We’re all loving the warm audience responses here in Appleton, WI. Today is our build for habitat for humanity. Seventeen of us are on the bus to the site. Michael Boxleitner who is Melissa’s son, who plays Nellie Oelsons kid brother in the show is our leader today. We’re all VERY excited. Next week is our easter lay off. We have the week with family and friends celebrating Passover, easter and just being home. We reunite as the Little House on the Prairie family in Spokane, WA the week April 6th.
Build in Raleigh
We had a great build for Habitat for Humanity yesterday. That had followed a wonderful opening night in Raleigh to an audience that we loved as much as they loved us.
Beach BBQ
Last night we had a beach bbq after the show. It was a lovely night in Naples, FL!
It is definitely winter! Our first stop after the break was in Fayetteville, Arkansas, and it gave us the coldest temperatures yet on tour. This was unfortunate because Fayetteville was a great small town with a college campus attached (similar to Tempe). But there was a gluten-free pizza place! These are rare finds, so congrats AR! I was also able to see a friend of mine that I met this past summer in NYC. I was his “artistic” mentor for a couple weeks. It was very serendipitous to be able to catch up with him again and hear the new things in his life. Otherwise, much of my time in Fayetteville was spent in the theater or the hotel….too cold!!!!
Believe it or not, Omaha was much warmer. Funny enough, even though it was warmer, I ended up getting really sick for the first true time on tour. It was a cold that has been circulating our cast for a week or so. I almost lost my voice. But, somehow I was able to pull it together (lots of steam and mucinex!) and didn’t miss a show. I have to admit, I was a little loopy for some of the shows. It felt like I had a couple beers before the show…but I was clean! Ha. One day I was walking to the post office which happened to be much farther than I anticipated. On my way back, I decided to take a different route and came across the building pictured above. I had nothing to do for a while, so I decided to take a peak inside. And take a look at what I found below!
It turns out this was an old Union Pacific train station from back when trains were the major source of transportation. It is now a museum about the history of Omaha and a home to various other permanent and traveling exhibits. The city recently refurbished the lobby to it’s former glory. It is a amazing how this country was settled and how certain cities made it and other ones passed by the wayside. I must have spent about 3 hours looking around. A must see! We also took a trip to the Omaha Zoo which has quite a collection for a midwest town.
And now we are at our last stop (Madison, WI) before the “international” portion of our tour in Toronto. And I have just added another first to my career in the business. I had to call out because of an injury today. This is also the first time since I got cast in Little House back in 2008 that anyone else has played the role of Almanzo! Luckily, we have great understudies in our company. I’m sure Will, one of my understudies, will knock it out of the park today. Having been an understudy in other shows before, I know how exciting it is to finally get to go on.
So, here’s hoping the next memories won’t be sickness or injuries :) It makes us grateful for the times we are healthy.
Kevin Massey
http://www.kevinmassey.com/
Former child star Melissa Gilbert returns to the family that made her famous
Melissa Gilbert is coming home.
Nearly four decades after she first took up residence on the prairie, the child-star-turned-TV-movie queen is returning to the material that made her famous. Only this time in “Little House on the Prairie: The Musical,” which comes to the Naples Philharmonic on Tuesday, Gilbert is no longer the precocious Laura…
Tampa Opening
What a great reception opening night at the Straz Center for Performing Arts in Tampa! We were all energized by it. Yesterday the build for habitat for humanity was covered by lots of press. We always feel so very good after all these events. The four children in the cast took part, too. They painted flower pots. It’s not warm enough to swim here, but it’s a lot warmer than Toronto!