The air, the air is everywhere!

Hi all...


So, I know my dad has already written a blog about this, but yes, I was cast in UMaine's production of Hair as Jeanie. I am VERY excited. There's nothing I enjoy more than being on a stage and this character is going to be very fun to get to know and make my own. I was bored at my local laundromat the other day and was taking advantage of their free wifi and researching some analysis's of the show and I especially liked Scott Miller's take on Jeanie (note:in this particular part of his analysis he's paralleling the show to the bible, his analysis compares the show to many things):

"And like Mary Magdalene and Jesus, Jeanie loves Claude, but he can't return her love. Because Claude is the emotional and moral center of Hair, Jeanie is by extension the most important female character in the show, even though it might not appear that way at first glance. She acts as Greek chorus several times throughout the show, explaining things to the audience, identifying characters and relationships, but she also gets a solo introduction song in Act I ("Air") along with the other leads. It's through her that we feel the tragedy and the anguish of those Claude will leave behind. There are cryptic references throughout the show that Jeanie may be psychic in some way (or at least some kind of hippie mystic), that she knows Claude will end up going to war, and that she may know that Claude will die in Vietnam.

It may even be that Jeanie is denying the fact that Claude is the father of her unborn child only to free him from any responsibility, since she knows he doesn't really love her. It's probable that they have slept together. Though there's nothing in the text that says this explicitly, Jeanie and Claude allude to this in their conversation before the Be-In, and it's certainly an interesting idea for the actors to explore. Though Claude is in love with Sheila, Jeanie is in love with Claude and, along with Berger, she will suffer the greatest loss when Claude dies. It's hard not to see parallels to Mary Magdalene, and since the discovery of "new" lost gospels in 1945, there may even be romantic parallels. These new papyrus texts have holes and gaps in them but some scholars maintain that these texts describe a romantic relationship between Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Unsurprisingly, this is hotly contested among Biblical scholars.

Like Mary Magdalene, who was called both prostitute and saint, Jeanie provides a symbolic bridge between sexuality and spirituality, between the pleasures of the flesh and the cultivation of the soul. (Perhaps she should be the one to sing "Sodomy.") Jeanie is promiscuous, already pregnant when the show begins (by "some speed freak"), but she is also the one who invites the audience to the Be-In, an event of spiritual exploration and awakening. She brings Claude a book on astral projection, and as mentioned earlier, she seems to have mystical powers. But even beyond all that, Mary Magdalene would have been right at home with Berger and the tribe. She grew up in Magdala, a small fishing village that was a hotbed of rebel activity against the Roman Empire. She came from a well-to-do family just as many of the hippies came from upper middle class families. And, in fact, Mary Magdalene was not a prostitute even though she was characterized as such for centuries, just as the hippies were often characterized as sexual deviants and hedonists. Some texts suggest that she did have a considerable sexual appetite and, because she was well off enough that she didn't have to work, she may have practiced what the hippies of the 1960s called "free love." And for that she was considered a sinner by her contemporaries. Like the hippies, Mary Magdalene was an independent thinker who met Jesus, a radical political activist, and joined his movement, a movement dedicated to finding enlightenment, rejecting old social norms and rules, and discovering the answers to the great existential questions; the parallels to the tribe in Hair are obvious. After Christ's crucifixion, and after Mary's subsequent preaching and evangelism, she retired to a secluded wilderness where she lived out her remaining years. Some accounts say that each day she was carried up to the heavens by angels to listen to the music of the heavens, an experience probably akin to astral projection, a practice
Jeanie is very interested in."

To read the rest of Scott Miller's analysis go here: http://www.orlok.com/hair/holding/articles/HairArticles/scottmiller.html. It's pretty long, but very interesting! After reading that analysis I am EVEN more excited to play Jeanie. I think I can put a lot into this character. :)

Anywho..the show goes up in February, so I hope everyone can make it!

Later, gators!!

My first solo tour!

Today I gave my first SOLO tour of UMaine! I have given tours with other tour guides before but never by myself. Today we had 60 people come and so we had to split it up meaning everyone working had to do a solo tour of about 15-20 people. I was nervous but also excited! I like being in the spotlight so even though I do like giving tours with another tour guide, I like having my own show even better! It was really fun and everyone asked interesting and good questions. I had about 20 people on my tour, most of whom were from Massachusetts and had toured many other schools in the last few weeks. Hopefully I left them with a good impression of UMaine! I did get a really good compliment, actually. When we got back apparently one of the moms on the tour went up the girl in charge at the desk and said "Who is in charge here!?" and at first they thought it was something bad but then she said "I just have to tell someone that Sarah was an incredible tour guide. I have been on 23 college tours lately and she was by far the best tour guide we've had." So, I was pretty happy with that news! I love the work I do with the university and I can't wait to give more tours and to do this kind of thing for the rest of my life! :)

More soon...later, gators!

1st day of school!

So, the first day of school was today! The picture above is "the gang" in our first day of school attire. "The gang" being my closest class friends, Cassie, Kate, Alan and Emily. We have all of our music classes together and have since the beginning so we've all become very close. :)

I didn't have class until 11 today, but woke up naturally 8, which was actually kind of nice. I ate some breakfast, watched a movie, and then took a shower and got ready. I didn't feel rushed! We'll see if I can keep getting up at that hour or not. The only problem with having late classes is getting to school at that hour because the parking is LIMITED. I ended up having to park at the Rec Center at Hilltop (a good 10 minute walk from my classroom building) because the ENTIRE MCA parking lot was FILLED. For those of you that know UMaine well you know that that parking lot is HUGE...so yeah. Parking at Hilltop meant I was in the first year residential part of campus which meant I walked to class with hundreds of eager and nervous first year students on their way to their first college day. I walked fast and wasn't looking at a map the whole time so I probably stood out. Anywho, I only had 1 class and then some re-auditions and then work. It was an eventful day, indeed! Class at 8am tomorrow so it's going to be an early night tonight!

Later, gators!

Team Maine Retreat!

Team Maine went on a retreat Tuesday night into Wednesday, which was a lot of fun. Team Maine, for those that don't know, is actually more than just the Student Ambassadors. It is comprised of the Student Ambassadors, the Dirigo Tour Guides, and the Telecounselors; I am all three of these titles. The differences between them are as follows: SA's run summer orientation, Dirigo Tour Guides give campus tours during the academic year and summer months, and the Telecounselors call prospective students a few nights a week to help them along with their application process.

For retreat we went to Camp Roosevelt in Eddington, which is a Boy Scout camp. It was a lot of fun; we bonded; we swam; we ate s'mores...it was a good time had by all. Here are some pictures:

A team-building activity that involved flinging a stuffed animal into a trash can:


A bunch of Team Maine'ers hanging out...


UMaine Jeopardy:


Cabin #4!!:


Me & Abby:


It was a really fun time. Alright off to campus for another long day of planning....later, gators!

At the University of Maine...

you're in a great place.


That slogan, as cheesy as it may be, rings true with me and with many other UMaine students I am sure. I was thrilled to find out on Friday that I got the position of Dirigo Tour Guide that I had applied for. This means that I now work for all 3 branches of New Student Programs, Telecounseling and Student Ambassadors being the other 2. Earlier this week I worked a few days at the Visitors Center before Student Ambassador training started to get acquainted and see whether tour guiding was something I wanted to actually apply for. After assisting on a couple of tours I knew that it was definitely something I wanted to do! Not only is it fun, but I actually learn new things about the campus I call home on each one. For instance, did you know that UMaine's Fogler Library is the biggest library in the state of Maine and has over 1.1 MILLION volumes? Or that the state-of-the-art Recreation and Fitness Center that opened in 2007 is the largest one of its kind north of Boston? How about that 11% of UMaine's population is involved with Greek life? Okay that one isn't as interesting, but a fact nonetheless.
On Wednesday we had a special tour of camp kids that we took to specific areas of campus. One of those areas was the AEWC, which is UMaine's Advanced Structures and Composites Center. The kids got a tour of the facility from 2 grad students, but I also hopped on that tour because I myself had never been there. This facility is a shining star in the engineering world and produces some of the finest work in the field. Infact, the US Secretary of Transporation, Ray LaHood, visited the AEWC last Monday to check out their ideas in bridge making. That's a big deal! His boss is Barack Obama!
Whether it be how beautiful our campus is (check out the above photo that I snagged off UMaine's website), or the people I know here, or the things I learn everyday, I love being a student at UMaine and I can't wait to be that first impression that future students can have of the University. I think I'll really like being a tour guide.

On another note, SA training is going well. Long days. We have retreat on Tuesday night. We are going to a big cabin and hanging out. That should be fun. I will try to take some pictures to put up here. Alright time for bed.

Later, gators!

ALL MOVED IN! :)

I know, I know...it's been like 56 fortnights since I posted. My summer was filled with work, that is it. I worked all day, slept all night, and then did it all over again. Not a whole lot to report in the last 2 months. BUT today, however, marked an exciting day; I moved into my new apartment! My good friend, Jesse, has lived here for 2 years and her past roommate, Craig, moved out this summer and so I moved in! :) She and I have been friends for a couple years now so I am very excited to live with her. I thought ya'll might like a few pictures of my new pad, so here you go:

Living Room shot #1


Living Room shot #2
The door you see is the door to get outside.


Living Room shot #3


Kitchen shot #1


Kitchen shot #2
The little eating nook :)


Kitchen shot #3


My Bedroom shot #1
*note: the HUGE windows with shutters on them..I love them!


My Bedroom shot #2
BIG walk in closet


My Bedroom shot #3
Another one of of the windows!


My Bedroom #4
The door is to the hallway in the house--this apartment is in a very old house and the door leads to what the owners once used as a staircase and whatnot.


So, there you have it! I didn't take any pictures of Jesse's room or of the bathroom, but they're both very nice too. Jesse's room even has an old fireplace in it! It doesn't work anymore, but looks great just the same!

Anywho...I start work with NSP on Monday and I am excited! More soon...PINKY PROMISE!

Later, gators!!! :)

Student Ambassadors 2009

Well, it's certainly been awhile since I've written in my blog. I go through droughts. Right now, however, I am in that last hours of my 2 days off and have time to collect my thoughts and inform you all of this amazing experience I've had being a student ambassador at UMaine. This adventure is not over and it's been a tiring adventure at that, but I have enjoyed every second of it.

We arrived on June 3rd, fresh faced and eager, ready to take on the challenges of running such an extravagant event as orientation. We hit the ground running as soon as we got there. Every day was filled with campus info sessions, meetings with the deans, event assignments, and campus luncheons. Somewhere in there we met our French interns, Solenn and Adele. They are college students from France interning for New Student Programs this summer, they are both wonderful and I notice their English getting better and better every day. Here is Solenn, holding a lobster, with Adele in the background:

This picture brings me back to what I was about to mention: our retreat at the Darling Marine Center. The Darling Marine Center is a portion of UMaine located in Walpole where marine biology students can do a "semester at sea". We did an overnight retreat there on June 8th and 9th. It was so much fun and the facility is amazing. We got to go on a boat ride and catch all kinds of creatures in a big net. When the net was brought back in we spent a half hour just pawing through all the sea junk and finding lots of cool stuff--little lobsters, eels, crabs, and my personal favorite, the sea cucumber. That night we had a campfire and heard the many ghost stories at UMaine, which REALLY freaked a lot of people out, but not me...I actually think they're pretty cool stories. The next morning I got up earlier than I needed to and had some time to kill so I went and sat outside by the water and read my book, which was a really nice way to relax and start the morning. Once we got back to campus it was business as usual as the first orientation was approaching fast! On Friday June 12th the day arrived! The 3 sessions this past weekend went very smoothly, I met a lot of really awesome first-year students and had a ton of fun. I have, however, really enjoyed these past 2 days which we had off. Tomrrow we set-up and Friday we start all over again with 3 more sessions. Monday after orientation I head home and start work at child care on Tuesday morning. I'll be tired, but that's alright.

Anywho, here's some more pictures--

Some of us at the Darling Marine Center:


Me & Alex and our "big buddy", Ryan:


Some ladies at banquet:


Student Ambassadors doing the "Call on Me" dance for first-year students at one of the orientation bonfires:


Okay, until next time....later, gators!

SPA Ball 2009!

Last night was the annual School of Performing Arts Ball. It was a blast! :) This year it was held at the PAV, which is the Pavillion Theater located behind the library. My date was my old roomie, Cory. It was wonderful to see him. Here are some pictures from the night:





All in all it was a wonderful evening spent with the fantastic people I call my friends. :)
More soon. Later, gators.

Singers Tour 2009!

Hi!! This past week was fantastic. I had an absolute blast on tour. My voice is shot and I'm exhausted, but it is well worth the fun that ensued while traveling with 75 of my best friends. I'll post some pictures below, but first I just want to give you guys a short run-down of my week.

Monday, March 9th--I arrived on campus at 6am, we loaded up, and headed out. Had a concert at Lee Academy in the morning, Wiscasset High School in the afternoon, and Windham High School at night. Liz and I had a wonderful host home in Windham. They had 2 pugs..and as you all know I have a pug OBSESSION.

Tuesday, March 10th--We did a morning assembly at Windham, an afternoon show at Noble High School and then an evening show at St. Christopher's Catholic Church in York. Again, we had a fantastic host home family. The father was actually from Augusta and knew who my dad was, so that was pretty interesting! Small world!

Wednesday, March 11th--Morning assembly at York Middle School, and then some travel time and a night show at Winnisquam Regional High School in Tilton, NH. Another great host home family.

Thursday, March 12th-- Morning assembly at Winnisquam Regional High School and then we were off to Vermont The only day I rode in one of the vans instead of the bus! It was a great day to ride in the van, too. Craig drove, Stephen was in the front seat and then Kristen and I both had our own big seats to stretch out and sleep on. Not to mention that Kristen is a Vermonter so it was fun to get a little tour of Vermont as we were arriving. We got to Vergennes High School and had retreat, which is a bonding time, of sorts. We reflect about what singers means to us and all of that stuff. It was a really emotional and special time. Then we had an evening concert at the high school. After that a group of 6 of us girls stayed at our friend, Olivia's house. She is a Singer and is from Vergennes, so that was really fun!

Friday, March 13th--Afternoon concert at Champlain Valley HS in Hinesburg, VT and then we headed off to Burlington. We got to the hotel, grabbed some dinner, and then got ready for our final concert of tour at the Unitarian Universalist Church. (yay suz!) It was a very small, but appreciative crowd. After that a few of us walked around Burlington and had ice cream. It's a wonderful little city and I would definetely love to go back!

Saturday, March 14th--MONTREAL! We arrived in Montreal around noon and had the whole day and night free. It was so much fun. We had wonderful food, good drinks, and hilarious moments that will turn into great memories. It's a trip I will certainly never forget. :)

Sunday, March 15th--An 8-hour drive back to Maine. It was good to roll onto campus. Not as much fun, however, to wake up for class this morning!

All in all tour was something unforgettable and I can't wait until the tour next year. It may seem in my description to just be stop-to-stop, but it's so much more than that. Whether it be side-splitting laughter during "Morning Mad-Libs" on the bus, or rocking out during the Homme and Femme Du Jour dances, or bonding with people that will be my friends for life, it's just a truly undescribable experience. I am so happy to be a part of such a wonderful group of talented people.

Anywho, here are a handful of pictures, I will post more soon!






Later, gators!

Some exciting news!

I got an e-mail last night informing me that I have been chosen as a UMaine student ambassador for 2009-2010! I interviewed for the position last month and was really looking forward to hearing back--so I was definitely VERY excited about the outcome! The picture is Tour Guides and Student Ambassadors from a couple years ago. For those that don't know, I'll explain a little bit about what being a student ambassador means. At UMaine we have a very active New Student Programs office, which runs programs throughout the entire year that focus on recruitement and then welcoming future students. As many of you know, I have been a telecounselor for New Student Programs all year and have really enjoyed my job there, which is one of the main reasons I decided to apply for the Student Ambassador position. Student Ambassadors run new student orientations in the summer and then they also run fall welcome weekend. So, for three weeks this summer I'll be very busy doing training and then 2 weeks of orientations. Orientations are two days long and we have a number of them throughout those 2 weeks, which are divided up by colleges. The SA's plan and then execute everything for those orientations. Here's an idea of the itinerary for an orientation at UMaine:

12:00 - 3:30 p.m.	ORIENTATION CHECK IN, INFO FAIR & MEETINGS Check-in at registration desk Check into residence hall Get your MaineCard student ID picture taken Register your keys with Public Safety Textbook reservation form Parking decal application Campus Tours Meeting for Honors College Students & Parents Meeting for Student Athletes & Parents Meeting for Transfer Students Meeting for New Commuter Students
3:30 p.m.	ORIENTATION OPENING SESSIONS Hearty Maine Hello, Money Matters, Agenda Review, Team Maine
4:30 p.m.	Breaking the Ice
5:45 p.m.	Planet UMaine
6:15 p.m.	Bear Fare Cookout
7:30 p.m.	Computers on Campus
8:00 p.m.	Making College Count
9:15 p.m.	Reality U!
10:30 p.m.	Bonfire/Res Hall Activities
DAY 2
7:00 a.m.	Check-out of Residence Hall
7:45 a.m.	Breakfast
9:00 a.m.	Class Scheduling & Advising
10:00 a.m.	The Finish Line

I remember my orientation fondly and it really does help with the nerves that come along with starting college. I am VERY excited and look forward to welcoming the class of 2013 (wow) to the University of Maine!

Later, gators!

Gearing up for tour...

Hi! I am home for spring break right now. Yesterday was the last day of classes, and I only had one, so I left campus around 1 to head home. I'll be home for this first week of the 2-week break and then the second week will be spent touring with the University Singers. I'm really, really excited. It's a week of performing with a bunch of people I love! :) It's a pretty heavy load of performing, actually. We average 3 concerts a day and then the last day (Saturday) is spent as a free day and night in Montreal! WOO!
Here's what the schedule looks like for that week:

MONDAY, MARCH 9, 2009
9:00AM – Lee Academy, Lee, ME
1:00PM – Wiscasset High School, Wiscasset, ME
7:00PM – Windham High School, Windham, ME

TUESDAY, MARCH 10, 2009
9:00AM – Windham High School, Windham, ME
1:00PM – Noble High School, Berwick, ME
7:00PM – St. Christopher’s Catholic Church, York, ME

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 11, 2009
9:00AM – York Middle School, York, ME
7:00PM – Winnisquam Regional High School, Tilton, NH

THURSDAY, MARCH 12, 2009
9:00AM – Winnisquam Regional High School, Tilton, NH
1:00PM – Retreat, Vergennes, VT
7:00PM – Vergennes High School, Vergennes, VT

FRIDAY, MARCH 13, 2009
1:00PM – Champlain Valley Union High School, Hinesburg, VT
7:00PM – Unitarian Universal Church, Burlington, VT

SATURDAY, MARCH 14, 2009
9:00AM – Leave For Montreal
12:00PM – Arrive at Hotel in Montreal
1:00pm – FREE TIME

SUNDAY MARCH 15, 2009
9:00AM – Leave For Maine
4:00PM – Arrive at UMAINE!!!!

So, as seen--it's a pretty intense schedule! We stay in host homes, except for the last 2 nights--we have hotels in Burlington and Montreal, but the rest of the nights are spent in host homes. My tour-buddy (the person who stays with me in the host homes) is my friend, Liz, so it should be a really good time! I am very excited and I'll be sure to post lots of pictures when I get back! Woo! :)

Later, gators!

The worst pies in London come to UMaine!

Today was a really exciting day! "Sweeney Todd" the touring Broadway production is going to be at the CCA tonight and I have tickets! On top of that, though, the lead (Sweeney Todd) is a man named David Janes..shown in the picture below:

and he is a graduate of UMaine as well as an alumni of the University Singers!! So, today he came into Singers and chatted with us! He's absolutely hilarious and it was so much fun being able to meet him and hear his perspective on the performing world and he came from right where I am now! It's a refreshing feeling! :) So, that was really exciting. I have really awesome seats (which is amazing because I just got my tickets today and other people have had theirs for months!) But I got rush tickets for $5 and I am sitting in the 8th row center. Woo! I'm really excited, I'll let ya'll know how the show is!

Gotta get going! :) Later, gators!

A fun game!

Okay, so I totally stole this idea off of someone else's blog, but I think it's fun!

Rules: Go to Google and type in your name followed by "needs" and then see what 10 funny things come up. Here is mine--

1.) Sarah needs a cold shower. (Well, I prefer hot ones.)
2.) Sarah needs your manly vote. (Uh..what?)
3.) Sarah needs more love. (True dat...don't we all?)
4.) Sarah needs a Wii. (I WOULD LOVE A WII!)
5.) Sarah needs batteries. (You can never have enough.)
6.) Sarah needs a home. (I have like 3 homes...I'm all set on the home frontier.)
7.) Sarah needs to lean on her man. (Well, it'd help if I had a man to lean on.)
8.) Sarah needs money. (Yes, yes I do.)
9.) Sarah needs hugs. (Always!)
10.) Sarah needs to lose weight. (Sigh. Stop calling me fat!)

later, gators!

Come look at the freaks!

There's a good reason I haven't written in eons. Tonight is the first night I've had off in months. Seriously! And it's all because of Side Show, the musical I am a part of right now. We opened this past weekend and it went so well! It's the story of true conjoined twins, Daisy and Violet Hilton who worked freak shows and eventually vaudeville in the 30s. I've heard nothing but positive reviews from all of my friends who have seen it, so if you have the chance to make it up this way I recommend seeing it. I've had a blast. We have 4 shows this weekend--Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and I can't wait to have another full weekend of it. I love doing musical theatre soo much. I made a decision a long time ago that no matter where I end up and what my career is I WILL find a community theater near me and I will continue doing musical theatre because it's what I love to do more than anything.

As for everything else, all is well. The musical has pretty much been taking over my life, but tonight was a nice break. Classes are going well..there's less than 2 weeks until spring break! CRAZY! I feel like I JUST got back from Christmas break. Time fliiiiiiies. It'll be nice to be home for a week and then I have Singers tour for a week. We end in Montreal...woo! :) It should be a fantastic time and I am very excited!

Alright..bed time! More soon! :) Later, gators!

Millions of people...

Yesterday was a wonderful day. Historical, emotional, and full of hope. There was a feeling of jubilation on the UMaine campus that radiated throughout the day and into the night as we all soaked in the fact that we have a new president; one we can believe in and feel proud to support. It hasn't been that way in 8 years. 8 years ago I was 13 years old. It's been a long time coming. 

I was so proud to call myself an American yesterday and know that I was a part of making history within this great nation. On that note, I think those that say that yesterday wasn't historical for the fact that Obama is black are ignorant. Of course, there are many other factors to why yesterday was a momentous occasion, but the fact that we FINALLY have made strides with racism in this country is something to be enormously proud of. It's okay to be proud of that, it's okay to focus on the fact that he is a black man with a black family. No, he isn't fully black, but have we ever had a president with any color in him at all? No, we haven't. Wake up, people...his race isn't what makes him, but it's what makes me proud of this country. It's okay to be proud of that and to focus on that because it's something we can finally feel good about. We are getting somewhere, America, and there's absolutely no reason to feel like we can't think about that. Anyway, I just had to get that out because I am so PROUD of this fact and PROUD to know that racism may actually get its ugly butt out the door. I stand fearlessly behind this leader and I can feel the love that this country has for him. I am enormously happy. 

On another another note, my voice teacher let me skip my lesson to watch the inauguration. I wish I could say the same about my theory teacher, but no such luck. We got out of theory at 11:50 and then Kate, Emily, Cassie, and myself RAN and I mean RAN back to our friend, Karin's dorm to watch him be sworn in and to see his first speech as our new president. It was joyous. After he was sworn in you could hear the cheers up and down the halls of Penobscot Hall. The very few on this campus who weren't proud of Obama yesterday were silenced by the cheers of hope and happiness and pride. It was definitely something I'll remember forever.

Later, gators.

Crossing back over...

Hi everyone. Again, my apologies for the lack in entries. I will try harder this semester to update. I am back at school this week for rehearsals for the musical. I've been crashing at Alyssa's place for the week since we're practically the only ones up here right now.
I have some news...my MacBook died the other night. I knew it was coming. It had been acting up lately and I've had it for 2 1/2 years. It's sort of a known fact that Macs don't last all that long. Most everyone I know that has had one has had trouble with it. So, I've decided to cross back over the PC-side. I ordered a Dell Inspiron 1525 and I'm pretty excited about it. Woo. It should be here in a couple weeks or so. Until then I am going to be using my dad's laptop. I have an online class this coming semester, so it's kind of important that I have a computer to use.
Alright, well I still haven't showered today, so I should get on that. More soon!
Later, gators!

PS: HAPPY NEW YEAR!