Tour THAT

The City That Never Sleeps. The End?

2008-11-13T07:27:00.000-08:00

Once again, I am back on a plane. It’s no different than any other I’ve been on in the past 2 years, except for the size. It’s a small commuter jet with a row of blue leather seats on one the left side, and twin seats on the other. But for me, the airplane has come to represent one thing: change. Either I’m traveling home to get some rest and relaxation, or I’m traveling to another city to perform. There is change coming out of the air vent above my seat. I think this change smells like body odor. But I don’t mind it this time. Well, maybe I do. But all I know is that this small vessel is carrying me to something I’ve dreamed of for years: performing on Broadway.

Broadway is something of a modern-age performing Mecca of sorts. We all eventually make a pilgrimage to see what Broadway really is about. I’ve made the pilgrimage many times before. However, this time, my stay will be longer than a week, and I will be standing in the place where many of the greatest actors of the American Stage have performed. Incredible.

Who let this happen? Who let this former-computer-nerd-programmer who hated C++ arrive at the epicenter of American theater? Who knows? Well, there are a lot of people I know, but too many to thank. Just to be fair though, I want to thank my parents for sticking with me when I said I wanted to be an actor (they supported me no matter what I did), for understanding that I skipped out on fun activities to go perform (I think I have performed on my Birthday many times), and helping me in any way, shape, or form (thanks for sending me my mail and enduring a ‘internet-video-chat class’). I would never be here without you. Your constant reality checks and logical ways of handling problems have always pushed me to assess my strengths and weaknesses logically, and pushed me to always be the best I can be.

Meanwhile, today, I have my first rehearsal with the Broadway Company, and I will be reunited with tour veterans Miles and Eric G in the show, as well as all my New York pals. And yet, I leave Toronto with a heavy heart, as all my tour buddies will be going on to Denver and parts unknown without me. I send all my love and warmth to you, and all the best through these cold, winter months through very cold states. I know you, the audience, will take care of them for me.

So... the title of this blog is “Tour That”. And I think that for now, Tour That will be shutting down. I’ve blogged a lot this past year, and I hope I have filled your minds with what it’s like to live on the road. I have so many projects to start up, and you can follow my adventures there. For now, “Tour That” will go into retirement as I start my Broadway Career. But here’s a few links that you can watch if you want to stalk me, post “Tour That”:

You can catch me on Facebook and on Myspace.

Sometimes I blog about my thoughts at http://taylorishere.com/. It’s a bit tech and consumer heavy, but if you’re a nerd like me, maybe you’ll get something out of it.

I usually post art (sometimes personal) photos on my flickr feed at http://flickr.com/photos/taylorishere. I’m a photographer on the side, and I’ll probably set up a photography business in NYC in the meantime.

I am a twitterer. You can follow my professional announcements at twitter.com/taylorsternberg , or get a bit more personal at twitter.com/taylorishere

I’m starting up a few side internet projects which will launch in the next few months. I’m an avid videogamer (catch me on xbox live: taylorishere), and will do some videogame writing with some friends at buytryfail.com.

I also am fascinated by what people carry in their daily bags, so I’m starting a “What’s In Your Bag” blog at bagshare.com

Before I went on tour, I used to teach voice, so I’ll probably set up my vocal instruction business again after the first of the year. I don’t have a link yet, but watch out for that.

I aggregate all my content on friendfeed.com/taylorishere, so if you don’t want to look at all those different pages, you can see all my posts in the same place there.

Thank you ever so much for following me, reading what I have to say, and replying to me. I love hearing from you, and will always try to reply the best I can. I wouldn’t be here without you.

Anyway, I’ve got a life to live, so watch out New York: here I come. See you there.

Maple Syrup and The Letter 'Eh'

2008-11-02T07:57:00.000-08:00

Yes, it's been a long time coming for a new blog post, but that's because I've found someone. Someone who I can love, and who will love me back. She can be cold at times, but usually is full of life and fun.

Her name is, Toronto.

This place is fantastic. The streets are filled with people walking from place to place, the streets are clean, there is vibrance, commerce, and good food everywhere. Plus, the public transportation will take you anywhere (when it doesn't occasionally shut down). I think, if I wasn't in this business, I would consider trying to live in Toronto. It really is an incredible place.

But day to day, it's been such a treat. I feel like I have a bit of a life, and I'm not stuck in my hotel room because of lack of transportation. I'm even getting out and taking a few classes here and there.

I even got a Frankie performance!

Audiences in Toronto are very nice and polite. Almost too polite at times: the first few rows sit down during the "bonus", and I just think "You're already standing up, don't worry, have fun!"

But, as usually, I will have to leave and move on to the next place. But, since there's a lot of things here in Toronto to discuss, I'll leave my points in a bulleted list:

Hockey. I love it. But the Toronto Maple Leafs are about as good as the LA Kings (both teams, not so good)
Tim Hortons. It can be considered a nicer Dunkin Donuts, with sandwiches, cookies, biscuits, tea, coffee, and everything else. It is a usual stop after dinner before a show.
Queen West. For those who know Melrose Blvd in Los Angeles, it's a bit like that: a kitschy fashion / style shopping street.
Kensington Marketplace. Once again, comparisons to LA: it's a bit like Venice Beach, without the beach. Total hippie central.
Coffee Crisp. A fantastic chocolate bar that we don't get in the states, but has the taste of coffee wafers.
A distinct Euro vibe. It can be considered "America Lite" here, but there is a distinct European overtone. Perhaps it's the vibrance in the streets.
Hanging out with other casts, like Spamalot, Dirty Dancing, and A Chorus Line.
"Triumph". Steve Gouveia is a big fan of this Canadian band (and in turn, has made me a fan as well). And they even came to the show! Here's a video:
Kara (female swing) and Junior (crew) got married up here, and I got to photograph their wedding. It was my first professional wedding gig!
Lots of escalators here seem to be broken.

Meanwhile, we've had some shakeups in the cast: Jamie Karen left, and to replace her, we have Jeremy's fantastically talented wife Jenny Lee Stern. Zach Prince left, and to replace him, we have the energetic and solid Graham Fenton (who was a swing in Vegas). And there's this new guy hanging around here named Ryan Strand... I wonder who he's here to replace...?

I hear there's an opening on Broadway for a swing.

Big D

2008-08-18T20:38:00.000-07:00

Alright. I'm out of Dallas. To be honest, I don't have much to say about Dallas. I didn't really spend much time in Dallas. I spent a week in Los Angeles to get some R&R, but I really don't have much to report about Dallas except the following few points:

-The house itself reminds me of Sacramento / St. Louis, where as it feels as if the balcony is quite far away. Getting information out and back was interesting
-The first place I stayed was near Stemmons Freeway, where, on the first few days we stayed there, the front desk was held up at gunpoint and a car was broken into. After my vacation, I moved up to live with my Uncle in Carrollton.
-Driving in Dallas gets confusing. There are a lot of different on ramps / off ramps that go in different directions which don't feel like they go in the direction you want. Plus lots of toll roads.
- We spent a lot of time rehearsing for Toronto, so we didn't get a lot of time to get out. At least I didn't.
- The group who hosted us in Dallas were fantastic, and offered tickets to various Dallas locations, a fantastic opening night party, and catered food every day between 2 day shows! Thank you ever so much! We felt so welcome.
- I got to go on a lot, including a week of Hank the last week of Dallas.

Which means that Matt Bailey did a week of Tommy DeVitos. And Erik Bates went on vacation.

Otherwise, we were very busy gearing up for our big opening in Toronto! And here I am, and I really love it already (I've been here a day).

And in closing, I promised Ty (one of the folks who helped us get fed between shows) that I would mention her on my blog. Ask, and Ye Shall Receive.

Did some time in old Ohio

2008-07-21T15:07:00.000-07:00

Well, I’ve now spent 9 weeks in Ohio (4 in Cincinnati, 4 in Cleveland, with a week of vacation in there somewhere), and I can now safely say I’ve escaped the midwest. I’m writing to you from 36,000 feet somewhere above Tennessee, on my way to our next stop: Dallas, Texas.

I use the word escape specifically. Ohio was not a cakewalk. Sure, our audiences were fantastic there, and especially got excited and vocal every time we mentioned “Ohio” (See “Welcome to Cleveland, you’re under arrest” and “The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”). But the downtown areas of Cincinnati and Cleveland are a bit, barren, so to speak. These areas almost remind me of Downtown LA. A lot of concrete, but not a lot of action.

Cincinnati is the lesser black hole of the two, with some decent food and bar options in walking distance, as well as exciting things like “The Taste of Cincinnati”, which is a food festival downtown. Also, don’t forget the monumental Grater’s Ice Cream (I did not try the Sky Chili because I am not partial to chili or mountains of cheese). But try to venture out of a 4-5 block radius downtown, and you’re in a more dangerous area.

Cleveland was a bit more barren, where as the only thing around was the theater district. Sure, there’s the Warehouse District, and the House of Blues area, but it wasn’t as accessible as in other cities. Otherwise, Cleveland is going through a bit of restructuring. There’s constant construction on the main street, which has forced almost all commerce and people away from that community. So, most of us stayed at The Reserve Square, which many of us called “The BioSphere” because almost everything you would need was in the same building: doctors, a grocery market, a bar, a Subway, a [dirty] gym, and a free, thrice weekly yoga class (Thank you Jane!).

The real action in Ohio exists outside the downtown areas, in the suburbs. I got to see a lot of suburban Ohio, but I’ll leave that for later in the post.

So, there isn’t much to report on the cities of Ohio. Most of the action was happening in Jersey Boys itself. The first of which was the loss of our Lorraine, Holly Anne Butler. She gave her notice, and left at the end of Cincinnati. She had a great run, and we will miss her energy and spark. The second was our original Frankie, Chris Jones. You sir, are a warm, friendly spirit, with the work ethic of a freight train (the guy hardly ever called out!), and was always a pleasure to work with. I’ll miss you a lot, and I’ll see you both when I get out to New York. For those of you who don’t know, Chris Jones is now doing “Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” with his Amazing, Technicolor wife Jenna Coker-Jones at Stages in St. Louis.

Holly Anne was replaced by our very own Sarah Darling (formerly Francine), and Chris Jones was replaced by our very (relative - see Vegas) own Joe Bwarie. They both have embraced the roles, and are wowing crowds with their new takes on the characters. To replace Sarah is a new hire, Miss Denise Payne. Denise is a great addition, and is a fun, bubbly energy on stage. You will all adore her.

And then, in Cincinnati, Miles got “the call”. The role of Norm “The Bag” Waxman on Broadway was played by Donnie Kher. But Donnie found a new job. So they called Miles “The Guitar” Aubrey to replace him. And we couldn’t be more excited for the guy! He’s off to join his wife in New York, and start a fantastic new life. And by wife, I mean Eric Gutman.

Just kidding. But Joe and Charlie are back together again. Hooray!

So, the reshuffling continues. To replace Miles, we have none other than our resident jokester-du-jour Buck Hujabre (who formerly played Knuckles) to take the mustache, collect the vig, and jam it up on guitar as Charlie Colello. To replace Buck, we have the new John Gardnier, who is a fantastic Knuckles, and a bright spirit. Congrats to everyone!

So, it’s a bunch of new faces, which is good. And Dallas won’t know what hit it when we blow into town!

This is getting long. Shall we continue?

To fill my time in Ohio, I booked a bunch of teaching gigs, including dance classes and improv classes (I’ve been doing improv for about a decade. Great to learn, and in my opinion, essential training for actors). So through my teaching gigs, I got to see the suburbs of Ohio, and work with the up-and-coming creatives. This included a week long session in Cleveland with the kids of the “Jersey Boys Camp”. Almost all the Jersey Boys Cast members came in and taught a class to the high-school aged students. The students were fantastic, and always surprised us with their creativity, warmth, and skill. And Dallas, if you want to book a class with us, contact our teaching agent at Broadway Connection. I love to teach, and it’s a great way to share what I’ve learned throughout the years.

I also made a venture to my family in Columbus, Ohio. My mother’s side of the family has roots there, and almost all of them are still there. My mother’s cousin was my proverbial “ship-director”, and we had a great time together having family dinners, visiting with relatives, and even taking a yoga class together. She also invited myself and a few cast members up to Catawba Island for some July 4th festivites. I couldn’t have asked for anything more!

Well, I think that’s all to report, other than, on my way out, quickly seeing a midnight screening of The Dark Knight (great), and a day later, Mamma Mia (make your own opinions on that one).

Time to head to Dallas for some heat, good-ol’ southern cookin’, and mechanical bull rides!

Did I misspell anything? I think so.

The Singing Office

2008-07-12T07:23:00.000-07:00

Hey, I know I haven't posted in a while. It's coming, but I just wanted to remind you all that:

I will be appearing on The Singing Office on TLC this Sunday, July 13th at 9pm (8pm Central)!

Gateway To The West

2008-05-19T18:24:00.000-07:00

I am writing this while sitting on a bus. I am surrounded by sights of lush, green flats, swollen waterways, and an expanse of road ahead of me. However, it is overcast: what a way to see the countryside.

But our run in St. Louis is over. 4 weeks of toasted ravioli, Cardinals fans, and living under the shadow of a giant metal arch. However, St. Louis has a few of the caveats of Tampa, with the ambition of Los Angeles. In St. Louis, if you want to get anywhere, you have to drive, and that makes life difficult when you don’t have a car. Getting groceries was sometimes quite the affair, as well as finding a movie theater. The infrastructure of St. Louis is very spread out, but they’re working on revitalizing the downtown area, which reminds me of Los Angeles: there is a housing initiative with plenty of lofts and housing available for those willing to pick it up. Anyway, I enjoyed St. Louis, but it transportation was tough.

St. Louis audiences loved us, but being that it was the largest house we’ve ever played, it’s such a different experience. You have to be receptive to the way the information hits the audience. The emotional beats are much different than being in a house of half the size. Furthermore, I got to perform as Frankie 3 times! And I want to thank everyone who emailed me after each performance. Your kind words mean the world to me. But that’s not the only exciting thing: Matt Bailey made his debut as Bob Gaudio with excellent skill, and Miles Aubrey returned to the stage as Bob Gaudio as well. They both rocked, and I’m very proud of both of them.

As for St. Louis items: I visited the Arch, but I feel like it's more epic sitting on the grass below, in it's shadow, rather than being up in it. The top feels like every other tall thing I've been in (Empire state building, Stratosphere, etc) Going up in it is a little wild as well. It's a very close quarters. Some describe at something out of Woody Allen's "Sleeper".

I tried toasted ravioli. I enjoyed it, but the health factor came into my mind. It's certainly a once in a while thing. The whole deep frying thing.

I had the frozen custard. Brilliant. I would have more.

I skipped the St. Louis style Pizza. They use Provel cheese. I think I rest my case.

Otherwise, I have arrived in Cincinnati now. Tomorrow is a free day for me to explore. I saw a camera store on my way in, so I'm very excited about that. Then back to work on Wednesday.

Alright, that's it for things on my mind now.

Don't forget, The Singing Office premieres on June 29th. Watch for me. I'm told I'm in a few of the commercials as well!

UPDATE: The Singing Office will be in early primetime (8 or 9 pm) once a week. The exact time slot is not set yet.

My friend, John Altieri

2008-05-04T22:20:00.001-07:00

As you may or may not know, John Altieri passed away today from, what I believe to be, complications with pneumonia. Definitive information has been sparse, but what I can tell you is that he went peacefully, without pain, with his family near.

For those of you who did not know him, John was nothing but a golden boy. A free spirit, with a constant smile. A health-o-holic, who woke up at 7am to get a Yoga class in. He was a professional through and through. He was kind. He was mischievous. Whenever I was on as Mika, he would jump and attack me with a smile on his face just before we pushed out the yellow couch. He watched "24" with me. He was an LA guy, like me. He was a hiking buddy. He lived life to the fullest, and sought to seek out every last morsel of fun.

He was a true friend, a peaceful man, and lived life with joy and vigor.

Love to you, your friends, and your family.

Question time?

2008-05-01T13:05:00.000-07:00

Hey, I thought this might be a cool idea: post any questions you might have about the show, The Four Seasons, me, etc, and I'll try to answer a few to the best of my ability!

Leave your questions in the comments. I will reply in the comments thread.

UPDATE: Please leave your name or something. It makes replying easier.

Arch Town

2008-04-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

Well, Minneapolis came and went, even if I left a little early. I took my first week vacation on tour, and went home to see friends, family, did a little work as a vocal coach for TLC’s The Singing Office (coming this summer), and enjoyed the much needed warmth of Southern California.

I can safely say, that despite the cold in Minneapolis, a thoroughly enjoyed it! The downtown area is vibrant with commerce, people, energy, and... jeez, I sound like a promoter for the city. I missed some of the more suburban areas, but I did drive through a few times. The areas outside of downtown feel a bit like Melrose Ave in Los Angeles, where you can really walk and be somewhere. If you’re walking most places in LA, you’re not really anywhere, but in a chasm between one place and another.

There are a few moments that stick out in my mind:

Nathan, Matt, and I went to “Fogo De Chao”, a Brazilian BBQ restaurant, which is like a reverse gourmet buffet. Instead of you going to the food, the food comes to you. We had a great time, and a great meal. And I think the phrase “hit a wall” comes to mind in the amount that we ate. I feel a bit guilty.

A group of us sang The National Anthem at the Twins Home Opener against (my pseudo-team) The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Yeah, don’t get me started on the name... it’s a hot button issue in Southern Cali. We sounded great, the arrangement was great, and afterward, enjoyed a mild, lukewarm baseball game (not a lot of drama, not the best pitching, etc, etc). But we had a suite, and that, my friends, makes all the difference.

I got to hang out with the casts of Drowsy Chaperone and High School Musical, and learn how their experience is different from ours. And of course, we talked about business and the like. So whatever. I made some new friends.

The Mall of America is big, but a mall none-the-less. I did it. End of story. Sadly, I did not get to ride a roller coaster. The one I wanted to ride was broken.

Rock Like A Man was phenomenal! We sold over 200 tickets pre-sale, and had a full house the night of the show. Everyone was so fantastic, and it was a great release for us, as musicians and performers. It was just a night of us doing what we love, and sharing ourselves with the audience. I sang “Spirit of Radio” by Rush. When I first presented it to the band, and I’ll be honest, they sounded a bit intimidated. But at the performance, they were flawless! I, however, was not. In the beginning of the number, I was trying to feel the music and do my “rock” moves. However, I got a little to crazy, and the microphone came out of the stand! Trying to recover, I grabbed the mic cable, and tried to flip it up, Roger Daltrey style. That failed as well, as the mic came out from the cable! Thankfully, I was able to recover quickly, and regained my composure before the vocals started. I yelled the song a bit that night, but for me, RLAM wasn’t about sounding perfect. It was about having fun. And man, did we have fun. Overall, we raised over $11,000!

Aaaaaand, I got to play Frankie again! I love playing the role, and I had so much fun. My confidence was up, my voice felt good, and found myself feeling grounded in the role. I can’t tell you how much of a pleasure it is to work with the guys up there, and share the story with the audience.

So, I am actually writing this from my airplane seat, on my way to St. Louis. Who knows what Missouri will hold for us. My dad says it’s a great place, but I hope that holds true without having a car! All I can say is this: the forecast for tomorrow is sunny and 75 degrees. Hooray!

Spring Snow

2008-03-25T19:47:00.001-07:00

Alright, where I left off:

So we're here in Minneapolis, and for the first few days, it snowed.. for 3 days in a row. And for a guy like me, born and raised in 77 degree, constantly sunny Los Angeles, that's cold. I think it was 30 degrees. I know you live in a place where it's -20 all the time, but I have never experienced that... so call me chicken, it's cold.

But I've found time to explore downtown Minneapolis, and it's really great. Great night life, great bars, restaurants, etc. all within walking distance. Yoga classes at the YMCA, a bar right next to the theater. It's really great. But once again, the problem is the cold. I would be out taking photos or exploring, but it's just so darn cold for me! Thankfully Minneapolis has a skyway that connects different buildings, so you're inside as you cross streets. Oh well, hopefully it'll warm up a bit before I get out of here.

So, to look forward to here in Minneapolis: Singing the National Anthem at the Twins Game opening (12 cast members), and the Rock Like A Man concert, maybe hanging out with the casts of Drowsy Chaperone and High School Musical. Who knows. Minneapolis will be fun. But I'll be leaving early, as I will be taking my first vacation... hooray!

I'll be heading home to LA to do a little work on a project for TV. Not sure how much I can talk about it, but I will be a consultant for the show. I don't think you'll see me on camera (who knows, maybe you will... you guys have found my parents, and you'll probably find me as well), but it'll be a fun experience. I'll expose more as things get going, but based on legal stuff, I don't know how much I can discuss. I'll let you guys know.

So, Minneapolis is totally cool. And I don't mean temperature.

And big congrats to Buck Hujabre, who replaced Nate Klau out here on tour. He's a great addition, a great energy, and he started his run here in Minneapolis.

Alright, I gotta go sell tickets to RLAM. Later.

Exit From The South

2008-03-19T18:40:00.001-07:00

So, Tampa came and went. And you all were right, there are plenty of things to do in Tampa. The problem is, you really have to drive long distances to get anywhere you want to go! I guess I'm spoiled by places like Seattle, NYC, and the like, where everything you might need is pretty close to the metropolitan center.

But, Tampa wasn't uneventful. A few people came to visit us:

First of which, Frankie came by to say hello. He was in town doing a gig, and Erik Bates was one of his backup singers not too long ago. So Frankie came to see Erik do Tommy, as well as the rest of us do our thing. He's always very gracious, and it was a treat to see him.

We also got to meet Charlie Calello, who was one of the "New Seasons", and is featured in Jersey Boys.

And then Tampa was holding the "Miss Tampa" competition, and I got to meet Miss Tampa and Miss Florida! They were very cool, and were excited to see me... which is weird, because I feel so normal, and they feel so normal. It was a clash of us thinking each other was the coolest, when in reality, we all lead normal, everyday lives, except we let a lot of people watch us.

So that was Tampa. We went to Clearwater one day, and the next day had a beer at a local bar. That was pretty much it for Tampa. It rained a bit, was cold, warm, etc. But our "Faux-Summer" is over, and now we're in Minneapolis, which is colder than Tampa... much colder.

Speaking of Minneapolis, here's the finished product of what I hinted at before:

Yes, we're doing a BC/EFA benefit concert in Minneapolis at The Shout House. We will be performing on April 7th at 7:30pm. Tickets are $20 and available at the door.

I'm tired, and I'll continue this post tomorrow.

What is THIS?

2008-03-12T20:01:00.000-07:00

Hrm... this looks interesting... :)

I wonder what this is about? (I know exactly what it's about :-D)

Let the speculation begin!

Flatlands

2008-02-23T19:11:00.000-08:00

So I was able to spend some time at home before heading out to Tampa. Going home is always about business. I had a few business meetings, visited with some friends (all great actors themselves), and had a nice time off. I almost never have enough time to do everything.

"Business meetings?" you say? I may have a few things to announce in the near future... stay tuned.

But Tampa, Florida: home of The Tampa Bay Lightning (Hockey team), beaches, and... for all intensive purposes, not much else thus far. Tamps is very flat, and very spread out. If you want to get anywhere, you really have to drive. Yes, you have to drive much further than in LA. I drove almost 40 minutes to get to a camera store that didn't even have the lens I wanted... yeah right, boo hoo.

If the ocean was warmer, I would spend more time at the beach, but the ocean is not warm this time of year. So far, all I have found have been bars, restaurants, and shopping.

Matt Bailey and I are living together in a fantastic condo a few miles from the theater, and have been frequenting Channelside, a little restaurant/bar area, with a bowling bar called Splitsville. We've been known to hang around there for a drink. Last week, we actually were able to get the whole cast out for a few games!

But Tampa is still new for us. I'm sure I'll have a few more things to say by the end, even after a visit to my friend in Orlando (who is currently in Blue Man Group), or trying out Ybor city.

I don't know. Got any ideas of what to do in Tampa?

I will not swim with manatees.

Presidential Gun Collection

2008-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

Well folks, Houston came and went. We finally got some great days of sun and heat. FINALLY.

I first of all, want to thank the people of Houston for being so kind to us. You really made us feel like rock stars.

At first I was worried when we got to Houston. Our first audience was very polite. They weren't as vocally responsive as some of our other audiences. It seemed as they wanted to applaud in the right places and for the appropriate amounts of time. But by the end of that night, and for the rest of the run, people returned to what we love: whistling, dancing in the aisles, singing along, etc. You, the audiences, really made Houston feel great. Thank you so much.

And for all you superfans out there, I think you found out about my little Sherry Tour secret before I officially told everyone (sorry... ya'll) what happened.

Yes, we met President George H. W. Bush, and Mrs. Barbara Bush:

President Bush came to our matinee (on Super Bowl Sunday), and visited us backstage during intermission.

And I know what you're saying:

A) I love George H. W. Bush!
B) I hate George H. W. Bush!

Well, everyone has their own opinion, but here's how I felt:

Regardless of your opinion, it is a rare chance to meet a President, and I have to tell you, they were very nice to us, which was important to me. He was patient with us, and took pictures with everyone who wanted to take one. He even invited us to his office!

So, a few days later, we went to his office. We were greeted with smiles and handshakes from his staff. We were given a tour of the office by President Bush himself, and he was very proud of the new Aircraft Carrier named after him.

After a tour of his office, with his many pictures and trinkets from his tenure as President, he took more pictures with us, before taking us into his conference room.

In his conference room, he has two glass cabinets FULL of guns: glocks, sigs, shotguns, etc. He asked if anyone wanted to see the guns, and of course, we did. I assumed we were just going to look at these extremely detailed guns from behind the glass.

And then he opens a cabinet, and starts handing out guns.

Needless to say I was surprised. And then totally stoked.

So we all touched plenty of his Presidential guns, but the visit had to come to an end. So he let us go, with a parting gift: Presidential Seal cufflinks!

And that was our experience with President GHWB.

As for the rest of Houston, I ate a lot of Houston cooking. We spent our time in and out of BBQ restaurants, two of which I remember well: Otto's, and Pappas, both, I believe, to epitomize the BBQ experience of Houston. Also, we would make a weekly trip to Kenny and Ziggy's, a fantastic NY style Deli in Houston.

A big thank you to the people of Houston, thank you for your Southern Hospitality.

So that was Houston... doing shows, eating, holding guns, Hanging out with The Bushes, and before all had been said and done, we start our trek to Tampa!

Hope to see you there!

Everything Is Bigger In Texas

2008-01-27T18:28:00.000-08:00

Well, here we are in Houston, Texas. We escaped the cloudy days and rain of Seattle, to the Sunny, Warm....

Wait. No.

As we landed in Houston, we were met with cold weather (around 40 degrees, give or take few degrees), and rain. Cold and rainy. The Sherry Company has been overdue for sunlight. So, the sun decided to come out starting Saturday, and of course, we had to be inside all day for our first day of sun! And Monday did not give us more. There's always tomorrow...

Hrm. Tuesday. Scratch that.

As for the changes that I was talking about before, we have gained many new cast members, and lost a few as well.

Erich Bergen has left us, and has been replaced with Andrew Rannells.

John Altieri has left us, and has been replaced with Jonathan Hadley.

Zach Prince left us for a bit, and has been temporarily replaced by Joe Leo Bwarie. But Zach comes back soon.

We had a new swing join us: Nathan Scherich who is there to replace:

Erik Bates, who replaced Deven May, who left us after Seattle.

Erik has been with me since day one with the Sherry Company. He has been a mentor and a friend to me; words cannot describe how proud I am of him, and I congratulate him on his role. He is simply fantastic, along with all the other folks who joined us!

Deven had a going away our last night in Seattle, and I made the toast. I spoke of how Deven is one of the nicest men I've ever met, with no overbearing ego, full of love and life. I wish Deven luck in the future, and I hope our paths cross again.

And tonight, another person who has been with us since the beginning leaves us: Jennifer Evans. Jennifer was our fantastic female swing, and will be missed. She will be replaced by Kara Tremel, from the Chicago Company.

Well, as you can see, The Sherry Company is changing, but we still do the shows we're known to do: giving audiences a great night out at the theater.

As for the Houston audiences, I can't say that I know all to well, as I have not gone on yet here in Houston, but I've been watching on certain nights, and Houston loves us! We couldn't be any more pleased with our reception here in Houston, and look forward to the rest of our run. I'll probably go on next week, and I'll know exactly what it's like!

As for our fabulous Monday off (our last one until we head to Tampa), a few of us went to go see U2 3D at the IMAX. It was really cool. If you like U2 (or worship them, like Nate), or just love rock music, it's a great experience. I'll hand it to them, they're one of the best bands out there, still making relevant music. Rock.

So what will the future bring for The Sherry Company? Who knows... time will tell. But I think Sarah Darling is working on the predictions:

I'm Pale

2008-01-13T11:02:00.000-08:00

I know some of you wanted to see the first and second place doors from the "Jersey Holiday Door Contest".

Here they are:

Second Place: Lori Byars, with a poster made with jelly beans and real working lights:

First Place: John Altieri and Erich Bergen with their Vegas door:

Well, it’s been a hectic two weeks. Let me explain.

I believe it’s now common knowledge that at the end of each city run, we do performances for 2 weeks in a row without a day off. So, instead of updating the blog, I’ve been working my ass off!

Let’s go back:

Our New Year’s Eve Party was great, but sad, as it was the last night we would spend with Mr. Erich Bergen, as he makes his way to parts unknown (I don’t know if I can talk about it, but if you’re a true JB fan, you probably already know what he’s doing, so I’ll just leave it at that). Everyone came to the party dressed to impress, and entered with a different energy than the year before. I remember last year’s New Year’s Eve party: a bit awkward. You see, our first New Year’s with the JB Sherry Tour occurred a mere 2-3 months after we started rehearsals, and just began performances in San Francisco. So all the rapport and experiences we share now were but a dream to us back then.

But fast forward to December 31st, 2007: the night was full of friends, smiles, and plenty of 80’s dance music. Somehow, 80’s dance music is our drug. We hear it, and EVERYONE runs to the dance floor. We spent the night dancing, drinking, chatting, and taking pictures. But as the restaurant kicked us out at 2am, 2008, we couldn’t help but think back on our amazing year with Erich: We will miss you.

And during that transition, we had 3 new cast members join us (to replace John Altieri, Erich Bergen, and temporarily Zach): Jonathan Hadley (our new Crewe), Andrew Rannells (our new Gaudio), and Joe Bwarie (The 2-day Frankie for now). These guys are fantastic, and bring something new and different to the role. I’ve been having fun with them, but I’ll tell you one thing: John and Andrew both very mean to Phil! It’s alright though, it makes me laugh (Phil is the recording engineer role that the Joey role plays). But silly things aside, it’s great to have them, and we couldn’t be more pleased.

Meanwhile, back at the Jersey Sauce, I did another 3 Frankies! And each one successively felt better. I can’t begin to tell you how amazing it is to perform as Frankie. It really is a dream role, and I hope I am able to do him justice. Plus, for those of you sending me Frankie emails, your kind words mean the world to me, and thank you for letting me know that I made your night at the theater an enjoyable one.

I also did a grip of Joeys to let Courter go on as Frankie, and being Joey is so much fun. Working with Andrew in the scenes couldn’t have gone better, and John keeps Phil on his toes!

And I don’t have anything weird to report, except one night, right before “Boyfriend’s Back”, one of the strings on my guitar broke! Those of us who play guitar in the show are always noodling around on the guitars before scenes where we use them, and I was noodling a little too hard I guess. So, I yanked the rest of the string off the top of the guitar, and walked on stage just in time! But other than that, JB is a well oiled machine.

Seattle has been good to us. We worked with a phenomenal local crew there, a great hosting theater, and great audiences. This morning, as I boarded my plane home, I felt the sense that I was going to miss Seattle, a lot. There are so many memories in Seattle, which I will never soon forget. But you know what I have missed, more than I will miss Seattle?

That’s right. Sunlight.

It’s been a long 2 weeks, and a bunch of new changes have been abound. And there are more to come. But that’s for another entry.

Oh, and here's Nate with a shaving creme beard:

Quickie: Santa Klau

2007-12-30T23:55:00.000-08:00

Not a lot to report right now. Except I went on for a second time as Frankie this past week, which was phenomenal, and went great. It's now colder than ever here in Seattle, and my winter jacket is getting plenty of mileage.

Had my family in town this past week, so it's been just me and them. Not a lot of events to report, except this:

Our stage management hosted a door decorating contest for the holidays. I had not decided to do a door decoration until the last day, which was TODAY. Lori, our stage manager, convinced me to take charge, so I did. I went into the dressing room, and said "Well, I better get started. Anyone have any paper?"

Courter Simmons replied "No, but you can rip out these easy Sudoku puzzles". So I did. My first idea was just to put them on the door, so people can come by and do them.

And then I got a crazy idea:

The story was this: I had a huge grid in front of me. So I thought, hey, I could color in a few of the blocks, and make a pixelated picture. I asked everyone in our dressing room, and everyone agreed: the picture should be Nate. I got to work, found a picture, ran it through a threshold process (which turns the picture to just 2 colors), and copied what was on my screen to the large Sudoku grid I created. Big thanks to Erik and Chris for working with me on the piece. We won 3rd place (behind Lori's jellybean JB outline - 2nd, and John and Eric's Las Vegas themed door - 1st place).

Arts and crafts. Hooray.

Meanwhile, it was John Altieri's last show tonight. John, we love you, and we will miss you. Good luck to you in the future.

Happy Holidays!

2007-12-25T13:57:00.000-08:00

Here's some Holiday Treats from yours truly:

It's Just Too Good To Be True

2007-12-24T10:13:00.000-08:00

Well, #406 came and went. Last night was a culmination of a lot of different feelings, emotions, but ultimately went incredibly well.

I am sorry about this post: It's hard for me to describe my emotions in words. It was such an incredible night.

I got to the theater early to run some light cues, and do some slapping around with Deven. As soon as he started slapping me around (Being a little brother, and him getting a new lead singer), I knew it was on. After that, it was up to the dressing room.

But not any dressing room. This night, I got THE dressing room.

A quick shower, a shave, some hair gel, and a few costume pieces later, I was Frankie.

Looking in the mirror was surreal. Who was this person? I had never had this on before. For real. Tonight, I was playing for keeps.

As I stepped out of The Dressing Room, I entered into the Men's dressing room, where the Male Ensemble were getting ready, and was greeted with cheers, hugs, pictures, etc. Everyone was very proud of me, and for those of you guys who are reading this, your encouragement and support has meant the world to me. Thank you.

After that, it was back to the room to have some water, a little tea, some saline spray, and off to the races.

I remember the moment, before walking out on the bridge. My heart skipped a beat. It was like skydiving. As soon as I walked out from behind the black and into the light, I had jumped out of the plane. No turning back now!

And then, warmth. I was met with such love and power on stage. Everyone sharing looks, smiling, and being there for me.

I won't go through the gauntlet of the show, but I'll mention these points:

Acting on stage with Deven, Erich, Steve, Joe, John, and the rest is a dream. They all play, listen, respond so well. It's incredible to be up there communicating with them.
I think your first time is always like slow motion. Sometimes, it felt like "The Matrix".
The Big 3 was incredible. Just amazing, and a lot of fun. The looks we shared on stage were priceless.
"Dawn" is one of my favorite songs in the show to perform, and the part where we were facing downstage was really cool.
"Beggin" IS my favorite song of the show, and doing the splits, the turns, and the vocals... just great.
The sitdown scene worked very well. It's a different experience when you have lights, and sound, and audience. In rehearsals, you try to act well. But when all the extra parts enter into the equation, they seem to go away, and the only people in that room are at that table, arguing about the future of the group. Incredible.
Winter was a blast to do. The show is written so well, and to get to speak like that, to the audience, is really cool.
What can I say? "Can't Take My Eyes Off Of You" went off without a hitch! I was singing great, and gave it my all. As I turned upstage in "Workin'..." I had the biggest smile. The guys in the band behind saw it. I gave them a wink, and kept on singing. My voice wasn't tired yet!
"Who Loves You" was great, especially at the end, where we all look at each other. It was as if they were congratulating me before it was over. I was so happy.

So, all in all, it was a great night. So much work for so much return. I am so glad I got to do it, and you know what, I liked it so much, I think I'll do it again! On the 26th of December at 2pm.

Anyway, this post was so disjointed, so whatever. All I know is that I was Frankie Valli last night, and it was a moment I'll never forget.

Meanwhile, Miles, Erik Bates and I had a push-up competition. The pressure was too much for Bates:

I Rocked So Hard I Made My Fingers Bleed

2007-12-21T13:47:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know, Seattle is the birthplace of Grunge music: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, etc. It singlehandedly ushered out the era of Hair Metal, and introduced the world to a Seattle state of mind. Also, it caused kids across America to start dressing like they lived in Seattle: The Grunge Fashion Style. Thank goodness THAT'S over.

But I'll just come out and say it: I'm a rock nerd. Which, believe me, is somewhat of an oxymoron. But I love rock music: the culture, the performance, the attitude. So when I remembered that The Seattle Experience Music Project was up here, I was very excited.

EMP, as it's called, is right next to the space needle:

The building itself was designed by Frank Gehry, who also designed the Disney Music Hall in Los Angeles (which was right next to where JB played in LA at the Ahmanson). The EMP building is truly a sight to see. Certainly not an eyesore, but enough to make you go "hrm".

As we walked in, being the music nerds that we were, went immediately went to the top floor, where all the Jam Rooms were. These soundproof rooms are filled with electric guitars, keyboards, electric and acoustic drums, amps, and pedals to fulfill your music dreams. Yes, I know a Guitar Center is just about the same thing, but rockin' out with your friends in a soundproof room is a great time. Sadly, none of the rooms had guitar PICKS so I had to play with my fingers. And I was rocking so hard, that I accidentally nicked one of my knuckles against the worn guitar and split it open. Sigh.

After mending my wound, we went to the "live performance" experience, which, IMHO was pretty lame. You go into a room, and can lip sync (or play, as they say, but our REAL playing was at a lower volume than the track) one of three songs. We chose "I Love Rock And Roll". After playing that song in that dumb room, I don't think I Love Rock And Roll anymore. Never-the-less, we named our group "Monday Off", played around in the silly room, and exited, where they then pump you to buy pictures and videos of your performance. I think the embarrassment was so ripe that buying something would only catalyze the uncomfortable experience.

But someone did buy a picture. Sadly, I don't have a digital copy.

After that, it was off to the actual museum, which was really cool. There was an exhibit about the birth of Hip-Hop, a room which showed the history of the guitar with real world examples (with some really crazy guitars that would make Cheap Trick jealous), and a history of Seattle Music, including a large section dedicated to the Grunge era. I didn't know Heart was from Seattle!

Our day at EMP came to an end, as we watched Jimi Hendrix play The Star Spangled Banner on a big screen, and taking a picture in front of this tree of music instruments:

All in all, it was a great day, and afterwards, we all headed back to our hotel rooms, humming "Evenflow" all the way home.

Meanwhile, back at work, we, once again, took first place in the BC/EFA Gypsy Of The Year collection period with a total of $327,404! Hooray! Congrats to our Chicago Company with a second place total of $293,673!

And with our successive win in hand, we have crossed the #400 performance mark! It's been a great run, and you know how it felt? Just like #399. But we couldn't have made it without you guys: the fans. Booya to us all. Stay tuned for #406 ;-)

...

And Miles and I bought the same Jacket:

#406

2007-12-16T23:53:00.000-08:00

I want to start this post by saying this: I will miss Zach Prince very much. He did his final performance with us tonight, and he will be missed. Zach is my cousin, and I hope I get to see him soon again.

And as for the explanation of the Title of this post, go to taylorsternberg.com or check my twitter feed at twitter.com/taylorsternberg. It involves my announcement, and the performance number.

The Changing of the Guard

2007-12-15T23:55:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been quite the whirlwind week for me! I have been on for about every performance this week. I was supposed to go on as Hank, to fill in for Gutman until our new Hank Majewski (Matt Bailey) was ready... but not so much. It started off with Courter as Frankie, and me as Joey for 2 performances. Then after that, I have been doing Barry Belson! Who knows... tomorrow I might go on for Lorraine in a pants suit. Just kidding. I would never wear a pants suit.

I just want to give a big congrats to Eric Gutman on his debut on Broadway this week. We miss you buddy.

But in his place, we have the fabulous Matt Bailey, who brings Hank a great, new, and different energy. I look forward to working with him, or filling in for him. He's a great guy, and a fantastic musician.

Seattle continues to be rainy, and cold. But still cool (not temperature wise). In my last post, I talked about going to the Underground Tour, and now I can talk after the fact. The tour was, as a fantasy Aunt would say "very nice". Very informative, very historical-like. I enjoyed myself, and learned more about Seattle, why it was built 7-30 feet above the original ground (flooding, exploding toilets), and the special "sewing clubs". Look it up if you want to know what I mean.

This is me in front of a 19th century "Crapper"

It was very cold down there, in the "basement" of Seattle.

Seattle must be a great place to raise kids. Or kids who grow up to be rock musicians. I think this Monday, we'll be going to EMP, or The Seattle Experience Music Project. We'll all Rock music nerds, so I'm told this is a cool place for us. Tourism is a must on tour.

For those of you who wanted to know about Eric Gutman's going away party, it really wasn't anything special. Just a little food, a little drink, a little chat, and off to do his final show. For people who leave our tour, we usually sing "Happy Trails" backstage at the intermission of the final show, with a dessert of their choice. And that's when we hug, emote, and then do a second half of the show.

For my week-du-performances, I'll just say this: that the backstage traffic is so intricate, because the backstage area is so small (compared to other cities)! It's like a Rube Goldberg Machine. So doing different tracks consecutively can be challenging, but I was able to pull it off without any hitches. Hooray for hard work, tracking people backstage, and our wonderful crew.

So that's all for now. But I do have an exciting announcement coming up. Not "Gutman" exciting, but exciting for me. I'll let you know as soon as I can tell you guys. Here's a hint: it involves a blimp, overalls, and the Kelvin temperature scale.

That hint was false.

I'll let you know through my twitter feed (on the right, or at twitter.com/taylorsternberg), or at taylorsternberg.com

On a parting note, I like this picture:

I Have Heard The Call. I Will Take The Wheel.

2007-12-10T13:38:00.000-08:00

Yes. It is true. Eric Gutman is going to Broadway, and I believe he is taking his blog with him. I remember talking with him yesterday at his good-bye dinner / cocktail party about the new title. Perhaps he'll call it "The Gutman Gutter" or "The Hank Herald". Both of those were actually titles that I came up with right at this moment. Trust me, when you see the REAL new title, you'll like it.

So he'll have his Broadway blog, and I will take over for the Tour Blog, hence the name "Tour THAT", in honor of his "Tour This" name. It's like the sequel to "Analyze This", but with less DeNiro, and more Joe Pesci. And Barry Belson. And perhaps Frankie Valli here and there. Don't forget Hank!

So here I am, with a blank blog page, ready to fire away at the webernet. Or the interweb. Whatever you kids call it now-a-days.

Where to start? Seattle? Seattle, I love you. If you are just joining us, The Tour is currently sitting at the very beautiful (but cramped) 5th Avenue Theater in Seattle, Washington.

Aside from Tempe, Arizona, This is the first state that we have performed in outside of California. Which means that it is very cold, something that I'm not used to. How cold? Well, around 40 degrees. Stop laughing. For me, that is COLD.

Besides the cold, Seattle reminds me so much of San Francisco, or a mini-New York. It's a great city with great people, and a strong arts community.

Last night, to join in on the festivities (and mourning) of the loss of our Eric Gutman, I tracked Brandon backstage (tracking is when you follow someone backstage. I do this to learn the new tricks of each new backstage area). All our hearts were with him for the show, we had a great time, and he ROCKED out in the playoff solo at the end. We will miss you so much man.

And time goes on. I have already visited the historic Public Market, and today, I will visit the Underground City. So who knows what else Seattle will bring.

That's it for now. I have to go meet my group for the tour. More on Seattle later!