November 30, 2006 - they are ahead of us in time so I guess you could say I am posting the future... and as The Wiggle's would say "Beauty Mate" ~

Greg Page Leaves The Wiggles

30 November, 2006

GREG PAGE LEAVES THE WIGGLES

[Greg's Video Message](tip: click on the video file, which will open in a new window, to commence download before reading the article due to video file size being 14MB)

Thursday November 30

The Wiggles have sadly announced today that Greg Page, also known as the Yellow Wiggle, is unable to continue performing with The Wiggles due to a chronic condition and has reached the decision to leave the group.

Greg has been suffering symptoms for many months, affecting his ability to perform. The condition is related to blood pressure and while in no way life threatening it affects his balance, breathing and coordination at unpredictable times and with varying severity. Greg has discovered he is genetically predisposed to this condition and that he now needs to focus on managing his health.

Greg is a founding member of The Wiggles and has devoted 15 years to the group. The whole band, crew, and all Wiggles staff, have expressed their sadness and their wishes for Greg to overcome his health problems.

The Wiggles this year have continued their worldwide success, just completing a tour of the US, and have announced Greg’s replacement with his understudy Sam Moran to ensure the continued future of one of Australia’s most successful entertainment troupes.

“This emotional decision was one which was very difficult, as I have dedicated almost half my life to the Wiggles, and with a question mark over my health, I feel that this is the right decision. I will miss The Wiggles and the other guys very much, as well as seeing all the children in the audiences that we perform in front of. I wish the guys continued success, and welcome Sam Moran with open arms to the Yellow Skivvy – I know he is a great performer, and is well equipped to be the Yellow Wiggle,” Greg said.

Sam has been performing with The Wiggles for the past nine years and as understudy has performed over 150 shows as the Yellow Wiggle. Educated at the Conservatorium of Music, Sam has been a Wiggly dancer, Wiggly band member and will be a wonderful addition to the group.

Murray Cook (Red Wiggle) said, “I know I speak for all The Wiggles and our staff in expressing our sadness at Greg’s leaving. The four of us started from humble beginnings 15 years ago and we’ve been through many adventures together. We will miss Greg as a superb singer, performer and songwriter but mostly we’ll miss him on the road as a friend and ally. We wish him well in dealing with his illness and in future.”

“We welcome Sam in his place in the Wiggles. We know first hand that he is an extremely talented performer and is already well-loved by our Wiggly audience”.

The Wiggles will continue to tour the world, record and film new DVDs with Sam Moran as the new Yellow Wiggle.

For further information, please contact:

Dianna O’Neill Publicity

Phone 02 9337 2288

Mobile 0418 468 148

Email dioneill@ozemail.com.au

MEDICAL CONDITION BACKGROUND

Greg Page is afflicted with a condition known as orthostatic intolerance. Put simply, it means that when Greg stands up, his heart does not compensate for the change in posture by pumping more blood around his body for it to function properly. A similar problem occurs when there is a change in the environment such as a warm room or hot weather.

This condition is causing problems with his walking, balance, speech and coordination. It relates to the proper functioning of the autonomic nervous system, which is the way the human body regulates things we don’t consciously have to think about such as heart beat and temperature regulation.

As many as 30,000 people in Australia suffer orthostatic intolerance at varying levels of severity. The condition is notoriously difficult to diagnose. Greg is currently suffering a severe and chronic case but episodes, specialists now believe, date back some 12 years. At that time, testing was inconclusive, because the symptoms were mild to moderate, sporadic, and could have been attributed to a number of causes. All major organs in his body were functioning properly, so there was no further testing done. It is possible that his most recent bouts of illness with two hernias (prior to Oct 05) brought on the orthostatic intolerance with increased severity.

There is no diagnosis of the cause for this condition in Greg’s case yet. It is clear, from extensive testing, that his heart is perfect and functioning normally, however his brain is not communicating properly with his heart and, from time to time, in unpredictable circumstances, results in the onset of symptoms.

Greg is still seeking further prognosis and advice on how to manage his condition from specialists. Although it is not life threatening, it is also not likely to be cured so will require careful management to keep it under control. Stepping back from the very strenuous live performance demands of being part of the Wiggles is now his only option.

“Although orthostatic intolerance is not uncommon in the world population, its symptoms can be mild enough to remain undetected or extremely difficult to diagnose, or it can be dormant for a long time and brought on spontaneously by a trigger, sometimes something seemingly trivial, as it seems likely could be in Greg’s case, or it could be the two hernias that he had last year.”

“Then the symptoms can become chronic and incapacitate normally healthy active people to an enormous, and highly unpredictable, degree. Greg is fortunate he is not at the fully disabled extreme of the condition, but he is currently suffering a level of the condition that requires considerable further assessment and development of a plan to manage the condition, as it is not likely to be cured, but we expect we can minimise the impact on his life in the future,” said Associate Professor John Watson, Neurologist.

Orthostatic intolerance

The symptoms for this condition may include the following:

• Excessive Fatigue

• Exercise Intolerance

• Nausea

• Tachycardia

• Palpitations

• Tremulousness

• Weakness - most noticeable in the legs

• Chest Discomfort

• Shortness of Breath

• Migraines and Other Headaches

• Gastrointestinal Problems

High Fidelity

Below is a posting I just found about High Fidelity, one of the Top 5 greatest John Cusack films of all time. For those of you who got that last bit - rock on - for those of you who did not - read on... but first let me say that I am not sure how this is going to pan out as a Broadway show. Don't get me wrong - love the show and love Broadway but still, this isn't really set up to be done as a musical production. Stage production, possibly but not a musical. I found this article and thought it was worth a posting...

By Andrew Gans and Ernio Hernandez for Playbill.com
Will Chase, who was on Broadway this past season in the short-lived Lennon, will head the cast of the new Broadway-bound musical High Fidelity.

Chase, according to press notes, has been cast in the role of Rob, the "record store owner who knows almost everything about pop music, but almost nothing about how to hang on to a girl."
Additional casting for the romantic comedy, which is based on Nick Hornby's novel, will be announced at a later date.

Will Chase has starred on Broadway in Lennon, The Full Monty, Aida, Rent and Miss Saigon. His regional credits include roles in Assassins, Mame, Electra, Son of Fire, You’re Gonna Love Tomorrow and Trask & Fenn. He was also part of the star-studded concert version of The Secret Garden.

*
As previously announced, High Fidelity will play a pre-Broadway engagement in Boston before landing on Broadway in fall 2006.

Walter Bobbie (Chicago, Sweet Charity, White Christmas) will direct the new Tom Kitt, Amanda Green and David Lindsay-Abaire musical take on the Nick Hornby novel, which was also a film. Jeffrey Seller, Robyn Goodman, Kevin McCollum — the team behind the 2004 Tony Award-winning musical Avenue Q — will produce the new work.

High Fidelity follows the story of a record store owner (and constant Top 5-listmaker) who — when things in his current relationship go sour — revisits his former relationships to find where he went wrong.

The 2000 film reset the Hornby story in Chicago (rather than England) and starred John Cusack, Jack Black, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lisa Bonet, Tim Robbins and Lili Taylor. The musical will be set in New York.

Playwright David Lindsay-Abaire (Rabbit Hole, Kimberly Akimbo, Fuddy Meers) will pen the book with music by composer Tom Kitt (Laugh Whore, Debbie Does Dallas) and lyricist Amanda Green (For the Love of Tiffany, Up The Creek Without A Paddle ).

The world premiere pre-Broadway production will play an out-of-town tryout engagement, Sept. 26-Oct. 22 at the Colonial Theatre as part of the Broadway Across America – Boston series. The show will then begin previews on Broadway in late November and open in early December at a theatre to be announced.

"The wit, humor and humanity of Nick Hornby's characters and story naturally lends itself to musical treatment," according to songwriters Kitt and Green. "It is a socially acute contemporary love story about people who are obsessed with, and define themselves by pop music and culture. The hero's life is a soundtrack and the big moments are songs."
Christopher Gattelli (Altar Boyz) will choreograph the musical. The design team for High Fidelity features Anna Louizos (set), Theresa Squire (costumes), Ken Billington (lighting) and Acme Sound Partners (sound).

Tickets for High Fidelity at the Colonial Theatre, 106 Boylston Street (near Tremont Street) in Boston, MA are available through Broadway Across America - Boston at (866) 523-7469. For more information, visit the website www.BroadwayAcrossAmerica.com.

Click Here to Buy Tickets to This Show -->

About Josh

Text and Images Courtesy of Josh Groban's Official Website... Layout courtesy of P88hBear!

Groban's 'hands on' approach in the creative process of "Awake" is reflected in several Groban penned and produced songs along with musical contributions from Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Dave Matthews, Glen Ballard, Eric Mouquet, John Ondrasik (Five for Fighting) Marius DeVries, David Foster, Imogen Heap and Herbie Hancock.

"Awake's" 13 new songs including the just released first single, "You Are Loved (Don't Give Up)" show the Grammy nominated Groban's tremendous growth as a vocalist, producer and songwriter since he first appeared on the musical landscape.

"I learned from touring that my fans are really open-minded, musical, intelligent people and I feel like they want to come on this new journey with me. The music still sounds like it's coming from my heart and my soul and my voice. That is always the most important thing to me. My goal on "Awake" was to create the music and find the best people to help me create it," commented Groban.

With a lineup of stellar producers including Marius DeVries, Guy Sigsworth, Glen Ballard and David Foster, the album contains songs in Italian, Spanish and of course English. An early stand-out, "February Song" with Josh on keyboards came to the 25-year-old Los Angeles native on a sleepless night. “I wanted to write a song that melodically and lyrically represented the craziness I felt in that moment in the dark dark space. I walked over to the piano and it just came to me in a half hour in the most magical way."

Additionally, Groban recorded a suite of two stunningly haunting songs where he harmonizes with longtime idols Ladysmith Black Mambazo. The first song, the Groban/Dave Mattthews penned "Lullaby" is sung a cappella and the follow up, the South African song, "Weeping" which Josh first heard on a trip to South Africa. "The musical tapestry of the country and their heated history, the honor of meeting Nelson Mandela and visiting schools in Soweto was totally inspiring. And, it was a dream of a lifetime for me to sing with Ladysmith in the studio. I've loved them from the moment I heard Paul Simon's Graceland."

Josh Groban burst on to the international music scene in 2001 with the release of his self-titled debut album featuring the hit single, "To Where You Are." His follow up CD "Closer" with the smash hit "You Raise Me Up" brought enormous success to the young singing sensation. He has made scores of television appearances beginning with Ally McBeal and continuing with countless performances on Oprah Winfrey, Good Morning America, The Today Show, two PBS specials, the Superbowl, the Oscars and the closing ceremonies of the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics with an audience of over 2 billion people. His first PBS Special went on to become the No. 1 selling DVD of 2002. On the touring front, Groban started out his now legendary 40-city concert tour (which sold out in a record breaking 20 minutes) and then went straight forward to a two year arena tour across the US. A Josh Groban tour for 2007 is expected to be announced shortly.

Josh Groban - Simply Fabulous

I have been a fan of Josh Groban's ever since I saw his debute on a NYC rooftop during a Christmas special years ago. He is not only precious eye candy, oh no! This man can sing like an angel - makes your toes curl and goosebumps rise. Just close your eyes and he transports you to another plain of existance.

Enjoy!

The Many Faces of Michael Ball

Dani and I love Michael Ball... he is simply the hottest man to ever grace the stage in my age bracket! Check out these gorgeous pictures of this little cutey - one day I hope to find a man as sweet for me... **sigh**

Dream Cast of Les Mis...

Colm Wilkinson

The Concert at Royal Albert Hall

Michael Ball

Philip Quast

The Greatest Show EVER!

Many of you may not know this but I am lover of Broadway Musicals... oh yes. I am a sucker for showtunes and dance numbers... they just take you to another place in time. My favorite musical however has no glitsy dance numbers and to be honest - it isn't even a "feel good" kind of show. I always cry through most of the second act!

The greatest show to ever hit the stage, at least in my opinion, is Les Miserables. I know that many people claim to love this show and oh how wonderful Cameron Mackintosh is - a genius if you will. While I agree with these statements, I am not a bandwagon type of person.

Michael Ball has been the most phenomenal Marius to ever wear a fluffy tie and morning jacket. He has such an innocence that is so hard to discribe. Not only can the man sing like an angel but he can captivate you with a single note.

Colm Wilkinson IS Jean Val Jean. I don't care what others think about this Irish born thespian - though he is acclaimed. He has played many different roles, including The Phantom... should you not know of whom I speak then all I can do is lay pity on you for it is another great gem.

Philip Quast was the strongest Inspector Javert I have seen to date. He has the ability to be rigid, as his role calls, but you can see the gentle child beneath who struggles with "gray" areas of life.. and his "Stars" performace will leave your mouth wide open and your heart aching.

Lea Solange has the most beautiful voice and totally transforms herself into Eponine - my favorite character and one I related to for many years. God bless Eponine is all I can say without getting emotional.

With that being said - I strongly suggest that you run out to your local video place and get a copy of the Les Miserables concert at Royal Albert Hall. Here you will see all of the giants together on one stage and if you aren't moved... well, then you aren't human!

Can you hear the people sing, singing the song of angry men....

The View From My Seat...

and here is Cletus (with the glasses) and Chad Brock (with the ball cap)... yeah, baby!

Did I Ever Tell You...

That I actually met Keith Urban? Oh yeah, that is me with my head on his left shoulder... and yes Tammy, he smelled so good. Kind of a spicy, woodsy smell - simply delicious.

I listen to this radio station every day, WQYK, and they have Cletus T. Judd for the morning show. Flipping hilarious, I swear, plus I have a little crush on Cletus. Anyway, there was a contest one morning and you had to name the answers to like five trivia questions about Nicole Kidman. Hello - trivia goddess knocking. Needless to say, I got through and gave all the correct answers. They gave me the tickets. There was to be a drawing on Valentine's Day for front row tickets and backstage passes for the February 24th concert.

I had given my radio at the front to Meredith since she got better reception and I asked her to turn the radio on and let me know who wins the passes. While I was back there tuning the radio, the radio station was calling my desk telling me I won!! It was so cool. The message was funny too, something about not bothering to pick up the phone. I called back and got on the air and won the whole kit and kaboodle.

Keith came out and did a song for us and answered questions. While all that was going on I was playing with Cletus and Chad Brock. Cletus accussed Chad of falling asleep on my shoulder and drooling.. it was so much fun.

Those of you who have seen this picture - yes, bow down at my Photoshop skills!! Those of you who have not, don't worry I didn't do anything wrong... just edited it for my enjoyment. We don't want to see the dead beat P.O.S. I took with me to the show. I have the ticket stub, autographed picture and earphones as a present that he gave me to prove I was there.

Ahhh...