The first day in New York was SO much fun! The trip began with a plane ride—my first ever. I felt sick, so I took a Gravol before the second flight out of Toronto.
After grabbing our luggage, we took a bus to the hotel and checked in. I got to room with Amirah, Michele, and Stephanie! After dropping off our things, we visited Ground Zero. It hadn’t hit me that we were in New York until I saw that. We also rode the Staten Island Ferry and saw the Statue of Liberty, which made for some great photos. The NYPD and FDNY were visible as well, adding to the city’s energy.
That evening, we went to Broadway and saw Wicked. It was AMAZING! Glinda (GA-LIN-DA) was my favourite—so funny and stylish. Many people were crying when it ended. I was able to buy a t-shirt and an official program and take pictures with all the performers. Afterwards, we went to Howard Johnson’s for a midnight snack and met a REAL New Yorker—she was in high school like us and very cool!
At the New Dance Centre, some dancers taught us an actual dance from Hairspray. Tyrick led the advanced group, and Cameron taught the beginners. Tyrick is an incredible dancer, and I even got his autograph!
We also had a musical theatre class, singing One Short Day from Wicked while learning the real choreography. Afterward, lunch was at the Food Emporium, followed by a matinée of Hairspray. It was a fantastic musical, and I got autographs from all the main performers.
Later, we went shopping at Capizeo and the big Hershey store. I thought I only had $17.00, but later I found $20.00 in my pocket! That night, we saw Avenue Q, which was hilarious but a bit X-rated. The funniest song was The Internet is for Porn.
The next adventure included visits to the New Amsterdam Theatre and Radio City Music Hall. It was incredible to see the architecture and history of these iconic venues. Dinner was at Planet Hollywood, where we even met a real Rockette choreographer!
Back at the hotel, Michele, Amirah, and I attempted to watch a movie with friends, but someone accidentally bumped the remote, and we couldn’t get back to our film. Afterward, we put on plastic ponchos and ran around the floors “flapping our wings.” Later, we heard a knock at the door—no one was there. Strange noises in the hallway made us call the boys to check it out, but they got bored and left.
Some kids were playing truth-or-dare nearby, so Amirah and I played a joke on them. We listened under the door, and every time a truth was told, we phoned Michele, who repeated it back to the room. It was hilarious!
Workshops included puppetry and mock auditions. In puppetry, the teacher demonstrated how to make a water bottle “cry” and explained how shadow puppetry is used in Wicked. The stage even has an elevator for Elphaba—once, when it wasn’t in place, Shoshana (who plays Elphaba) fell into the hole and broke a rib!
The audition workshop allowed participants to practice mock auditions, which was fun and educational. After lunch, we headed to the airport and flew home, exhausted but thrilled by the entire experience.