Happy New Years Eve!

If you know me, you know my mom is a Disney cast member and with that she reads all kinds of really cool articles on the cast portal website. Tonight she brought to my attention an article about two former Disneyland cast members who are now performing in the National Tour of Mary Poppins! Reading that article was quite interesting and the very end statement stood out: "Always talk to people about your dreams and when opportunity comes your way - don't be afraid to take it. There is no such thing as a bad choice; everything is an adventure!" This is by far the coolest quote I've come across and its very true so here's my dream!

My highest goal in life is to own my own Children's Theatre and I'm really on my way! I've volunteered for the past year and a half for Sunny Side Theatre and it has really shown me that this is by far definitely what I want out of life. I love to reach out and touch lives and in many way's I've already done that, however I know what makes me happy and this is it.

By the biggest piece of luck ever my mom saw an article online about Sunny Side Theatre and I swear this was the best thing that could have happened to me so far along! I called the number listed and spoke for the first time to Christopher Paragone who told me to "come in and chat." Most people who own their own kids theatres would have laughed in my face and told me sure you can help with the grunt work. Chris opened his door to helping me learn everything I could about what it was really like to fund your own theatre. In the spring I had the chance to show my true passion for youth theatre when I got to Assistant Direct Honk Jr with Chris. This came with the price of super late nights building sets and finishing costumes right up until opening night! It was honestly one of the most amazing experiences ever!
So far I've assisted him in every show he's done since excluding his summer camp shows because he handed me my own project for the summer! Drama Camp Jr. taught me everything from learning how to speak with parents all the way to knowing exactly when my patience was flying out the window. It also taught me how to deal with younger children on my not so good days. I also owe a lot of my summer experiences to my partner Simms. I couldn't have done it on my own and I was very grateful that she was there to help me everyday! We really made an awesome team!

This fall I was lucky enough to be cast as Gertrude McFuzz in Seussical the Musical at my school. After my huge let down in the spring after coming down with tonsillitis and being pulled from the show, this is exactly what I needed! I had the coolest costume made by the most amazing costume shop manager and I owe a lot of sweat and work to Lori who did so much for me!
Seussical was such an eye opening experience to me! It finally proved to so many what talent I truly had, not that it should matter so much. The best part was having Chris, his wife Christy, their two oldest children Joey and Matthew plus Cassie come along to see my show. I was so excited to see them in the theatre and even more excited to hear what they thought. He was so proud and that made me feel invincible! My parents attended the following weekend and they were beaming with pride as well!
Along with doing Seuss we had a huge group of kids come to see our show who had done it with a community organization. I had no idea what was to come of this. I was basically ushered inside and then all of a sudden a huge burst of applause came out of nowhere and stunned me. I had happened to be a lot of their favorites... or so it seemed!
Overall, this experience showed me just how much I wanted the job with Missoula even more. Being able to combine working with children and performing along with them is just a goal on the list, but I can write all about Missoula tomorrow or in the next few days.

This year has been an amazing one and I truly can't wait to see what is in store for this one coming up! One thing I do know is that Alice in Wonderland Jr is starting to peak over the horizon and I'm just jumping with joy about that!
SETC is in March and I'm starting to search for a job. I'm still hoping and praying that Missoula will offer me my dream job but until then, I'll be applying for just about anything and everything!

My new years resolution?
I have a few. I think the number one priority is to keep working towards finding a job.
Another is to be updating my blog more often. I think I'm going to at least try sticking to this thought, that way I can at least reference back to what I did my last semester of college life.
I'll probably add more tomorrow but I did mention to my Choir teacher that I was going to attempt more purple Wednesdays!

HAPPY NEW YEARS EVE EVERYONE AND BE SAFE!

Penny M. Endicott-