What an incredible Autumn!

I just finished playing the title character in the new musical, "The Tragic and Horrible Life of the Singing Nun" (shown left). It was an exhilirating experience, performing in a brand new musical, and it was such an honor to bring this real-life woman to the stage.

In researching the real Sister Smile, I fell in love with her and her drive to make music and find a higher truth of spirituality. She really felt a strong connection to the divine, but she was also confused by drugs, alcohol and her own lesbian yearnings. Truly an incredible character to explore!

Of course, our musical "take" on her life was narrated by a drag-queen (wonderfully played by Stephen Michael Rondel)who imagined he had adventured with the Singing Nun, so there was some obvious poetic license. But so much of her real story was in there, and it was wonderful to have people respond to our tale.

The music was a blast, and it was thrilling to sing it! Andy Monroe composed and wrote most of the lyrics, along with Blair Fell, who wrote the script. The whole process of working on a brand new musical was incredibly rewarding, and we were guided along by one of the most brilliant directors I have ever encoutered, Michael Schiralli.

The cast was an absolute dream and the crew was exceptional! Everyone put their "all" into the project, and audiences really seemed to respond to this heartfelt endeavour. I heard so many good things from friends, family, and complete strangers who felt such a connection to the show that they had to tell me about it. That was truly remarkable.

The cherry on the cake? I'm receiving The New York Musical Theatre Festival's Award of Excellence for Outstanding Individual Performance.

NYMF is having their first-ever gala on November 12, and they will be presenting awards to selected artists who performed in the festival. They are also honoring Kevin McCollum, the Broadway producer behind such hits as "RENT," "Avenue Q," and "The Drowsy Chaperone."

I am on Cloud 9! :)