haiku

Haiku #387 - Samba Samba Samba!

me (right), Quenia, her partner Nick who is a percussionist and plays for her classes, and my dance buddy Jessica

dance from the feet up

tsunami of sexiness

that's Quenia's advice!

The Ailey Extension is my favorite place to dance in the city, and Quenia's samba class is my favorite class there - check out her

website

!

what SWEETHEARTS! - Indiegogo Contributors 2/2

Thank you to the people listed below for their generous contributions to the fundraiser to record a demo for The Sweethearts of Swing! The demo is now up on the website - click here to give it a listen!! There are other wonderful people whose haiku were posted previously - hope you enjoy!
Stephanie Wilson-Wagner
Bernie and Colonel
are living it up in the 
City By the Bay

 Madeline Ruskin
independent girl
she dances to her own tune
and others join in
Nicole Paloma Sarro
ev'rywhere she goes
she brings the party with her
positivity
Tiago Iturbe
stomp your feet and clap
sing "we will rock you" again
you're a rock star now!

Bo Santomauro
taking a deep breath
letting it out in a song
the best stress relief
Jennifer Rogers
if it's a game day
you know Jennifer will wear
the blue and orange
Shane King
something old or new
something good to listen to
something red green blue
Ryan George
work hard at the gym
the effort will pay you back
in six-packs (not beer!)
Gayle Shay
sing a melisma
to express what's in your heart
via Rossini
Marisel Polanco
she's got the rhythm
in both music, and the words
that she is writing
Greg Smith
dividing his time
between New York and Denmark
that's doing life right

Malika Samuel
always be prepared
she has many characters
ready for stage time

Cheryl Krugel-Lee
summer near the waves
creative folk all around
finishing their hats
Emily Croome
in science fiction 
and musical theater
found serenity

Diane Oram
deep, changing colors
a New Mexico sunset
has its own music

Mick & Carol Coon
play a violin
tell a tale of joy or woe
use the entire bow!

Christy Witt-Hoffman
out there in Texas
a little more room to breathe
more time to sing songs
Bill & Sandra Szilazi
the house lights go out
and another world begins
under the spotlight

David Sitler & Carolyn Popp
he's such a nice guy
though onstage he can make you
believe anything

Diana Benedetti
she's making movies
in Munich, California?!
no, in Germany!

Mimi Row
on the internet
wasting time or maybe I'm 
finding childhood friends
Caroline Nagy
work with good people
meeting deadlines, reaching goals
more fun on the way

Walter Thompson
meeting up with friends
no such thing as free lunchtime
but we keep trying!

Gerry G. Gold
happy sad faces
the icons of theater
how they never age!
Angela Thon
many languages
they all make sense in music
or to Angela

David Remley
find the words to tell
a tale of sunshine and grit
in the Wild, Wild West

KJ Strange
we share a first name
K-A-T-H-R-Y-N
so many nicknames!

Adam Zaremberg
being a writer
hours of paying attention
word by word by word

Ruth McPherson
have another song!
music will quench your thirst so
take one for the road

what SWEETHEARTS! - Indiegogo Contributors 1/2

Thank you to the people listed below for their generous contributions to the fundraiser to record a demo for The Sweethearts of Swing! The demo is now up on the website - click here to give it a listen!! There are a few other wonderful people whose haiku were posted previously, or will be posted tomorrow night - hope you enjoy!

 Leigh AKA Line O' Sevens
across the planet
you're made of words and pixels
a far-away friend
Cherie Tay
some of her talents:
professional life hacker
fine ukulelist
Alex Colby
i'd like to meet more
people who dare to see life
through a diff'rent lens
Ayumi Okada
following your dreams
the places they will take you
may be 'round the earth

 Eileen Sanderson
delicious cookies
tastes and smells make home feel near
when it's far away
Theresa Rose
what you have to say 
may not seem that important
but it is, it is
Samantha Watson
where should I be now?
I need a stage manager 
in my daily life
Joel Martin
hungry while you work?
you will be struck down unless
you order by phone!

 Joshua Smith
mi mi mi mi miiiiiiii!
Joshua's singing his song
somewhere in Boston
Gregg Akkerman
a truly great man
makes New Year's resolutions
to eat more cookies

John Lopez
a renaissance man
to the city after work
shh! don't tell mama

Lynn Sanderson
surrounded by books
a good librarian sees
stories ev'rywhere

Jessica Sarles-Dinsick
Brazilian rhythms
syncopation makes you move
as she plays and sings
Suzee Dunn
hey, California!
don't underestimate the
girl from the mitten

Hanley Smith
i may write haiku
but Hanley can impress with
double dactylic

Darryl Garcia 
he is ev'rywhere!
he must be a master of
teleportation

Andrea Cirillo
several thousand words
can tell a complex picture
worth another grand
Shannon Sherrell
mem'ries with cousins
concerts in the living room
we charged admission!

Mona Sherrell
a bumper sticker:
education cuts don't heal
sticks with me always

Paul Sherrell 
trav'ling and hunting
for quail, dove, or compact disc
are fine adventures

 Anne Sherrell
she likes life to be
allegro ma non troppo
make it andante
Jason Sherbundy
when you need a break
here's the open road and sky
rhythm in the wheels

Kathy Trezza
keep your eyes open
to the wonders around you
look for joy each day

Tamara Sherrell Murayama
collecting stickers
ev'ry purchase earns you more
Mister Donut swag!

What SWEETHEARTS! - Yaremis, Sara, Adam, Gretchen, Shahla

Thanks to Yaremis Felix, Sara Wildavsky, Adam Reich, Gretchen Amstutz, and Shahla Atlas for their generous contributions to the fundraiser to record a demo for The Sweethearts of Swing! The demo is now up on the website - click here to give it a listen!!
Yaremis:
laughter's contagious
an epidemic of mirth
is what the world needs

Sara (in honor of her brother Dan):
hear tunes with Sara
eat some burgers by the sea
perfect day for Dan

Adam:
a life in the arts
the magic is in doing 
when all else is loss

Gretchen:
she is living proof:
if you follow the music
music follows you

Shahla:
just look at those boots
if you need fashion advice
she's the one to ask

Haiku #378 - Perfect Broadway Day



church bells are chiming
"no business like show business"
at quarter to two

 Every Wednesday at 1:45 pm, the church bells at St. Malachy's on 49th St. call theatrical parishioners to matinee by chiming "There's No Business Like Show Business". Today at that time, I was sitting across the street by an open window in the rehearsal studio, alternately playing dance breaks for a Book of Mormon rehearsal and reading a book about Irving Berlin, who wrote that song, as well as many others that form part of the American soundtrack. Perfect.

 After rehearsal, I had sushi with a friend and colleague, saw the evening performance of Rodgers & Hammerstein's Cinderella, and had a nightcap of matzo bowl soup at a nearby diner afterwards. Perfect.

 Not every day is this perfect, but there truly is no business like show business, and I wouldn't trade it for all the cute babies in day care.
Can you believe I'd NEVER tried matzo ball soup before?!

Haiku #376 - Broadway Cares Flea Market

Surrounded by my Mormons at the Book of Mormon's booth at the
Broadway Cares Flea Market
playbills for a buck
never know what you will find
at the flea market

Marc (waving, on the right) and some awesome Broadway-bound kids
working the Broadway Workshop booth
I also stopped by Revolucion Latina's booth, but forgot to take a pic! I love how the Broadway community comes together to take care of each other!

Haiku #375 - L'Shana Tova

I have to confess that I had little to no awareness of Jewish culture when I moved to New York, short of having read a few books like Number the Stars as a kid. There are simply not very many Jews in New Mexico, and aside from a childhood friend named Rachel who was culturally Jewish but didn't know much about that heritage, and two short-term college roommates who halfheartedly tried to keep kosher with their three Gentile compatriots (at least we had 2 fridges?), I was clue-free about the Chosen People until I moved to New York. I've had many Heebpiphanies, if you will, from my first real bagel to realizing my coworker whose last name was Levy was not, in fact, a light-skinned Latino (of which there are many in New Mexico). Even now, I usually become aware of approaching Jewish holidays via facebook, or in this case, my lovely delivery grocery store, Fresh Direct (order now! we will sell out of Rosh Hashanah meals!).

 I love living here, where people of so many different cultural and ethnic backgrounds coexist in relative peace - a politically correct, sometimes slightly hostile peace, but peace just the same. That is a fact I won't take for granted after trying to educate myself about Syria this week. There was a graphic that caught my eye that purported to explain why the conflict got started: a color-coded map showing all the different religious and ethnic sects living in close proximity. I suspect a map of Queens would look much the same. So...there but for the grace of (fill in the blank with your preferred higher power) go we. Still...there must be a way. But I think peace has to be the goal, not just a byproduct of some other goal.

 To that end, to my Jewish friends, and all friends who wish to celebrate peace and new beginnings, from your Shiksa friend, with love:

 L'Shana Tova
may we all have peace and sweet
apples and honey