- white knuckle driving
- a subterranean maze
- a jar of blood
- a mechanical man who removed his head
- a bull's glowing head
- superb music
- giant rats
- prestine tile
- dress up
- no nap!
- marmalade sandwiches
- reciting poetry
- nose-bleed seats
- windowless, soundproof rooms
- a fistful of human hair twisted and tied in knots
- a really expensive chandelier
- imaginary money
- a lame man emerging from seclusion
- masses of blue shopping bags
- a beautiful princess trapped in a chair for hours on end
... all on the spur of the moment.
This Sunday afternoon we went to the Theatre District's Open House. That is, Sparkle, Glitter, and I went. Wander didn't think that he would be up to all the walking involved. It ended up being a *lot* of walking. We criss-crossed the parking center going from one theatre to another on the opposite end. We hiked up miles of stairs from the depths of the parking center to the heights of the balcony in two theatres. We got pictures with characters from The Nutcracker. We got to tour one theatre and sit in the really, really, really expensive seats. We got to see the dressing rooms of the stars. We got to stand on the stage. The girls got to play dress up with actual costumes from a ballet. We watched a wigmaker plying her trade. We listened to a small jazz ensemble in a cozy theatre and a full orchestra in an expansive concert hall. The girls drank it all in. Our discussion about expected behavior in the drive down paid off. I had to threaten to leave only a few times, and the girls survived five hours with no snacks or drinks and only one potty break at the end.
I was really tempted to buy tickets to the ballet. They were selling package deals at an awesome discount. However, Wander says that weird things are going on at his work, and his surgery was really expensive, so I didn't. Maybe next year.
We didn't get home until supper time, and I really didn't feel like cooking. So, we went out to eat. (Hey, I didn't spend the money on tickets.) It was Wander's first time wearing shoes and going out of the house since his surgery.
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Photos:
Some of the crowds ...
The view from the really expensive seats ...
My dancers with their dancers ...
Playing dress up ...
Glitter dancing on stage ...
Sparkle reciting her poem very quietly ...
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Explaination:
white knuckle driving: I hate driving downtown, even in the relatively little traffic found on a Sunday afternoon
a subterranean maze: the parking garage
a jar of blood: a prop for one of the shows; the kids got to stick their fingers in it.
a mechanical man who removed his head: The Nutcracker freaked Glitter out until he removed his mask.
a bull's glowing head: a volunteer had a "Carmen" t-shirt. I pointed it out because we had recently listened to some themes from the opera during morning music
superb music: symphony and jazz ensemble
giant rats: from The Nutcracker
prestine tile: The girls thought the restroom was the cleanest they'd ever seen
dress up: the girls got to try on real costumes
no nap!: Glitter's real reason for wanting to go on the trip
marmalade sandwiches: The girls pretended to drop marmalade sandwiches over the balcony. (I had just read them that part of "A Bear Called Paddington.")
reciting poetry: I had Sparkle practice a poem on stage
nose-bleed seats: The only seats available upon our late arrival to the symphony's concert
windowless, soundproof rooms: the dressing rooms for the stars of the shows, complete with pianos and toilets!
a fistful of human hair twisted and tied in knots: wigmaking
a really expensive chandelier: in the Green Room
imaginary money: Glitter gave a salesman imaginary money to buy imaginary tickets
a lame man emerging from seclusion: I bullied Wander into go to the restaurant with us
masses of blue shopping bags: given out free to everyone who visited the open house
a beautiful princess trapped in a chair for hours on end: a ballerina posing for pictures
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