Vulture Festival - 05.19.18/05.20.18

Another year back at New York Magazine’s Vulture Festival! This year, I only made it to three panels, but enjoyed myself just as much as the jam-packed years.

Day One - Saturday, May 19th, 2018

Drag Race

Day 1 started earlier with a little morning drag featuring some of the queens from RuPaul’s Drag Race and Michelle Visage. Hosted by Las Culturistas podcast hosts, Bowen Yang & Matt Rogers, we all got to fan-girl a little and take the “Drag Pledge of Allegiance” as started by none other than the Season 1 Winner, Bebe Zahara Benet!

Lots of funny antidotes; mostly how Yuhua insisted she still won Season 10, she was there the whole time! But it still seemed hard for her & Kalorie to get a word in with Bebe, Jinkx and Michelle taking up most of the panel! I also had a mild case of FOMO, since I never got to see Jinkx in her Off-Broadway show!

Getting Older with Younger

Um, we were all surprised when we got to watch the first episode of Season 5 before the panel started! We were ask to not say anything on social media and since it’s well past that point now…I think it’s safe for me to say here. The premiere will take Liza to the center of the #MeToo movement as she confronts an abuser in her signature strong, but silly way.

After the episode was over, the entire cast came out with Darren Starr to talk about what was in store for the characters; the continual Josh/Liza/Charles love triangle and how Liza’s secret may finally be out this season to everyone! I really enjoyed hearing stories from the cast and how the show has been such a great success and has fans all over; Peter Hermann said that even when he was overseas with his wife, Mariska Hargitay, fans were approaching him over her show (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit).

Day Two - Sunday, May 20th, 2018

Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness

Just one panel for day two, with none other than Jonathan Van Ness from Queer Eye! Now, while I may have been late to the game (I didn’t know he hosted two podcasts), I was present for this episode that would be recorded live. The guest wasn’t listed anywhere in the Vulture Festival program or social media channels, so I think we were all surprised when Justin Theroux came out!

It was wonderful hearing about their friendship and even more fun when JVN pointed to the audience; which included Tan France and Antoni Porowski! Then Tan & Antoni joined JVN & Justin on stage and hilarity ensued! You could honestly feel the joy that all of the Queer Eye guys feel for each other!

RuPaul's DragCon - 09.28.18/09.30.18

For the second year of RuPaul’s DragCon in NYC, a third date was added for fans to come and shop the marketplace and meet a few queens. Of course, I used this as an opportunity to take the day off work, sleep in and get ready for the fabulous weekend!

Friday, September 28th, 2018

The marketplace opened up on Friday afternoon and I gathered with my fellow DragRace & Drag Queen fans to see what queens we could meet and which ones would be selling the best merchandise. Although I missed my friend, Lae D. Boi, walking the runway (only VIP passes were allowed in), I would run into them later at Acid Betty’s booth.

I did make it in to see the North Shore High Talent Competition, judged by none other than Taylor Louderman & Grey Henson from Mean Girls on Broadway! Contestants performed to Regina’s “World Burn” from the show with all sorts of tricks and costumes. I don’t remember who won the contest, but it was a fun and entertaining show!

Then I lucked out, because Kalorie Karbdashian Williams was at her booth and I was wearing my custom Bow & Drape “Carb Dashian” t-shirt! She immediately wanted to take a photo with me and I wound up on her Instagram story! Some of the other queens already had long lines to meet them and for photo ops, while others like Alyssa Edwards and Detox had booths setup, they would only be there on Saturday and Sunday.

After walking through more of the marketplace, buying a fan that looked like a giant doughnut with sprinkles and posing for some photos (although my eyes were closed in some of them), I finally caught up with Lae D. Boi and took some pics.

I also found the Boy Butter booth, which has become a running gag with my friends. When Drag Race first started and was on Logo, there were tons of Boy Butter ads. Now, as the show has become more mainstream and on VH1, the commercials are full of Summer’s Eve and prescriptions for endometriosis. I gladly posed with the giant butter churn for a photo op!

All in all, the first “preview” day was a success, but I was anxious to get to some of the panels and listen to the queen’s stories about being on the show and life afterwards.

Saturday, September 29th, 2018

I got up semi-early on Saturday, so I could make it to Trixie & Katya’s panel; only to arrive at the Javits Center to find out the line was already full! (How, you might ask? Well, the VIP passes guaranteed you entry into any panel, so us “General Passes” never even had a chance.) Oh well.

I opted to attend the Broadway panel (natch) with Alexis Michelle and the cast of Frozen; John Riddle, Greg Hildreth, Patti Murin and Caissie Levy. While I learned a bit about Disney’s casting choices (gotta love the colorblind casting process), I was most amused when John showed the crowd his red high heels that he wore to the panel! (Maybe he can go onto Kinky Boots next?)

After a quick stop to RuPaul’s booth, where I picked up a RuPaul peanut butter chocolate bar, more enamel pins and some things for my friend, Joe; it was off to the “Queens Who Were Gone Too Soon” panel. This one was moderated by Jayne Mansfield and featured Yuhua Hamasaki, Kalorie Karbdashian Williams and Vanessa “Miss Vanjie” Mateo. Yuhua came out with her hair covering her face, like the creepy girl from The Ring, and kept talking about she was the “winner” of season 10, because she never got kicked off the show, but was the chair in the workroom, etc. The joke got stale, fast. I forgot what a deep voice that Vanjie had, but her stories about saying her name three times, while walking backwards made the audience erupt in laughter.

Afterwards, I thought I might as well go to Yuhua’s booth to try and meet her; and I actually beat her to her booth. Well, I got a photo, but she was surprisingly unfriendly and gave the same “I’m still the winner” schtick that she did at the panel. She didn’t even sign my photo. Disappointing.

As I was debating on going to another panel or heading home, I turned a corner and ran into two of my college friends from Nebraska! They were only in NYC for the weekend (they live in San Francisco) and were seeing Harry Potter and the Cursed Child on Broadway before heading to London. NYC really is smaller than you think; or just the Drag Race fan // gay boy // fag hag intersection is that specific.

While there was a third day of DragCon, I ended opting out, since there wasn’t one panel that I really HAD to attend and because the Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS Flea Market was also on Sunday! Due to the United Nations gathering the previous weekend, BCEFA was forced to reschedule the Flea Market to the same weekend as DragCon; so I made sure to get my fill on Friday and Saturday.

Sure, I had a little bit of FOMO, but the merchandise that I got at the Flea Market and the celebrities I got to see made up for that easily!

Chicago - 07.12.18/07.16.18

It's hard to believe that I lived in Chicago TEN YEARS ago!? I'm not that old, right? So, what better time of the year for me to go back than for the Taste of Chicago and to see some musicals (food & theatre = basically my brand). 

Thursday, July 12th, 2018

Sometimes you just need a break from NYC, well what better way to escape than to head to another city? Yes, I planned this trip around going to the Taste of Chicago (a food festival in Grant Park featuring all sorts of foods and native Chicago treats) and seeing some Broadway in Chicago shows.

I found a hotel near Millennium Park, so I could easily commute around the city via the El (elevated train) in Chicago. I started to make my way uptown, when I saw that a college friend of mine was in town for a conference. We met up for tacos at Velvet Tacos and to catch up on the last 10+ years of our lives.

When she headed back to her conference, I had to make a trek uptown to Strange Cargo. (Years ago, I found that they had a vintage New Kids on the Block screen print and customized a t-shirt with “CHEN” printed on the back in velvet letters and have been getting compliments on it ever since.) The store recently moved locations, but even the longer commute didn’t deter me from the pop culture t-shirt hunt! While I didn’t find any boy band themed screen prints this time around, I did find a great SPICE GIRLS one and a block lettered logo of NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK. While I grabbed a few decks of *NSYNC & Backstreet Boys photo packs and collectors cards, I spied a” Miss Vanjie” print that I missed the first time around. Just as I was thinking that I didn’t have time to wait for another t-shirt to be made, I turned around and found a whole rack of “Miss Vanjie” printed on t-shirts and tank tops! Jackpot! Boy bands, girl power and drag queens all in one spot!

Then it was back downtown to my hotel to get ready for dinner and a show! Once I had decided that a trip to Chicago was in order, I immediately went to see what Broadway shows were playing during my trip and wouldn’t you know, The Cher Show, was having their out of town tryout and I found a ticket to HAMILTON for under $100!? Done and done. I was especially excited, since JIn Ha (M. Butterfly) was wrapping up his run as Aaron Burr and it was a major first for an Asian-American actor. The CIBC Theatre where HAMILTON was playing was much larger than the Richard Rodgers in NYC, but I didn’t factor in the Dress Circle overhang, so I was only able to see the actors from the waist-down, when they were on the upper deck of the stage!

Friday, July 13th, 2018

Day two in Chicago and I was faced with the dilemma of where to eat for brunch! There were so many places that I loved when I lived in Chi-Town, but many of them had relocated or closed. Luckily, The Bongo Room had opened a new location within 2 blocks from my hotel! Now the major challenge starts; sweet or savory for breakfast? I ended up choosing both; sweet with cornmeal blueberry pancakes & maple syrup and a side of home fries with melted American cheese.

Fully stuffed, it was time to walk around the city a bit. I wandered through Grant Park on my way to the Art Institute. I could have easily spent more than 1-2 hours in the museum, as I wandered through the contemporary galleries. Inspired by all the sculptures and paintings, I knew I had one more stop before I left the museum; to find the Seurat that Sunday in the Park with George was written about. Yes, I finished the hat after a few false starts and headed back to my hotel for a quick refresh.

Then I was off to meet my friend, Jason & his boyfriend, Riley, for dinner. We caught up on life and talked theatre, since Riley knew quite a bit about Broadway, too; then it was off to see The Cher Show at the Oriental Theatre! I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I love Stephanie J. Block, so I knew she’d be fabulous! By intermission, we all determined that the story was a little all over the place, but you can’t beat Cher’s songbook and the costumes, oh the costumes! Bob Mackie really outdid himself re-creating some of Cher’s iconic looks and adding costumes for all of the ensemble members. I’ll be interested to see what changes from this run of the show when it comes to Broadway this winter…

Originally, when I was planning my trip, I thought about taking the weekend to head to Madison, Wisconsin to visit my brother, Philip and sister-in-law, Melanie…however, they were going to be in Chicago that weekend! They're avid ultimate frisbee players, so they were in town for a tournament all day Saturday and Sunday, before driving back home. After The Cher Show, we were able to meet up for some drinks & a snack near their hotel in Lakeview, before they went to rest and I went back to my hotel.

Saturday, July 14th, 2018

The day of eating had finally arrived! I woke up early to meet Jason in Grant Park, so we could feast at the Taste of Chicago before it got too crowded and the predicted rain was supposed to start. We both purchased two strips of tickets, which we thought would allow us to sample quite a few things and still have some leftover.

Our first stop, the pop-up section for the chicken & waffle balls. They were like little breaded chicken meatballs with maple syrup, sitting on top of waffle bits. Disappointingly, the “taste” size was only 2 meatballs…but we figured our stomachs would need room to eat more things. While Jason went on to try some alligator, I opted for some tortilla-crusted tilapia tacos and some bulgogi chicken on wonton chips; basically Korean nachos and truffle fries. When we’d had our fill of savory treats, I had to find the infamous Chicago “Rainbow Ice Cream Cone!” We finally found the stand, but quickly realized we’d need to load up on more tickets to make this treat happen. It was SO worth it: chocolate ice cream topped with strawberry ice cream topped with Parker House (New York vanilla with cherry & walnuts) ice cream topped with pistachio ice cream topped with orange sherbert! Phew. I got full just typing all of that out!

Once we couldn’t eat any more, we went our separate ways; full disclosure, I went back to my hotel to take a nap! When I woke up, I found out that TodayTix in Chicago had rush tickets for The View Upstairs, so I purchased a ticket and made my way farther South to Chicago’s Chinatown for some more eating before the show. I was craving some dumplings and found a great spot with delicious pan-fried ones. Then it was back to Joy Yee with their hundreds of different kinds of bubble tea! I opted for a coconut slush with rainbow jelly to help me cool off in the Chicago summer heat. I browsed through a few shops before heading back uptown to Lakeview for the show.

I was lucky enough to see Max Vernon’s show, The View Upstairs, about a gay bar in New Orleans that burned down in NYC and I was interested to see how the show would play at a smaller venue in Chicago. An intriguing work of historical fiction, the musical centers around a young gay man, who’s purchased the space where the bar, The UpStairs Lounge, once was. Through a strange turn of events, he goes back in time to the 1970’s when the bar was alive and thriving; one of the only safe spaces for the gay community to be welcomed during that time frame. Since I had seen the show before, I knew that the audience plays a role in the show, as observers and for the main character to speak to; so I chose my seat wisely. While I enjoyed the NYC production more, I was glad I got to experience this piece with a Midwestern audience and that they were being exposed to this story.

Sunday, July 15th, 2018

Ann Sather, Millenial Park, Sarah & kids, Navy Pier

On Sunday, my cousin, Sarah and her husband, Scott drove up to Chicago from Springfield, Illinois with their kids, Owen & Reese. They had visited me in NYC earlier in the summer, so it was great to reunite with them in a place a little closer to their home. Since they had a few hours to drive up, I knew where my breakfast stop was going to be: Ann Sather in Lakeview. If you’re looking for a great breakfast spot to get some of the best biscuits & cinnamon rolls that you’ve ever had, then Ann Sather’s is the place! (Plus, they give you SO many options for a great price!) I usually go with some sort of benedict or biscuits & gravy, but opted for “The Swedish Sampler” this time - 1 Swedish sausage link, 1 Swedish pancake, 1 Swedish meatball, poached eggs, 1 cinnamon roll, 1 biscuit and hashbrowns with American cheese. While I wasn’t a fan of the Swedish sausage, the Swedish pancake was almost like a crepe, but sweeter and the meatball was tasty; Ikea’s got nothing on them!

After stuffing myself full of carbs, I made my way downtown to meet up with my cousins. I was waiting for them in the shade of the Chicago Theatre, when Reese spotted me & I saw her come running down the block! After the necessary hello’s, we headed towards Navy Pier to explore and ride their new ferris wheel. The view from the little gondola carts was amazing and you could see the whole Chicago skyline! After the kids ran around the Navy Pier and we did a little shopping (a stop at Dylan’s Candy Bar was a must -- where I realized that I don’t feel so bad about my Care Bear collection compared to Dylan Lauren’s bunny collection), we headed to Michigan Avenue for food. After eating at the Grand Lux Cafe, we went our separate ways and promised to meet up again soon.

Monday, July 16th, 2018

For the last part of my Chicago trip, I took a moment to walk around before flying back to NYC later that morning. I must have forgotten that I was flying back Monday morning, since I had purchased tickets to Jeremy Jordan & Ashley Spencer’s show at Sony Hall. I almost decided to sell my ticket and not go, I really wanted to rest before going back to work, but went anyways.

I was glad that I did! When I walked in, I almost ran into Melissa Benoist (Supergirl) and shortly thereafter, she was joined at her table with a bunch of other Broadway celebs!

BroadwayCon - 01.26.18/01.28.18

It's hard to believe that BroadwayCon has only been in existence for three years (and, yes, I've been there for all three)! It's been fun watching this convention and community grow over the years, as I've seen other repeat offenders and made some new friends.

Day One - Friday, January 26th, 2018

After the line for RuPaul's DragCon wrapped around the block last Fall, I arrived at the Javits Center a little early. It was nice to have time to get through security, grab my bag of BroadwayCon gear and browse the Museum before heading to my first panel of the Con. There was Kevin Smith Kirkwood's "Angel" costume from Kinky Boots, a "CONNOR" cast from Dear Evan Hansen and many other props/memorabilia. 

I started with "Dancing Through Life: The Transition from Dancer to Choreographer" hosted by Howard Sherman and featuring Sergio Trujillo (On Your Feet!) and JoAnn M. Hunter (Thoroughly Modern Millie). As a fan of dance and choreography, it was interesting to hear Sergio and JoAnn's journeys from dancing in shows, picking up dance later in life and moving on to choreographing shows. My only disappointment, we didn't get to see them dance together!

After learning about dance, I walked down the hall to "The Broadway Ensemble Panel" with the hosts of one of my favorite podcasts, The Ensemblist - Nikka Graff Lanzarone and Mo Brady. The panel featured some of my favorite ensemble members - Thayne Jasperson (Newsies, Hamilton, SYTYCD), Ben Tyler Cook (Tuck Everlasting, Mean Girls) and some other ensemble members that were new to me - Grasan Kingsberry, Jennifer Foote and Vasthy Mompoint. I learned what it's like to "cover" a role as a swing (and how many parts that Jennifer and Vasthy have to know in their respective shows), to add their own stories to their characters and what they've learned from being in an ensemble and sometimes in the OBC, like Thayne, a few times over.

After two panels, I took a little break to get something to eat and walk around the BroadwayCon Marketplace. I found the Dear Evan Hansen booth, where you could post a photo to social media and it would generate a sticker to be added to the DEH mosaic. The equipment told the team where to put your photo on the mosaic, so it would make up Evan's signature striped blue polo. At first, I wasn't sure what I wanted to post; then it occurred to me to find a "nostalgic photo" and I found a pic of me climbing the tree in my childhood front yard. Hard to resist that adorable photo, right? The girl working the booth even commented that it was one of the best ones that she'd seen; "I climbed higher & higher, until the entire sun shines on my face!" (See the OG post on Twitter: https://twitter.com/emoleechen/status/956948849679126529.)

With some food in my belly, it was time for "Actors and Activism with Anthony Rapp and Ilana Levine." Along with Emily Skeggs, Arian Moayed, Britton Smith and Lisa Kron, the panel addressed what they as actors have been doing to help our current political/social climate. I enjoyed hearing about each actor's passions and causes; especially after seeing Emily in Fun Home and in the mini-series When We Rise. Sometimes it can feel overwhelming with the number of causes that need attention and help, but they emphasized that you should pick a few to devote your time to and impact them the best that you can. For me, that's Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and other programs through charities like Housing Works and God's Love We Deliver.

Then I was off to hear more about one of my favorite shows, Kinky Boots at "Everybody Say Yeah: Kinky Boots after 2,000 Performances." Here, BroadwayGirlNYC - Laura Heywood, sat down with four of the "Angels" from the show - Kevin Smith Kirkwood, Joey Taranto, Charlie Sutton and Kyle Post and current Charlie Price, Jake Shears from Scissor Sisters. Although, I've seen the show 5 times, I never get tired of it. I was fascinated hearing about each of the actor's auditions for their "Angel" role, their own drag queen names/personalities, the number of shows for Kinky Boots that they have been there for (KSK wins), coming back to the show and so many other stories. I was intrigued by Jake Shears and although I wasn't running to see him as Charlie, this panel convinced me to buy a ticket to see him, Kirstin (from Pentatonix) and Wayne Brady in a few months. Mostly, I really enjoyed learning how Charlie keeps his body in amazing shape for that boxing ring outfit and how Kyle can't do the split leap, so he just twirled his gum in his audition and Jerry Mitchell loved it! 

The day had seemingly flew by and now it was time for the Opening Ceremony! For the first time, there wasn't a big production number and various Broadway stars just came onto the stage and sang. Highlights for me: Betsy Wolfe (Falsettos, Waitress, The Last Five Years) and Billy Porter (in an amazing giant furry hat)!

Immediately following the Opening Ceremony was a reunion of the cast from In The Heights, as the show made it's Broadway Debut almost 10 years ago! Everyone was excited to see the cast, especially Lin-Manuel Miranda and the panel was hosted by his father, Luis Miranda. Even though I saw In The Heights when I first moved to NYC, I was blown away by the number of crossover from ITH into Hamilton and how Lin kept his friends involved in both projects, especially Javi and Chris Jackson. (That's friendship!) I realized that I probably saw most of the OG cast when I went to the show, but at the time my Broadway obsession was only starting to gestate; so I can't remember if I saw Joshua Henry or Mandy Gonzalez. (I can say that I did go to see Corbin Bleu though...as any good High School Musical fan would have done.)

My last panel for the evening was "Show Spotlight: CHICAGO - The Landmark Institution of Razzle Dazzle," featuring Kandi Burruss (The Real Housewives of Atlanta and Xscape member), Joel Grey, Bebe Neuwrith, William Ivey Long and hosted by Paige Davis (Trading Spaces and she played Roxie on Broadway). I loved hearing about the process of recreating Bob Fosse's work, recasting Roxie/Velma, each of the actor's journeys with the show and so much more. Even with not much of a "wow" factor in production on the small stage at the Ambassador, people keep coming back again and again to this show. They always are able to do so much with very little, speaking to the quality of the show!

By 7pm, I'd hit my limit at the Javits Center and headed on my way home to rest up for Day Two.

Day Two - Saturday, January 27th, 2018

My Day Two dilemma: to attend the BroadwayCon Feud (always a favorite) or "Fan Tan Tastic: Asian American Representation"!? Both were at 10am and either one I would be late for, due to L train problems getting into Manhattan. Ultimately, I knew I would get more out of the Asian American panel and it was one of my favorite experiences from last year; so that's where I went. Slightly embarrassed to show up late (how very un-Asian of me), I was still able to find a good seat in the second row. Again, the panel was hosted by Erin Quill (The Fairy Princess Diaries) and consisted of Shoba Narayan (The Great Comet), Telly Leung (Aladdin, In Transit, GLEE), Raymond J. Lee (Groundhog Day, Honeymoon in Vegas) and Ali Ewoldt (The Phantom of the Opera). Erin did a great job in sourcing the panel as there were actors representing various races: Indian, Chinese, Korean and Hapa. I learned about some of their struggles, the whole casting/race debacle that ultimately closed The Great Comet and Ali being the first Asian "Christine" in Phantom (maybe that will make me finally see that show). Erin always brings up great points in her discussions and I couldn't tweet my favorite statements fast enough! I hope this panel continues each year at BroadwayCon! We need more Asian faces on the Great White Way!

Newly energized from the Asian-American panel, I ran off to find a restroom before the Dear Evan Hansen panel and wouldn't you know, where I ended up was right by the green room for the MainStage panelists!? (Oh, hello Taylor Trensch & Noah Galvin!) Along with Steven Levenson (who wrote the book for DEH), they spoke with Dave Quinn about the show, replacing someone as highly praised as Ben Platt and what they were each going to bring to the role of Evan. I was lucky enough to see Noah last year and I couldn't wait until Feb. when I would get to see my #1 Broadway crush, Taylor, tackle the role.

After the panel, I went hustling back to the Marketplace to redeem my lottery ticket to get a photo with Anthony Rapp (OG Mark Cohen from RENT); who was in high demand as the creator of BroadwayCon and for coming forward to share his encounter with Kevin Spacey to the press. (Meanwhile, Britney Spears tickets for Madison Square Garden were going on sale...so, as I waited in line, I tried to no avail to find some seats!) When I finally made it up there, I mentioned to Anthony that it was wonderful to meet him, since I had missed my opportunity in college when he came to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln; his response "Oh, that was a long time ago!" Thankfully, I befriended a girl in line by me, so she also took some photos...because after last year's debacle with Celia & Andrew Keenan-Bolger, I didn't want my only photo with him to be with my eyes closed!

Photo taken, I was off to find some food before going to see Theater People Live with Laura Benanti. No sooner had I grabbed a pizza and was wandering around, looking for a place to sit, did I see my friend Jered, who works for the Shubert Organization. He had an extra seat at his table, so I plopped myself down and we caught up while I inhaled my pizza. 

Feeling satisfied and thankful to not be on my feet for a bit, I headed back to the MainStage to see and hear Patrick Hinds (The host of Theater People and Broadway Backstory) chat with Ms. Laura Benanti. I got there a little early, so I caught the end of the BroadwayCon CosPlay competition; my favorite was the groundhog from Groundhog Day. Then it was time for the panel and they had such an easy rapport it was fun to just sit back and listen. They talked about her various roles, her new daughter, her relationship with her mother and the challenges of Broadway. I'm forever thankful that I got to meet her and talk to her when I worked at Madewell (and I may still have the receipt that says "Associate: Emily and Customer: Laura Benanti" on it...thanks, Nancy)!

Although I don't listen to the "Broadwaysted" podcast, I do love Sierra Boggess, so I figured it was a good enough place to head to next. The hosts, Kimberly Cooper Schmidt, Bryan Plofsky and Kevin Jaeger played all sorts of silly games with Sierra while drinking. We learned about her failed attempt to perform Phantom in France, injuring herself during a show, being a mermaid and so many other stories. Maybe this show will get added to my podcast list soon.

While figuring out what to do between sessions, I went back to the Museum and took some photos of items from Newsies and If/Then before going to the "Show Spotlight: The Band's Visit." Thankfully, I had just seen the show a few weeks earlier, so I could understand what the challenges were bringing this piece to Broadway and what it was like for these actors to get to play their own ethnicity on the stage for once and not be worried. Again, Laura Heywood, hosted with George Abud, Jonathan Raviv, Etai Benson and Sharone Sayegh.

I was pretty sure that I would have stayed for the Broadway Game Night, but my friend's birthday party beckoned and since she just moved into a beautifully renovated house in South Park Slope, I knew I needed to leave and make my way to Brooklyn. 

Day Three - Sunday, January 28th, 2018

Thankfully, the party didn't go too late and the first panel I wanted to see was at 11am! I found a good seat in the MainStage to listen to Julie James (from Sirius XM) chat with Lynn Ahrens (half of the composing/lyricist team for Once on This Island and Anastasia; Stephen Flaherty called in), Christy Altomare (Anastasia) and Hailey Kilgore (Once on This Island). They talked about what it's like to be a young woman on Broadway in a leading role, Hailey's Broadway Debut, working with Ahrens Flaherty and even treated us to a song! Another highlight, when Alex Newell (GLEE) came out and sang "Mama Will Provide" from Once on This Island! I might have gotten a few tears in my eyes during that number...

Then I was off to see the various kids from Fun Home in "Fun Home Kids," where the kids from the workshop, Public Theater, Broadway and Touring productions where there. Laura Heywood was back to moderate and ask questions of all the kids; including Sydney Lucas, Georgi James, Gabrielle Pizzolo, Zell Steele Morrow and Oscar Williams. Having seen the show on Broadway a few times only a few years ago, it was a bit astonishing how fast these kids have grown up and what they've been working on since the show closed.

I was just about to get settled in my next panel, when I got a text from my soon-to-be-Broadway bound friend, Connor, who was about to leave the venue. Since I hadn't seen him in months and he was about to head to Seattle for the out of town tryout for Ride the Cyclone, I left the panel and opted to catch up with him.

After the quick catch up, it was time to go line up for the BroadwayCon First Look at new shows for the next season and for the Closing Ceremony! It was cool hearing about new shows like The Prom, Children of a Lesser God and Getting the Band Back Together. They even offered a special $49/orchestra ticket deal for Getting the Band Back Together, so of course, I booked a ticket for this summer. 

Then it was time to wrap up and say farewell! Denee Benton (The Great Comet, unREAL) and Stephanie J. Block were some of my favorites that came out to wrap up BroadwayCon with Ben Cameron. Overall, another successful Con; even if the venue felt a little impersonal, nothing will ever surpass the feeling of the first year, blizzard and all.

RuPaul's DragCon - 09.09.17/09.10.17

I waited a little longer than normal to purchase my ticket to RuPaul's DragCon in NYC. I had a handful of friends going, but I didn't want to make a commitment until I knew what the programming would be. In hindsight, the wait for the panels was SO long that even just walking around the convention center floor was entertainment enough.

Day One - Saturday, September 9th, 2017

Who knew that so many people would come out for DragCon!? Organizers were saying that 25,000 people would be at the Javits Center over the two days of the convention! I was almost ready to give up when I saw that the line to get into the building wrapped down the block, around the corner and down by the expressway!

Luckily, my friend, Whitney met up with me in line and we gradually made our way into DragCon. (Oh wait, once we were inside the building, we had to go back downstairs and through security, then back upstairs to actually get into the exhibitors area! Whoa.)

I knew that I had plenty of time to explore the booths, but our first stop was Jeffree Starr, so Whitney could get some make-up. After wandering around a bit and getting my photo with a giant inflatable "squirrel friend", we split up, only to run into each other again at RuPaul's booth, where got some peanut butter chocolate bars, of course! Hanging above Ru's merchandise area were many of her costumes from various seasons of Drag Race. I never knew how tiny she really is! My hands down favorite, was the shiny, gold bodysuit. I love anything with a sparkle.

Many of the queens had merchandise booths; where you could buy a t-shirt, photo, enamel pin and get your photo taken with them. My first stop: the Asian queens! I got a few postcards and a photo with Ongina, but the line for Kimchi was nuts!

Then I made my way to my first panel, the Fashion Panel, with a few of my theater friends, who were in attendance. The panel was Detox, Isaac Mizrahi, Milk , Miss Fame and Naomi Smalls. It was moderated by Mickey Boardman from The Village Voice and was a blast. It was interesting hearing how each of the queens were inspired the fashion industry and how drag goes hand in hand with high fashion and pushing boundaries. It was a little bittersweet, since my Mom had always loved Isaac and she would have been so excited for me to get to be in the same room as him.

Post-panel and snacks, I tried to see Sasha Velour, but her line was nuts! So, I picked up a few merch items: pins, t-shirt, earrings and look book, before heading to Thorgy's booth. Her line was relatively short; about a 30-45 minute wait and since I'd been to many of her DragRace viewing parties at Metropolitan in Williamsburg, I knew I wanted to say "hi" to her and Ragamuffin! Her rainbow outfit completely complimented my Care Bears dress and she was very sweet and sincere.

I wrapped up my Day One with a panel about social awareness, which was supposed to be the only panel that Sasha was going to be at, but she couldn't make it. However, I did get to stare at Nico Tortorella (Younger) for the whole experience, which wasn't a bad swap out. The message about #FakeNews was interesting and how each of the public figures dealt with how they pass on information to their followers.

Day Two - Sunday, September 10th, 2017

When I got to the Javits Center for Day Two, it was off to a better start, since the wrap around the block line was gone. I was determined to try and meet Kimchi, but her line was already going to be at least an hour wait! I spotted Milk, lounging on a couch, in her Marc Jacobs Beauty sponsored booth, but avoided waiting in her line, too. On my way back around the center, I saw Jade Jolie's booth! Even more gorgeous in person, I jumped in line quickly to snap a photo with her, before wandering back to try and get a glimpse of Sasha. 

Little did I know, but I had walked right in behind Sasha Velour that morning! I didn't recognize her with her big, red, curly wig; since she's often bald. I was so close to her! I snuck a few photos and wandered off another way. I made a quick $5 donation to Jiggly Caliente to get a photo with her. If only I had been to see her show at Wet, before it closed! (I guess an Asian gay bar wasn't in as high demand these days...) 

I tried to spot Acid Betty, but her booth was pretty well covered and decorated in all sorts of treats, including a big pink inflatable doughnut. After missing out on food yesterday, I packed a light lunch, so ate my sandwich and chips before waiting to meet Alexis Michelle. Although New Yorkers seem to have very strong feelings about her, as a fellow "Theatre Queen," I knew I had to meet her in person before the Broadway Queens panel, later in the day. While I was waiting in line Farrah stopped by to say hello and we got to watch Alexis as the true diva that she is, controlling the angle of the photo and the lighting. Alexis was very courteous and patient with her line of fans, which I appreciated.

Again, I tried to see Kimchi, but just managed to get a candid photo. As, I was waiting in line to see the Broadway Queens panel, Cynthia Lee Fontaine walked by me, in a gorgeous floral dress. I was able to get a great seat for the panel, featuring Alexis Michelle, Ginger Minj, J. Elaine Marcos and the diva herself, Sheryl Lee Ralph. They talked about where their love of theatre began, what some of the favorite projects have been, but it was Sheryl who stole the show! The crowd was dying for her comments about "put a cork in it" and how to really sell yourself through performance. She also talked about the gay community and how everyone should remember to be respectful. My favorite quotes: "In real theatre, you don't get the opportunity to be late!...The only reason the curtain goes up late is because Barack &  Michelle had not arrived yet!"

All-in-all, a great way to end my first DragCon experience! Yes, it was way more overwhelming than BroadwayCon, but I would totally consider going again. Maybe next time around, I'll plan out more time to meet some of the queens...but hopefully, the organizers learned how to manage the lines better, since no one comes to these events to line up more than an hour in advance for panels!

Vulture Festival - 05.20.17/05.21.17

Yes, I was back at New York Magazine's Vulture Festival for this year! However, this year was slightly marred by too many panels that I wanted to attend all being at the same time and an out-of-town guest that didn't buy his tickets in time! I still managed to make it to five panels this year, but was still missing out on that theatre/Broadway element that they have had for the last few years.

Day One - Saturday, May 20th, 2017

Saturday Morning Cartoons

The usual Animated Voices panel was re-named this year, but still featured most of the cast of Archer and a few other quests. Highlights for me were Aisha Tyler and Jessica Walter. I think the best scene this year was the episode of Sex and the City, where all the girls are gathered in the back of a cab, as Charlotte contemplates "up the butt" sex with her current boyfriend. The scene already plays out hilariously in the show, but the element of cartoony voices only took it to another level!

They also played up the episode of Friends with the game show, in which Joey & Chandler win Monica & Rachel's apartment via Lightning Round and not knowing the actual name of Chandler's job. A classically funny scene, but even better with Bob's Burgers, Archer and other cartoon voices.

 

In Conversation: Aziz Ansari

I might have spoiled a few things about the second season of Master of None for myself at this panel, but that's what I got for not watching the season before the Vulture Festival. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Aziz talk about the making of the second season, why it took so long, the analysis of his soul-mate like relationship with Francesca and how he even learned Italian and how to make pasta. 

The audience seemed a little disappointed that he didn't have an answer for season three of the show, but after all, it took him over a year to make and develop season two. I guess we can't help it if the audience binges it all at once and wants more right away.

Day Two - Sunday, May 21st, 2017

In Conversation: Neil Patrick Harris

At this point, I should count myself lucky with the number of times that I've been able to be in the same space as NPH. Who would have guessed that one day I would get to see him in person, after having a Doogie Howser, MD poster hung up on my closet door in the 90's!? 

NPH came to Vulture Festival to promote A Series of Unfortunate Events on Netflix, which since I haven't watched it, meant less to me. I did love that they showed some of his earlier work; including a funny shower scene from Doogie and one of his Tony Award opening numbers. It was a lot of fun getting ot hear his side of each filming and what was challenging or amusing about having Max Casella film him in only a towel or developing the closing award number as the show went on.

Then we all got a special treat as he called his husband, David Burtka, on FaceTime and we got a chance to see hin talk to his kids and David right on the stage! 

In Conversation: Sarah Jessica Parker and Adam Moss

Admittedly, I did not know who Adam Moss was, before this panel. I did love his camraderie with SJP and she admired his work and vice versa. Of course, everyone wanted to hear about Sex and the City, but we also got the opportunity to hear her talk about filming her new series, Divorce, with Thomas Hayden Church. SJP also chatted about her other passion projects and took the time to answer several questions from the audience in a fairly intimate setting.

Pop Culture Trivia Game Show

This year's Pop Culture Trivia Game Show pitted the cast of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend against the cast of Orange is the New Black and was slightly less of a hot mess than last year's game show, where Casey Wilson and Adam Pally were pretty drunk as the hosts. The venue changed to the smaller space for this year and was CROWDED!

The anticipation level was high and the audience was ready for a fun show. I was sitting closest to the cast from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and enjoyed watching Rachel Bloom and Victor Rodriguez, III go nuts for the right answers and when their team was succeeding. The aucoustics sometimes made it hard to hear what was going on, but it was a fun event nonetheless.

BroadwayCon - 01.27.17/01.29.17

Round Two! For the Second Annual BroadwayCon, the organizers moved the convention from the Midtown Hilton to the Jacob K. Javits Center in the West part of Manhattan. There was a lot more space at this year's convention, but having all the events spread out made it feel a little less intimate. Nevertheless, I had a great time and remembered to bring plenty of snacks, so I could run from panel to panel and not have to miss anything!

Day One - Friday, January 27th, 2017

I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the new location, as I'd only been to the Javits Center back in 2009 for the NY Gift Show. BroadwayCon had a smaller portion of the Center, as the NY Times Travel and Boat Show took up the larger areas. (I wonder what all those travel enthusiasts thought about the Broadway-themed cos play all weekend!?) 

Registration was much smoother, as there was one general line vs. many lines divided up by last name, like last year. Still, I gave myself plenty of time to arrive at the venue, armed with snacks, I found a place to sit and study the layout of the convention center.

My first panel was "Legacy Roles," with Danny Burstein, Kelli O'Hara, Judy Kuhn and Celia Keenan-Bolger. They talked about assuming roles in projects with a lots of history, how and if they studied their predecessors and a lot about working with Barlett Sherr as a director. I learned that Celia work-shopped A Light in the Piazza, only to be replaced by Kelli and then found her way into The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee though similar circumstances. I also realized that Judy was known for the singing voice of Disney's Pocahontas, surprised that I hadn't made that connection sooner. (Amusing fact: the amount of Madewell that Celia was wearing at this panel - and all weekend. Such a faithful client!)

I then found my way to "Broadway Blues: When Diversity Makes a Profit, but Not a Comeback" with Broadway Black and a special guest, Bebe Neuwirth! Moderated by the editorial director, Andrew Shade, the panel was a serious, but fun discussion about diversity on Broadway. Andrew's enthusiasm caught on early with the room and the 50 minute panel flew by! I loved hearing stories from Bebe and Sydnee Winters, who I had just seen as Angelica Schuyler in Hamilton in January. 

Then I was off to see Celia again, in "So You're Nominated for Your Broadway Debut" with Lauren Worsham and hosted by Michael Gioia from PLAYBILL. Celia, of course, received her first Tony nomination for her debut in The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and Lauren hers for A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder. They both talked about their paths to the Broadway stage and the blur that was their first Tony Awards season; along with the challenges of still performing in their show 8 times a week, while on the awards circuit.

After that panel, I decided it was time to take a break for lunch and wander around the BroadwayCon Museum & Marketplace. I grabbed a delicious Pat LaFrieda burger and fries in the Javits Center food court and then went to explore the vendors and museum. There were a few historic pieces from last year's museum; Fredi Walker's jacket from RENT, but a lot of costume pieces from Michael Ceveris' career on the stage; Hedwig, Fun Home, etc. I also enjoyed the set design pieces for Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 and prop pies from Waitress.

Then I went to get in line for my first even at the MainStage for "The BroadwayCon 2017 Opening Ceremony." Featuring Sam Tanabe from Allegiance, the show was about a young man moving to NYC to pursue his Broadway dreams and how they could save the arts. There were lots of great cameos, but I particularly enjoyed Carolee Carmello as one of his mom's and it didn't hurt that she regrammed my photo of the ceremony on her Instagram page! 

Having recently seen The Great Comet, I was interested in sticking around by the MainStage for "Chandeliers and Caviar: Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812." Julie James from Sirius XM talked with the cast about their various roles and how the two leads, Josh Groban and Denee Benton, got involved with the show. But the highlight for me was when Brittain Ashord talked about their cast warmup song, "Eat a Bag of Dick's," which totally means the burger joint in Seattle, right!?

The panel up was "Twenty Years on Pride Rock" with Whoopi Goldberg and Julie Taymor; however just before it was scheduled to start, I saw a Tweet that Whoopi was unable to attend, due to illness. The panel was an interesting discussion with Julie and one of the OG management/production members of the show; they reminisced about casting, how Rafiki became female and what the process was of making all the animal puppets and focusing on their movement. 

Feeling pretty full and excited after Day 1, I stayed for only part of the BroadwayCon Cabaret, before heading home for the night. At least I got to see and hear Anthony Rapp sing "Happiness" from You're A Good Man, Charlie Brown, before I called it a night!

Day Two - Saturday, January 28th, 20167

The second day, I didn't arrive quite so early to the venue, since I already had my pass and all, but I wanted to make sure I got a good seat for the BroadwayCon Feud, one of the highlights from last year's convention. The line was pretty long, but I made some friends with a few girls who had traveled in from Philadelphia and we were able to find some decent seats towards the front, left side of the Main Stage.

Jenn Collela was back to host again, but I knew it wouldn't be quite the same without Susan Blackwell on the stage too! BroadwayCon Feud was full of stars and some fans, who competed yesterday in a little quiz to qualify for the game. Jenn talked about how she kissed everyone on the mouth last year, so started out the introductions by doing the same this year. Some the categories were definitely tough and even I found myself struggling to name 5 female directors of shows on Broadway! 

I moved a little farther up towards the MainStage for "Everybody Say Yeah: Three Years at Kinky Boots" and befriended an older man who had a mild obsession with Kinky Boots and Broadway, in general. We became Instagram friends and he told me about the TDF Honors Concert for Kinky Boots coming up in March. I enjoyed hearing Killian Donnelly talk about his journey from the West End to the Broadway stage, Taylor Louderman's first few weeks as Lauren and Todrick Hall talking about how his experience as Lola has changed his perspective on performance. What really struck a chord with me was how he mentioned that he would not do "Twerkin' in the Rain" after this experience, since it seemed to be one of the most fun parts of his set at Elsie Fest last Fall. It'll be interesting to see what he does after his stint in Kinky Boots!

I finally left the MainStage to see a panel about casting long running roles, called "Casting Roxie, Raul, and Rafiki." Three casting directors talked about their challenges and exciting times casting various roles. I identified the most with Benton Whitley, who was the youngest in the group and talked about his challenges casting the role of Velma Kelly in Chicago. He discussed how they do a little bit of "stunt casting," by placing celebrities into the role of Roxie and Billy Flynn, but that there are only 4 or so actresses who can perform Velma's part. (I would definitely keep this in mind when I went to see Mel B in Chicago, a few weeks late.)

Staying in the same programming room, I moved to the front row for "Someone in a Tree: Asian-American Representation on Broadway" and saw Erin Quill come in with Amy Hill. Immediately, my heart started beating faster; "Grandma from All-American Girl is here!" I kept thinking. I remember watching her on TV as a teenager and identifying with her, since she was so much like my Dad and Popo. The panel also consisted of B.D. Wong (another All-American Girl alumni and one of my childhood crushes), Kelvin Moon Loh (from Here Lies Love and American Idiot), and Manu Narayan (Bombay Dreams). Noticeably absent was Ruthie Ann Miles, as Erin said "someone named Jake Gyllenhaal" was holding her hostage, meaning she was in rehearsals for Sunday in the Park with George and couldn't make it for the panel. The discussion was vibrant and lively; as they talked about taking roles outside of their own Asian ethnicity (i.e. playing a Chinese person, when they are Korean), the challenges of even finding roles and how this was impacted by the recent Presidential election. After the panel, I got the chance to speak with Manu and shake his hand. He said he appreciated how engaged I was in their panel and that the community still has quite a way to go with Asian representation on the stage.

I took a short break and walked around the center before getting in line for "Even If You're Little, You Can Do a Lot: Broadway Kids 2017." Several kids from Matilda, The Lion King and Annie participated in the panel, but i think a lot of the crowd was there to see Jake and Sydney Lucas. The kids talked about the challenges of their roles and funny stories, but I really enjoyed the second part of the panel, when the kid swings came up on stage. Girls from The Lion King and Matilda talked about all the roles they covered and how they tried (or didn't try) to keep all the various tracks separated in their memories.

My last panel of the day was with the creators of In Transit and, Justin Guarini (the only cast member who appeared) in "Getting There: In Transit." The team talked about the development process and the difficulties of bringing an a Capella musical to the Broadway stage. The cast is constantly singing during the show, so even things like costume changes require someone else from the cast to take over the beats for a few measures! The show is performed without an intermission, so they must stay fully engaged for the whole performance. Although Justin doesn't mention his American Idol experience in his bio, one of the creators did make a small jab at him, saying "I voted for you!"

Day Three - Sunday, January 29th, 2017

When I found out that my friend, Connor, got a role in the National Tour of The Little Mermaid, I knew I had to go and see him in the show! It seemed like a great time to travel to Columbus, OH and visit my friend, Jonelle, who had moved back there last year. What I didn't realize was that it was immediately following BroadwayCon weekend. So, yes, I brought along my suitcase to the convention center and knew I would have to depart early to make it to LGA on time for my 7pm flight.

Even with the little travel challenge, I still got to the Javit Center early to get a good seat for "Tyler Mount's Broadway Besties" panel! I got to meet Tyler last year and since then have been occasionally watching his Snapchat or Vlog to learn more about my favorite Broadway stars. The highlight for this morning was seeing Andrew Chappelle from Hamilton, as he played a game with Tyler and came out to sing "Let's Hear It For the Boy." Other guests included Keala Settle, Ariana DeBose and Christopher Jackson. Each actor got to play a game with Tyler and do a performance, if they wanted. It was certainly a fun way to start off the morning.

I was able to move up a few rows in the MainStage before "Waving Through a Window: The Dear Evan Hansen Panel" started. Julie James was back to host with the entire cast of Dear Evan Hansen. Julie asked some great questions to the cast, but mostly everyone wanted to know how Ben Platt is that emotionally present in the show 8 times a week! Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, fresh off their La La Land success, even talked about how they knew Ben was right for the role and what a dream it's been to have the funding to create this story that they've had since college.

After Dear Evan Hansen, I thought it would be a good idea to stay in the MainStage, since the Hamilton panel was up in an hour or so. Even though I hadn't seen A Bronx Tale, I thought it would be a good time to eat my lunch and listen to the story of the show in "This is A Bronx Tale." Chazz Palminteri, the creator, was a little late, but the cast talked about their process in bringing this show to the stage. Ariana talked about her transition from ensemble in Hamilton to a leading role in A Bronx Tale and what it's like to be one of the only women in the show. When the panel was over, I went on a quick restroom break and almost ran smack dab into Anthony Rapp! Oops. Then that was followed by passing Mandy Gonzalez and Lexi Lawson, when I was headed back to my seat.

For the "Hamilton: The Next Administration" panel, it was great to see these actors, since I had just seen the show on January 10th. Although, Brandon Victor Dixon was out when I saw the show, I enjoyed his story about how he heard Shuffle Along was closing and that he would be succeeding Leslie Odom Jr. as Aaron Burr. It was also great to hear Taran Killam talk about his journey from SNL to his Broadway debut as King George III. And of course, there was the kid with the It Factor, ever since Grease LIve, Jordan FIsher, who was a highlight of the show for me, with his new energy and choices as Phillip Hamilton. The ladies weren't as talkative, but everyone seemed to be excited to be at BroadwayCon and enjoying the moment.

After the Hamilton panel, I headed back to the Marketplace, for the only Photobooth Session I won: Andrew & Celia Keenan-Bolger. It seemed like everyone in line was there for Andrew, as I was next to a girl in a Tuck Everlasting t-shirt and Newsies hat, but he was almost an after thought to me, I was there for Celia. NOw, it may seem silly, since she was one of my regulars at Madewell, but it was nice to see her out of my usual job. As I walked up, her eyes got bright and she did a little dance and hugged me! We chatted for a bit, the photographer snapped a photo and that was it. (On a side note, I'm glad that I asked the Tuck/Newsies girl to take some photos for me, since she caught a little of Celia's dance and because in the official BroadwayCon photo, my eyes were closed!)

After the photobooth session, it was back to the MainStage for part of the "BroadwayCon First Look." I knew that I wouldn't be able to stay for all the performances, but was hoping that I would be able to see most of the new shows for the Spring. First up, Corey Cott and Laura Osnes, singing a song from Bandstand. Followed by Jenn Collela singing her number from Come From Away, which only made me more curious about this little show and how it could be the one to watch come this Tony Awards season. Up next was the cast of Significant Other, with Gideon Glick performing one of his monologues from the show and some of my other Broadway favs, Lindsey Mendez and Rebecca Naomi Jones. Then Eva Noblezada from Miss Saigon performed and before I knew it, it was time for me to leave for the airport. 

And that's a wrap on BroadwayCon 2017! I can't wait to see what 2018 will bring!

Vulture Festival - 05.21.16/05.22.16

For the third year in a row, New York Magazine, hosted their Annual "Vulture Festival" of pop culture events in the city. There were plenty of panels and activities to keep me occupied on the weekend before my birthday and I stacked both days with lots to do.

Day One - Saturday, May 21st, 2016

Hollywood Handbook Podcast

I got up nice & early on Saturday to head down to Chelsea & Milk Studios for this panel. I was not familiar with the "Hollywood Handbook" podcast, but from the description, it should have been an inside look into the world of Hollywood. What it ended up being was 30 minutes of two guys opening up iTunes on their computer and trying to find their own podcast in the top podcasts online. Ugh. I couldn't believe I was missing the Muppets panel for this mess! Finally when they were describing clicking their mouse as "smash it!" I decided to leave, see if I could get into the Muppets panel and get a refund. No luck on the refund, but at least I made it to the Muppets panel!

Morning with the Muppets

Already better than the Hollywood Handbook panel, a bunch of nerds were watching clips from various Muppet programming and laughing, having a great time. This was where I belonged in the first place! 

One of the editors from New York Magazine came out and interviewed Kermit the Frog. They talked about all sorts of things: the cancellation of the ABC show, what things Kermit liked to do, his breakup with Miss Piggy, etc. Then they brought out Fozzie the Bear and things got much more fun. They talked about being in NYC (referencing Muppets Take Manhattan!) and how Fozzie didn't realize that the show had been cancelled. 

After a few more minutes, the actual Muppet players were freed from their crouching positions under the tables and the conversation got a little more candid, talking about the changes after Jim Henson's passing and what it was like working on the TV show. After a short Q&A, the puppeteers brought up some volunteers from the audience and taught them how to operate a few various puppets to the tune of "Tubthumping" by Chumbawumba. That song will never sound the same to me now!

Difficult People Table Read

After a short break, I went back to Milk Studios for the table read of an episode of Difficult People, a TV show on Hulu, featuring Billy Eichner and Julie Klausner as best friends and cynical New Yorkers with a love of pop culture & musicals; how perfect for me!

This table read would be for the third episode of the second season and featured many of my favorite TV and Broadway stars! In this panel alone were Amy Poehler, Nathan Lane, Megan Hilty and Andrea Martin. 

Noticeably absent, was Gabourey Sidibe, who got called back to Chicago to shoot Empire, which her character's husband, Nate, even made a reference to during the table read. Amy read all the stage directions and it was loads of fun watching these comedians and actors portray their crazy characters right infront of me!

Animated Voices

Last year, I missed out on the Animated Voices panel, but it has always been on of the most popular sessions during the festival. The premise: famous animated/cartoon voice actors read famous TV/movie scenes as their beloved animated counterparts.

The highlights for me: Maurice LeMarche (the voice of Brain from PInky and the Brain) and Alex Borstein (Ms. Swan, Family Guy, Gilmore Girls). 

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: A Musical Revue

Rounding out Day One, was a panel with Rachel Bloom from Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, a new-ish musical comedy TV show on The CW. I did not watch the show when it initially premiered, then Rachel won the Golden Globe and I found out Santino Fontana was also on the show, so I binged and caught up.

Another editor from New York Magazine talked with Rachel, one of her producers and her musical director about how some of the songs came to be: from demo to tracks to the music video. We heard some demos, rough cuts, watched videos, laughed and even got a little performance of "Sexy French Depression" from Rachel. And, oh yeah, she even said "Bless You!" when I sneezed rather loudly during the panel!

Day Two - Sunday, May 22nd, 2016

RENT Sing-A-Long

Day Two and the MTA train gods were not on my side! I couldn't miss out on the RENT Sing-A-Long, which featured some of my favorite Broadway stars and one of my all-time favorite musicals! Luckily, I made it in time and managed to grab a decent seat (here's where it pays to go to these things alone, lots of free single seats towards the front!)

The RENT Sing-A-Long featured Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon, Les Miserables), Adam Kantor (Fiddler on the Roof, The Last Five Years), Lena Hall (Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Kinky Boots), Gideon Glick (Significant Other, Spring Awakening), Ben Cameron (Broadway Sessions) and Paige Davis (Chicago, "Trading Spaces"). And started off with a bang, with everyone joining in on "RENT!" At one point, Paige even gave me her microphone, so I could sing along with all the celebs!

Throughout the sing-a-long, the actors and actresses shared their favorite RENT moments with the crowd and we learned just how dedicated Nikki M. James was to her RENThead moments (camping outside the Nederlander, sneaking into the city, etc.).

Other highlights, "One Song Glory," Nikki & Gideon singing "Light My Candle," Lena having to look up the words to "Out Tonight" and writhing around on the crowd in a Madewell necklace, crying along with everyone listening to Nikki sing "Without You," Lena rocking out to "Over the Moon" in her own Maureen fantasy she never got to live out and the finale of "Seasons of Love!"

In Conversation: Shonda Rimes

Why yes, I was sitting about 10 feet away from Shonda Rhimes, herself! Although I gave up on watching Grey's Anatomy years ago, I'm still a fan of her work, mostly for How To Get Away with Murder and the Britney Spears' classic, Crossroads.

During the panel, Shonda spoke with an editor from New York Magazine about her book, saying "Yes" to things, overcoming her fear of public speaking, her love of HAMILTON, and her TV shows.

I have a lot of respect for the empire that she has built and how her work constantly challenges the television viewing audience and makes characters that we all get invested in. Maybe I'll have to read her book after all. Maybe I'll be saying "Yes" to some things I never knew I would...

Pop Culture Trivia Game Show

The Pop Culture Trivia Game Show (PCTGS?) was the last panel for me over the weekend, and one of the last panels of the whole festival. The game show was hosted by Casey Wilson and Adam Pally, who were both coming from the Happy Endings panel that was sold out (thus, I couldn't go) and noticeably drunk and annoyed that they had agreed to host this game show.

The teams this year were the cast of Younger (minus Sutton Foster and Hilary Duff) against the cast of You're the Worst (of which, I only knew Kether Donoghue, but mostly from Grease!: Live). 

The rules seemed overly complicated for a fun game, but Casey and Adam managed to make it fun, even when the rounds went on forever. There were some audience members that won a contest and got to compete for some lame prizes (mostly stuff leftover from the New York Magazine offices), but at least they got to be onstage for a bit!