Still kickin'...

Last Sunday my internet stopped working.  It was back to working by Monday morning, but somehow I managed to not write a blog all week...but, here I am! Alive and well.
I did manage to get a few activites in the past two weeks, but schoolwork has become my extracurricular activity as of late, so I haven't done quite as much as I would have liked. 
This I did do:
Friday, October 15th I went over to Princeton University and saw a showing of the silent film version of The Phantom of The Opera with live organ accompaniment.  It was...AMAZING! The school chamber choir, dressed in black robes and hoods, made their way through the darkened cathedral with candles and chanted all at different times and tempi.  Very cool effect! I had never seen A)a silent film B)a film accompanied by live organ accompaniment.  It was an amazing experience, and the organist was phenomenal (and had a lot of stamina to play constantly for over 90 minutes!)
Saturday, October 23 I saw Westminster Choir College's Light in the Piazza.  I had never seen the show, and I had only heard the music once or twice, not enough to say I really knew it well.  I have to admit it's not my favorite show, having now seen it.  None of the music is really memorable and the story is a bit odd and drawn out.  It tells the story of a young girl and her mother traveling to Italy, a young Italian man falls in love with the girl, but sadly the girl was kicked in the head by a pony (yes, a pony) when she was younger and has a slight mental handicap because of it, therefore it is impossible for the two to get married.  So they're not going to.  And then they are. And then they're not going to. And then...well, I won't tell you how it ends...
I was, however, impressed with most of the acting and singing, the sets were gorgeous, and the chamber orchestra was fabulous.  I just wish the book writer could have come up with something better than a pony. 

So, for this week...I feel as though Central Jersey freezes during the Fall & Winter, and I'm not talking about snow.  There seem to be less and less options for interesting arts activities going on, but here's what I came up with:

Friday, October 29th: I may just try my hand at Pick-Your-Own-Apples over at Terhune Orchards before the season comes to an end. There's also a wine tasting from 1-7pm in case the apples prove to be unsatisfying.

@ 8:00pm: The Princeton Day School is doing a production of Almost, Maine. $10.

Saturday, October 30th: It's the last day of The West Windsor Farmers Market.  I will definitely be heading over there for one more helping of vegan amazingness from Catherine's Vegan Sweets!

I may be able to squeeze something else in, but I'll most likely be working on homework the rest of the time.  So, in next week's blog I'll be able to tell you anything you need to know about the musical team Kander & Ebb!

Happy week...

Back to School

Back in New Jersey after a lovely, lovely time down in Orlando, FL.  The weather decided to treat me nicely and the days were gorgeous with a cool breeze and not too hot.  I spent time with wonderful friends, celebrated my birthday, and filled myself with some amazing vegan food (not to be found in Central Jersey ANYWHERE as far as I have found). 
I was reminded how much I love the community of Orlando and the wonderful, local places one can go to just hang out or get some food.  It also re-inspired me to keep trying to find that here.  Random: I met a woman on the plane ride back to Newark who is from Limerick (no joke).  She asked why I was traveling and I told her I had been visiting friends and family.  She told me that she had gone through similar moves several times for school and always had a difficult time with the transition, too.  She reminded me that I would never replace the family I have in Orlando, but that I will meet people here to at least enjoy my time with and make the time between visits with family more enjoyable.  Yay for random people telling me things I need to hear!
Anywho, here's what's on the calendar for this week:

Friday, Oct. 15th
     @ 7:30 pm Concert version of "Le Nozze di Figaro" as a Fundraiser for the Westminster Choir College Class of 2011. Held at Rider University's Bristol Hall Chapel. $5.
     @ 9:00 pm Silent Film "The Phantom of the Opera" with live organ accompaniment. Held at Princeton University Chapel. $10.

Saturday, Oct. 16th
    @ 8:00 pm 24-Hr. Play Festival by Theatre Intime. Held in Hamilton Murray Theatre at Princeton University. $12.
    @ 3:00 & 8:00 pm "Aurelia's Oratorio" at McCarter Theatre.  This is supposed to be amazing. Tickets start at $20, I'll have to check if there's even any left.

And if none of this works out, perhaps I'll go and discover a new park by bike since it finally stopped raining in Mercer County!

Have a lovely week!

When I Think of Home...

Yes, that's right...I'm going home this week, and I could not be looking forward to it any more! But, first...a recap of my New Jersey discoveries for the past week:
Friday night I went to the Pennington Players production of "Seussical the Musical" at Kelsey Theatre.  I was fairly impressed, considering it was a community theatre production, and sometimes the talent in those can be sketchy.  I was thoroughly entertained, and the theatre was a very nice space, located on the campus of Mercer County Community College. 
Saturday I drove up to Lambertville, NJ & New Hope, PA because I had heard from numerous people that these were cool places to hang out.  They were right!  These two towns (connected by a .2 mile bridge)

 are full of adorable shops, coffee shops, cafes, & antique shops...all within walking distance of each other.  I even found a VEGAN restaurant (alert Happy Cow!) called Sprig & Vine in New Hope that has brunch every Sunday from 10am-2pm.  I will definitely be checking that out soon! Anyways, I had lunch at Wildflowers Cafe in New Hope.  They specialize in American, Mexican, and Thai. hmm...I was a little wary, and for good reason...it was a bit on the expensive side and the Pad Thai with Tofu was lacking in the taste department.  It was a very cute place, though, and for the non-vegan it's got TONS of options. 
Overall, I adored my Lambertville/New Hope experience, and will hopefully make many more trips there in the future.
As for next week, I will not be attending any events in the Central New Jersey area, as I will be in ORLANDO, FLORIDA!! Woo hoo!!
So here's where I'll be this week:
Thursday, Friday, & Saturday @ SAK Comedy Lab-the funniest improv comedy theatre in Florida!
Sunday, October 10th @ Hamburger Mary's for "Brunch with Babs" featuring the amazingly talented Carla DelVillaggio as part of Orlando's gigantic Come Out With Pride Festival. 

"When I think of home...I think of a place where there's love overflowing..."