DIY: “Hocus Pocus” Dani Dennison Halloween costume

For the last several months, our daughter Stella had insisted that she was going to be Sarah Sanderson from “Hocus Pocus” for Halloween. I swear she started talking about it as early as last Halloween. We even talked about the possibility of me dressing up as Winifred and Margot as Mary.

But then she started talking about being excited to wear a witch’s hat, and I had to break it to her that the Sanderson sisters don’t wear hats. I suggested that she dress up as Thora Birch’s character, Dani Dennison, instead.

She could wear the witch’s hat and be nice and warm in all of the outfit layers. Plus, it was a DIY dream. She was sold, and thus began the adventure in costume-making.

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My submission for the In Her Cups: Bras for a Cause art auction

I first heard about the Women’s Center of Greater Lansing‘s annual In Her Cups: Bras for a Cause Art Auction several years ago, when I was working at FOX 47. The Morning Blend show would often highlight the events at the Women’s Center. This particular event always seemed like a wonderful opportunity to express creativity while helping a great cause. I remember seeing photos of bras that looked like disco balls, or Dr. Seuss characters, or covered in peacock feathers.

The Women’s Center of Greater Lansing helps women with individual counseling, support groups, and career preparation. The bras made and auctioned at this annual event are for the healing of cancer survivors and domestic violence and trauma survivors.

I saw a post about a call for artists on Facebook last month, and I was intrigued. I used to think that people had to be artists or a part of a business to create a bra for the event, so I was really motivated to make one when the rules said anyone from crafty people to artists to groups of people could submit work.

In considering what the design or theme should be, my first thought was to do something with the color teal in honor of sexual assault survivors.

It has been a very surreal and upsetting couple of years, with the events surrounding Michigan State University and the Larry Nassar trial, as well as our current White House occupant and the recent Kavanaugh hearing. It feels like so many brave survivors are sharing their stories, but many times things aren’t changing. The only light coming from these dark moments is the swell of support for the survivors I have seen in our local community and across the world. There is still good around us.

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The month I fell head over seat in love with The Barre Code

Here is the story of how I fell in love with The Barre Code.

This past June, I had my first taste of The Barre Code when the East Lansing location held its grand opening. I even wrote about the transformative experience I had, thanks in large part to the philosophy of The Barre Code that focuses on self-appreciation and finding your own strong.

As part of The Barre Code East Lansing’s grand opening, the first two weeks of classes were free to the public. I took advantage of this opportunity and tried out a couple of other classes. The team from Chicago also gave me the chance to attend a class at their Lakeview location when I was visiting my friend Jen this past July.

While I loved everything about The Barre Code, I already had a gym membership elsewhere that wasn’t getting as much of my attention as it should have been getting. In my mind, I wasn’t prepared to make the commitment to myself and the consistency of exercise. There were so many excuses, from having to think of childcare (or bringing my clingy one-year-old with me to the gym) to figuring out when in my day I would have time to fit it in.

Yet the words from my very first Barre Code instructor Kaye stuck with me deep inside of my soul: A 50-minute class was essentially 5% of my day. That is 5% of my day just for me and no one else. Why was it so hard for me to give that to myself? Continue reading “The month I fell head over seat in love with The Barre Code”

Review: Performances soar, designs dazzle in “Love Never Dies”

Sequels are impossibly hard, particularly when the original is exceptional. Expectations are high, comparisons are inevitable. Pair that precedent with the task of following up the longest-running show in Broadway history and one of the most beloved musicals of the last 30 years, and it can seem insurmountable. Yet if anyone is poised to attempt it, Andrew Lloyd Webber is one such maestro.

“Love Never Dies,” the sequel to the iconic “The Phantom of the Opera,” brings back those familiar characters, melodies, and passionate tensions in a splashy fashion. Sure, Webber has a flair for the dramatic. But as the mastermind behind “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Cats,” “Evita,” and recent Wharton Center season opener “School of Rock,” it’s tough to fault him for wanting to tell more of this seminal story. 

Appearing at the Wharton Center through October 14, 2018, “Love Never Dies” gives another long-awaited taste to Phantom fans who can’t get enough of the theatrics. And for those who haven’t seen “The Phantom of the Opera,” the impeccable vocals, dazzling set design, and vibrant costumes are certain to lure them in.

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Phantom unmasked: An interview with Bronson Norris Murphy of “Love Never Dies”

He has returned.

The Wharton Center will welcome “Love Never Dies,” the sequel to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s iconic “Phantom of the Opera,” October 9-14, 2018. Set 10 years after the Phantom’s disappearance from the Paris Opera House, “Love Never Dies” takes audiences to the sights and sounds of Coney Island in the early 20th century.

Meghan Picerno (“Christine Daaé”) and Bronson Norris Murphy (“The Phantom”) star in Love Never Dies. Photo: Joan Marcus.

Bronson Norris Murphy stars as The Phantom in “Love Never Dies,” premiering the leading role in the show’s first North American production. I spoke with him about his experiences as The Phantom, what audiences can expect from the sequel, and his next dream role.

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