Diva Las Vegas Baby

I keep remembering an interesting tidbit I read a while back when I was lucky to live with two amazing cats (feline cats, not jazz "cats"). Uncomfortable and insecure with the process of aging, an older cat may meow with increasing frequency and consequently, may need an extra amount of tender loving care, just to assure him/her that the changes they are feeling are natural and all is okay. I've been feeling a tad preoccupied and hypersensitive to the fact that I am the oldest in the company, especially as I huff and puff through some of these rehearsals. And believe me, there is a part of me that scoffs at the very idea of being concerned at all with age, you are as old as you feel; I am a little ashamed, even, to write this. But there it is, I still think about it more often then I used to. I'm meowing, folks. What I found compelling in the tidbit about the maturing cats is that it makes complete sense; it is completely natural, feline or human, to be a bit appre...

This is the opening line of a song by an artist I've newly discovered - Amy Winehouse. She is a British singer, 23 years old, and has the voice of a 60's soul songstress. Her album has yet to release here. But thanks to one of my castmates, who bought her album during rehearsals in the UK, I've been graced with Amy's soulful and powerful pipes. The album I've been listening to is her sophomore album, "Back to Black"; her first album, "Frank", was released in 2003. Last week, I got in the car and I thought my friend was playing an obscure 60's girl group mix, and I was so happy. But then after two songs or so, I realized I had no idea who I was listening to and that is when I discovered, to my surprise, that the voice I was grooving to belonged to a young, contemporary, British woman. She sounds so retro and mature. Get her album when it drops in March, it is fun and hysterical - crazy lyrics, all the more crazy because it is paired wit...

When I think of Vegas, I immediately think "casinos and gambling." But I don't think I was as prepared for the extent to which the city goes to accommodate your inner (and outer) gambler. There are slot machines everywhere in this town - like at the grocery store, for instance. As if the shopper doesn't already have enough decisions to make: "Chicken or beef for dinner tonight?" "Paper or plastic?" "Cash or credit?" "Hit me or stay?" It's ridiculous! Kids crying from hunger, while Mom's spinning away, ground chuck peeking out of the shopping cart (no, I made that up, but I bet that scenario has happened!). At the airport, immediately before you go through the security checkpoint and on to the gates there are slot machines, so you can get that last fix before you get on the plane (not making that up). It cracks me up. At some of the hotels, you can pull up to the bar and enjoy your evening cocktail in between pulls o...

I had my first buffet dining experience tonight with some castmates at the Wynn Resort. I like the Wynn, it is probably the most understated of the Vegas resorts that I've seen. Which isn't really saying much - an indoor stampede of circus animals carrying the Rockettes topless is an understatement in this town. And to be honest, I haven't seen many resorts, so who knows. I just dig the vibe in the Wynn - it's classy without the snootiness. The buffet was INSANE - the spread took up easily about ten different stations - shellfish, seafood, salad, pizza, American, Italian, Asian, grill, dessert...that's all I can remember. The buffet prices are not the prices of old Vegas, before the dawn of the mega resorts, each trying to outsize the next one. My Mother still talks about the cheap eats she found when she and my Dad were out here over twenty years ago - wait 'til she sees how much Vegas has changed in twenty years!

So, I've left NY and now, I am back in Vegas, and it is nice to be back. And that surprises me a bit - not that I was expecting to dread my return, but I guess I was expecting to be more wrought with angst about leaving NY on a one-way ticket. When the plane was landing in Vegas, and even in the cab ride to my new "home", I discovered that I have already, unknowingly, started to develop a little attachment to this crazy city, and I was feeling almost a comforting sense of familiarity passing by landmarks indicating that I was nearing my apartment. I had an epiphany, which I've experienced before during a visit home while studying in London, and that is that your life is what you make of it, wherever you are. So there you go, on to the creating! Not much to report in the three days that I've been back. Except that my back has gone out, and my lip is swollen from getting hit in the mouth with an airborne cardboard box - and actually, I think it looks sexy! Thi...