A Big Hello from Portugal - WritingForums.com - Writing Forums, Writing Challenges, Critiques and Help for Writers

JoannaMac · 11-20-2008, 02:00 PM

Hello Everyone!

Greetings from sunny Portugal. I´m performing right now with my aerial singing act at the Casino Lisboa.

I´m all aloooooooooooooone! I´m the only artist here and there´s no one to talk to. The apartment where I´m staying is massive and I´m rattling around in it all by myself. On the up side, a little dream has finally come true in that I have my own dressing room with lights around the mirror and my name on the door, but it feels a bit hollow because there´s no one to share it with. At least I have plenty of TV in English

The first shows went well. My nerves are not so bad this time, but I have to admit it´s still scary. I´m so high in the air and when the spot light shines on me and everything else around is dark, it feels like I´m hanging in space and the floor is miles away. Every time I grip the silks, it´s with great care, because one false move means the difference between life and death. I also made the mistake of washing the silks with fabric softener which has made them slippery. I´m gripping them so hard, the last two fingers on my right hand have begun to swell quite badly around the joints.

So far there´s been just one show I´ve really enjoyed doing. I sang quite well and for a little minute there I got lost in it, just enjoying the sound of my own voice and the movements. This is what I imagine it´s all supposed to be about. I´m going to be such a better performer by the end of this contract.

The little platform I perform on is like the top layer of tiered cake, with the customers sitting all around me on the lower layers. These layers also rotate slowly to give the customers an ever changing perspective.

Most of the people who watch the shows though, are people coming out of the casino theatre next door who stop on the balconies to watch me as they leave.

The casino brings a lot of big names here to perform, and right now with the lead up to Christmas and New Year, they´ve really pulled out all the stops. I feel a little bit special being slotted in amongst such grand company

An old work mate from the Friedrichstadt Palast, the company I used to work for in Germany, lives here in Lisbon and sent me a message on Facebook saying he´ll call in couple of days. He lost his mobile over the weekend which is typical of him. He hasn´t changed a bit. I hope we can meet up soon other wise I might go nuts by myself

I´ve taken to talking to myself already.

The city is too far to walk to, so I´ll have to take a cab in at some point. The thing is, I have to train a different aerial act for a gala I´m doing in Singapore on December 4th and the only time available to do that is smack bang in the middle of the day at 2:00pm. With that and trying to keep up with taking care of our talent agency, I haven´t really had the chance yet to explore the town.

Anyway, I just wanted to say hi and explain why I haven´t been on the forums at all recently. I haven´t disappeared, just taking a break for a while.

Hope you´re all well............................

JoannaMac · 11-20-2008, 08:17 PM

Hey! Where are my people? Here was I thinking I´d be missed by at least a few of you.....

Hawke · 11-20-2008, 08:57 PM

It sounds amazing, Joanna. I'm so glad you can share it with us!

Hope you get a chance to explore and do some shopping.

Ben · 11-20-2008, 09:35 PM

Sounds awesome. You should do a show when you come back to Adelaide so I can watch.

ash somers · 11-20-2008, 09:39 PM

hi hi, high-high and good to hear from you, joanna

fabric softener > ? good lord, what were you thinking ?

The Backward OX · 11-21-2008, 01:21 AM

Hey Joanna, I've heard that dairy farmers sometimes roughen the inside of the thumb and first two fingers of each hand with sandpaper, so they can get a better grip on a cow's teats?

There's also this guy I know - has this little shop on Travessa da Espera, in Encamação - and he does a nifty line in safety nets. Look him up.

Just kidding. I invented him. Stick to the sandpaper.

Malone · 11-21-2008, 03:23 AM

Go to Vegas next. It will give me an excuse to fly out there.

JoannaMac · 11-21-2008, 02:27 PM

Thank you so much for looking in on the thread people. Nice to know you´re there. I will have more tiome to respond to you all a bit later.

See you then

Big kiss,

Joanna

valeca · 11-21-2008, 02:36 PM

Will you be posting video this time? I really enjoyed seeing your performance the last time you did!

I'm feeling very mundane now. Heh.

Enjoy the exhausting excitement!

Olly Buckle · 11-21-2008, 03:27 PM

Don't you even have your other half there? He sounds so supportive, it's hard to imagine you coping with it all on your own, still you are one of those tough Aussie women aren't you? Good on you, sounds like you are doing a fantastic job, just don't get too lost in the act and remember to be very careful, you are very valuable.

JoannaMac · 11-22-2008, 09:26 AM

Hawke,
I have a gala in Singapore straight after this job in Portugal on December 4th. It´s a different aerial act than the one I´m doing now, so I have to train everyday at the casino. I´m only allowed up on the silks between 2:00pm and 3:00pm which is smack dab in the middle of the day. Because of this I haven´t been able to do any exploring of the city. However, the production company has told me I can´t train over the weekend, so I´ll be out look at stuff and shopping until Tuesday.

Ben,
I´m coming back to Adelaide around the 14th of December and plan on doing something for the Fringe Festival. I´ll give you a bell and you can come and see me do my thing

Ash,
I know! Seriously, what was I thinking. I don´t normally use fabric softener at all because I don´t agree with pumping out more chemicals into the water, but a friends mum washed the silks for me and and Í totally forgot about what it would do to the material. I was sucked in by the thought of having lovely smelling equipment as it usually has the faint aroma of smelly feet

I washed them again at the casino yesterday though and they´re much better. The swelling in my fingers has gone down a bit too.

Ox,
I use resin to make my hands stickier. It really helps. Sand paper! I think not

Malone,
I would love to go to Vegas. My act would be perfect for that place. I just don´t have any contacts out there. Oh well, you´re just going to have to wait until I get to the States with Ringling Bros, Barnum and Bailey.

Hey Valeca!
You´re not mundane, ever! My friend´s mum, the one who washed my silks with fabric softener, she emailed me last night and sayas she´s coing to Lisbon to keep me company for the rest of my stay. So I guess she´ll be ariving rom Berlin in a day or two. I´ll get her to film the act (it´s the same one you´ve seen before, but it´ll be live this time). As soon as I upload it to YouTube, I´ll send you the link ok? Thanks for being interested

Olly,
You´re very sweet

I will be extra careful just for you ok? Vlad and I are separated for the next 6 months. We left Kiev on the same day. He went on a ship and is half way to Brazil now. I won´t stay in Kiev, but will instead go home to Oz to wait the time out. We´ve never been separated this long before and always had daily phone contact when we were. Now he´s on the ship, and have to rely more on email. I´m missing him terribly already.

valeca · 11-22-2008, 09:35 AM

I'm looking forward to seeing it!

Oh, and thanks. Heh.

Glad you'll have some company, even if it's not Vlad. Brazil? You two are truly globetrotters!

JosephB · 11-22-2008, 10:00 AM

Good to hear from you, pal! Of course you are missed, as you can see. "Randomness" is not the same without you.

Glad to hear it's all going well. I can't wait to see more video!

Ben · 11-22-2008, 08:07 PM

Quote:

Ben,
I´m coming back to Adelaide around the 14th of December and plan on doing something for the Fringe Festival. I´ll give you a bell and you can come and see me do my thing

That's so cool! I've never been to the Fringe before. I almost went last time, and after hearing about all the cool stuff they had on I was planning on going next year anyway. Can't wait to see you there.

JoannaMac · 11-23-2008, 10:39 AM

Hey Joe, glad you looked in. I´d been waiting for you you know.......

Ben,
You´ve never been to the Fringe! How can that be? Where have you been? Even if you don´t see anything on the Fringe program, you at least should have gone into the Garden of Unearthly Delights down in the parklands at the end of Rundle Street. That´s it! We´ll go together one evening ok?