Chicago the Musical #FlashbackFriday

The very first musical theatre production I was ever a part of was Chicago the Musical, and what a musical to enter the world of musical theatre with!

It is certainly my favourite musical and the one that holds my fondest memories (not excluding the fact that I met my now-husband on this production). When I first auditioned for Chicago, I was one among about 900 candidates in Johannesburg alone (auditions were held in Cape Town as well) who fought to be a part of the debut cast of Chicago the Musical's first ever South African production. I was 22 and had never had any vocal training. So I went for a crash course in song preparation and the basics with an SA vocal coach called Kevin Feather, (forever in his debt) and decided to give it a go, never expecting to really be considered. I was blown away and so grateful to be confirmed as part of the cast.

I was chosen as one of the two female swings (covers), which meant that I got to learn all of the cell-block tango characters as well as Kitty (Lucy Liu character from the 2002 film). I was lucky enough to perform 4 out of the 6 ensemble parts: Hunyak (the Hungarian girl), Liz ('I fired two warning shots'), June ('he ran into my knife') and Kitty, whom I played regularly as the girl playing her part happened to be booked off often. I enjoyed playing all of them, but I guess at the time Kitty was my favourite as I knew her track the best ...AND she got to slide down the banister of the large band stand on the stage (closet adrenaline junkie).

The gentleman who taught us the skill was in fact a trainer from Cirque de Soleil and I felt so privileged to have worked with him. Damn, I loved sliding down that banister.
The jist of the Kitty 'slide' moment is this: you climb up a ladder to the top level of the band stand where the band's brass section are seated, you present yourself 'gymnast-like' and then basically (note in an extremely sexy manner) climb onto the side banister to sit with your bum on your leather-gloved hands leaning back slightly and your long legs crossed in front of you. Once settled you slightly release your grip on the banister which allows you to slide all the way down on your hands to the bottom. Once down there is an elaborate side-split/back-bend/sexy-vibes moment that leads into Kitty's scene.

What I found most unnerving was that Ferdinand (now-hubby) was seated in a chair on the side of the stage exactly opposite where I had to do 'sexy-vibes' at the end. (Must have been doing something right *winks*)

Whenever I played Kitty, I had the added benefit of the brass section  (I love those guys!) cheering me on - my unofficial fan club! They would write me notes and hold them up for me to read just before the slide... And I would reciprocate by passing them notes covered in red-lipped kisses and other silly messages... needless to say, there was great expectation in the brass section every time I got to play the part!

Here is a link to a media release on Artslink in Oct 2004 when it all had just become a reality. In those days I was still Diani Joubert (maiden name).
http://www.artlink.co.za/news_article.htm?contentID=21266

There are so many great stories and memories connected to this musical but I'll leave some to tell you about at a later stage. In 2008, the musical was brought back for a second SA season, which I jumped at. Some parts were recast, but many of the debut cast returned to the piece. In this season I secured the role of June ('he ran into my knife') but was still asked to cover the roles of Kitty and Hunyak. I was thrilled with the arrangement, it was like having the best of both worlds - on stage every night but still able to play multiple characters and my favourites too. My then-hubby was playing Tony Manero (John Travolta) in Saturday Night Fever and so we were 'strutting' our stuff on different stages that time around.

Both those seasons of Chicago are major milestones and incredibly memorable and meaningful to me.
If given the chance, I would take on another production of Chicago in a heartbeat.

Who knows if or when SA will see Chicago again? Never say never...



And 'all the jazz'... x

Messing with MakeUp #FlashbackFriday

Always fun to flashback on Fridays and remember some of the fun work/projects I have been blessed with in the past. So I thought I would show you some pics from a shoot I did with my phenomenal sister Jacky Joubert at The Playroom. We played around with a few different 'looks' of a beauty shoot; I did my own make-up (interesting fact: coffee granules work really great as dirt!) and photographer Jacky worked her magic. (Email her at jackyjoubert13@gmail.com for bookings and rates)
Here are the results... Enjoy x

Have a fantastic weekend all, chat soon.

The extraordinary Jo Galloway #InstantInspiration

Social media can often times be a destructive source of envy, but at the same it can become a huge source of inspiration and motivation. I find the latter so true whenever I discover a new blog post, Facebook post or tweet by the formidable and 'formerly based in SA' Jo Galloway.

I've been keeping a keen eye on Jo via all the social platforms since she left for LA some time ago and I just become more and more in awe of her, her tenacious spirit, her unfailing commitment and her phenomenal talent taking her to new heights.

Before Jo left for the States, she was already a well established heavy weight and someone to be reckoned with within the South African entertainment industry. Jo is known for her television work on "Intersextions" and "Sketch U Later", which she also co-wrote on. Some of her Musical Theatre credits include lead performances in The Full Monty, Cats and Hairspray. Jo has twice been nominated; first for an FNB award as Best Newcomer, and later also a Naledi Award nomination for Best Actress. Some of her straight theatre, comedy and original titles include "Look Back In Anger", "Boeing-Boeing", "Perfect Wedding", "Dick & I", "Happily Ever Laughter" and "The Fugard Fest of Comedy".

On top of which she has racked up a long list of Voice Over clients with her crazy skills for accents and ease with hard sell or soft sell approaches. 

Jo has some hysterical comedy sketches view-able on her social platforms or YouTube, definitely check out the Twilight spoof and Movie spoof clips - cracks me up I tell ya!

Now in the US, she lives in LA and is working her way steadily into the torrid waters of the Hollywood scene, and making people sit up and take notice.

She already has some great achievements and titles under her belt such as Hope after Hope and The Dark Tapes feature films as well as tv spots for Xoom.com. She has done great voice work and characters for Disney titles like Might Med and ANTfarm and is running her own international voice studio from home. She has managed to not only become a SAG member (crucial in the US) but is being managed by the Bohemia Group AND has signed with a highly acclaimed agent in LA, Ideal Talent Agency.
(Check out her full and very impressive resume on IMdB Pro or her website, details below)

Let me tell you, none of these things get handed to you on a silver platter. It takes courage, money, persistence, real hard work and a lot of talent and determination.
If you're thinking of making the move to the US as an actor, go and follow her blog for hysterical and incredibly informative accounts of her own experiences and lessons learned along the way.
Blog Reel to Real by Jo Galloway 

SO, if you need some serious inspiration; something that'll make you feel like you need to get off your butt and go places, take action and make things happen - then go and follow Jo....

Website Jo Galloway

Facebook Page Jo Galloway
Twitter @JoGalloway7
YouTube Jo Galloway
IMDb Page Jo Galloway

Thanks for inspiring me Jo, HIGHER!

Chat soon peeps,

AMTC 2014 Training Weekend #Projects

I am so excited about mentoring the group of South African candidates for AMTC SUMMER SHINE 2014 held in Orlando, Florida this July.
The AMTC website describes the mission and heart behind the event:
Actors, Models & Talent for Christ is a non-profit ministry. It is also a mission and a movement of performers from all over the world who feel called to the fields of arts, entertainment and media.
AMTC equips, prepares and promotes God’s talent to become positive role models in an industry that influences our entire culture. Kids, teens and adults chosen from auditions perform for the world’s leading agents. Since 1982, God has built a 32-year legacy within AMTC to launch His performers.

This weekend in Centurion, we had two full days of training and preparing our incredibly talented group of candidates for this amazing event, hosted at the magnificent Gaylord Palms Resort in Orlando. Every year these candidates are screened and approved during SATCH (South African Talent Championship) provincial and gala events, SATCH being the only approved channel that feeds the South African entries for AMTC. I feel so grateful and honoured to have been asked by SATCH to coach and supervise the wonderful SA talent during their journey and experiences at the AMTC event in July.

The candidates undergo more training, styling and photo shoots once they arrive in the US, and will be showcased in many categories in the fields of acting, singing, dancing and modelling in front of 50 to 100 top film, fashion, music and theater executives—from both mainstream and Christian media. At SHINE, each day is packed with workshops by industry experts and the event finally concludes with one-on-one interviews for the performers with these industry executives. Having myself taken part in the event in January 2013, I have a very good sense of what goes into the preparation and the final execution at the SHINE event.
I hope that each one of them will have a similarly phenomenal experience, as I was blessed to have.

I am so looking forward to my trip later this year and will keep you all posted with the happenings in Orlando!

Blessings,

The Sound of Music #OutAndAbout

The hills are alive with the sound of...  me singing 'Climb ev'ry mountain' all the way down the corridor...

What an incredibly special night out and such an amazing South African production - Pieter Toerien's The Sound Of Music. There is a certain expectation that precedes a classic like this and this production not only meets those expectations but even exceeds them.
The entire production is so well oiled and smooth with beautiful set transitions, truly incredible sound design and wonderful performances from the pro's and the children alike.

There is no doubt that Janelle Visagie, playing Mother Abbess is an absolute crowd favourite. Her delivery of Climb Ev'ry Mountain was just spectacular and a wonderful end to Act 1, which was already jam-packed with all the well-known favourites like Do-Re-Mi, My Favourite Things, Sixteen Going on Seventeen, The Lonely Goatherd and the title song The Sound of Music.
I could listen to the sweet sound of those nuns all day and  I want to make a special mention of my friends and two favourite nuns Genna Galloway (Sister Berthe) and LJ Neilson (Sister Sophia). I thought they were so magical in How Do You Solve A Problem Like Maria....

One of the staging choices I loved was the use of the side isles in the Montecasino's Teatro.
Our seats were close to the sides, so it added a thrill and made you feel like you were right in the pews of Nonnberg Abbey when the nuns passed singing during the first scene holding small flickering candles. Or it made you tense and nervous with the gun-holding Nazi's along the sides during Captain Von Trapp's performance of Edelweiss.

Bethany Dickson is marvellous as Maria Rainer and there are moments you feel like it might even be Julie Andrews in the flesh playing opposite the stern and stringent Andre Swartz as Mr Von Trapp. And how brilliant to see such sensational theatre greats as James Borthwick playing the wonderfully animated Max Detweiler, Malcolm Terrey faultless and fabulous as Franz, Rika Sennett as the charming housekeeper Frau Schmidt and Taryn Sudding, beguiling as the wealthy Baroness Schraeder. The children were all really delightful to watch and it does help to have the oh-so talented and gorgeous Carmen Pretorius taking the lead as the eldest Von Trapp child, Liezel.

I do take my hat off to friends Duane Alexander (Resident Choreographer and Children's Director) and Anton Luitingh (Resident Director) who have the responsibility of casting and coaching three complete sets of the 6 younger Von Trapp children who rotate performances. And there is even a full stand-by cast present at the theatre every night 'in case of emergency'. And emergencies do happen! Some of the children are dealing with chicken pocks at the moment and even a few of their adult minders are down, poor things! Oh, the life of an actor! ;)

It is a captivating production that made me feel so proud watching fellow South African performers proving over and over again that they are more than a match for international stages and critics.
My favourite moment and the thought that stayed with me was when Mother Abess tells Maria...
You must find the life you were meant to live... 

Chat soon, 

Glimpses from my Crew Life #BehindTheLens

So one of the many avenues of work I am blessed with happens to be behind the lens. I am signed with the very best crew agency in SA, Call A Crew and I get to enjoy a variety of amazing set environments either as 2nd Assistant Director, Production Coordinator or Cast Coordinator.

What I love about the other side of filming is really the never-ending pace, the high-energy and ever-changing environment that really is not for the faint-hearted.

One of my very first set experiences was AD'ing on an Afrikaans short-film with a group of friends for the KykNet Silwerskerm Filmfees in 2012, called Uit Die Kaskenades - which was one of 10 short-films commisioned to be aired from about 450 entries. And from there the bug bit!



I remember working on a great OlaFilms production for Adidas in the Maboneng Precinct in Johannesburg. It meant anything from scheduling,
wrangling little soccer players, sweeping glass from a tar road and everything in between. I had such great fun on that shoot.


Another Ola Films project had me working with a Norwegian company called Babusjka and we were filming in Rockville, Soweto. Our lead actor was the legend Sam Phillips, it was great to be able to watch him work. The little boy playing the 'younger Sam', had to throw a live chicken onto his parents' bed during a short scene. I got tasked with holding the chicken and passing it to the little one on 'action'!  I learnt that day that if you tie a chicken's feet together they become pretty much passive, but if you untie them - not so much!

I've even had the privilege of meeting Richard Branson's daughter, Holly last year. She is completely down to earth and was telling us all about their preparations for travelling to space with the launch of Virgin Galactic.

The corporate video world has also taken me to a few interesting places, including banks, boxing rings, breweries, insurance companies, charities, universities and many many many... many offices.

My most recent shoot, a week or so ago was on campus at the University of Pretoria, where I was running into a whole bunch of students I coached years ago in their schools' musical revue productions, who are now all students at the Varsity.
And student life at UP really does look fantastic!

The crew shot a lot of interviews and vox pops but then got creative with our cutaways. The Director Zoe and I were driving the DOP around on the back of a golf-cart, getting some great architectural shots and drawing attention every time we had to reverse with that ridiculously loud beeping sound.
All in a day's work!


I learn such a great deal every time I work a new job with a new crew and I'm looking forward to the next adventure to tell you all about...


Chat soon,

My Hair Haven #MeMoments

Last week, I finally found my follicles firmly planted in the Follicle Hair Atelier in Brooklyn... Wow, what a pamper!

I really have discovered my beauty haven and I can't be happier.

Between Walter and Hannes, I was made to feel like a queen from the minute I walked in, until the moment I left. Everyone on the Follicle team just jump to make you feel right at home, to brainstorm styling ideas together and to have you walk out completely satisfied.

I saw it not only in the way I was treated, but also the two 10 year old boys completely chuffed with their new 'gent' cuts and having fun with the Follicle mascot - the goldfish named Follie. I saw it with a male law student from Potch, coming in begrudgingly to cut his long golden 'Samson' locks and walking out a happy customer with a shorter, sophisticated yet still suave look. And also with an old friend of mine who happened to walk in for some advice on extensions for her sister's wedding in two weeks; and how she was guided to a choice that suits her lifestyle, her hair's health and her pocket.

And I just love my stylist Cornel, she is so passionate about what she does, loves every minute of it and works magic with colour, cut and styling.

Look at the lovely styling she did for me for the Opening evening of Bread and Wine - an Easter Musical that evening. Hannes even gave me a 'hot pink' lip for the occasion! I am so lucky to be an ambassador for this brand and can honestly say I wouldn't go anywhere else....

I had a very special weekend, sharing in the portrayal of a very special Easter story with special people. And I hope that today, you all enjoy a wonderful Family Day!

Have a great week,