• Music & Theatre

    Happy Working Song! (Disney’s “Enchanted”)

    Springtime is finally here in the Northeast!! School is busy, so for this #WeeklyWednesday, I’m throwing it back to a performance I had so much fun doing at the National Cherry Blossom Festival! Washington, DC, is particularly beautiful when the cherry blossoms are blooming! “Happy Working Song” is from the Disney movie “Enchanted,” with music by Alan Menken and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz. Giselle sings this piece à la Snow White, but with some slightly less cuddly helpers ? My version here is only a cut of the song, as I sang it as part of a medley (and the other songs from that medley are already online) – someday…

  • Music & Theatre

    “Thank You for the Music”

    I resonate strongly with the sentiment in this ABBA song and hope I’ve adequately communicated the joy and honor it is to me to be able to make music. Thank you for the role you play in helping me – I very much appreciate your support and your taking the time to watch my videos! “Thank You for the Music” was written by ABBA members Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, and included in the “Mamma Mia” stage and screen musicals (and if you haven’t seen those, check them out! They’re a lot of fun, with poignant moments, too). Thank you to breinie17xq for this beautiful accompaniment! You can sing along here: https://youtu.be/hx1K9P-Kw_A Looking…

  • Music & Theatre

    “What Does He Want of Me?”

    Today’s #WeeklyWednesday is from a story I love… to me it symbolizes the conflict we all face between idealism and reality. The musical “Man of La Mancha” is based on the life of Miguel de Cervantes and his beloved novel Don Quixote.  Aldonza sings “What Does He Want of Me” in response to “Don Quixote”’s way of viewing the world and treating her with dignity, respect, and honor – possibly the first time in her life someone has shown her such love. I think she sings it with a mixture of disbelief and hope that the world could be different from the way it seems to be.  Thank you for…

  • Music & Theatre

    Shakespeare: Queen Margaret

    from Henry VI, Part III ~ Act 1, Scene 1 Today’s #WeeklyWednesday comes straight out of the #NYU Acting Lab! We’re working on Shakespeare this semester and I’m loving it! We’ve only coached these twice (and just performed them today), but I thought I’d show you my progress so far. I really love this monologue! From Henry VI, Part III, this is Queen Margaret’s first monologue (Act 1, Scene 1). It’s 1455, and England is in the bloodbath of the War of the Roses, with rival families vying for power (King Henry VI, House of Lancaster, versus Richard Plantagenet, Duke of York). Recovering from the loss of a battle, King…

  • Music & Theatre

    “Stay With Me”

    Today’s #WeeklyWednesday video comes from Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s “Into the Woods,” and focuses on parental love. In the stories of most characters in this show, we see the complications of decisions, viewpoints, and our own familial histories. I believe the Witch deeply loves and wants the best for Rapunzel, and tries to protect her in a way the Witch’s own mother never did. I hope you enjoy my rendition of “Stay with Me”! I really enjoyed coaching this piece in my NYU Song Analysis class last semester and found insights into the character I had never before considered. Thank you very much for watching and supporting me –…