I’ve started Zumba – yay – what fun. No-one telling you to try harder, push further, strain more… just leaping about for an hour to fabulous music, and opening up all those synapses to get routines into your head. Brilliant!
I had my car broken into last month, that wasn’t too much fun, hugely inconvenient because it was covered in glass and it meant I only had time to catch a cab to Guildford, to honour my commitment to the Yvonne Arnaud, but my brilliant cab driver (Mike) took me, came to see the show (!) and brought me back again… all through that terrible snow storm! He was my knight in shining armour.
February 11th saw the launch of the Big Finish CDs (www.bigfinish.com/Big-Finish-4th-Doctor-Adventures) and appearing on stage with Tom Baker for the first time in…how many years? He was absolutely brilliant, so witty and responsive to the audience. A joy to share the platform with.
The tour of PULLING FACES finished to a standing ovation of 500 in Los Angeles – I was seriously worried about how a show dealing with the issue of cosmetic surgery was going to go down in the epicentre of face lifts, but surprisingly, it was really well received, so thank you LA for ending the tour in style.
The fringe venue at The Beacon (www.the-beacon.co.uk) saws the premier of Helen Goldwyn’s new show A FUNNY STAGE. She’s a wonderful writer, composer and performer, not to mention the singing. I felt extremely proud to be hosting. If you didn’t catch it the second performance will be on April 23rd at The Pheasantry (www.pizzaexpresslive.com)
Last week I spent two days with two different charities… raising awareness for homeopathy and the following day giving a speech celebrating International Women’s Day at West Heath School (www.westheathschool.com) trying to raise the profile of this extraordinary house of education. They take care of children and young adults who have suffered appalling trauma, giving them back their self-respect, their confidence and, by doing so, their futures. I was incredibly impressed and humbled by the staff and the students.
Our new play, MY GAY BEST FRIEND, gathers momentum. And on Monday morning, after my balloon ride over Devon , (yes I’m going up in a balloon!) I am continuing on to Cornwall to shut myself away for 5 days in order to learn the script, preparing for the ‘try out’ on April 27th at The Beacon (01892 524252 for tickets) followed by the Brighton Festival which we perform every Sunday in May at the 3 and 10.
So, there we have it, the story so far, and it’ll soon be April! I haven’t even mentioned the launch of the new audio company. MY MOTHER WAS AN ALIEN IS THAT WHY I’M GAY will VERY soon be available in CD form and as a download…. Probably the same day we premier MY GAY BEST FRIEND, April 27th…. So that’ll be a red letter day all round. Hope to see you there.
Love Louise x