Blossom Du Jour, Stage Reading Fun, And Near Death Shenanigans

Another NYC day and again it's theater related goodness thanks to a talented woman by the name of Karen Bishko.

Something has got to be done about clumsiness. For a Libra, my scales are totally off balance.
On a strange Maniac Monday full of pros and cons, I was almost hit by a bicyclist. tripped on the steps at the Roy Arias Studio (stupid maxi dress!), a certain someone smiled at me (I think?), and everything got soaked in the rain. Not that the latter is a cause of death. But pneumonia is not a pretty thing to be catching when far away from home. To appease my mixed spirits (overjoyed by the play, disheartened by the rain), I managed to pretend to be in some glamorous music video on the way towards a cheap corner store selling $5 umbrellas. Salvation. Oh and to whom smiled at me, I'll get to why that nearly killed me in just a moment.

Apparently I need to watch Dallas. That's all. Sorry to bump my rated PG blog to R.

Prior to actually going to Roy Arias Studio for a stage reading of Karen Bishko's latest musical play, Still Single, I stopped by Utrecht Art Supplies. I am obsessed with art supplies. Almost as insane as my chocolate addiction. May need therapy for both. I blame the hard to miss sign. They seduced me with "buy ANYTHING we mean ANYTHING from the clearance section and get a t-shirt!" Certain kinds of artists are way too easy to persuade. Yes, I am one of those artists.

Thank heaven for 67 cent stickers that I will probably never use. Check out my new sweet t-shirt. Perfect for late night studio! This is probably the last shot in its cleanliness state.

89 cent miniature canvas squares????! Win! Win!!!!

Off to Blossom Du Jour. Now I have heard only great things about this 100% vegan restaurant. Everyone told me that they had THE best sandwiches. Some say Blossom is way better than my beloved Terri. So I listened to the word of mouth gospel and tried my luck with a smoked tempeh and avocado wrap and a vegan cronut! (yes! my very very very first cronut ever!).

I took a Smokacado and Vegan Cronut to go.

The insides were pretty. But the only thing I really liked about the wrap was the avocado. Avocado is a hard ingredient to mess up on due to its yummy irresistible factor. Cold tempeh, however, is likely not a desirable temperature for me to eat again. I didn't particularly like it. Maybe it's an acquired taste. I don't know. Plus I wanted to find the nearest basket of salt and pepper packets. Not only was cold tempeh unappealing so was it's lack of salt. How could a wrap with all the fixings- tomato, lettuce, chipotle aioli be a bland deal? Dissatisfied, but full (because hello! I wasn't going to let $8 go to waste), I wanted to immediately wash away the unpleasant situation. Thankfully, the cronut looked at me and smiled.

Oh where art thou cronut? It disappeared. Crunchy sugary sweetened exterior with a chewy interior. Crumbs everywhere. It was like Crumbaggedeon.

Roy Arias Studios was to be a four minute walk. Until I discovered power striding in the wrong direction. As usual. But I made it on time- at three. Okay three something. But hey! As I headed up the stairs (reminded me of a better version of high school bleachers), somehow forgot that one must pick up the hem of a maxi dress. Some near fatal, quite disastrous, very embarrassing falling occurred. My hands saved my life and I appeased worried folks.
Moments later, it all began.
The cast players came out- Melissa Van Der Schyff, Catherine Porter, Peter Davenport, Emily Stockdale, Lauren Downie and wait for it....... Tom Pelphrey!!!!(insert mad fangirl screaming and overzealous enthusiasm). I kept a calm composure. I truly did.
In a stage reading, the actors read from manuscripts on a brightly lit stage. And since this was a stage reading of a musical, they all sang LIVE with REAL accompanied instruments. No synthesizers and artificial beats here. So so good!
Still Single is primarily centered on Leah, a successful divorce lawyer, a most caring, supportive BFF, who is horrid in the "love" department. She's been hung up on Andy, a cheating ex, for years. However, she is a terrific, closeted singer- shy about sharing gift to the world. With MJ as her ringtone, Leah got more and more loveable as each act continued on. Melissa was simply an excellent lead, playing the single gal on the prowl loving the alcohol and the cake too much while comparing every man to Andy. She can be a witchy woman. Yet sweet, sincere, and completely relatable due to commendable touches of vulnerability. I definitely appreciated that the ending didn't have Leah "put a ring on it." Single life is not all that bad. In fact, it's pretty darn great.
Ummmm.... so I didn't get the memo about Tom's singing abilities. I didn't know he could sing. Like theatrically trained. Seriously. I mean, the man is talented, but when he started turning dialogue into belted song, my jaw dropped. That voice turned further impressive as his evil (kind adjective) character Benny the rock band drummer (one of many- there's also Jacob the temperamental surgeon, Andy the cheating pilot, an Israeli man in Anger Management, etc ) starts singing (bragging really ha ha) about his hazel eyes and stubble. His pipes just flowed like wine when he was really getting into it. For a moment, my brows froze at the top of my forehead.
"I can't help if girls like that...."
Umm... folks. I'm still alive after that. I thought almost getting hit by a bicyclist was horror, but hearing him breaking into serenade just made my heart stop beating. He was a part of like four sings man. Four songs. Is there a thing that he can't do? I struggled between tears, laughter, and fangirl swooning. 30 going on 12 years old....
Karen Bishko- singer, songwriter, magician (okay not a literal David Copperfield magician) owns my heart!! Her songs are hilariously fantastic! And she's also a former portrait painter to boot! Too much goodness to handle. Three days later, I still have tunes stuck in my brain and may start singing to my mom about her hazel eyes tomorrow. She doesn't have stubble by the way. Ha!
Other than that, delighted by this stage reading. Very delighted. Good use of props by all.
The cast sang their group number, took a bow, and enjoyed the applause.
Then it happened.
The sudden acknowledgement. The smile. I felt like a deer caught in headlights. Cheesy but true. In the back of my mind, however, I think, maybe he was staring at the patterns in my scarf, the wall interested him or someone else. But the most surreal feeling, the most unexpected engagement to have whilst applauding a wonderful performance, is to see these sung about hazel eyes looking at the crowd with genuine sincerity and lips curving into a grin sweeter than a vegan cronut.
As for Still Single, I do hope it finds a place on a Broadway stage. Truly an excellent treat.  Everyone performed harmoniously. If I didn't have homework, I truly would have stayed for the 7PM performance just to see if they could really pull it off twice in a day!
Afterwards, I left on weakened, faint legs, picked up the maxi dress hem, and headed out, too afraid to say "hi" amongst the swarm of folks braver than me. That's when the rain poured outside with a heavily unwanted greeting, soaking my entire chic wardrobe including pretty faux snakeskin flats.
Now I wish I can say this is the end of the Tom Moral Fan Support Life y'all (okay not really). But good news- Tiger Lily Road is an official selection for the Soho International Film Festival. You bet your bottom cup of soy two pump raspberry hold the whip hot chocolate that I will be there. I cannot wait to see the film again! And my little Ohioan friend- oh she cannot wait either! (She's played the trailer out). I have a creative surprise to put to work and I'll share when May day comes. Squealing with delight just thinking about it!!!

The introduction flyer. It got a little soaked, but it's mint condition.

I'm going to be a Tom follower until he personally tells me to shoo like a fly. Oh god. Maybe I'll stay hidden in shadowy corners, watching his brilliant work from "afar," so that he never says that. I would be crushed, flattened like well... a swatted fly?
In other news, soap opera related, apparently there is a Young and the Restless Comedy Tour with Joshua Morrow and Steve Burton. It stops in Dayton of all places this weekend. There has never been a soap opera related anything back home. I sobbed to my mom about the horrible timing. Such injustice! It's sold out anyway.
Anyways, it's back to the kitchens for me. The kitchen kitchen, the studio kitchen, and the writing kitchen. I'm all kitchen and nothing but the kitchen.