I always seem to start these blogs with an apology for not writing sooner! Each time, I go to write another one, i realise another month or two (ooppss) has passed!!!. Although we are only home 5 weeks, it feels like so much has happened. The tour is nearly a distant memory at this stage!. Obviously the month of July was totally consumed with the DVD special from Powerscourt. We arrived home on the 5th of July and had a few days rest before we headed in to rehearsals. Rehearsals are always so much fun. We have our director and choreographer Daryn Crosbie who takes us through everything from start to finish. He showed us the stage plan, the set list, the set and then hinted at what he thought the dresses were like!. We spent six days in rehearsals and then headed down to Powerscourt on the Tuesday. (By the way, when we arrived they were filming "The Tudors" in the courtyard beside our trailers. Myself and Chloe thought they might give us a walk on part! But it wasn't to be. Seemingly our jeans and leggings were not appropriate attire for the show!) Our show was being filmed on the Wednesday and Thursday. Tuesday, however, was a total washout!!!. We managed to get down to set and have a look at it and also take in the breath taking venue!. I haven't been to Powerscourt in a very long time and I had forgotten how incredibly stunning it is. So much so, my aussie husband asked why I had never thought to bring him there in all the years we've been living in Dublin. It really is one of the most amazing places. So we didn't get to do a full run through of the show that day, which was a little worrying. Even though we had done it many times in rehearsals you really need to get on the stage and have a good run through but it wasn't to be and we headed home for some rest and warmth!!!!. And of course to learn the words to some of the songs.
Wednesday morning didn't look all the promising either but we at least got to do a run through. We also got to see the stunning, stunning dresses for the first time. As you can imagine, there were squeals coming from the wardrobe trailer!!! Synan O'Mahony designs all our dresses but this time he excelled himself. They were all amazing and i'm dying for you to see them!. Anyway as the day went by the weather got worse. At 9pm the rain stopped and we got to do the first show. We managed to get through the whole show but it was freezing and damp. I've never been as cold. I know I complained about San Diego being cold but this was like the North Pole in comparison!. The chill in the air was incredible and for me the first night wasn't great as my eyes kept running due to the cold, the wind and the lights!. So poor Sara, our make up artist, made quite a lot of appearances on stage - much to her family's delight though!. Thursday,however, was a different day. It was warm and sunny. We got to run through the whole show again during the day, just to tweak some things and thursday night's show went without a hitch, well that's not entirely true - we did blow a generator but it was fixed in a matter of minutes. The show was a huge success and I really enjoyed every minute. The highlight for all of us girls was not just performing for all our family and friends who rarely get an opportunity to see us live, but also to see so many familiar faces from the US there to cheer us on. It really was wonderful and we are so appreciative to all of you who managed to make it over. And for some of you from the warmer parts of America, I'm sure you didn't know what hit you with the unpredictable Irish weather!. I know many of you made the most of your trip and travelled on around Ireland. I hope it was everything you dreamed it would be. Thanks again for all your encouragement and support. For those of you who couldn't make it, I hope you enjoy the new PBS special and DVD as much as we enjoyed making it. The new songs are incredible, the set was beautiful and as I've said the costumes were stunning and not just ours, the choir girls all looked amazing! I'd just like to thank all of the people involved in the production. It's not just all of us on stage, there is so much work that goes on in the background and we are very lucky to have the "best of the best"!!!!
I hope this finds you all happy and healthy. We're looking forward to getting back on the road in October. Our dates haven't been fully confirmed as of yet but keep a look out on www.celticwoman.com for updates.
Lots of love
Lisaxxxxxx
On a side note, i just got back from London after a little trip with my sisters and saw the show Wicked - what an incredible show. I saw it in New York too. If it comes to your city, which i'm sure it will eventually, go see it!!!. Amazing
