Last Day!

Here we are, coming up on our last day of rehearsals at NC State University. We have had a wonderful time here, and we're looking forward to putting the final touches on the piece.

The past few days have been full of both lovely work and lovely rest. During Monday's rehearsal, the dancers worked very hard to learn a challenging phrase for the final section of the piece. I think it came as a surprise to some, given the mellow work for prior sections we worked on. All the sweat paid off though, and now both the quilt section and the finale section are finished. I think having an audience helped boost the morale of the students as they worked through the phrase. Many of the students that came to our arts village session last week attended this rehearsal, which was open for their viewing. Many students that were not at our arts village session came, as well. All that is left for today's rehearsal are the transition sections, which Laura began work on during the first two rehearsals.

Monday was also a day of wonderful activities just for us. Laura and I both got much needed massages, after all that time in the car. We got ice cream, and walked. We had dinner at a wonderful restaurant called Porter's, and we felt great. I am learning both the importance of rest during intense work periods and the art of it, too. It felt great to claim our free time as our own.

Yesterday was a pretty relaxed day in terms of our NCSU obligations, so we decided to play some, and get some work done for our personal art practices, too. We went to IHOP and ate pancakes for breakfast, as Laura's car was getting an oil change. We then decided to head downtown. Laura's sister is getting married shortly, and Laura needed a Maid of Honor dress, which Molly (Laura's sister) left to Laura to select. We went into the bridal shop, and as Laura was getting serious trying on wonderful dresses, I was playing dress up! I have to tell you, the whole thing was my idea...I felt bad at first, knowing I wasn't there to buy anything, but since Laura was, I didn't feel so bad anymore! I tried on some amazing dresses, and some very ugly dresses. However, I thoroughly enjoyed myself! Laura found the most wonderful dress for the wedding. A deep blue halter with ruffles around the collar. Fit her like a glove!

We spent the rest of the afternoon working on charting songs for Laura's upcoming Bach and Beatles concert. After that, Laura gave me a singing lesson! It was fun to hear her approach to singing after studying with Barbara all these months. Laura is a great teacher, and had me engage in much ridiculousness, which I love and appreciate. I can't wait for my lesson with Barbara on Saturday, as I hope my extra practice will show when I sing for her next.

This afternoon, I teach a technique class for the NCSU Dance Company, another dance group at NCSU, before our rehearsal with the Panoramic Dance Project. Then it's goodbye NCSU, and back on the road to Winston! I'm so excited to be going home. I miss my husband, and my cat terribly!

~Cara