St. Charles, New Orleans, LA

June 3rd, 2006

Everything has happened so fast that I've hardly had time to catch my breath. Last month I went to New Orleans and worked with pianist David Boeddinhaus who is organizing the band for this new production. Along with Chris Tyle (Cornet), Otis Bazoon (Reeds), Tom Saunders (Bass), and James Alsanders (Drums) we make a hot band! We were joined at the rehearsals by Jérôme Savary (and his entourage) who is writing and directing the production which is loosely titled, "Searching For Josephine". It combines Jazz History, The story of Josephine Baker, and the effects of Katrina on present day New Orleans. And it's a comedy! Also during the week we worked with Nicolle Rochelle, the young singer who will portray Josephine. She was very charismatic, a wonderful singer, and will be fabulous in the roll. On Friday Night (May 19th) we gave a preview performance at the Palm Court Cafe. (See the 'Note' Below) A lot of press showed up (French and American) and city officials as well as local musicians and some tourists. Things went wonderfully and by end of the night we had all signed contracts for the show and made things official.

The Show is in conjunction with the The National Theatre of the Opera Comic in Paris. There are two parts to this tour. For part one, I fly over to Paris on June 10th and we rehearse until the end of the month with a special showcase on June 28th at the Opera Comic. Then we tour for the month of July hitting summer festivals in South France and Spain. I've added the listings on my Calendar page, just in case you find yourself over there, or you have friends or family living there. I fly back to Los Angeles at the end of the month For part two of the trip we all return to Paris on November 12th and rehearse the show again. Then on November 23rd we reside at the Opera Comic doing shows nightly through January 2007. I fly back to Los Angeles on January 15th, 2007.

I can't describe how excited I am to be given this opportunity. I will be playing guitar and tenor banjo in the show and we will be performing a wide variety of music including Duke Ellington, New Orleans Spirituals, Southern Blues, and French songs that were popularized by Josephine Baker. I'm very grateful for all the support of my friends and family and I hope that with the laptop computer that was loaned to me by Rae Ann Hopkins-Berry (thanks so much Rea Ann!), I'll be able to continue updating this site and let everyone know what is happening on my overseas adventure.

Montmartre

The Band (l-r) Otis,
Philippe, Chris, Tom

We did our first run though Monday with the full cast. It was really interesting seeing the show from top to bottom even if most of it was in French. There’s also a Character Actor from New York who delivers his lines and sings in English with the other characters reacting and responding in French. I guess they just assume the audience for this show will be bilingual and will understand both languages. Some of the songs are in French, some are in English, and some are in Spanish (We have a few stops in Spain on the tour).

James, David & Me

Rehearsing "Who"

They gave us all scripts with the English translation of the show and so we could follow along (and a lot of it *still* didn’t make any sense.) But I can tell you this: The cast is really good! They all sing and dance and act and most all of them are bilingual. There’s going to be a lot of big production numbers including one of Jerome Kern’s song ‘Who’ where the girls dance with fans and the band really gets to open up and play hot. It’s one of the last big numbers and I think it will be a show stopper.

Saturday night Chris Tyle cooked and had a dinner party for the band celebrating the end of our first week here. He made red beans and rice and we sampled a lot of great french wine. It was nice having a taste of home after eating french food all week. The show is coming along great. 'The Barber Of Seville' closed this weekend so we started rehearsing in the theatre yesterday. Playing in the pit is going to take some getting used to and we'll have to sort out some things. We can't see what's happening on stage at all. David is playing a grand piano on a riser so we have to really watch him for all the cues. There's talk of raising the pit so that we'll all elevated and I hope they do that - I'd like to watch the show too! It'll be interesting to see what they finally work out. The sets they are building for this show are huge and the stage has all kinds of tricks built into it - hydraulic lifts, mechanical changes, fog machines, even the lighting is very elaborate. Nothing is being done on a small scale. We're rehearsing for 8 hours a day now and I think by the time we open we'll really have everything down.

(l-r) Otis, Chris, Me, Banu Gibson, James, & David. Tom Saunders is taking the photo.

The Opera Comique

I was having a lot of trouble tuning last week and I thought it was the heat. We had a huge heat wave and our rehearsal space doesn’t have air conditioning. For some reason everything seemed all out of sorts. After the second day I stopped using my tuner altogether. Finally Tom Saunders asked me if I’d reset my tuner for Europe. They tune ‘A’ to 442 over here instead of 440. I changed my tuner and it’s amazing what a huge difference it made! Also the weather finally cooled off so it could have been both factors. Anyway I’m much happier now that everything is in tune. Someone remind me to go back to 440 when I get back to the states...
Au revoir!
- Katie

Looking up into the house
of the Opera Comique from the pit.

I really like the parts of the show I can see (when I’m onstage). For most of the show I’m in the pit and can’t actually see what’s happening. We’re having a preview of the show this afternoon for select invited guests. They told us to invite all our friends and just leave our guest lists at the box office. If any of you would like to come we go on in three hours! Friday morning we start our out of town tours and we won’t be back here in Paris until we come back in the fall. It may be a little more difficult to access the internet and email so we’ll see what happens. In the meantime I plan on updating my website with photos so if you don’t hear from me, check my website to see if I managed to post anything there!
Au revoir!
- Katie

View from my hotel in Perpignon
(see the beach?)

We’ve started having rehearsals in Spanish and tomorrow we will drive a few miles south of here across the border to Spain and perform the show in Peralada on Saturday. Based on the success we’ve had so far, Jerome is talking about doing a cast recording to sell at the Opera Comique when we come back in the fall. If nothing else I’d like to have a record of this band playing together because it’s a hot group and I’m enjoying playing tenor banjo and guitar with them. We’ve been getting together and playing for fun on the days we have free and I’m going to start keeping lists of all the great obscure new old tunes I’m learning. Thank you so much for the emails from home. Since we’re touring my internet is spotty but I’ll try and respond and keep in touch as time / internet service permits. I don’t know how people ever survived without computers!
Au revoir!
- Katie

To hear a 40 second clip of us playing a hot chorus on 'Who' click here:

NOTE: If you go to http://www.alarecherchedejosephine.fr/ and click on "Les Musiques" you can listen to 10 songs we recorded with this band on tour. If you click on "Les Vidéos" there are several videos that were created on the summer tour as well. If you don't blink you can see me right at the beginning of "The Joint Is Jumping" playing guitar with David on piano.

Onstage in Perlada, Spain w/ Chris Tyle (l) & Otis Bazoon (r)

July 25th, 2006
Madrid, Spain

Hola!
We are now finishing up our tour in Madrid. I have been without email for some time while we traveled through rural France performing in Vichy and Sarlot. A couple days ago after a 15 hour bus ride we arrived here in Madrid. That was 15 hours with 12 cast members, 8 musicians, 4 crew members, and 2 dogs. Yes, 2 dogs. They ran free on the bus the whole time and gave the adventure a sort of ‘Beverly Hillbillies’ feel. One of the dogs, ‘Ben Hur’ is just a puppy and belongs to Manon (our assistant director), and the other dog ‘Stanislafsky’ or ‘Stannie’ is part of the show and belongs to Nicolle (our Josephine). At the first rest stop / gas station we hit on the trip, everyone stocked up on cheese, baguettes, pate, olives, wine from the region (we were in Bordeaux), and chocolate. And we had a nice picnic lunch (and later dinner) - the best roadside food I’ve ever had!

(above) Ben Hur plays(?) with Stannie on the bus.

(left) During hour 13 of the bus ride, Carmen takes over the p.a. system and tells us what to do in case of a water landing.

Chris & Otis wait for the tour bus in Vichy

I’ve had a great time with all the people in the cast and crew and it’s hard to believe that I only have two days left! I am looking forward to coming back home and seeing everyone again and having my regular routine back. Life on the road was a good experience. We were really able to work a lot out in the show and get things ready for our opening in Paris this fall. I’m just glad when we get back in November we’ll stay in one place!

Thanks so much for keeping me connected to home and I hope to see you all again soon!
Adios!
- Katie

The view of the park from my room.

We’re staying in a different part of town this time. Right across the street from us is the Guar De L’est which is one of the major train stations. The neighborhood is full of little cafes and bars and I’ve done a bit of exploring but not as much as I’d like to. That’s because it’s rained just about every day since I arrived. The room of my residence faces beautiful park where kids play every day (I think it’s next to a day care center) and just beyond the park is the Canal St. Martin. So if you look at a map of Paris you can see where I’m at!

The show rehearsals have been really intense. Now that we’ll be residing in the theatre, they’ve added a lot of extra props, sets, and special effects. In one of the production numbers, Carmen (one of the dancers) sits in the trunk of a very realistic looking elephant. And there’s a boat in the orchestra pit that is sitting in a pool of water. (It still leaks a little but I think they have it under control).

Carmen & "Tommy"

The dragon emerges from the his box...

And "flies" over the audience! (In theory.)

We’ve been having a bit of dragon trouble. When we were on the road we had various people (in some places local teenagers) carry the dragon on poles through the crowd. Now that we’re staying put at the Opera Comic, they decided to run it on wires above the stage. At the proper moment it flies from the highest opera box closest to the sage and goes into the opposite box on the opposite side of the stage. It’s on a basic pulley system and the first time they tried they missed the cue and when it finally went it was all scrunched up like a slinky at rest. I had to try not and giggle too loud. Then the next day they tried it and it flew out of the box, extended itself to full length (which is almost the complete length of the stage!) and got stuck suspended in midair. Again I tried to keep my laughing to a minimum because Jerome (the director) was yelling at the crew in French and did not sound happy. Well yesterday we had our first dress rehearsal and it finally worked. I’ll admit I was a little disappointed. For updates about my trip (I hope to put some photos up soon!) visit my website at: http://www.katiecavera.net
Au Revoir!
Katie

Jerome sings "J'ai Deux Amours" to the crowd.

Last night someone from the New York Times came to see the performance. I’d love to read an English review of the show - I’ll keep an eye out!

Nicolle sings
her encore.

On opening night one of the audience members was an eccentric gentleman in his late fifties with dyed blond hair and dressed in tails. At the end of the show he wanted to present Nicolle with flowers and chocolates. He walked into the pool of water around the boat and then realizing that she was still singing her encore to the crowd and he was in the way - laid down in the pool.

It’s only about 4 inches deep so he didn’t get completely soaked but he did make a big mess. Nicolle looked a little concerned. As she finished singing he laid the gifts at her feet and exited the pool. Water went everywhere sloshing onto the grand piano and into the pit. The same guy returned to see the show again a couple nights later. This time he quickly ran through the pool and up to the stage barefoot - deposited the flowers and made a quick exit back. I wonder if we’ll see him again?

Setting up in the pit.

December 6th, 2006
Paris, France

Bonjour!
The show has been going really well. The press is good and the people keep filling up the Opera house night after night. On Sunday a group of people came from Sarlot that are involved in caring for her collection at her Castle. We’d met a few of them over the summer. The group included one of Josephine’s adopted children and he was very pleased with the show. I’ve added some links to my website with press an video clips. Most of them are in French but you can still get a basic idea from them. You can also put the french title (“A la recherche de Joséphine”) into google, and google will ‘translate’ the pages it finds - the results are pretty funny!

Josephine's Castle

Magazines at the Newsstand

On Monday night we played a sort of promotional party at the Cinématheque Francaise for Jerome. It was a lot of fun because it was a night of Jazz themed film clips. Some I’d seen before, like a soundie of Fats Waller singing “Honeysuckle Rose” and Billie Holiday on “The Sound Of Jazz”. And some I hadn’t like Cab Calloway backing up a spectacular dance routine by the Nicholas Brothers in the film “Stormy Weather”, and of course Josephine dancing eccentrically in “Zouzou”. It was a very entertaining evening. We all commented afterwards what a wonderfully varied and strange collection of clips they’d compiled. One minute we’re watching Thelonious Monk play a solo version of “Just a Gigolo” and then next we’re doing a “Follow The Bouncing Ball” sing-along to “Ain’t She Sweet”.

Here are some links to a few reviews of the show:
Here's a review of the show in English:
http://timescorrespondents.typepad.com/charles_bremner/2006/12/this_sounds_lik.html
A French review with nice links:
http://www.evene.fr/culture/agenda/a-la-recherche-de-josephine-11327.php
Some nice still photos from the show. In the "Recherche Rapide / Quick Search" box put "Josephine" and then hit the "Rechercher / Search" button on the right: http://www.fedephoto.com/fotoweb/ You may need to scroll down a bit or even go to page 2 to find the photos from our show.
Another brief review in English: http://operachic.typepad.com/opera_chic/2006/11/untitled_docume_6.html

Link to the online review
from the "Figaro" here.
(Yes, it's in French!)

December 13th, 2006
Paris, France

On Monday evening (our day off) I went to see a modern dance performance given by Stefanie Batten Bland one of the choreographers for ‘Josephine’. This was a one act dance performance in the Opera Comique that she wrote and directed. She had a great turnout and it was a very enjoyable show. She also used a piece of recorded music (“The Man I Love”) from the ‘Josephine’ show so I got to hear what we sound like when we’re playing in the pit!

Stefanie in character for "Josephine"

Waiting for the show to begin
at the Palis Garnier.

And then just this morning I went to a performance at the Palais Garnier - the BIG opera house. They were having a sort of ‘open house’ for their school of dance. I thought it would be fun because I wanted to see a show there but they don’t have anything happening there on our nights off. The theatre was full of moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, and of course little brothers and sisters. The classes were divided by gender and age with different teachers and piano accompanists for each group. The youngest kids looked to be about 9 or 10. Their teacher stood to the side of the stage and had them do some warm ups and a few short exercises and then they’d present a little piece and bring the next class on. It was fun watching the little kids because they were fidgety and doing things normal kids that age do when put on stage. As the accompanist played a selection from “Swan Lake” all the little girls in pink pirouetted to the left except the small girl on the end who circled right. Later when a group of older girls came on to dance a little boy a few seats over from me started singing along loudly to the music. He got the first few bars of a Mozart piano concerto out before his mom shushed him. I figured his sister was in that class. Later when they finished their routine and the audience was applauding he shouted ‘Bravo!’

The ceiling of the Palis Garnier.

December 20th, 2006
Paris, France
Bonjour!
It’s been a very busy week! I’ve been working with David (the musical director) to get all the music for the show in the computer. We’ve decided to try and complete this project by the New Year. We’re working hard to finish this for a few reasons but the main reason is the show has been extended. We’ve been asked to take the show to Barcelona in January and February. Some of the band members (including me!) have a few conflicts with this new contract so once all the music is in order we can bring other musicians in to sub for us while we’re out. The contract in Barcelona actually starts on January 15th but I’m slated to teach the Jazz Camp in San Diego. So they are going to fly Banu Gibson in to do the show through January 21st while I’m in California. Then I’ll fly back to Barcelona and do the show until February 18th. I’ve been to Barcelona a few times and I really love the city so I’m looking forward to being there for a month.

Banana Christmas Tree!

Our Christmas Eve performance.
(Dudu put a Santa Hat on the 'skull' of Josephine.)

I can’t believe it’s almost Christmas! We will play one show tonight and two shows tomorrow on Christmas Eve. Jimmy Justice - one of the leads in the show - has organized a cast party on Christmas Eve between shows. Jimmy is 75 years old and an amazing performer. He sings, dances, and plays piano in the show. I hope when I’m 75 I have the energy he has! Jimmy had everyone pick a name for a ‘Secret Santa’ gift exchange. I haven’t done anything like this since I was a kid and I’m glad we’re going to all celebrate the holiday together. I think we may also surprise the cast and play ‘Jingle Bells’ at the curtain call instead of the usual number. Christmas seems a little more ‘low key’ here then in the states. I haven’t heard hardly any Christmas carols and the decorations and lights are pretty subdued. Although in the lobby of the Opera Comique there is a Christmas Tree decorated with bananas! I’ll try and get a picture before they take it down. Whatever you do for the season I hope your Holidays are happy!
Au Revoir & Joyeux Noel!
Katie

January 2nd, 2007
Paris, France
Bonne Année!
New Years Eve we performed 2 shows. After the matinée we had a little party for Jimmy Justice - it was his birthday! At the end of the second show we played “Auld Lang Syne” and the audience sang along with us, but in French. After the second show some of us went to a party that was being hosted by the people who had organized the jazz film evening a few weeks earlier. It was a real French New Year’s Eve party in a very bohemian apartment near the Latin Quarter. Just before midnight we were all handed a champagne glass with 12 grapes. They explained to us that it was actually a Spanish custom they they took part in every year. As the clock strikes twelve you eat all the grapes finishing before the last stroke of midnight and that gives you good luck for the whole year. Well I’m afraid I won’t have good luck because I was laughing too hard as I was trying to stuff all those grapes in my mouth. They were very juicy and on top of that they had seeds!

The Cast dances during the curtain call while Dudu presents the band.

 If this clip isn't working, you can also visit www.youtube.com and put the key word "hellzapoppin'" into the search engine.

Then at midnight the projection tv on the wall came on. Someone had cued up the movie “Hellzapoppin’”. I’ve never seen this film so I was surprised to see Slim and Slam playing piano and bass. What followed was one of the hottest swing dance routines I’ve ever seen on film. Apparently the film is a huge hit here in France - so much that they still show it frequently at local movie theaters. After seeing that clip I decided I need to see the whole film while I’m here. When the clip ended, they turned off the tv and cued up the CD player. Chubby Checker came on singing, “Let’s Twist Again Like We Did Last Summer” and everyone did the twist. That was followed by more rock & roll songs from that era which was followed by the soundtrack to ‘Cabaret’. I find it really interesting to see what parts of American Culture people here gravitate towards.

After a while the host came up and asked if we’d mind playing a little. David Sager had his trombone and I had my guitar so we played a bit. Carmen and Brian from the cast sang with us and I even sang “I’ll Bet You Tell That To All the Girls” and “Do Something” for them. The people at the party really seemed to enjoy it and we had a lot of fun too. It was a wonderful way to ring in the New Year and by the time we were ready to head home it was almost 4 am! Out in the streets people we’re still celebrating, and we were all impressed by how civilized the festivities were - no one was being overtly drunk or disorderly. We caught the metro back to our residence which was running all night for free (another very civilized thing to do!).

The New York Times has reviewed our show! This appeared in the Arts and Leisure section on 12/30/06 and you can read the complete article at: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/30/arts/music/30bake.html It’s a great review and it looks like there may be more in store for us with this show. I’ll keep you posted!
Happy 2007!!
- Katie

Director Jerome Savaray

Our last night in Paris.
(l-r) James Alsanders, me, David Sager, David Boeddinghaus

January 10th, 2007
Paris, France

Bonjour! We’re in the final stretch here in Paris. The show has been such a success - more then I could have ever imagined. Yesterday we played an additional matinee show and we have another extra matinee on Thursday. It’s makes for a long day but the extra shows mean extra pay so it all works out. David and I are also still trying to get the score in order. Banu Gibson will arrive on Friday to see a few performances and then she’ll take my place for the first week in Barcelona while I’m in San Diego teaching the jazz camp. Duke Heitger will join the show in Barcelona for the first week while Chris Tyle is in England playing a festival. And our trombonist David Sager will have to go back to his job at the Library of Congress so we will have the French trombonist Phillip Georges who toured with us in the summer taking his place. He’s going to come on Friday to rehearse the show because a lot has changed since our summer tour.

I may have eluded to it in a previous email or told you all ready but for this production I’ve taken on the job of music copyist. Basically what it means is that I put all the show arrangements in the computer and print out parts for everyone. It’s a simple enough concept but it’s also very time consuming. And with the new musicians arriving soon it’s become a full time job! But there is light at the end of the tunnel and once the score is complete then anyone should be able to take the parts and play the show close to the same way we’re playing it now.

I’m really looking forward to Barcelona - I’ve been there a few different times and it will be nice to spend some time living and working in the city. It will be interesting to see if my high school Spanish comes back to me (I did ok over the summer with it)! The time has just flown by and I can’t believe I’ll be home in less then a week!
Au Revoir,
Katie

Teatre Tívoli

January 31st, 2007
Barcelona, Spain

Hola! I’ve been here in Barcelona a little over a week and I’m adapting pretty well. Everything here happens late at night and they take their midday siesta very seriously. I’ve always been an early to bed, early to rise person but it’s just not possible here. We don’t finish the show until after midnight so I’m usually not in bed until 1 or 2 in the morning! And then most everything shuts down during siesta time which is from about 2 in the afternoon until 5 or so. I haven’t quite gotten the knack of the siesta yet - it’s strange wanting to go out and do things in the afternoon only to find everything closed!

I don’t really understand what it’s all about but after watching him do his routine every morning, I’ve really started to enjoy his ‘performance art’. First of all he is there every single day from fairly early in the morning to fairly late in the afternoon. Some of the acts I’ve seen come and go, but he’s really persistent. Second of all, even though everything looks like it’s in disarray, he keeps his space very tidy. On many occasions I’ve seen him pick up trash after people litter. And finally I like him because he doesn’t he doesn’t try to scare people like some of the other acts do, and he doesn’t hassle people if they take a picture and don’t give him money. I’ll be sure and get a photo with him before my tour here is done.

Dudu, Stannie, & Nicolle take a bow.

It’s really different working with the Spanish crew. They are a very nice group of people but they just have different ways of doing things. It’s a really ‘relaxed’ atmosphere backstage. One night, as I was running backstage to make a quick costume change I ran into a group of stagehands gathered on the stairs shelling and eating peanuts in the middle of the show. I guess they just got a little hungry. They did offer me some but I was in too big of a hurry. And one night I looked in the wings and the guy who was supposed to be pulling the curtain closed had donned one of the girl’s blond wigs. Yes, it was funny but just not the sort of thing I’d expect from French or even American Stage hands. And the dragon hasn't worked right even once! Every night it’s gone too fast - shooting across the house in scrunched up heap. Well last night they decided to put fishing line on it and pull it across the house from the opposite end. So instead of going in a rush it went at a snails pace. They’d pull it about a foot and then it’d get stuck and then they’d drag it another foot. It was the slowest dragon ever and it finally got stuck when it was almost to the end so they just left it. Dudu - the master of ceremonies made a big joke about it and the audience seemed very amused. I was amused too - I can’t wait to see what they try and do tonight!
Adois! Katie

February 6th, 2007
Barcelona, Spain

Last Wednesday night we lost a member of our family. Jimmy Justice was one of the leads in our show and an amazing person. At the audition for this show in New York, our director Jerome Savary was so impressed by Jimmy that he wrote a part specifically for him in the musical. He basically just played himself in the show, singing, dancing, playing the piano, and constantly improvising and keeping us laughing. He had a great sense of humor, a great stage presence, and the ability to take the smallest lines or gags in the show and make them into wonderful moments. He got his start when he was young performing as a gospel singer and several times during the run of this show here in Barcelona, The Barcelona Gospel Choir attended and Jimmy led them in song out in the lobby on the intermission. Jimmy made a lasting impression on everyone that met him and was a professional performer in every sense of the word. He’d been in this business all his life and we all looked up to him as a mentor and the head of our theatrical family.

He died suddenly during the performance. The girls in the cast were on stage singing “I’ll Overcome” and Jimmy was accompanying them on piano. He stopped playing in the middle of the song, a cast member came from the wings and helped him offstage and he was gone. Needless to say we were all in shock and heartbroken. Later Jerome would remark that in a sense, Jimmy played his own funeral. As a musician I find something comforting about that. I also know that Jimmy died doing what he loved. He had remarked that this show was a real highlight of his career and he felt he was singing and performing better then ever.

The next afternoon we met to decide what to do. It was very emotional and difficult but in the end we decided to perform that very night with different people in the cast taking over Jimmy’s lines and songs. That night, before the show, the Barcelona Gospel Choir showed up en mass - what looked to be about 50 or 60 people, singing and carrying candles as they made their way through the theater up to the stage where Jimmy last performed. Then Jerome gave a talk about Jimmy before the curtain went up. We’d pre sold 600 tickets for that evening, and I’m sure that for the most part the audience was unaware of what was about to happen. What followed was one of the most difficult and beautiful performances I’ve ever been a part of. It was a loving an appropriate tribute to a man that had lived his whole life and died on the stage.

So now it’s been just about a week and the show is moving forward. Jerome decided to keep the show as it is for now with no one taking over Jimmy’s part for the rest of our run here in Barcelona. We are going to return to Paris later this summer for an encore presentation (another 8 week run) at the Opera Comique, and the role will be recast at that point. Of course it will always be Jimmy’s role. I can’t think of a better or more lasting tribute for an actor then to have who you are written into a show. Whoever takes over the roll will be playing the character “Jimmy” and of course Jimmy was just playing himself.

Jimmy Justice as 'Grand Marshal' struts through the crowd while I play 'Saints'.

April 25th, 2007
Paris France

Bonjour!
I’ve been here just about a week and I’m almost over the jet lag. It’s good to be back - especially this time of year. As I sit here and write this I can hear children playing in the park outside my window. The sun is shining, birds are singing, and all Parisians are at their happiest because the cold wet miserable winter is finally over.

The view out my window.

People dining at "Le Sporting"

Last night we had our first dress rehearsal and they’d actually filled the Opéra Comique with a large group of people so we ran it as a regular show. It went amazingly well. It was great playing with this band again - everything locked in and I had a wonderful time playing. We have three new cast members - two more girls and a guy, and there have been some minor changes in the script. (Instead of recasting Jimmy Justice they decided to stay with the show we’d worked out in Barcelona.) But for the most part the music remains the same so we’re just having fun and doing what we’ve always done. We still have a few more
afternoon rehearsals but for the most part I think the show is set. We will have our Premiere on Thursday and after that it’s back to the usual pattern of performing six days a week with extra shows on Saturday and Mondays off.

The show has been nominated for a Molière Award for Best Musical which is basically the French Tony Award. I asked Dudu (one of the stars of the show and also the costume designer!) about the award and he thinks we have a chance at winning although they could also give the award to a current production of Cabaret that is very popular right now. Dudu has been working with Jerome Savary (our director) since the 70’s and he thinks it would be a great if Jerome were to receive this award for this show. We’ll see what happens!
Au Revoir!
Katie

Ads in the metro announcing the show & it's Molière nomination.

Artists' Square in Montmartre.

May 1st, 2007
Paris France

Bonjour!
I’m in the midst of a two day holiday right now. Yesterday we had our regular Monday off and Today is May 1st which is a labor holiday here so we have today off as well! Since the weather has been great I’ve been spending a lot of time walking and exploring the area. A couple days ago I decided to go back and visit Montmartre where we stayed last summer. I went to take a look at the windmills (there are two left) and go by the artists square which was packed. Most of the people were painting scenes from Paris, and there were a lot of sketch artists and a couple guys that will cut your silhouette in one minute while you wait (satisfaction guaranteed). I did see one artist that had abstract pen and watercolor drawings of Paris that I thought were nice. Next to him was a woman with the most horrendous clown paintings I’d ever seen. I may have to go back and get something at a later date...

Last week we had a minor problem at the start of one of the shows. Orlando Poleo, our Cuban Drummer was missing. The entire show starts with him playing a drum solo while Nicolle sings - it’s not something we can really ‘cover’ without him! Come to find out the subway train he was riding broke down and when he was finally able to get to a stop, (three stops away) he jumped off the train and ran to the theatre! So when it came time for the show to start there was a brief announcement in French followed by a lot of mumbling and murmuring from the audience. We all looked at Philippe “Fleep” Georges, our French trombonist for the translation. They’d announced that the show would be slightly ‘delayed’ because of a ‘technical difficulty’. Much more diplomatic then saying, “Our drummer is stuck on the subway”! So I look at David and say, “Can we play while we’re waiting?” He didn't know so I went under the pit and asked one of the stage hands to radio the question to the stage manager. A few seconds later the stage manager comes running out to David and says, “Yes! Play for about five minutes!”

Playing in the Orchestra Pit.

So we played. We just played “Dinah” really bright and opened it up for solos all around. I cannot describe how good it felt to just sit there and play with those guys. I kind of wish we could do that every night - just sit and play a bit before the show. Because that kind of live - in the moment energy is the best feeling of all. And I really admire how the guys all play. When we finished we got a really nice round of applause from the audience and by that time Orlando had arrived and had a chance to drink some water and catch his breath before we began.

The first week of shows has gone very well. We’ve filled the house and the crowds have been very appreciative. And best of all, the guy that goes through the water during the curtain call to give Nicolle flowers has returned. He’s come to three different shows already and I finally got a photo of him! The guy is absolutely crazy and yet I find my self looking for him each show and trying to figure out when he’s going to make his move and what sort of stunt he’s going to pull. He hasn’t done any prat falls into the water yet, but I have hope and if he does, I’ll have my camera ready!
Au Revoir,
Katie

(For further explanation of this photo, see below....)

Gwen & Momo (far left) are the new girls in the cast and this is their first time seeing Nicolle's 'Superfan'.

Brian (middle) seems to be thinking "here we go again!" while Sweet put's a motherly hand on his arm.

Dudu seems very concerned as he acknowledges the 'Superfan' (far right). But Nicolle, who barely made it into this photo has the best expression of all. She's laughing in the way she does when she's pulling raunchy pranks on us while we're onstage.

As you can see the water isn't that deep. Still, it's deep enough to splash the people in the front row (the good seats are in the 'splash zone'!) and spill over onto the grand piano in the pit.

David protects the piano...

May 8th, 2007
Paris France

Bonjour!
I did a very brave thing last Sunday. I went to the Louvre on “Free Day”. The first Sunday of the month several Paris museums are free to the public including the Louvre and I decided that since I’ll probably visit it more then once while I’m here, that I’d like to take advantage of this day to get to know my way around the museum. I decided to get there at 9 am when they opened because we had to play a matinee show at 3 so my time would be limited. I’d done some research on line and I’d checked out the Louvre the day before on my break between shows so I had a strategy which I’ll pass along to you now. (Just in case you happen to find yourself in Paris at the Louvre on Free Day.)

First of all use the Porte des Lions entrance. It’s on the far southwest side of the museum and you’ll see the big lion statues guarding it. It seems everyone wants to go through the pyramid and I understand that, but when I hopped off the metro at 8:30 am, the line outside the pyramid was already really long. I went over to the lions and no one was there yet so I walked around the Jardin du Carrousel and took pictures while I waited. When I got back to the entrance at about ten till, there were two Japanese girls and two Spanish girls ahead of me in line. When the doors opened, the security people asked to check through their bags. Since I’d anticipated this and didn’t bring a bag they waved me right in.

I grabbed a museum map and headed up the stairs. There was something eerie about walking through gallery halls and being the only one there. All I could hear were my footsteps and I clipped along at a brisk walk while 16th century Italian paintings looked on. See, I was on a mission. But the other girls in line with me had the same idea too and pretty soon they were right there with me in some kind of speed walking race. (It seems sacrilegious to run in a museum.) The Lions entrance is the closest and most direct entrance to the Mona Lisa.

Porte des Lions at the Louvre

The Crowds on "Free Day"!

When we made it to her spot on the wall we were outnumbered by the security people who were standing around and chatting and bracing themselves for the onslaught of Free Day. It was really remarkable to have that moment to gaze at the painting in silence and just take it in. We stood there for a good 3 or 4 minutes.

Then I heard the noise. A low rumbling, kind of like a wave coming at you when you’re laying peacefully on the beach and enjoying the sun. You are not allowed to take photos in the painting exhibit areas for obvious reasons. But there is one photo I would have taken if I could have. And that’s the sight of the 30 some odd people that finally made it from the Pyramid entrance charging at the Mona Lisa. They came right at me with these looks of anticipation and eagerness rushing as fast as they could to see this great work of art. I quickly exited the room before things got too crowded. I stayed at the Louvre a little over 3 hours and probably only saw about 30% of the collection if even that. I decided to focus on the sculpture galleries because they were far away from Mona and seemed the least crowded. (And you *can* take pictures there.) I’ll definitely go back at least once more while I’m here - but maybe not on Free Day.

The show is running like clockwork now and I find myself focusing hard on the music. Not because I need to look at it - I pretty much have the show memorized - but because I don’t want to zone out and miss cues or make silly mistakes. It’s a real easy thing to do and it’s happened to all of us. But last Friday night was the worst.

It was the final number of the show. The big emotional closer. Allen Hoist, one of the leads in the show plays a beautiful cello solo on “St. James Infirmary”. We are playing it as a waltz and it’s a trio - String Bass, Banjo, and Cello. Then there’s a lot of moving dialogue while Tom Saunders and I continue the waltz on bass and banjo. (Boom - plink plink / Boom - plink plink. - Like that. It’s very somber.) And at the appropriate time, Alan sings the vocal - five choruses in all with the rest of the band and chorus members joining in on the last one.

So Allen gets to the second chorus - the “I went up to see the doctor” chorus and he sings, “I went uuuh ahh eee ahh yee-hoo....” He completely blanked on the words! He sang the entire rest of the chorus very with complete conviction - he just used nonsense syllables. “...ahh heee yah ooo eeh ooo...” At this point Tom and I are still the only ones accompanying him and I just start thinking “Don’t laugh! Don’t screw it up!”. Out of the corner of my eye, I see David the musical director fold his hands in his lap and put his head down. ...and I start to get the giggles. I can’t help it. Now I’m thinking “Don’t look at James!” because James doesn’t even play drums on this song and I know he’s laughing and I know that if I look at him I’m really going to loose it.

Somehow I manage to keep it together. I can feel my face turning red. I’m shaking, my eyes are closed and my head is down, and I’m crying I’m trying so hard not to laugh. Tears are streaming down my face but I make it though and as the scene comes to an end and we start playing “Hot Feet” for the curtain call I let it all out. The crowd is wildly applauding and we’re all playing really loud to cover the fact that we’re all laughing our heads off like crazy. I finally allow myself to look at James (who later admitted that he was trying to get me to look at him the whole time!) and he’s just about on the floor which makes me laugh even more. I’m wiping the tears off my face and trying to get somewhat composed for when I stand up for my curtain call. Maybe the audience just thought I found the show extra moving that night...

Allen mugs for the camera while Meyorah looks on.

Interestingly enough, most of the photos I have of Allen,
he's makeing some kind of face. See? :

I told Alan later to please, please, please never ever do that again. He apologized and said he was thinking about what he was going to have for dinner after the show and just had a momentary blank out. Oh well, like I said, we’ve all done this so I understand. It’s just hard when it happens at such a wildly inappropriate time.
Au Revoir,
Katie

May 19th, 2007
Paris France

Bonjour!
Last night I played in a real Persian Jazz Club. Pianist Louis Mazetier (who some of you may know because he leads the band Paris Washboard) was performing with a group at Le Petit Journal - an aptly named club in the Latin Quarter that caters to more traditional forms of jazz. He called David Boeddinghaus and invited the band and asked us to bring instruments. We finished up at the Opèra Comique around 11 pm and took a cab over. Along with David and I, Otis Bazoon came with his clarinet, and Chris Tyle brought his cornet (I took my guitar). When we arrived at the club, the band (a quintette: tenor sax, trombone, piano, bass, & drums.) was in the middle of a set and so we took seats in the back and ordered drinks.

Imagine the smallest jazz venue you’ve ever seen. Now divide that by half and you’ll have some idea of how small this place is. The room is “L” shaped with the “bandstand” (a small space on the floor with an upright piano pushed against the wall and a drum set) facing the small end of the “L” You have to go down some stairs and underground to reach the cavernous room and It’s practically the smallest club I’ve ever seen. (The smallest club I’ve ever seen/played in was when I went with Clint Baker’s New Orleans Jazz Band to Osaka, Japan. The first night we were there we played a “club” that had been created in a one bedroom apartment in the city. No kidding! The “bar” was the kitchen, and they had to buzz us up from the street level when we arrived!)

I took this photo when we went back to the club to see JP Morel's Foxtrot Orchestra. We had heard they were fabulous (they were!) and we wanted to see how they fit a 10 piece reading band into the club (very carefully!).

When the quintet went on break Louis brought the guys over and introduced everyone, and then he told us to go ahead and get our horns out because the last set would be short (it was about 12:15 and they had to finish around 1) and we should just play the whole time. He told David he’d play one song to get things started and then turn the piano over to him. We had a great time! People seemed to enjoy the oversized band stuffed into this tiny venue and we were all really happy to have the chance to open up and play. I hope we can find more places to do things like this while we’re here.

Getting ready for the show in my dressing room.

The Molière Awards were Monday night and we did not win (we were nominated in the category “best musical”). Allen (who has sung “St. James Infirmary” perfectly every night) said that he saw a performance the play that won the award and that it was a good show and deserving of the win. The dancers appeared on the televised awards show performing a fifteen minute presentation and from what I understand they went over great. And last night when we returned to do the show after having Monday off, the audience was especially enthusiastic. I wonder if that’s because they’d seen a little ‘preview’ on tv the night before? Well these sort of things are always better experienced live. I’m continuing to update my website and now I have a “Letters from Paris” link on the front page. I’ll keep updating it (as time permits) with all the letters I’ve sent out until it’s current. Thanks for passing them around and if you know of anyone that would like to get on my list, just have them send me an email.
Au Revoir,
Katie

May 23rd, 2007
Paris France

Bonjour!
We’ve been having some cold rainy weather but I think it’s finally starting to let up. I’ll be glad because I really like exploring Paris on foot and the novelty of walking in the rain is starting to wear thin. I did explore the area around the Opèra Comique between shows last Saturday and I found the most wonderful candy store. I’m not ashamed to admit I have a sweet tooth, and the chocolate they have here is by far some of the best I’ve ever had. The shop I discovered on my walkabout is called “A La Mère De Famille” and was founded in 1767. So it has existed in some form or another for over 200 years. (That seems so impossible to me.) Well, obviously they’ve been doing something right. It is a proper “chocolatier” but they also had hard candies, candied fruits and nuts, ice cream, marzipan, dessert wines - really anything a person’s sweet tooth might crave. The extravagant sweets are pretty much matched with extravagant prices so I conservatively purchased a tin of mints (les Anis de Flavigny - I got addicted to them over the summer tour) and a handful of caramels that I intended on sharing with my band mates. My intentions were good but I started sampling them on the walk back to the opera house and by the time I arrived they were gone. (I did go back the very next day and buy more that I could share.) Since the shop is only one subway stop and a short walk from the theatre I’m sure I’ll visit it many more times while I’m here. I’ll snap a photo too so you can see how incredible it is!

The view from my dressing room in the Opera Comic.

Traveling by train to Orleans.

On Monday, our day off, we took a little trip to Orleans. It was some sort of publicity thing for the show and they hired the band for the day and gave us first class round trip tickets on the train. Orleans is about an hour south of Paris and even though the morning started out cold and rainy, by the time we took the train the sun was out and by the time we reached Orleans the weather was perfect. The event itself was pretty unremarkable, but I really enjoyed the train trip. The French countryside is beautiful and the train went through stretches of green fields and small towns of little brown stone houses with steeply pitched roofs. There were no less then two tracks so we’d speed past freight trains and little passenger trains. I really wish we had a better train system in the states - it’s a very civilized way of traveling. We finished fairly early in the evening and as we made the trip back the sun was starting to set.

David and I are in the home stretch of completing the score for the show. Our drummer James Alsanders is writing out the drum parts for me which I then add onto the score. It’s really interesting because I have absolutely no concept of how to write drum charts so it’s been a real education. Fortunately it makes good logical sense and James has a really straightforward way of writing so it’s been fun. When we finish the book for good we’re going to celebrate! It’s been a lot of work but it’s been a real learning experience and my ‘Finale’ skills have improved by leaps and bounds. Speaking of celebrating, Jerome has invited the band out to dinner this Friday and he’s taking us to a really nice place so I’m looking forward to that! I know he like the band a lot and he likes the way we play so this is his way of giving us a little ‘thank you’. And what better way to be thanked then with fine French cuisine?

Au Revoir,
Katie

This is the only photo I have of James
playing a drum solo where he's not all 'blurry'.