Hi Everyone!
Week three was marked by my confirmation as 1 of 2 bass players in the UWP Band! I will be playing act 2 of the show. Im the meantime, I will spend the next few weeks learning vocals and dances for act 1, as well as Act 1 of bass in case the other bass player gets sick.
Over the weekend I went to JumpStreet with my host family. This place had wall-to-wall trampolines (fantastic workout!). Also trampoline dodgeball, which I highly recommend.
Our show director arrived this week, and the rest of the cast has been working on blocking with her. The band joins the cast on Tuesday to begin full run throughs. We did a workshop on culture shock and how to deal with adapting to/living with other cultures. I think I'm more prepared now but I know culture shock will still come and go. The rest of the week was spent with the band practicing the music, as well as at my host house.
I'm definitely not as nervous as last week, mostly due to the fact that I now know what I have to work on. I still have a lot on my plate, but I know I can do it. I'm so excited to get out on the road :-)
I'll probably do a mid-week update one dress rehearsals are underway. Until then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Week 2 Update!
Hey Everyone! Here's the update for week 2
Last weekend was mostly spent catching up on sleep, and a trip to the National Western Stock Show with my host family, and a trip to The Grizzly Rose for some line dancing.
For most of this week I've been in the band room learning the songs on bass. I still don't know if I'm in, but I think they are going to split the show between me and another guy auditioning for bass. I'm alright with this, but it means that besides learning the whole show (in case the other guy gets sick), but I also have to learn one act of singing/dancing. It's gonna be a lot of work, but I know I can do it.
Some major workshops this week included talking about stereotypes and how to break them, and a card game that turned out to be a metaphor for dealing with cultural differences and language barriers. In this workshop, we were each at different tables with slightly different instructions for a card game. Once the game started, we couldn't talk. As the winner/losers moved from table to table, they had to adjust to the different rules. The metaphor is that every culture will be different, and you have to learn to adapt quickly.
Wednesday night was the cast "Culture Jam". This was a short show for the host families that showcased different traditional songs/dances from the different cultures within our group. I performed a electronic hip-hop remix of the UWP classic "It Takes A Whole Village". This was a big hit with the cast, and the staff wants more remixes :-) You can listen to the song, as well as my other jams here: www.soundcloud.com/crunkworkorange
As I move into the third week of staging, I'm nervous. The infamous Lynn Morris is coming; she directs the UWP show, and is apparently very upfront and blunt about her opinions. I'm frustrated that I'm not learning the bass lines fast enough, even though I know its just a matter of time and practice. I know everything will turn out fine, but its just a little stressful. Gah.
Anyhow, I'm still having so much fun. I've met some great people and I know this tour will be incredible.
See you next week! Stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Last weekend was mostly spent catching up on sleep, and a trip to the National Western Stock Show with my host family, and a trip to The Grizzly Rose for some line dancing.
For most of this week I've been in the band room learning the songs on bass. I still don't know if I'm in, but I think they are going to split the show between me and another guy auditioning for bass. I'm alright with this, but it means that besides learning the whole show (in case the other guy gets sick), but I also have to learn one act of singing/dancing. It's gonna be a lot of work, but I know I can do it.
Some major workshops this week included talking about stereotypes and how to break them, and a card game that turned out to be a metaphor for dealing with cultural differences and language barriers. In this workshop, we were each at different tables with slightly different instructions for a card game. Once the game started, we couldn't talk. As the winner/losers moved from table to table, they had to adjust to the different rules. The metaphor is that every culture will be different, and you have to learn to adapt quickly.
Wednesday night was the cast "Culture Jam". This was a short show for the host families that showcased different traditional songs/dances from the different cultures within our group. I performed a electronic hip-hop remix of the UWP classic "It Takes A Whole Village". This was a big hit with the cast, and the staff wants more remixes :-) You can listen to the song, as well as my other jams here: www.soundcloud.com/crunkworkorange
As I move into the third week of staging, I'm nervous. The infamous Lynn Morris is coming; she directs the UWP show, and is apparently very upfront and blunt about her opinions. I'm frustrated that I'm not learning the bass lines fast enough, even though I know its just a matter of time and practice. I know everything will turn out fine, but its just a little stressful. Gah.
Anyhow, I'm still having so much fun. I've met some great people and I know this tour will be incredible.
See you next week! Stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Week 1 Update!
Wow. This has been the longest week of my life. But at the same time, it has been a blast. There are so many great people here, and I'm learning so much! So here's a day-by-day update:
Monday was generally a "get to know each other" day, and we went over the program handbook. Later we talked about staying in our "Challenge" Zone, as opposed to comfort or panic, and then began work on the show.
Tuesday was "Module Day". We went from station to station showing our abilities at speaking, dancing, singing, as well as learning about the tech side of the show, and showing the show staff our costumes.
Wednesday began with a workshop about defining culture. The staff used an iceberg as a culture metaphor; Most of the culture is under the surface and not instantly recognizable. After that, I went to the band auditions. I was surprised to learn that out of the 120 minutes of the show, the band plays for about 110. So if i get in (I play bass), I'll have a lot of practicing to do. The band auditions are a multi-day process, and consist of the band staff giving us some music and seeing how fast we learn it, as well as how good we are at performing, aka rocking out.
Thursday was our first Community Impact Day. My group went to the St. Francis Center, which is a day shelter for the homeless. We did a lot of work in the back, including folding laundry, organizing donated clothes, cutting big bars of soap into smaller, hotel sized pieces, and scraping ice out of the back alley. Even though we didn't interact with the people who were at the shelter. It still felt really good to give back. After spending most of the day at the shelter, we did a scavenger hunt through Denver, primarily the 16th street mall area. Since I knew this area well, my team finished first :-)
Friday began with a workshop on the experimental learning cycle. This was really just a fancy way of explaining how humans learn and apply what they learn to their lives. I spent the rest of the day with the other potential band people playing more songs. I find out on Tuesday if I'm in, and I have a really good feeling about it....
Also, an update on my host family: they're awesome. They have 4 kids (one in college, who is back for the week) so the house is always full. They're incredibly nice, and make fantastic meals; we had Ethiopian food last night! My roommate is from Belgium, and he's kind of crazy, but in a fun way. Sharing a room with him is pretty interesting...
So even though I come home every night dead tired, I'm still having a fantastic time. This weekend we're watching the Broncos game with another host family (Go Pats!) and possibly going to the Denver Stock Show/Rodeo. I can't wait for next week and the rest of the tour.
I'll do another update on Friday/Saturday depending on how tired I am Friday night. Till then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Monday was generally a "get to know each other" day, and we went over the program handbook. Later we talked about staying in our "Challenge" Zone, as opposed to comfort or panic, and then began work on the show.
Tuesday was "Module Day". We went from station to station showing our abilities at speaking, dancing, singing, as well as learning about the tech side of the show, and showing the show staff our costumes.
Wednesday began with a workshop about defining culture. The staff used an iceberg as a culture metaphor; Most of the culture is under the surface and not instantly recognizable. After that, I went to the band auditions. I was surprised to learn that out of the 120 minutes of the show, the band plays for about 110. So if i get in (I play bass), I'll have a lot of practicing to do. The band auditions are a multi-day process, and consist of the band staff giving us some music and seeing how fast we learn it, as well as how good we are at performing, aka rocking out.
Thursday was our first Community Impact Day. My group went to the St. Francis Center, which is a day shelter for the homeless. We did a lot of work in the back, including folding laundry, organizing donated clothes, cutting big bars of soap into smaller, hotel sized pieces, and scraping ice out of the back alley. Even though we didn't interact with the people who were at the shelter. It still felt really good to give back. After spending most of the day at the shelter, we did a scavenger hunt through Denver, primarily the 16th street mall area. Since I knew this area well, my team finished first :-)
Friday began with a workshop on the experimental learning cycle. This was really just a fancy way of explaining how humans learn and apply what they learn to their lives. I spent the rest of the day with the other potential band people playing more songs. I find out on Tuesday if I'm in, and I have a really good feeling about it....
Also, an update on my host family: they're awesome. They have 4 kids (one in college, who is back for the week) so the house is always full. They're incredibly nice, and make fantastic meals; we had Ethiopian food last night! My roommate is from Belgium, and he's kind of crazy, but in a fun way. Sharing a room with him is pretty interesting...
So even though I come home every night dead tired, I'm still having a fantastic time. This weekend we're watching the Broncos game with another host family (Go Pats!) and possibly going to the Denver Stock Show/Rodeo. I can't wait for next week and the rest of the tour.
I'll do another update on Friday/Saturday depending on how tired I am Friday night. Till then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Sunday, January 8, 2012
First Impressions
Today we had our opening session. We got a preview of the show, including a few musical numbers, as well as a speech from the CEO. Turns out we have an Iraqi student, first ever in UWP!
On another note, I find it interesting how a song can bring back certain emotions from a point in my life. For example, there was a song in the show preview that was part of another show I did last year. This earlier show was incredibly stressful, and the moment I heard that song, I had a flashback to the show and all the stress and depression came rushing back. Likewise, songs that I associated with certain relationships bring back other emotions, some joyful, some sad. It makes me wonder if these songs will bring back similar emotions in five, ten years.
That's not really related to today, but still, something I find interesting.
Tomorrow we start staging, I'm so excited! Hopefully I will play bass in the band, if not then I'll see what I get. I'll start doing weekly updates on Friday/Saturday. Till then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
On another note, I find it interesting how a song can bring back certain emotions from a point in my life. For example, there was a song in the show preview that was part of another show I did last year. This earlier show was incredibly stressful, and the moment I heard that song, I had a flashback to the show and all the stress and depression came rushing back. Likewise, songs that I associated with certain relationships bring back other emotions, some joyful, some sad. It makes me wonder if these songs will bring back similar emotions in five, ten years.
That's not really related to today, but still, something I find interesting.
Tomorrow we start staging, I'm so excited! Hopefully I will play bass in the band, if not then I'll see what I get. I'll start doing weekly updates on Friday/Saturday. Till then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Last Day Here
In less than 24 hours, I will meet 100 other young people from around the world, and we will begin our 6-month adventure together. I'm so excited to get out and see the world, make new friends, and expand my thinking and maturity. Thank you to everyone who has been so kind to me for the last 18 years, I'm going to miss you all. I'll continue to update this blog and release new music during the tour. Hopefully I'll see some of you when I get back in July. Until then, stay cool yo.
--Spencer
--Spencer
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