BWW Blog: Meggie Cansler - The Summer is in Full Swing
By: Guest Blogger: Meggie Cansler Jul. 01, 2016
The summer is in FULL SWING at Transcendence Theatre Company! Guest blogger and Transcendence Artist Meggie Cansler is back to give you the low down on the latest...
The theatre world is as big as it is small.
There are some people you hear of and never get to work with. There are some people you meet through other people and wind up finding yourself in shows with. My favorite is when people from your past resurface and you get to work with them again on an entirely different experience.
Our FANTASTICAL FAMILY NIGHT cast has arrived, and in this cast are two fellas I am so thrilled to see again! Garen McRoberts and Phillip Dean Lightstone.
Here is the full cast and crew of Fantastical Family Night on Day One!
Phillip and I toured together in "Wicked" for a year and a half and saw an incredible amount of the United States together. He has such a joyous energy about him and he made me laugh daily! When you do a show like "Wicked" for an extended period of time, you don't get to see all facets of someone's abilities. I can't wait to have Phillip experience Transcendence Theatre Company and see all of the other talents he has up his sleeve and perhaps some others that he didn't even know he had!
As for Garen, we toured in "Miss Saigon" together. (Bucket list of a dream role for me was playing Ellen in that show!) We have a few fun things planned for Garen, and I cannot wait to hear his incredible voice burst through the ruins. Ladies, your heart is about to melt... he is a handsome one! :)
FANTASTICAL FAMILY NIGHT was conceived by Eric Jackson, Shannon O'Bryan, and myself. We are all such Disney nuts and giant kids at heart that the "job" was so incredibly fun. The three of us have the biggest smiles in America and we fed off of each other and the ideas that were brought to the table to create one heck of an evening for our audiences. We have a journey prepared for us all to embark on together...
We will let your Freak Flags Fly and Talk to the Animals, and find our inner Fight Song through the Bare Necessities of LIFE! Only a few hints and teasers there ;) Just know that this is a FANTASTICAL FAMILY NIGHT like never before. I have been waiting for this show all season. Not only because I will be assistant directing for the first time, but because this show has elements of fun for adults and kiddos alike!
The next step was pre-production with Eric Jackson and our new teammate and choreographer, Sean McKnight. We have been gifted with a lovely work space by one of our biggest supporters that overlooks the vineyards of their beautiful property. Dancing around to these joyous tunes while staring out into the vast greenery is a pretty stellar and inspiring way to spend your work day. Does life get any better?
Sean McKnight and Eric Jackson playing with kites... come and see why!
Each day seems to bring about new things to be over the moon about. I am grateful beyond belief to work with these people in wine country, our Son-home-a. To wake up and feel fulfilled, genuinely happy, and creatively charged is something that I will never take for granted.
Being in the arts can be a challenge at times - especially when it comes to the artist's mentality. When you aren't creating or working on something, it can take a toll on you. Amy Miller has created a company that keeps creating, that keeps finding the "yes" people, that keeps fueling artists to work together as a TEAM and use the arts to connect with our surroundings and use our gifts to touch the lives around us. It is easy for actors to get into a limited mindset that it's about ourselves and what show is next or what part we play...Transcendence Theatre Company is about coming together and sharing all we have, in whatever way we can, to have our audience leave with an empowering feeling and a sense of joy radiating throughout them.
In our original song this summer, sung by Broadway performer Q Smith, it says: "No, you're not alone - I feel it, too. Embrace the heart ascending! There's no end to new beginnings... Everybody has a choice to raise their voice. Who knows who you'll inspire?! Go forth and set the world on FIRE!"
When you attend a concert in the Jack London State Historic Park, you will leave on cloud nine, folks. I can promise you that. Come and see for yourself if you don't trust me!
Time for my day off! My guy Brian and I are headed headed to Lake Berryessa! Mountains and a lake?? This midwest girl turned New Yorker turned California girl is living the dream!!
Living the dreams swimming in the lake surrounded by mountains!
#bestlifeever #wellliveddays #live
Meggie Cansler is a Resident Artist and Artistic Coordinator with Transcendence Theatre Company.
Transcendence Theatre Company's Broadway Under the Stars 2016 Season runs from June through September in Jack London State Historic Park in Glen Ellen, CA only 45 miles north of San Francisco in Wine Country. More information and tickets available online at BestNightEver.org or call 877-424-1414, Ext 1.
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