2014 Greater Colorado Tour – Day 7
On the road again… I just can’t wait to get on the road
again… Ah, Mr. Nelson, those are good lyrics. They ring true for us. After
about a day and a half off, we are truly on the road again. Yesterday I traded
in the rental Yukon for another Suburban. We’ve got room now, but unbelievably,
it’s barely enough. We still had to put one of the prop boxes in the non-set vehicle.
Everyone is loaded in; luggage too and we’re off. We’re headed to Leadville
today for a performance of Barber at
the high school. It will be the highest elevation we’ll be at all season. I,
for one, can’t wait to see how this goes.
We’ve got much better weather today – sunny and clear. Last
week readers, if you remember, we were driving in snow. Today, we’re able to
see the amazing scene open up before us as we crest a hill on I-70. Ah…
America… We’ll be staying in Nathrop near natural hot springs for the next two
nights and everyone is looking forward to using the amenities, spa and all. It’s
on their dime, but they’ve worked really hard and deserve to pamper themselves
a bit. Because it’s supposed to be crowded, Jared gets on his phone as we drive
to make appointments for those who want them. What results over the next
30-minutes is a comedy sketch waiting to be written as he talks to people who
aren’t quite fluent in English (and who I’m almost certain thinks it’s a prank
call because of his last name – Guest. “Hello, I’d like to make an appointment
for Mr. Guest.”) He finally gets someone on the phone that can help and then
each time the information is almost complete, the call drops. Brett pitches in
to help and has similar issues. The two of them are now growling in the back
seat. Colleen must have really good headphones on because she’s unconcerned
with all of the mayhem.
Near Breckenridge we see a serious overhang of snow. It’s an
avalanche waiting to happen. I make the mistake of pointing this out to the car
and who should happen to be in the car? Mr. happy clapper Baldwin, of course.
Taylor seizes the opportunity. Hanging out of the car window, yelling and
clapping like crazy – he does his best, but alas, nothing happens. Poor guy, he
really gave it his all. As we get higher in elevation, the wind really starts
to blow and when you’re driving something the size of a tank, that’s no fun at
all. Plus adding to the drag, the top left corner of the roof rack on the new
beasty isn’t fully attached to the roof. It creates a lovely squeaking noise
and gives the car added lift. By the time we get to Leadville, my hand and arm
are numb.
We make a quick stop for lunch before heading to the school
for set up. On the way to the school we get a look at the historic downtown
area. This was a happening place in the 1900s and the buildings that are still
here are beautiful and a reminder of a bygone era. Taking the road we’ve been
directed to, we arrive at what I think is the school. Nope, it’s the hospital. Now
we arrive at the school. Then we drive around the school. It seems someone
forgot to tell us that the entire school is under major construction – we can’t
find a way in. I give up and park in a lot and Jared, Brett and I walk to one
door after another – all locked up tight with signs that say to enter through
the main doors. That’s what we’re trying to do! Jared hikes further up the hill
while Brett calls the school. At the same time they both find the way in so I
hike down the hill to get the others. By the time I get there, I feel like I’ve
run a marathon. Instead of using what breath I have left to talk them through
what we’re supposed to do, I become a flight attendant and use hand gestures.
The rest of us pack back into the cars and park just next to
the construction zone. I’m feeling especially encouraged that the cars will be
safe – there’s only a small amount of rubble and the stairs are almost half
intact. We duck and cover and get to the business of loading in. We meet our
contacts from the school and the Breckenridge Music Festival, who are both
delightful and we figure out how things are going to work. We’ve got a full
size stage today – yeah! Taylor has a great piano, however the fact that we’re
breathing hard from loading in does not bode well. See… there’s this matter of
having to breathe properly to sing opera.
We complete set up and as everyone begins warming up and
getting into costume, the audience starts to arrive. We’ve got 6th –
12th graders today. Their teacher goes through her announcements and
then I take over. I ask the students how many of them have seen an opera before
and out of the entire group, four students raise their hands. Wow – that’s a
lot of kids who will have their very first opera experience today. How
fabulous! I finish my talk and the show begins. I know right off the bat that it’s
going to be a battle to get through this one. Not because the Young Artists
aren’t focused; not because they aren’t giving it their all, but because they
really can’t breathe. They get through it piece by piece with complete support
from Taylor. I haven’t been able to sit and watch a show for quite a while, so
I decide to do that today. I sit at the back so I can take it all in and watch
how the students respond. They’re really quiet. They are laughing at bits but there’s
not a whole lot of noise coming from them at all. It’s not that they’re messing
around either. They are entirely focused on the show and taking it all in. For
first timers, they’re doing great! The act one finale comes up, which is one of
the toughest parts of the show. It’s incredibly physical and a difficult sing
too. The artists handle it really well and they begin to play off of each other
– I know when I see this that we’re good. The show is solid and the students
seem to have enjoyed it. I go up to begin the Q&A and give a shout out to
Taylor who really did an admirable job today. Once the Young Artists have
grabbed water they join us and we answer questions. They come slowly; the
students seem a bit overwhelmed by it all, but once we get a couple, it gets
easier. One of the students in honor choir has a birthday today, so we call her
up to the stage and sing to her – really – we weren’t trying to embarrass her
or anything. Honest.
Following the ode to Happy Birthday in F minor, we thank
everyone and its back to the never ending task of getting everything back out
into the beasties. Other than some broken nails, we do OK and we’re evacuating
the danger zone before the construction workers leave for the day. We decide to
drive up to the Matchless Mine before we leave.
Before we leave, we make a plan to run by the grocery store
to get supplies for breakfast for the next couple of days before we head to our
lodging. Our lodging in Nathrop is a good central location, but it’s not really
close to anything. Unless we want to spend our time driving about 30-40 minutes
every time we want to eat, we need to plan ahead. Jared is driving and I’m
co-piloting again, my arm and hand no longer numb but not in tip-top shape
either. I learned several things on our trip to the grocery store. Thing #1:
Jared does not quite understand the principal of turning off the vehicle engine
before exiting the vehicle. Thing #2: Opera singers are the loudest people in
any space they inhabit. You wouldn’t think getting eggs and bacon would require
a lot of volume, but it does.
Supplies purchased – we load into the vehicles and head down
the road towards Nathrop. Louise naps in the back seat while Taylor, Brett,
Jared and I listen to an on demand performance of Anna Russell. She really was
fabulous. The scenery here is very different. There are snow covered peaks yes,
but there are also really cool rock formations.
The cabin is lovely and looks out over the river. We get
things in from the car and have just enough time to get settled before we have
to head back to meet the others for dinner.The menu looks good and we place our order. We’ve got about
1 hour and a half before Jared has his spa appointment so we should be good on
time – or not. The service is slow, really slow, and by the time our orders
arrive, Jared has 15-minutes to eat. He gets things boxed and leaves the rest
of us to dine together. Louise tells stories of some of her childhood friends
and a very amusing story about Andrea Bocelli. I’m not sure which is funnier.
The stories themselves or watching Louise try to tell them while she’s
laughing.
After dinner, everyone is on their own to do whatever they
choose. Most of us head to the hot springs. I decide to sit by the pool and
read for a while and then work on the blog. Jared emerges from his spa
appointment and looks dazed. His hair is a delightful mix of punk Mohawk and
mullet but he’s looking very relaxed. When everyone is sufficiently pruney from
the water, most of them head inside to the steam rooms. I stay outside and
continue working on the blog – this lasts for about 10-minutes before I’m
invaded by hoards of teenagers. Now, as a teacher, I can handle teenagers. But
my patience apparently runs thin in a specific circumstance - I can’t handle
teenagers, in swimsuits, with raging hormones, who are unsupervised. Wow. I
move inside and meet up with Jared and Brett. We head back to the cabin and get
comfy. Taylor joins us and he teaches me the proper way to dismantle a
pineapple.
Jared, Brett and I go outside for a bit of stargazing.
Sitting in rocking chairs, looking at the starts in the mountains. How fabulous
is this? When we’re all blue and my teeth are chattering, we decide to call it
a night. Day 1 of week 2 has been busy and there’s more to come. Time to get a
good night’s sleep and recharge for another day of opera on tour.
Night-night readers,
Cherity
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