Behind the scenes with Mickey
Earlier this week, we had some very special visitors who came to see the show. If you remember when I went to Disney, we visited some special people there. Our 'Maria' and her husband, along with our old (now replaced) 'Rolf', all happen to be friends with this guy Toby, who is in The Lion King at HK Disney. So on Wednesday, Toby came to see our show, and he brought friends!
First of all, it was definitely a treat to have a real American audience. We've had people's parents, and producers, and executives from Troika, but they're all old! These were real American 20-somethings, who are in theatre and know how fun a really boisterous audience is. They happily complied, laughing and yelling like they were at a basketball game. I think the Chienese people were probably as shocked as when we whooped while sitting next to them at the Lion King, and some of them covered their ears. And when we met the ten of them after the show, they were very nice about it. It's a little strange to be performing for our peers, becuase we really care about what they think. I get way more nervous singing and acting in front of people who do it for their living too. I know I'm pretty critical when watching a show, and I know I'm not alone in being this way. Luckily though, they were very flattering, and we were immediately comfortable in their company.
So, we all headed out! The usual, Lao Kwai Fong, was especially rocking. We've only been on Sundays, and this was a million times crazier. All of the bars were packed, so we headed down a side street and the giant group piled into a semi-empty Asian bar. A group of 20plus actors brings their own party when they go somewhere, and immediately we were the life of the strip. It was funny, because it's rare that I hang out with anyone who's not from our show, and this immediately felt like I was in New York. It was just like when you're at someone's birthday party and you meet another bunch of actors and they make your world feel a little smaller. We all talked shop occasionally, and Hong Kong a whole bunch. It was great to meet some new people and automatically have something in common, which is usually not true here. Our new friends included a married couple, and about eight black gay guys. Our token homo Matt got all eight numbers, and now just has to figure out how to date them all without causing too many problems. We all hung out and had fun, and decided that SOMA and Disney should be best friends.
It was also definitely interesting to hear about the Disney working experience. Some of the kids in the show have been working for Dis for years, in Florida, or overseas. I have a friend who's worked Dis in Florida, and another who worked a cruise, and overall I've always heard good things. The kids at HK Dis are apparently being treated incredibly well, if anyone is looking to work there. They all have their own single and fabulous apartments, although they are pretty far from the center of the city. They make good money, and it's easy to save when you're making per diem and your housing is paid for. They usually only have to do about three shows a day, as opposed to the six that happen at other Dis parks. They claim that Tokyo Dis is the worst to work for, becuase you're treated like a slave, but the actual park is a lot more fun than HK Dis. And once you're in the Dis family, you're there to stay. It's a pretty good deal.
Not only could these people talk, they could drink and party. They're on the whole a bit more adventurous than we are, which is pretty predictable. In musical theatre world, when you take a Rodgers & Hammerstein show out it's full of singers, who are usually fatter and need more sleep. As opposed to ANY dance show, where the people are skinnier, and they don't sleep because they're doing cocaine. They have more energy, and they dress better, which makes them party animals. On a regular day I have no doubt that they can party much heartier than our cast (on the whole), but maybe on Halloween we'll give them a run for their money!
First of all, it was definitely a treat to have a real American audience. We've had people's parents, and producers, and executives from Troika, but they're all old! These were real American 20-somethings, who are in theatre and know how fun a really boisterous audience is. They happily complied, laughing and yelling like they were at a basketball game. I think the Chienese people were probably as shocked as when we whooped while sitting next to them at the Lion King, and some of them covered their ears. And when we met the ten of them after the show, they were very nice about it. It's a little strange to be performing for our peers, becuase we really care about what they think. I get way more nervous singing and acting in front of people who do it for their living too. I know I'm pretty critical when watching a show, and I know I'm not alone in being this way. Luckily though, they were very flattering, and we were immediately comfortable in their company.
So, we all headed out! The usual, Lao Kwai Fong, was especially rocking. We've only been on Sundays, and this was a million times crazier. All of the bars were packed, so we headed down a side street and the giant group piled into a semi-empty Asian bar. A group of 20plus actors brings their own party when they go somewhere, and immediately we were the life of the strip. It was funny, because it's rare that I hang out with anyone who's not from our show, and this immediately felt like I was in New York. It was just like when you're at someone's birthday party and you meet another bunch of actors and they make your world feel a little smaller. We all talked shop occasionally, and Hong Kong a whole bunch. It was great to meet some new people and automatically have something in common, which is usually not true here. Our new friends included a married couple, and about eight black gay guys. Our token homo Matt got all eight numbers, and now just has to figure out how to date them all without causing too many problems. We all hung out and had fun, and decided that SOMA and Disney should be best friends.
It was also definitely interesting to hear about the Disney working experience. Some of the kids in the show have been working for Dis for years, in Florida, or overseas. I have a friend who's worked Dis in Florida, and another who worked a cruise, and overall I've always heard good things. The kids at HK Dis are apparently being treated incredibly well, if anyone is looking to work there. They all have their own single and fabulous apartments, although they are pretty far from the center of the city. They make good money, and it's easy to save when you're making per diem and your housing is paid for. They usually only have to do about three shows a day, as opposed to the six that happen at other Dis parks. They claim that Tokyo Dis is the worst to work for, becuase you're treated like a slave, but the actual park is a lot more fun than HK Dis. And once you're in the Dis family, you're there to stay. It's a pretty good deal.
Not only could these people talk, they could drink and party. They're on the whole a bit more adventurous than we are, which is pretty predictable. In musical theatre world, when you take a Rodgers & Hammerstein show out it's full of singers, who are usually fatter and need more sleep. As opposed to ANY dance show, where the people are skinnier, and they don't sleep because they're doing cocaine. They have more energy, and they dress better, which makes them party animals. On a regular day I have no doubt that they can party much heartier than our cast (on the whole), but maybe on Halloween we'll give them a run for their money!
posted by Beth at 2:22 AM
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