Monday, October 24, 2011

"West End" : The Musical Highlights - It's SHOWTIME!


I believed this was where I left you folks at from the previous post,just right before the ensembles were sent for hair and makeup.So there I was,getting my stage makeup done by a talented,yet hilarious makeup artist,KuYee.We have been reminded over and over again by the producers for not to complain about our makeup,hairdo or costumes.According to them,everything was in order and perfectly done NOT for us to look pretty,but for the audience to notice and enjoy.Quoting the artistic director,o"Regardless when you look in the mirror and see yourselves looking like a monkey,NEVER make any alterations for your own desired fit!Tonight is about looking good for the audience,not yourselves!" Brutal huh?

Unfortunately,my makeup did make me look like a monkey,upfront through the naked eyes.But under the spotlight and cameras,it made me look golden,like a real West End girl ;D So did the rest of us!

I managed to snap a few pictures with my uncountable costumes on before the show actually started.For everyone's convenience,here's the specific run through of the show :

Opening Gambit
Song : Go Go Joseph
Musical : Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
Denna : Lead Female

West End Trailer
Songs : Top Hat,You're The Want That I Want,All That Jazz,Lady Marmalade,You Can't Stop The Beat,Don't Cry For Me Argentina,Mama Mia,Somewhere Over The Rainbow
Musical : Sound of Music,Mama Mia,Chicago,Grease,Evita,High School Musical,Wizard of Oz
Denna : Lead Female for Lady Marmalade 

SHOWTIME
Song : No Business Like Show Business
Musical : Annie Get Your Gun
Denna : Not involved

Song : One Night Only
Musical : Dream Girl
Denna : 1 of 3 Dream Girl Singers

Song : Take A Chance On Me,Dancing Queen,Mama Mia,Thank You For The Music (ABBA Medley)
Musical : Mama Mia
Denna : Lead Female for Mama Mia & Thank You For The Music

Song : Grease,We Go Together
Musical : Grease
Denna : 1 of the Lead Females for Grease & We Go Together

Song : Copacabana (At The Copa)
Musical : Copacabana
Denna : 1 of 4 Salsa Dancers

Finale
Songs : Finally,Shake Your Groove Thing,Hot Stuff,I Love The Nightlife,I Will Survive
Musical : Priscilla Queen of The Desert
Denna : Involved in all

Now that everyone has a clearer picture on the musical numbers we were doing,it would be a lot easier for me to describe the details of the musical performances.With pictures,of course.Not that I have any picture taken while we were performing on stage -_-

This was the costume meant for the opening gambit of Go Go Joseph.Thanks to a dear friend/technical crew,Hafiz,we managed to snap this picture just right before we went up on stage.Boy,were we nervous!I could barely feel my legs!It was shaking with the thought of me going up stage and dance right in front,in the middle!I was the lead for this number (proud of me yet,Ayah & Ibu?) and trust me,I never volunteered to be one.The routine was tough and tricky.I could slip any minute and ruined the whole thing,but luckily,I didn't that night =)

This was the costume for our West End Trailer and again,this picture was taken just before I went up stage.When not asking Hafiz to snap the picture for me,I pulled him into the picture instead!The top hat I was wearing was awfully big for me.But it managed to stay on my little head as I was doing that sexy thang with my bootie to Lady Marmalade ;) Almost at the end of the trailer,I was responsible to be at the top of a pyramid and that night,the foundation of the pyramid was shaky (thanks to the guys!Huh!) so I fell off behind instead of the front of the pyramid!But nobody was hurt =)

Before.....
....and After.
We were the Dream Girls!I know right?The wigs looked crazy on us and we might as well should just be the lead roles in Priscilla Queen of The Desert being drag queens instead of Dream Girls!Despite the fact that the dresses made it hard for us to walk,I totally loved the details on them.They were so beautiful and glamourous!When will I ever wear another dress like this?!

Next,I should be displaying a picture of me in Mama Mia's costume but sad to say that I never got the chance to even feel its fabric in the 1st place.When it was given,we only had time to arrange it in order of its appearance.I was given to wear a pink knee length glittery dress,accessorized with pink silk gloves and a nuthead pink bob wig!You folks couldn't imagine how ridiculous I looked on stage with the pink wig!It wasn't just hideous,but it kept sticking into my mouth everytime I tossed and turned doing my dance routine!And the bangs were too long that it almost blocked the upper half of my eyes!Everytime I mentioned about the wig to Ibu,she just couldn't stop laughing and said that I looked totally cute in it!Cute was never good -_-

Moving on to Grease.We were the leading ladies of the musical number and didn't we look adorable in our '60s outfit? ;;) The full skirt,bow headband and white sunnies were just so me!Loving every moment of wearing that costume as it was the comfiest among the rest of other costumes.This picture was taken even before the whole show started so didn't even have lipstick on.I was happily twirling and prancing on stage to the beat of We Go Together from the musical Grease,and apparently the crowd cheered for this number the most!I bet most of them missed being young,fun and Grease-y =)
The guys of Grease were looking nerdier and cuter than ever =D

The Cha-cha girls of Copacabana Club!I absolutely have no way to describe this costume for Copacabana number.It was exquisite,sexy,glamourous and difficult to put on.There were velcros everywhere!But we all loved doing cha-chas,so the costume complement every of our movement.

As we were getting ready for the Finale in the changing room,suddenly we heard commotions out in the Grand Ballroom.People were cheering,screaming,whispering and clapping at the same time.For all we knew,the legendary David Foster and Michael Bolton attended our humble event!Out of nowhere,we heard Michael Bolton's husky voice singing 'When A Man Loves A Woman' on the microphone!I quickly ran backstage at peeped through the curtains and saw Michael Bolton performing,for real!My heart almost stopped!I've always loved to listen to Michael Bolton's songs when I was little,and that night,the man himself (with a short haircut now) was singing right in front of my eyes.According to the audience of the event,David Foster sat next to our producer of the event as he was playing his piano on stage =)

So,the night finally ended.Tears....tears...tears....

No words could describe how much I would miss the moments of being part of a so-called West End production.If I were to be excellent in acting,singing and dancing,I would've joined the real production in a heartbeat.But too bad,my fortes were and still are only dancing and smiling,so there I was,performing in a fake production of West End =P

I know I looked like The Joker in Batman in those red lips but I'll treasure this picture of Autumn,Abang Ahmad Kassan (choreographer) and I til the next project that will meet us again.

A million thanks to my wonderful parents who were willing to spare some of their time attending my big show night all suited up.Their attendance meant a lot more than I could ever imagine,even without their could-be-useful dslr =P

I don't know what's coming up next but I sure am ready to jump into another production anytime they need me.I'll keep my hopes high.

So til then folks,goodnight!