Well, it’s been a couple of months since my last posting and a few things have happened.
First and foremost, Jersey Boys has announced that after two years, the show will be closing on August 22nd, 2010. While I’m happy the production has lasted this long, I’m a little sad that it’s finally going away.
At present, I’m scheduled for 6 more performances, so if you want to come see me in the show, these will be your last few chances to do so! Check my calendar for upcoming show dates/times.
In other news, Dueling Pianos has been a fun new gig for me to expand my singing and entertaining skills. I had 4 dates in May, another 4 in June, and although July only has 1 scheduled, I’m anticipating making the most of that show and playing an increasing number in the coming months. The venue is great, the clientele super-fun, and the experience invaluable. My song list and on-stage persona have improved exponentially since working with and squaring off against such talented piano entertainers as Mark Kersey, Alec Steinwall and Joe Thomson.
In addition to gigging several times a week in June with Soular, Jersey Boys and Dueling Pianos, I devoted some time to creating a piano/vocal score for an up-and-coming musical (to be discussed at a future date, perhaps). I also performed a showcase with my original music band, The Slights, featuring the songwriting and singing talents of Jeff Scott and Nancy Silverman. They are both insanely talented artists and you should definitely check their music out.
Speaking of the Slights… a few years ago, a colleague of mine was working on a short film. I pitched him some music and although he wasn’t interested I decided to bring it to The Slights fairly recently to see what they could do and what direction it would take. Several hours were spent working on the song, creating new sections, and all of a sudden it became its own entity. Ange Pagano wrote a beautiful melody over some very peculiar chord changes and now The Slights have a living, breathing song called “Penny’s Lament”.
Since Penny, I’ve experimented with other sonic ideas I’ve been having over the years and have brought them to the group, each time being amazed at what the other members of the band bring to their sound. Our new song, “Never Be the Same”, explores some really dark textures. It’s been such a liberating and inspiring endeavour to write with talented musicians that when a few members of The Slights had the opportunity to get together for a few days at the beginning of July, we sat down and wrote another new song, re-harmonized some old ones, and added new sections to works-in-progress.
As a result, my already strong commitment to making music with The Slights has morphed into a desire to get us playing more often. We’re now booked to play College Street Bar on the 28th of July, again hosting some up and coming original artists (to be announced).
All in all, it’s been a great few months and although Jersey Boys is coming to a close, I cannot wait to see what the future has in store!