Top 11 of 2011... Part 7

#5.  Basis of Decision

So this year culminated some childhood movie dreams came true.  No, I didn't book Newsies, mostly because, well, I'm a giant.

But I did get to tap dance on film and dance down the street of an old town in Technicolor.  So pretty close, right?

In late March, I jumped on a bus with a bunch of college-age kids and trekked overnight to Petoskey, MI, home of the keepsake Petoskey stones to begin principal photography on a NYU short film currently titled Basis of Decision.  You should probably check out the trailer...

So basically we had summer camp in the middle of winter/spring thaw, gradually watching the ice on the lake shrink, and freezing in the Northern Michigan air.  Two weeks leads to a lot of fun, a lot of 16 hour days, and a lot of waiting around...  Here's some of our adventures

Our first shot!  Heads in the library books...

But then we had twelve hours to kill, so we found some fun inspiration in the Petoskey District Library...

 My inspiration for my character name... LEROY!

 Dancers always find a way to be creative...

 And I even got to work with a bunch of Colorado people, including a childhood neighbor!

 The very first day ended with a complicated hand shot, that involved us spinning out of the bookcases.  Hard work, but very fun.

 Day 2 dawned on a bunch of crazy New Yorkers and local teenagers dancing down Main Street.

 Yup, I can run while bundled up.

 My amazing dance partner Carly had the best dress of all.  And we spun.  A LOT.

 Sadly, this jib never ended up working, we lost half a day, and never got the shot.  We instead modified the shot at sunset (which was golden and amazing), combined it with another, and FROZE OUR BUTTS OFF!  Do you see how little clothes the girls are wearing in winter?

 Day 3 dawned lakeside, a bit warmer, with a lot of fun waiting for a huge crane shot.

 Yup.  A FIRETRUCK WAS OUR CRANE.

 Dance Coordinator and I, walkied up, and waiting for the shot.

A few days later we shot for 16 hours in the gym.  4 huge shots.  The other extreme (very HOT), and so Leroy made a new friend for the end of the film... Victoria.

 Our director, leads, and dance captains discussing the shots.  Dance at the Gym.  MAMBO.

 Apparently I'm quite funny and can hold court with the Michiganders.

 The jib worked a little better as we set up a huge overhead Busby Berkeley shot.

Candid Victoria and Leroy caught cozying up...

The shot started much bigger, but focus caused the final thing to be very very very very tight and intricate.   SUCCESS!

 Towards the end of the shoot we returned to the lakeside to pick up a shot we lost due to darkness the first day.  So I thought I'd take my classic "body-of-water" shot.

 Yeah, we danced on those rocks.  Check out this angle.  BAM!

Two weeks of summer camp fun, sleeping in bunk beds, hosted by a wonderful family, meals in a school cafeteria and catered GRINDERS, freezing cold temperatures in a summer resort town, lots of house parties and drinking, old town stores with delicious jams, and a bus ride just like tour.

And the fun didn't end there.  We shot another weekend in August in New York with NO AIR CONDITIONING (the other extremes of the shoot), and suddenly my sweater costume wasn't so pleasant.  And I returned in November in time to shoot the final soundstage number, watching a new set get built everyday to create amazingly magical moments.  Hopefully the film will be debuting at some film festivals soon, and you'll see my tap dancing feet on 35 mm.

Dreams really do come true.

Top 11 of 2011... Part 6

Since it's Christmas Eve and my little sister's birthday, it's only fitting that we should reach the point in the countdown celebrating MY birthday weekend, right?  That's not selfish, right?

#6.  Birthday Blowout

A large part of the reason that my birthday this year was so special was that I was home in my favorite state, Colorado.  The second part had to do with being with my favorite family and friends, even ones from out of town (thanks to a wedding!).  And the third part was all in thanks to Jordan, a serious contender for most unbelievable best friend.

It started the night prior to my birthday.  A Mexican dinner downtown with family that led to adventures in Uptown that happened to concur with Gay Pride weekend.  The night ended with dill-infused vodka, and lots of merriment.  Can't complain there.

Jordan wins for birthday day planning, starting with a hangover breakfast at Chick-fil-A (before I stopped supporting them, YUM!), and a trip down memory lane slipping and sliding at Water World in Hyland Hills!  The park was EMPTY and we had so much fun we didn't need to stay all day.  Hooray!

We next had tea and sandwiches for lunch downtown, and a nice quiet dinner and birthday cake with Jacque.  Bonus points for the candles being lit in binary.  Serious bonus points.

Surprisingly, the celebrations didn't end there.

Saturday morning arose with a glorious hike up to St. Mary's Glacier, having never been there all these years in Colorado.  Got some sun, snow, and great time with the best friend and his future fiancee...

 We may have even slid down the side of the mountain like we were skiing.  The wind was crazy but it was off the hook!

Then, I got to go to one of my best friend from childhood's wedding, and best was there to celebrate (she may be dating the bride's brother).

 Even had a mini middle school reunion!

 And of course, I was so popular in birthday land that I had to leave and go meet my sister for PICKLE SHOTS!!!!  Can you tell they're my favorite?  Yet another great night of dancing and drinking.

And last, but most important, got to celebrate with Momma both Father's Day and a late birthday dinner with homemade Pizza...

Jealous?

How's 29 gonna live up to that?

Top 11 of 2011... Part 5

#7.

It seems this list should get easier as I go, right?  But in fact, I'm finding it harder, because each top moment gets greater and therefore merits more pictures and words.  AHHH!  And I can't skip a day, because 2012 is a-knockin'.

So, moving forward.

Despite living in Asia, having traveled over the Pacific first to Australia and New Zealand, having traversed much of North America, until September of this year, I had never hopped the pond to Europe.  Seriously.  (Or been to Mexico, despite living 100 miles from its border and visiting towns on the border on tour, but I already told that story...).

So it was long overdue, but I feared I might miss much of my first trip as it would be during rehearsals onboard the Norwegian Sun, as it began its Atlantic crossing from Copenhagen to Cape Canaveral.

Luckily, my view of Europe was not just from a porthole, but up close and in person.  And it was AMAZING!

The trip started when I landed in Copenhagen at dawn, and hit the ground running in my 24-hour stopover.  I went alone on foot, and despite some complications with money, subways, and credit cards, I stopped in Christianshavn...

 Saw amazing architecture...

Eventually found my way to the Little Mermaid

Through a fort to its giant windmill

And a castle, among other things.

Also of note.  The famous Tivoli Gardens amusement park where I rode the oldest wooden rollercoaster in the world where the operator actually rides the train and manually brakes it.  Awesome, and suprisingly scary.

The city was hosting a giant road cycling race and so there were no cars on the roads, and throngs of cyclists and crowds around the city.  It was stellar.  I had some delicious Danish baked goods, and walked my feet off, in the 50-degree fall weather.

But the biggest surprise of the day was when I stumbled upon the coolest pool/public bath/beach I've ever seen, that I read about in some travel blog.  And it was within a short walk from my HOTEL!  KISMET!

Yes, that is literally a pool built out in the middle of the ocean, with high-dives, booths, staircases, and fences to protect you from the wind.  I may have even taken a dip in the Baltic in October.  Surreal.

The crossing got even better as I spent a day in Amsterdam with my best Aussie Jayne.

 We visited the Red Light District, went to a sex museum (it was rather tame), saw some prostitutes in the windows (they were not so tame), saw some incredible architecture, and had a delicious cafe lunch people-watching and catching up after 4 years.  And we shopped!!

 Then came Lisbon, where I fell in love with my castmates Julie, Karlene, and Bruno on our first adventure out together.  It always helps to have a Spanish speaker even in Portugal!

We wandered the city, got lost, circled a fort 3 times, but had an amazing time spotting streetcars, stray dogs, beautiful architecture, and laughing the whole way.

Even when we had to stop for pee breaks!

 Lisbon is incredible, the San Francisco of Europe, stunning, hot, international, and full of sights.

 We eventually found the main downtown area, and saw the tourist sights and shops.

 I even decided to try some crazy traditional Portuguese plate of boiled pork, including a pig's FOOT!

 There may have been some incredible sangria, and delicious port tastings as well.  Adventures in a place I never thought I'd be!

 The sail-away was even more stunning, showcasing their sister cities' landmarks, a Golden Gate bridge twin and a Rio Jesus statue twin.

The first night of the crossing was crazy rocky, but somehow we survived and got to our first semi-tropical destination...

Ponta Delgada in the Azores!!!

I only had about an hour ashore as, you know, I had to work that day (bummer!), but still managed to take in the sights, tour a bit of the island, see and taste some local culture and take a few pictures.  Definitely a place worth spending a hour (or more if you have the time).

So in one week, I knocked off four new countries (you'll hear about the last one in another post), a new CONTINENT (!), and then began something few are privileged to do in their twenties...  cross the Atlantic on a boat.  

Nothing.  for SIX days.  

And it seriously gets flat in the middle!  Really.

So what more could a guy ask for, than a job that allows him to see the world.  I was truly blessed, despite being in install/tech hell, to have seen and enjoyed so much.  A top moment of the year, for SURE!

Top 11 of 2011... Part 4

#8.

2011 started off rather slowly, and depressingly to tell the truth.  But I knew it would be a year with some amazing gifts if I just let life guide me.  It's serendipity...

It goes back to New Year's Eve, one of my not-so-favorite holidays.  It just never quite lives up to the hype.  As 2010 came to a close, I left a friend's show about 11 on the West Side.  I couldn't easily make my way to the subway courtesy of the crowds of revelers that pen up on 7th ave and Broadway all the way to the Southern edge of Central Park.

So as I had to cut through Central Park, hopping fences into 3 feet snow banks (there'd been quite a blizzard 5 days prior), I found myself just deciding to explore on a whim and see if I could find the Midnight Run fireworks.  Not only did I find them, but I found a spot near the Ramble right across the Pond from the cannons, where the fireworks were literally raining ash down on us from overhead.  And by us, I mean, just myself and four Latvian tourists I befriended.

In case you didn't know, hanabi (Japanese for fireworks) are one of my favorite things in the whole world...

So I learned some Latvian, traversed the park safely after midnight, and then got into a snowball fight with a different group of strangers.  Oh and I kissed one too, just for good luck, since well, I got pounded in face with a snowball and couldn't stop laughing at how bad my attacker felt.

So I had a feeling great things were in store, if I only let life (as I let the city that night) guide me.

In January, I got to spend an amazing weekend with my favorite little sister and our two best childhood friends playing tour guide in a frigid city.  Exposing them to the raw power of Next to Normal, unfortunate bathroom breaks in the frozen woods, Shake Shack, and the Brooklyn Bridge... it's always magical to see the city through a first-timer's eyes.  Not bad to repeat the experience with my eldest brother in March.

Oh, and then there was the time we joked that Joseph Smith was mad at us for going to see the astounding Book of Mormon so he sent down a city-wide Hailpocalypse as we made our way 15 blocks to the theatre.  Just wonderful, don't-take-life-too-seriously events.

So see, a tepid few months of auditioning, catering, and chilly wind tunnels can even have its own bright spots.

Ma'hanibu, Ebowai!