Rambling Onwards

[Warning: Revue-centric post]

It's funny how a year ago, I wrote up a post about Med Revue 2015 as part of Tech Crew and it's so optimistic - I was so fresh and it literally skims the surface of revue. A year later, I've been a part of Law Revue cast, Front of House for two shows, ran for Producer and choreographed and danced in another Med Revue. They say a lot changes in a year, but I feel like I've really grown a lot and Revue has changed my life - I've made so many wonderful friends and there are so many people I care about, and I'm so excited to be able to help make it happen and help first-timers gain the same experience I did and grow as people in their revue journey.

I'm sitting here filled with Revue nostalgia and withdrawal from Med Revue: Doctor Flu and to think that I was only a small part of it just makes me realise how much revue means to me and why this weird voodoo revue magic makes me keep coming back. I have a heavy feeling in my heart and I miss spending so much time with my revue friends - my life feels a little empty even though I still have other things that I need to care about.

Photo by Parallax Photography

I think this year's show is so special to me because it was 1) a really amazing show and I got to shape part of it but 2) I somehow managed to become friends with casties and see people grow into someone who was more sure of themselves and confident, and that honestly has been the most rewarding thing. I feel sad that I'm not completely a part of cast, but I still have the rest of the revue community who understand what I'm feeling right now.

But not to dwell on the sad things, because there were many wonderful and beautiful things that happened too, especially during show week.

The dance that I choreographed with Ronn. It turned out pretty well - there are some things that could be improved but hey it's all a learning curve. To see other dances, we made a playlist so check it out.

I've choreographed before, but it's never been as rewarding as this time. I was lucky enough to be working with Ronn Lo, my friend and fellow dancer for almost 6 years, and we just bounced off each other really well and had similar ideas. We had frustrating moments, we had moments where we would smash out a minute of a dance in two hours, but most of all, we had fun. And to think of the first time I choreographed for a staged performance (JRAHS Musical 2013) and compare it to today... I can say that I've grown a lot and I've got a much better idea of how to stage something and tell a story. I still get flustered, I still get stressed and and semi gave up on it towards the end - but I'm actually really proud of what Ronn and I managed to achieve. It also brings me so much joy when the dancers tell me that it's their favourite dance - and I hope they can take away the tricks, skills and confidence they gained from our dance sessions.

Powerful. | Photo by Parallax Photography

Right before show week, I watched the last videos so many times and it was so difficult to enjoy it because we lost so much of the atmosphere of the dance as we weren't dancing with a backing track, we were dancing to a band version of the song. The last few days before Opening Night I was quite upset over how the dance turned out - but I'm so grateful that band got their act together and all the performers gave their heart and soul to the dance and made it really wonderful. In all honesty, it wasn't the cleanest dance and in terms of staging and technical level it wasn't that hard, but I'm glad cast enjoyed themselves. And hey, maybe next year I'll be back to make a harder dance. And I'll be stricter. And maybe we'll pull off something half as amazing as Opening Dance this year.

Cast of Med Revue 2016. | Photo by Parallax Photography

It's been a whirlwind of emotions and I'm glad I made it through my crazy 2nd week of May - but I miss it all the same. I hope some of the friendships I made will be the ones that stick with me and carry me through life - especially since I seem to be terrible at maintaining friendships.

See you on the other side of uni semester/exams - take care friends.

With love, Sarah x

Almost a month ago (yes I am very backlogged, and I have another half-written draft) my family decided to take a little day trip up to the Blue Mountains to see autumn leaves and pick some apples (literally). I wasn't going to go, except 10 minutes before they were meant to leave home I decided to get up and go with them. It was mostly a 'cram as much work in as you can during the car trip' and 'hey let's take lots of photos' kind of road trip, but it was fun either way and I'm grateful got to spend time with family during a time where I spent almost every day at uni or work.

I really like this photo. Unfortunately I cannot take credit for the photo taking part, just editing. | Photo by Katrina Wu

We hit up an apple farm to pick some pink lady apples (and devour some while we were in the orchard) before we headed off to find a place for lunch. The most interesting part of the day was the fact that we couldn't get into the Botanical Gardens, and we couldn't even get into a picnic area because the traffic was banked up and there were too many people.

The most ironic thing?

Most of them were Asian, and I can tell you from past experience there were not this many people heading to the area at the same time last year. It's crazy how something can be blown up on social media, especially when thousands of people in a particular region of a specific ethnicity send something viral. It's extremely powerful, and it was the cause of our traffic woes that one sunny day.

I actually love this photo - I saw the van and the first thing I said was "I need this shot".

After wildly suggesting that we drive to Lithgow, we ended up driving to Blackheath and my sister and I ran off to try things with our new DSLR camera - we had a bit of fun and some of it was a hit and miss, but here's what actually turned out alright.

I spent ages editing this one because I wasn't happy with the brightness/vibrance of it - but it worked out in the end. | Photo by Katrina Wu

Just casually rocking my leather jacket and new-ish Quay sunnies that I finally splurged on. | Photo by Katrina Wu

We also visited a smaller garden to see the infamous 'red leaves'. One thing that really frustrated me was how much noise our family friends were making in the garden, and I feel like this a common trend among young people who feel that their family act inappropriately and are not informed of the correct etiquette. The garden was a very peaceful space and all the noise disturbed the tranquil and serene atmosphere, and more importantly, my zen. We ran off from the main group just because it was nice to be in your own headspace with someone else who understood, and we managed to capture some interesting shots (although again, I can only take credit for the ones featured below).

Trying to take this shot made me realise how hard it can be to get the angles right.

It was a relaxing day overall and I'm glad I managed to get out and take some nice photos as I said I would in an earlier Tweet - and I'm looking forward to doing this more in the coming break. I have so many spontaneous moments where I want to jump into a car or on a train and just go somewhere with no aim but to explore somewhere new and capture some moments on camera, and it's so frustrating when I'm stuck at home or at uni trying to do something else. I also don't really have any travelling buddies if my sister is busy - but hey something always works out.

And just a side note - I'm constantly being astounded by the fact that people actually read my blog, even though I've put up two posts since the uni semester started. Don't get me wrong - I'm very grateful to have an audience and I can't thank you all from the bottom of my heart for sticking around this long.

Take care.

With love, Sarah x