Monday, December 20, 2010

BALLET FOLK 5TH YEAR – SEPTEMBER 18, 1977 TO DECEMBER 17, 1977

September 18th – Sunday, we packed and showed our new downstairs neighbors how to water our plants.  We left on our first real tour of the season at noon.  It was an easy drive to Missoula, Montana—we arrived around 6:30.  I slept a good part of the day and read most of the rest of it.  We had a bottle of wine in our room with Leslie, Lenore, Barb and Ben and then went out to dinner at Alice’s Restaurant.  The food was OK but the atmosphere was marvelous.  When we got back to the room, we watched Johnny Carson narrating movie clips shot during WW II and then Paul Newman in “Judge Roy Bean”.  We didn’t sleep well at all.

September 19th – Monday, we had a fairly easy day but it will be our last for some time.  We drove to Helena, set-up, had class and rehearsed Watercolors and Rainmaker.  Things went pretty well considering we hadn’t even thought about Rainmaker since August 6th.  It was Jan’s birthday and we had a party for her in our room with two cakes and lots of presents after a horrible dinner at Bert & Ernie’s Deli.  (I had mayo all over my pastrami sandwich!)  Everyone came to the party and we had a few beers and almost polished off the entire quart of whiskey we had given Jan as a gift.  I fell asleep even before everyone left and Mike had a hard time waking me up to get ready for bed.

September 20th – Tuesday, it is hard to believe that I am 27 years old today.  We got up at 7:00 for a 10:30 school show that went really well.  The kids were little angels.  After the first show, George, Chuck and I walked downtown for lunch.  Mike didn’t want to come because he still had his make-up on.  The second show went even better and we were packed up and ready to leave in no time.  We went with Leslie, Jan, and Betsy to go look at a Cathedral—it was gorgeous.  We even found a liquor store on the way back to the hotel.  I washed my hair and rested until it was time for set-up at the junior high for tomorrow’s shows.  George took us out for our birthdays to the finest restaurant in Helena—the Overland Express.  I ordered steak and lobster and Mike steak and crab.  It was all delicious and we had a wonderful conversation; George was his sweet, charming, generous, old self. 

It was really a nice birthday and that doesn’t always happen.  Usually I get very emotional and upset because I think everything should be so easy and perfect on a person’s birthday and it rarely is.  But I had fun and tried not to think about how old I’m getting.  Mike says odd numbered years are always good, so maybe 27 will be the best one yet.

September 21st – Wednesday, we had an early school show and again the kids were good—especially for junior high kids.  Helena is a really nice place.  We ate and left for Sheridan, Wyoming, driving most of the rest of the day.  I had fun reading “The Glory and the Dream”—I am up to the Eisenhower presidency.  When we arrived, Mike, Leslie and I went to Jan and Betsy’s to hang out and get high.  We had a lot of fun talking about our childhoods and about early Ballet Folk history.  We left after midnight but Jan came back to our room shortly afterward to get Mike.  She was feeling down and wanted to talk.  Betsy came and sat with me so they could have some privacy.  We watched Johnny Carson and most of the Tomorrow Show before Mike came back.  Mike said Jan is very young and moody; he just wants to help but he’s worried he may be hurting more than helping.

September 22nd – Thursday, we had off until 3:00.  We slept late and then did the usual pre-performance routine.  The show was a little ragged; everyone was a little off, including the audience.  They really didn’t know how to take Debussy.  ELP went over the best.  George didn’t seem upset so I guess it wasn’t that bad.  After the show a bunch of us went to Country Kitchen to eat and have a few drinks. 

September 23rd – Friday, we had a long, winding trip to Powell, Wyoming.  The set-up was our hardest in years because the stage was so small and there was absolutely no wing space.  We had barely enough time to make-up and warm-up but the show was a resounding success.  They loved us, cheered us, bravo-ed us and even gave us a standing ovation.  It was the complete opposite of the night before and it felt wonderful.  We went back to our motel and had a terrific dinner and drinks. 

September 24th – Saturday, We had a short drive today to Worland—our first gym show.  The set-up went like lightening and it’s a good thing because we had no time to spare.  We stayed at the gym, made-up and did the show.  It went really well and the crowd was nice—they clapped loud and often.  We had drinks in our room after the show and went with the girls across the street to an all-night cafe.  After we had eaten and gone back to the hotel, Jan knocked and took Mike away for another conference.  I don’t know what they talk about all the time.

September 25th – Sunday, on the way to Riverton, I got a migraine.  I was working on my crocheting and suddenly I couldn’t see the little holes anymore.  Luckily the drive was short and I spent most of it with my head-in-my-hands on the bed.  Thank God I had my pills with me or I would have been sunk.  I missed set-up to take a nap but couldn’t seem to fall asleep.  When Mike got back, we walked to the cafĂ© down the street.  I thought the migraine was coming back so we didn’t stay.  I worried all through make-up and warm-up about getting a migraine during the performance; but once I started performing, I knew I would be OK.  After the performance Mike and I drank and smoked cigarettes until they were coming out our ears.

September 26th – Monday, we were back in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and it felt good.  We ate at Cache Creek, just like old times.  We walked around looking at all the nice shops with all the nice clothes we couldn’t afford.  A girl named, Penny, who used to dance with New York City Ballet and Ballet West took warm-up with us.  Boy she was a weird chick—all arms.  During warm-up I realized my right foot was really hurting me; I kept getting sharp pains on the outside of it.  I knew it was from walking too much in my tennis shoes, but I didn’t know what to do about it.  My mind immediately went to all those releves and hops in Debussy.  I left warm-up to run my foot under cold water; Ben Gay didn’t seem to be helping.  On top of everything else, I was having my first-day cramps and I had a terrible stomach ache from worrying.  I was going to say, “I don’t remember ever feeling worse for a performance,” but then I remembered the migraine the day before.  I hobbled through the show as best I could and was very relieved when it was over.  From now on, I am wearing my sandals even if it is below freezing.  Strike went fast and we went over to the Cultural Center for free wine and sandwiches.  I still didn’t feel well, so I left right after I ate; sweet Kelly walked me to my door.  Mike came in much later when I had already bathed and gone to bed.

September 27th – Tuesday, we left Jackson Hole at noon so we spent the morning shopping.  Mike got some great bargains—tan pants, sweater and sweatshirt.  Girls’ clothes were way too expensive—I’ll wait for Sears.  I slept most of the way to Twin Falls.  For my foot’s sake, I was glad we had a day without dancing.  When we arrived, we all went over to Bill and Kelly’s room to watch their color TV—the only one in the motel.  At one point Hy Summers and George came in to say “hello”.  Hy had driven in from Idaho Falls to see George.  He was looking good considering he almost killed himself twice—once with drugs and once with a gun.  He has a scar on the side of his face by his eye.  Mike and I got a little high but were really too tired to enjoy it.

September 28th – Wednesday, we drove to Boise arriving early afternoon.  We went to Sears where I found some inexpensive sweaters that worked just fine.  We stopped by the Bon to see Karen Esposito (who used to dance with us) and promised to come back the following day to see her again.  We set-up at 4:30 and it seemed to take forever—we have always had problems at that high school.  We didn’t get back to the hotel until 7:00 so we planned dinner for 8:00.  The whole gang went to our favorite place, the Sandpiper.  Unfortunately the restaurant didn’t have a table that could accommodate all of us, and I ended up sitting with Mike and all the women—I much prefer the men.  The food was absolutely scrumptious—I had my usual teriyaki shrimp dinner and fuzzy Ricardo for dessert.  When we got back to the hotel, I totally passed out on the wonderful king-sized bed at the Sands.  If Jonny hadn’t stopped by for a few cigarettes close to midnight, we would have slept all night in our clothes.

September 29th – Thursday, we had a performance at 10:00 for over 2,000 grade-school kids.  They loved us!  The TV station was there and did a nice little blurb on us—Barb did the talking because George couldn’t be found.  In the afternoon we rehearsed a little of the new lecture demo.  We stopped at the Bon to pick up Karen for dinner.  We had a great time talking about the good old days at Ballet Folk.  I always liked Karen; but her husband, Lou, not so much.  That’s unusual for me.

September 30th – Friday, we did our last show of the tour and what a bummer.  Sixth, seventh and eighth graders are the worst—all they care about is sports.  They had a pep rally before we started and they were bored to death while we were dancing.  The drive home seemed interminable but, boy, was it great to be home!

October 1st & 2nd – Saturday & Sunday, work, work, work today; laundry, ironing, cleaning and sewing.  There is always so much to do after a tour.  On Sunday right after I got up, I took one of my little yellow pills for depression and it really helped.  I planned class for Monday because George has a dentist appointment—I felt good all day.

October 3rd – Monday, class went really well.  When I have time to prepare, I am cool and confident.  Jaye started rehearsing Beauty in the afternoon.  The call was for everyone but only the three permanent monkeys did anything.  I was glad I had my crocheting with me.  We had off until 4:00 when the sisters started rehearsing.

October 4th – Tuesday, we rehearsed Beauty for 5 ½ hours—boring.  Barb taught Company class because my foot was flaring up again.  We had a Company meeting and found out Carl has to pay us differently for rehearsal weeks than performance weeks.  It will all work out the same in the end.  We also found out we have another five nights of consecutive shows the next tour.  It couldn’t be much worse.  Leslie came over to watch Twyla Tharp but left early.  Mike went to Jan’s and didn’t get home until late; I was already asleep.

October 5th – Wednesday, we rehearsed the lecture demo in the morning.  It is just a little bit different again for the umpteenth time.  I will never be able to keep it straight.  We got off rehearsal early.  We don’t even have any school shows this trip, only lecture demonstrations.  We watched the “Poisoning of Michigan” on TV—shocking!

October 6th – Thursday, was our last day in town for awhile.  We rehearsed until 6:30.  We finished the lecture demo in the morning and finished Beauty in the afternoon with no time to spare.  We watched the movie, “Papillion”, in the evening while ironing and packing.  Mike went to Jan’s until late so he was up until 3:00 packing.  JoAnn planned a few days off for us on the Oregon Coast before the performances start; it will be nice to have a vacation.

October 7th – Friday, we left for Lincoln City at 8:00 and it was a pretty uneventful trip.  It was nice, however, to be doing something sitting down after standing around all week.  We had “Miss Bitch” as a waitress in Boardman, Oregon.  She got mad at us for coming in all at the same time.  We arrived at the Cozy Cove in Lincoln City on the Oregon Coast at about 6:30.  We had kitchens so we decided to cook; my cooking is better than any restaurant anytime.  We went with Leslie over to Bill and Kelly’s to get high before dinner.  Jon, Nancy and Jan joined us a little later.  When Mike and Jan left to take a walk on the beach, Jon almost threw a fit.  He was acting really strange from all he had to drink in addition to the mood elevators he has been taking.  He was sweet to worry about me being alone, but he was treating Nancy like shit.  She almost had to carry him back to the room.  I was in bed by midnight but Mike and Kelly stayed up until the wee hours of the morning playing cards.

October 8th – What a wonderful day off!  We got up fairly early and took a short walk on the beach before fixing breakfast.  We had a feast!  The weather couldn’t have been more perfect so after breakfast Mike and I walked along the beach for a few hours looking for shells.  Later Mike played football with the guys while Nancy and I sat on some driftwood, watched and talked.  We walked with Lenore down to the water to show her the sea anemones we had found earlier.  While Mike went to play some cards, I walked downtown to look for a present for Bill.  I found some Budweiser salt and pepper shakers for Bill and some patchwork potholders for Christmas gifts.  I ran into Kelly who had driven the bus downtown so I hitched a ride back to the motel with him via the fish market, grocery store, candy store and seagull factory.  I sat on the porch in the sea breeze and read Time Magazine until time for dinner.  We intended to go to Pier 6, an expensive restaurant, but ended up at the Surf which was absolutely wonderful.

October 9th – Sunday, we were scheduled to leave around 1:00 but the bus wouldn’t start until almost 5:00.  We took one last stroll along the beach in the morning and spent the rest of the day reading in the bus while Kelly and Jon tried to figure out what was wrong with it.  The drive to Coos Bay was breathtaking; we even saw a real lighthouse.  After dinner, Mike went to the boys’ room to play cards while I drank myself through Agatha Christie’s, “Murder on the Orient Express”.  

October 10th – Monday, we had a lecture demo at Southwest Community College in Coos Bay.  I think everyone felt a little out-of-shape after not dancing all weekend.  We didn’t have time to have a proper warm-up because we couldn’t get into the gym until noon and the demo started at 1:00.   There was a pretty good crowd and they seemed to like us a lot.  Chuck and I got into a little argument about the plie combination.  He was acting childish because he was upset we couldn’t set up earlier.  During the whole warm up he seemed to be deliberately trying to run into me. 

Later, I had to go teach a women’s exercise class 20 miles outside of Coos Bay in a city called Coquille.  Jim Love, who had booked us, picked me and Lenore up and drove us there.  Lenore said just watching us dance all the time makes her want to do it.  The class was 1 ½ hours long which I didn’t find out until I got there.  There were about 20 women waiting for me—none of whom looked to be too “in shape”.  They were very impressed with the things I could do.  After the class I answered questions and was surprised that quite a few people actually thought we were from Moscow, Russia.  One lady asked me if I was the only American in the troop.  On the way back to Coos Bay, Jim Love couldn’t stop talking about what an athlete I was and how many of my movements reminded him of a great skier’s.  It did my ego good. 

As soon as I got back to the room, I gobbled down a hamburger that Mike picked up for my dinner and then we went to Bill’s for his birthday party.  We had a fun time—especially eating cake.

October 11th – Tuesday, we had a lecture demo at North Bend High for a dance class that the school offers.  We rehearsed Pas de Trois first and I was happy I remembered it.  We were all a little pissed when we first got on the bus because we hadn’t planned to have a rehearsal; we had planned to go to the beach after the performance.  Luckily we had time to rehearse before the demo so it wasn’t that bad.  George was in a sour mood, and we all bitched about him the whole time we were getting ready.  I was especially vehement in my criticism—we all just want to know what’s going on a little sooner so we can prepare. 

During the barre work in the demo, Barb’s knee gave out and we were all scared to death that she was really hurt.  Luckily, it didn’t bother her much after that.  We did ELP and the audience was a real dud.  They either didn’t get it or were too inhibited to laugh or show any emotion.  After the performance, we went to the beach which was a good 45 minutes away.  Chuck, Leslie and Barb had to teach so the bus was going to drive them back in an hour and then come back for the rest of us.  Chuck wandered off and wasn’t back in time to catch the bus so Mike had to teach his class for him.  I was really pissed that Chuck would do such a thing; and when he did show up, he didn’t seem to care.  The bus stayed for the sunset and then headed back to the motel.

George came by the room when Mike got home and talked about how mad he was at Chuck.  I was glad George felt the same way we did.  Mike went to Kelly’s for a little while to lose some more money but came back at 11:00 to watch Nureyev on Dick Cavett.  I thought Cavett was especially rude—he didn’t let Rudy get a word in edgewise and told him he hated his new movie, “Valentino”, which seemed in very bad taste to me.

October 12th – Wednesday, we had to be out of the hotel by 11:00 but we had nowhere to go until the performance that evening.  We dropped some people off downtown to shop and went to the beach with the rest.  It was a cold, cloudy, foggy day but the beach was beautiful.  The waves were really rolling in and we just walked around or sat on logs and got sprayed by the mist.  We went downtown for lunch when we were too cold to stand it anymore.  There was a beautiful picture of Mike and me in the paper—we tried to get the negative but it had been destroyed. 

Lunch was a welcome relief and afterward we drove to the gym to set up.  Everything went smoothly and the audience was overwhelming.  There were over 800 people at the performance—very impressive.  We left right after strike for Roseburg, a 2-hour journey.  We stopped for take-out food which was pretty greasy and “with mayo” even though we asked for it “without”.  The trip was painful—my knees and hips ached and I couldn’t sleep or even get comfortable.  I was really in a bad mood when we arrived, and I’m afraid I took it out on Mike.

October 13th – Thursday, we got up early and drove to Klamath Falls.  We stopped for breakfast and had a nice talk with the waitress about palmistry.  We arrived just in time for our lecture demo for the entire school.  I was still in my funk and I danced badly—forgetting steps and everything.  We filmed Night in the City for a TV spot to be shown later that day.  It was fun to watch and afterward we went out for pizza.  Our motel was beautiful and in a great location; we were near everything but a liquor store.  We ate with Barb, Ben, Jon and Nancy and, after dinner, had Barb and Ben over for a drink.  It was a fun night even though we were all pretty wiped out.

October 14th – Friday, we had another lecture demo at 1:30 and again we didn’t have time to warm up.  It was in a lecture hall and a lecture was being given until 1:00.  After the demo, Mike and the tech men went back to the high school to finish setting up.  We had set up most of our stuff yesterday after the school demo, but we needed the floor for the demo today.  As soon as Mike got back to the motel, we had to make-up for the performance that evening.  It was a good show—one of my best, even with George sitting in the wings (he usually makes me nervous when he does that).  After it was over, we celebrated just getting through another day.

October 15th – Saturday, we had class and rehearsal for Beauty.  For some unknown reason, Chuck didn’t show up.  He taught that morning at 10:00 but Company class wasn’t until 1:00.  George was upset but gave a great class even so.  We had another performance that evening with mixed reviews.  Barb and Chuck had an awful time in Sleeping Beauty but George didn’t say a word about it.  I think he was refusing to accept the fact he made a serious mistake in casting.  We went over to Bill and Kelly’s to talk but Mike ended up playing cards.  Jan came over to give Kelly some luck but none of us stayed very long.  Mike walked Jan back to her room and didn’t get back until a few hours later.

October 16th – Saturday was a day without dancing at last.  We drove to Eugene arriving at about 4:00.  Our motel, the Rose, was a dump.  It smelled and was dirty—almost unbearable.  We walked around the University of Oregon the rest of the afternoon looking for Bell Hall which turned out to be Beall Hall.  By the time we got back to the motel everyone had gone out to see a movie.  We were surprised as it was only 6:00.  It was depressing to think of spending the entire evening in that pit of a room. 

We did laundry in a machine attached to the back of the motel while checking out the movies in the area.  We decided to take a cab to see “Valentino”, figuring we would see the rest of the group there.  The laundry was finished just as the taxi pulled up so everything was going according to plan.  But when we got to the theatre, there was no yellow bus.  We had barely enough change to pay the taxi driver with nothing left for a tip.  The movie was interesting—lots of it was truly great but lots of it was almost unwatchable, even embarrassing.  Nureyev was perfect for the part because of his charisma, but he definitely didn’t have an Italian accent. 

When it was over we couldn’t decide what to do.  Mike was going to call Kelly when I suggested asking a guy in a University of Oregon t-shirt for a ride.  We were in luck—he took us right to our door.  Everyone else wasn’t even back yet.  We found out later they had gone to a double feature:  “12 Chairs” and “Last Remake of Beau Geste” plus dinner.  I was glad we had seen “Valentino”.

October 17th – Monday, we checked out of the Rose at 11:00 but didn’t leave Eugene until 4:00.
We had breakfast, looked around downtown and had Company class before leaving for Florence and the beach again.  I felt fantastic in class until George made some discouraging remark that ruined my mood entirely.  It was 7:00 by the time we arrived at our dream motel—The Driftwood Shores.  The three couples had our choice of 3 studios, comparable to motel rooms, or a 3-bedroom suite with 2 baths, living room, fireplace and kitchen.  Naturally we chose the suite.  We drove into town for supplies and then back for a drink and dinner out.  It was so wonderful sitting around the fire listening to the ocean that we barely made it to the restaurant before it closed. 

I was so drunk by the time we left that I really make a slip in front of George about nicknames.  We all had one and we had one for him too—but no one had had the nerve to tell him his to his face.  My nickname was Queeny; Mike’s was Bubba; Barbara’s – Two Scoops; Ben’s – Animal; Jan’s – Bambi; Leslie’s – Imp; Betsy’s – Sluggo; Jon’s – Fryer Fuck; Nancy’s – Rico Head; Chuck’s – Cat-Box-Charlie; Kelly’s – Jack Armstrong, All American Boy or Fritz for short; Bill’s – Nerf; Lenore’s – Flash; and George’s – Bags.  George insisted on knowing his nickname—we made it sound so awful before we told him that when Mike said, “Come on, Bags, let’s go to the salad bar ,” George said, “That isn’t so bad and besides, it’s true.”  I breathed a sigh of relief.  Dinner was great—I had lobster tail and afterward we sat around the fire until we couldn’t stay awake any longer.

October 18th – Tuesday, back to work again.  We had a lecture demo and evening performance at Florence High School.  We barely had time during the day to enjoy the ocean.  Both performances went well and we cooked steak and artichokes at midnight.  We had a lovely breakfast and walk on the beach early in the morning; but aside from that, it was just another working day.  Florence gave us a reception after the performance but no one wanted to stay.  We wanted to enjoy the little time we had left close to the water.

October 19th – Wednesday, we drove back to Eugene but not to the Rose.  George hated that motel as much as the rest of us so he had JoAnne change our reservations to the Broadway which was a little better but not much.  We had barely enough time for lunch before leaving for Cottage Grove and an evening performance there.  I had caught a cold two days prior when we were in Eugene the first time and I was feeling pretty wiped out.  Cottage Grove High School was freezing which didn’t help matters.  The audience was freezing too which put us into an awful mood.  I think we put on the worst performance of the tour, but they didn’t deserve a good show.

October 20th – Thursday, we had another show tonight this time in Blue River.  When we arrived, there was a volleyball game in the gym so we couldn’t start setting up for about an hour.  The drive up there was beautiful though and Mike even talked about Blue River as a nice place to retire.  It did have a nice feel to it.  There were only about 75 people at the performance but there weren’t many more than that in the entire town.  They were very responsive and someone even threw a wreath of marigolds onto the stage during ELP.  It was Kelly’s birthday so Jon, Bill and I went across the street to buy pizzas for a party.  Kelly got all sorts of useful gifts like “horrible foot”, a “miniature yellow bus” and a deck of marked cards.  We gave him a mug with the saying, “Trust your mother but cut the cards.”

October 21st – Friday, we had a show in Eugene so at least we didn’t have to drive anywhere.  Mike and I spent most of the morning spending money.  We bought lots of books and a maroon warm-up jumpsuit for me at the dance shop.  I could have spent $1,000 in there easily.  Everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong during the set-up.  We almost had to cancel because we couldn’t get enough power.  The audience was really big though and very enthusiastic.  Our pas de deux in Watercolors went really well up to the point Mike ran into the wing with my leg.  After the performance, many people came back stage for autographs—the most ever.

October 22nd – Saturday was the last of the five consecutive evening shows—thank the Lord.  We couldn’t get into Beall Hall until 4:00 so that barely gave us enough time.  When we arrived, there were two pianos and a harpsichord on stage and no one of authority in sight.  By 4:30, we were still waiting.  I was trying, with the help of Chuck and Kelly, to dig a splinter out of my leg that I got while carrying a ladder—I need to be more careful.  At about 4:45 the stage was finally cleared off enough for set-up, but there were holes and trap doors all over the place.  It took another 15 minutes to patch those up the best we could with cardboard and tape.  We worked frantically to get set-up done by 5:45, but there was no way we would be ready for warm-up at 6:15.  We asked George when he wanted to have warm-up and he replied in a very insulting voice, “Whenever you’re ready.”  I was burning up—he hadn’t done anything but teach warm-up all week; he hadn’t even been coming to the theatre until it was time for him to teach and then he had been leaving right afterward.  Oh well, it was the last night and I didn’t want to let anything upset me.

The house was sold out which got us excited.  George seemed to be in a better mood by class time.  He told us that he had met a woman who used to dance for Ballet Russes.  She had come to our performance the night before prepared to hate us and she loved us.  She wants to work with us sometime.  The performance was great; Watercolors pas de deux was the best ever.  Chuck and I nearly landed on the floor during the serenade promenade in Debussey, but I don’t think it was too noticeable.  It did upset me though since I was having such a perfect night and Chuck had ruined it.  I felt that Chuck didn’t care when he wasn’t the one doing the nose-dive.  Chris Dyer was in the audience—she had driven down from Portland with some friends.  She loved the new rep—especially ELP

There was a reception at a French restaurant called La Prima Vera after the performance but we weren’t required to go.  I thought no one was going and I felt bad about that but Mike, Chuck, Kelly and I ended up going.  It was really good—beer, wine, champagne, soup, salad and pasta—but I wasn’t so overjoyed when I found out we had to pay for it.  Who ever heard of having a reception for someone and charging them for it.  The woman who sponsored us told me she like the Watercolors pas de deux the best of anything so I was glad I had gone to the reception if just to hear that compliment. 

October 23rd – Sunday, we spent most of the day in the bus getting home.  I finished square number 56 and had a beer to celebrate.  We stopped at a little restaurant in Pasco for lunch and, coincidentally, Chuck’s cousin from Montana was eating at the same place.  Can you imagine the odds?  We arrived in Moscow at about 6:30 with lots of bills waiting for us.  The plants looked great—Karen is much better than Wendy at caring for someone’s plants when they’re away.  We went out to eat—there was no food in the house after 17 days on the road and we weren’t in the mood to go to the grocery store.  We moved the TV into the bedroom and had a wonderful time just thinking about not doing a performance.

October 24th – Monday and Dad’s Birthday—57, I think.  I called him and he was really pleased.  We cleaned house, did laundry and ironed most of the day.  I finally got rid of all my old mini-skirts and now I have twice as much room in my closet.  I made enchiladas for dinner and they were just OK.  We went down to Tom and Karen’s with a bottle of burgundy to thank them for looking after our place.  We planned to get together with them Friday night.

October 25th – Tuesday and it was back to work in Moscow.  It was really nice having class in our old studio again.  A guy named Steve from Denver auditioned.  I think he would be perfect for us.  He looks right and he dances nicely.  The only problem is that he is still in school until December.  There are two more guys auditioning for Assistant Ballet Master; and if they like one of them, they probably won’t hire Steve.  There are two more women auditioning soon for dancer positions—Pam Griener is one of them.  Either way, they want a man and a woman and one of them has to be able to teach.  I really just wish I could do it; but to get the grant, you can’t have worked for Ballet Folk in the past.

We went to the subway shop for lunch with Steve.  He’s pretty young; we’re not sure exactly how young; but he has been married to his high-school-sweetheart for 6 years.  I am afraid they would have a hard time being away from each other for so long if he’s hired.  He told us this was the first time they had ever been apart.  The only reason I hope they don’t hire him is that he’s too short for me.  He is about Mike’s height but doesn’t look anywhere near as strong.

We rehearsed Beauty all afternoon and I think we all remembered it quite well (except George).  He was cast as the Father when Chuck Bonney left the Company.  We rehearsed it again the following day.  We had reheated enchiladas for dinner and they were much better—I added more sauce.  We found out from Mike’s Mom that Linda is pregnant again—expecting in June.  Markarova was pregnant at the same time—for the first time at age 36.  I thought, “There’s hope for me yet!”

November 14th – Monday, we had a school show in Lewiston.  We did our first Beauty with the new cast.  It was for junior high kids and they were an unruly bunch. Jaye was in the audience making us all feel very uncomfortable with her icy stare.  Everyone was a little shaky, but I thought it was pretty good for a first show.  No comment from Jaye.  We had a lecture demo for senior citizens at the college at 4:00.  I hardly did anything as Pas de Trois was the ballet we performed.  I spent the evening knitting slippers for Christmas presents.

November 15th – Tuesday was another Lewiston school show.  The kids were better and so were we.  Jaye even mentioned it.  I knitted more slippers in the evening—knitting is the theme of the week.

November 16th – Wednesday, we had class after which I went grocery shopping and yarn shopping.  I spent from 2:30 in the afternoon until midnight on my ass clicking away on those damn needles.  I finished seven pair of slippers and started Carla’s legwarmers the following day.

November 17th – Thursday, we just had class but it was a pretty depressing day.  We wanted HELP and all we got was sarcasm.  Actually both Mike and I were feeling pretty good physically.  Barb was out because of a sore neck so George didn’t start his Vivaldi ballet.  I knitted from 1:00 until midnight on the legwarmers.  Chuck came over to pay me for the plant-hanger of Carla’s that he bought, and hung around and talked for hours.  He reported that George was dissatisfied with us because we didn’t appreciate him—feelings mutual.  Mike and I actually decided to try to find employment elsewhere.  We felt we were at a crucial point in our dancing careers and needed to find a teacher who would guide us.  We were tired of being treated like bodies—but, at that point, who knew what would happen? 

November 18th – Friday was “get-on-Dee-day” in class.  George was disgusted with me and I didn’t care.  I’m not dancing for him anyway; I’m dancing for myself.  We watched some video tapes in the afternoon—I was pleased with how I looked in Strauss and Corelli but not so pleased with Tarantella and Watercolors.  The video of the Pullman show was a bust—only Watercolors was taped because the machine broke.  We went to Jon and Nancy’s for dinner with them, Barb & Ben and Bill & Lenore.  The food was fabulous.  We watched “Three Musketeers”, I knitted and got high.

November 19th – Saturday, the dancers got together and rehearsed Pas de Trois all afternoon.  It went really well and I hope we can rehearse again soon before I forget everything.  We worked on letters and resumes to send to the Cleveland Ballet and the Ohio Ballet. 

November 20th – Sunday, I typed and gathered our information together to send to the two ballet companies.  I also cleaned house and knitted.  Ben and Barb came over to watch football.  We have a Company meeting at George’s this evening.  I am keeping my mouth shut!

November 21st – Well, the meeting turned out to be strictly a party.  No one even mentioned the fact that we were supposed to be ironing out our difficulties.  We just ate, drank, and smoked to excess like we always do.  The lasagna was scrumptious.  Jaye was her usual weird self, scrutinizing everyone closely, trying to make us uncomfortable.  She did tell us one nice thing she heard in San Francisco at a conference for dance companies West of the Mississippi.  She said everyone had heard of us and everything they heard was good.  It is nice to work for an organization like that. 

Monday we started George’s new Vivaldi ballet.  So far, I really like it—it’s quirky and precise as all of George’s ballets are.  He was in a wonderful mood—pleased-as-punch with himself.  I knitted in the evening and we went to the Micro to see “Allegro Non Troppo”.  It was an Italian “Fantasia”; but since I didn’t see “Fantasia”, I really couldn’t compare.

November 22nd – Tuesday, we had a Beauty school show in Lewiston.  When we woke up, there was 3” of snow on the ground!  It was really quite beautiful but cold and messy to be outside in.  I felt the performance was really sloppy, but maybe it was just Betsy and me as the sisters.  We were kind of lost because it was so hard to see on stage, but everything was well-received.  It was dark by the time we loaded up and drove home.  Mike and I had a humble meal of hot dogs and then went to Biscuitroot and blew $4 on dessert and coffee.

November 23rd – Wednesday, we rehearsed George’s ballet and at 2:30 were elated to be on vacation for the next 4 ½ days.  We went looking for Fabulon for Betsy but instead bought chocolate covered cherries.  I decided to give her some of my Fabulon.  We went shopping at the new Rosauer’s; we’re going to Thanksgiving dinner at Jan and Betsy’s and we’re in charge of the bread.  We’re making Barb’s bagels.   When we got home, we cooked up some as a trial run; they were so delicious, we decided to take them.  We made another batch of whole wheat ones the next day.
 
November 24th – Thanksgiving Day.  We baked in the morning and I then ran all over town looking for cream cheese and jelly.  I finally found it at Circle K.  I also wrapped Betsy’s gift and knitted in my spare time.  We went to Jan’s at about 3:00 and, surprisingly, we were last to arrive.  Betsy’s friend, Kenneth, flew up from Salt Lake with a friend, Robert.  Barb and Ben brought their friends Greg, Billie and the baby, Carrie Lee.  Add Leslie and that was the party.  We had a wonderful time although I ate and drank entirely too much.  I must have had a 6-pack of beer.

The turkey was delicious and we had every other thing you could possibly imagine to go with it.  Barb made a pumpkin cheesecake that was out-of-this-world.  After dinner we got high and played a game that Jan and I just couldn’t lose.  It was called “You Don’t Say”.  It was a mixture of 20 questions and charades. 

November 25th – Friday, we did pretty much of nothing.  We made another batch of bagels that completely flopped.  I squeezed them after they had risen and they came out like little bricks.  We saw the X-Rated “Cinderella” at midnight—it was pretty stupid.

November 26th – Saturday, we rehearsed from 11:00 – 2:00 and I am really glad we did.  Now I know I won’t feel quite as bad on Monday.  Pas de Trois is coming along nicely with the second cast but I wish I knew I would get to do it someday.  I finished my legwarmers but had to redo the crotch because it was way too big.  It was depressing to have to finish it all over again.

November 27th – Sunday, was the usual Sunday.  I went to church and cleaned house.  I finally really finished my legwarmers.  Now it’s full-speed-ahead on the bedspread.  We watched “3 Days of the Condor” in the evening.  I decided to give Mom and Dad a subscription to Time Magazine for Christmas.  I hope they like it.  It will be good for them.

November 28th – Monday, George was really down for class today and we couldn’t figure out why.  We had a Company meeting and which helped us understand—he wanted to work on his ballet all week and Jaye wanted to work on the school shows for our upcoming tour.  Consequently, George wouldn’t rehearse today or any other day before vacation—another childish display.  So we had the afternoon off and I worked diligently on my bedspread.  I hoped to have it all sewn together with all the loose strings tucked away by the time we left on Sunday. 

Barb and Ben came over to watch football and brought some popcorn.  We spent most of the evening discussing George.  Barb had stayed to help me rehearse Pas de Trois in the afternoon and also parts of Debussy.  I taught her my part in the final section so I could go into Pas de Trois with more time to rest.  I wonder if I’ll ever get to perform it.

November 29th – Tuesday, we had a Moscow school show of Beauty.  We saw Jaye afterward but she didn’t say anything.  That seems to be happening more and more often.  The kids seemed to enjoy it.  We were finished with the whole mess by about 3:00.  That night was a repeat of the night before.  Barb and Ben were over again and I worked on my bedspread.

November 30th – Wednesday, pay day at last.  We rehearsed George’s new ballet so I guess he had gotten over his tantrum.  I still have my doubts, however, that his ballet will ever be finished.  We also did Pas de Trois and, for the first time, it felt really good.  We went to the hotel for dinner and had a good time.  Mike and I are getting along better.  My jealous nature is really surfacing a lot lately though.  The more I fight against it, the worse it becomes.  Jan is bothering me more and more.  She is always depressed, half the time in tears, either about her dancing or her parts.  Everyone feels sorry for her and it drives me crazy.  I think what she needs is a kick in the pants, but all she gets is sympathy.  I think the reason it bothers me is that I fight to be up and to dance my best, and I don’t think she does.  I’m jealous that everyone lets her get away with murder just because she’s Jan.  Mike sure wouldn’t let me wallow in self pity like he lets her. 

Enough of that.  We invited George over to watch Nureyev.  Chuck came over too but luckily they didn’t stay long.

December 1st – Thursday, we rehearsed Rainmaker with Jaye and she was surprisingly helpful and encouraging.  I finished sewing the pieces of my bedspread together.  Now all I have to do is tuck in the strings.

December 2nd – Friday, we rehearsed Beauty and Watercolors.  I let myself get down about my feet again.  I wore new shoes and was having trouble finding my balance and feeling my toes straight.  My calf was killing me.  Lately I’ve been working on not curling my ties when I point; but for some reason, this tightens my calves up.  We watched “Four Musketeers” on TV after dinner.  Mike felt pretty bad with a cold so no one came over.  I was glad because I was feeling pretty run-down myself.

December 3rd – Saturday, in the morning I put the finishing touches on the bedspread and put it on the bed.  I still have to crochet the border which will take me another 20 hours.  I should get to it before we leave or while we are on the train.  We went to the travel agency and made the train reservations.  They are pretty similar to last year’s only we leave a little earlier in the day and arrive in Utica a little earlier.  The connection in Chicago is much better too. 

The rest of the day we cleaned and did laundry in preparation for our tour tomorrow.  We went to the Micro and saw “Brother Sun Sister Moon” about St. Francis of Assisi.  It’s a Zefirelli movie and was really gorgeous and sumptuous.  We stopped by Biscuitroot for dessert on the way home and talked about the film. 

We packed and I lamented the fact that we were leaving our homey little nest.  One new development of the week that I forgot to relate was that the Toledo booking was cancelled.  Toledo University just doesn’t have the money.  They sure waited long enough to tell us about it.  JoAnn suggested my folks underwrite the performance with TU sponsoring it.  This means if TU loses money, Dad would make up the difference.  Our fee is $1,600 which means we would have to sell close to 500 tickets to break even.  Mom said “no way” and I definitely see her point.  I am happy it turned out that way because I would be a nervous wreck if Dad stood to lose money on us.  The same thing is happening with the Utica show.  Mike’s parents are a little more optimistic so maybe it will come through.

December 4th – Sunday, we’re off again, this time to Olympia, Washington, and a week of 10:00 and 11:15 school performances.  I’m always so crabby in the morning but at least we get our workday over early.  The pass we had to drive over was pretty bad but we arrived in Olympia only a little late.  Luckily the folks helping us unload had waited for us.  Set-up seemed to take forever.  We didn’t get to the motel until 8:00 p.m.  We ended up eating with George and Chuck. 

December 5th – Monday, we got up at the ungodly hour of 6:30 to go across the street for breakfast.  The performances went really well.  It was one of those days that everything felt really easy.  The kids didn’t respond as much as we hoped although they seemed to like Beauty better than Rainmaker.  We struck and then stopped for lunch although George and Chuck were the only ones that ate.  We had a little party in the bus and even had music.  (We aren’t allowed to sing or turn on music when George is on the bus.) 

We drove to Tacoma and set-up in an old movie theatre run by senior citizens.  They were all extremely helpful.  Larry Anderson, the person from the Washington Arts Council in charge of our tour, told me the thing he really likes about our Company is how we set up.  The dancers do more than just dance.  I told him that’s the thing I don’t like about it.  I would rather just dance.

We went to the hotel and I tried to call Mom’s friend, Katie Secrest.  The number was no longer in service and there were about six Bob Morris’ in the phone book.  I gave up.  We went out with Jon and Nancy to look for booze and to find a place to eat.  We ended up buying some coffee brandy and going to Tony C’s—filet mignon for two was only $8.95.  Delicious!  Nancy was even happy.  When we were ready to leave, it was pouring rain outside; it was a long, cold, wet walk back to the hotel.  We watched TV with Jon and Nancy and got pretty drunk; the brandy tasted so good.  Mike and I told them about our plans to leave.  Jan and Lenore came over a little while later—they had been playing beauty shop.  Jan had plucked Lenore’s eyebrows, curled her hair and made her up.  She looked real nice.  Kelly nearly scared me to death.  He was balcony hopping and I was reaching out the window to grab another beer.  I guess I nearly scared him to death too.

December 6th – Tuesday, boy were the shows hard today.  I was exhausted after Rainmaker—the shows are always hardest on the second day.  We had all afternoon to rest and we did just that.  We took a cab to Spaghetti Factory with Barb, Ben, Bill, Jon and Nancy.  The food was wonderful and inexpensive too.

December 7th – Wednesday, the shows today were a little easier again.  We performed to 1,600 kids each performance just like we did yesterday.  I think they really loved it.  We drove to Seattle and checked into the Tropics Hotel—what a dump.  Our room didn’t even have a bathtub.  We went to the Food Circus with Jon and Nancy and had bad German food.  The horseradish made me feel like I was losing the top of my head.  We walked over to the Opera House to check it out—it didn’t look scary at all.  While Jon was talking to some man about lights, and Mike, Nancy and I were looking around, a snooty girl asked the man Jon was talking to if he was conducting tours.  Andy Williams had a show there that night. 

Nancy and I took a little swim when we got back to the hotel and we called Becky Mott.  We arranged to meet her for dinner the next day.  We went to the ritzy Jake O’Shanessey’s for dinner and had the Irish Stew and the Irish Coffee—both of which were delicious.

December 8th – Thursday, the Opera House shows went beautifully.  There were almost 3,000 kids at each performance.  It was a treat to perform in a place like that.  Imagine, I performed on the same stage as Eleanor D’Antuono!  We met Becky in the evening and had dinner and went bar hopping.  It was great to renew our friendship—we talked about everything under the sun.

December 9th – Friday, Renton was bad news.  Everyone was so tired by then, we just wanted to get it over with.  I think the performance was less than inspired. Chuck sprained his ankle during Rainmaker and limped through Beauty.  We saw “Looking for Mister Goodbar” with Nancy and Bill that evening after eating good old American food for lunch.  Jon was in one of his moods and just wanted to be left alone.  We did a little shopping later—got an Irish tam for Mike’s brother, Doug, and an Irish cheese dish for his brother and sister-in-law, John and Elaine.

December 10th – Saturday, we had a lecture demo at the University of Washington in the morning.  I didn’t do much as Pas de Trois replaced Watercolors because of Chuck’s ankle.  Becky came to the performance and couldn’t believe how much better Mike had gotten.  We were a big success.  The drive back to Moscow went fast and we were home in no time.  The tour wasn’t as awful as I had expected it to be.

December 11th – Sunday, I rushed around all day trying to get everything ready for Pam Griener (a student of Gail Grant’s from Toledo) who was coming to audition.  We had no trouble at all recognizing each other at the airport.  Mike was instantly “in love” with her.  I made steaks for dinner but no one ate much as we were too busy talking.  We left Pam alone in the apartment for a little while; and while she was using her hair dryer, the circuit breaker shut off.  She told us she wandered around the apartment a long time looking for the fuse box.  Our neighbor, Tom, finally found it outside and got it switched on again.  I felt awful that we didn’t think to warn her about that.  We all went over to Carl and Jaye’s for Carl’s surprise birthday party.  Jaye told Pam she was beautiful—a good start.  Once again, we drank far too much champagne.

December 12th – Monday, Pam’s audition went very well.  She is quick which is the most important thing to George.  We showed her Pas de Trois and she was impressed.  We went out to lunch and talked all afternoon.  Lyn Gill (another Gail Grant dancer) arrived at 5;15 and we all went out to dinner at the Hotel.  It was very interesting and brought back lots of memories of the early days with Gail.  Lyn, however, is quite the bitch and heavy too.  She doesn’t have a chance.

December 13th – Tuesday, Pam left early.  Lyn’s audition went OK but her body is all wrong.  We didn’t have rehearsal but we did Pas de Trois for George.  He promised we would get a chance to perform it.   We went and saw the Woody Allen movie, “Take the Money and Run” which was hysterical.  Afterward we went to the Garden for drinks.

December 14th – Wednesday, we took Lyn to the airport and didn’t do much the rest of the day.  Mike took Jaye’s class while I worked on choreography in the little studio.  Balanchine was on and we had the usual crowd.

December 15th – Thursday, Mike and I worked most of the day on choreography—it is coming along.  We spent the evening at Carl and Jaye’s and got a lot of bitches out.  We hadn’t even planned on bringing anything up; I was surprised at how aware they are of all the problems.  I can see their side too.

December 16th – Friday, we worked on choreography again and are about half finished.  I don’t know if we’ll ever get any farther as this is the last day we can work.  We found out that Pam is hired!  Jon and Nancy came over and told us they found a new house and Nancy has never been happier.  Ironically it is one of Jon’s old girlfriend’s apartments.  We went to George’s to visit—Chuck was gone already and George was back to his old self.

December 17th – Saturday, we packed most of the day and then went to George’s to say goodbye.  He invited us over for desert later; he had a possible date for dinner.  Barb and Ben came to our house to say goodbye but left early enough for us to go to George’s.  Tomorrow, it is out of Dodge!