IT BEGINS: FIRST REHEARSAL

On Monday, July 3 the day had arrived, Cory was starting rehearsals. SOR has a dedicated rehearsal studio in a small theater right across the street from the Winter Garden. It is the theater where the Fantastiks played for years. There are 4 other new kids starting with Cory, so a total of 5 new kids are entering the cast. We all started trickling in and you could feel the excitement and anxiety alike. Mostly all excitement from the kids. The kids started introducing themselves to each other and congregated together immediately. All smiles. The parents, definitely more nervous, also were introducing themselves, all with the look of "what the hell are we doing? how did this happen?". Of the five families, three families are relocating to NY. One from LA, one from NC and one from Philli. I COULD NOT IMAGINE having to find a place to live on top of everything else. One other family is "local" from Short Hills, NJ. 

At exactly 12pm on the dot, the kids were brought into the rehearsal space and the piano started immediately. You heard the kids doing vocal warm-ups.The parents all stayed in the lobby for a parent orientation meeting. This was 2-hours of of information being thrown at us by the stage manager, management, and the head child guardian. They went through everything including schedules, professional behavior, expectations of the kids, lunch and dinner breaks, tutoring, hairstyles (they own his hair!), calling out sick, what they need for their dressing room, what happens backstage, unions, safety and security, publicity, social media...it was a TON of information. The good part was that none of us, the parents, have ever done anything like this. So we were all in the same boat....TOTALLY OVERWHELMED! At around 2pm the meeting was over and we were able to leave while the kids continued with rehearsal. I did what any normal person would do in this situation; walked around the block, found a bar, ordered a drink and cried. WHAT DID WE GET OURSELVES INTO? HOW ARE WE GOING TO MANAGE? 

After a few hours (and a few drinks), it was time to go back and pick up the kids. At exactly 5:00pm the doors opened and they came out. Cory was BEAMING. Really, his smile could not have been any bigger. All the parents were asking, "how was it?" and you heard all the kids responding, "awesome, amazing, unbelievable". High fives all around among the kids and then everyone dispersed. 

Cory was starving. I couldn't get him food fast enough, and he couldn't eat it fast enough. Josh came in after work and met us for dinner (Cory ate again!). During dinner, Cory was talking up a storm and with a maturity that was new for Josh and me to see. It was clear that this experience, even in these first five hours of rehearsal, was already shaping him.