Our Time Spring Shows

When Taro left home this morning, he was headed to the theater to start load-in for the Our Time Spring shows! I can't believe it's that time of year again already, but starting this weekend and continuing next weekend, you can see brand new original work written and performed by the Our Time pre-teen and teen companies. It's going to be a great run of really fun shows, and we would love to see you there! Click here for more info and to purchase tickets. Thank you so much for your support of this wonderful organization!

Our Time One-Acts

I'm posting this video for a few reasons:

1) Cool fact: the cute guy that Beyonce's canoodling with? The one with the halo? That's Michael Ealy, a friend of ours and one of the stars of the upcoming Our Time One-Act plays! He's every bit as handsome, sweet, and charming in person. And he's a damn good actor.

2) Tickets to the shows are still available, so click here to get more info and reserve a seat! We hope to see you there ;)

3) The kiddos and I have always liked this song (once, right before latching on to nurse, J sang "I can see your mammo" to the tune, LOL).

Our Time Shows: Three Down, Three to Go!

This past weekend I enjoyed seeing the Our Time pre-teen company perform their original shows. It is so fun to hang out at the theatre with the boys. They both loved watching the onstage action, and I cannot overstate how much they revel in the attention of the cast and crew backstage and onstage before the show. W loved being in Taro's arms while he led the pre-show "hype", and introduced the show.

Here are some more highlights I captured...

If you're in town, we'd love to have you join us for the teen company's shows, which are this coming weekend! More info, here.

Our Time Shows!

The Our Time NYC Pre-Teen Shows are this weekend!

DATES & TIMES: Friday, 6/11, 8pm / Saturday, 6/12, 8pm / Sunday, 6/13, 3pm

LOCATION: Five Angels Theater (789 10th Avenue, between 52nd & 53rd Street, NYC)

Click here or call 212.414.9696 for tickets

Maddie Marvelous

Photo: Sara Krulwich/The New York Times

My sister-in-law, Maddie, made her Broadway debut last night, as a member of the small ensemble cast of the new play, Next Fall. We are over-the-moon excited for her, and completely proud beyond words.

Taro and I saw the show last summer when it became a critical and box-office hit Off-Broadway, and we were absolutely overwhelmed by the emotional and intellectual impact of the show. Seriously. We are big theatre-goers and Taro grew up in a family of actors and directors, and I don't remember ever going to a show before that we had to sit in our seats afterwards for 15 minutes absorbing it and composing ourselves. Next Fall really knocked us out. I made us laugh, it made us sob, and it made us think. And we couldn't stop thinking about it.

Fast-forward to today: The show has moved to Broadway (produced by Sir Elton John, no less!) and the rave reviews hit the newsstands this morning. Ben Brantley, the senior theatre critic for The New York Times, could not have been more glowing in his assessment of Next Fall, calling it "the funniest heartbreaker in town." No joke, this play is top-notch, provocative, humane, entertaining art of the highest and rarest order, and it just so happens that my amazing sister-in-law is one of the stars that makes it so!

So, if you're in NYC or planning or visit, I urge you to check out Next Fall and experience the beauty for yourself. Order tickets here. Taro and I are giddy with excitement to see the show on Tuesday night -- my parents will be babysitting and it will be our first date since W's birth!

It is slightly surreal, but ever-so-awesome to see Maddie's photo every time we take the subway!

Maddie with friends and family at last night's opening. Photo via Broadway.com.

Our Time One Acts: TONIGHT & TOMORROW!!!

Friday, December 11th

8pm

Saturday, December 12th

2pm & 8pm

The Peter Jay Sharp Theater

416 W. 42nd St.

(between 9th & 10th Aves)

New York City

Tickets ($12): www.ticketcentral.com

or call 212.279.4200

For more info call: 212.414.9696 or email moreinfo@ourtimetheatre.org

Read more about Our Time and its mission, here.

The kiddos and I will be at all three shows, supporting Taro and Our Time. We hope to see you there!

Exciting Press!

Photo, Associated Press

The New York Times, NPR, and other media outlets across the country are running in-depth stories about Camp Our Time today, including multimedia elements like slideshows and video!!! Click here, here, and here to see some of the highlights of the coverage!

UPDATE: Now CBS, MSNBC, and Forbes have picked up on the story! So exciting!

Camp Our Time Highlights

Taro has been away all week, running Camp Our Time, an extension of Our Time Theatre Company.

Our Time is an acclaimed non-profit organization that has been improving the lives of kids who stutter since 2001. This camp is uniquely tailored for kids who stutter, as well as their young family members and friends, ages 8-18. Through the performing arts and traditional camp activities, Camp Our Time helps kids who stutter develop priceless self-esteem, and facilitates increased understanding about stuttering among their peers.

Although the arts are integral to Camp Our Time, no performance experience is required to enroll and no auditions are held. Campers leave with valuable friendships, life-long memories, and a strong dose of encouragement to not let their speech disorders limit their life experiences or quell their dreams.

The following photos, taken by the Camp Our Time Staff, are some of my favorites from the week so far. See many many more and find more information about Our Time on the camp blog.

Weekend Wonderful

Photo by Jordan Matter, from his book Uncovered, a book of portraits and personal statements from over 80 brave women, who posed bare-breasted for the project in public locations across New York City. Via Smitten.

With much excitement and anticipation, the Kiddo and I are getting ready to attend opening night of the shows tonight!  Hopefully we'll see you there :)

Meanwhile, here are a few interesting links I've rounded up this past week...

Photos of an absolutely gorgeous and moving home birth.  Via The Human Pacifier.

Two awesome baby-naming websites with totally different twists on the usual overwhelming lists:  Nameberry and What A Lovely Name.  Thanks to Celebrity Baby Blog and Use Your Words.

Insanely cool mini modernist bauhaus model house = best dollhouse evah!  Via Minor Details.

Breastfeeding in the news.  Via Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog.

As of this week, The Society of Obstetricians & Gynecologists of Canada recommends that vaginal breech birth be offered (a reversal of its previous prohibition of vaginal breech birth). The SOGC's announcement also lays out plans to establish nationwide training programs so that physicians can learn the necessary skills.  Via Stand and Deliver.

Rare photos of Audrey Hepburn.  Via The English Muse.

A new and delightful blog:  Raising Foodies.  

June is more than halfway over!  If you want to hang on to the beauty of the month for much longer than the next week and a half, maybe you should pick up this pretty little print.

Finally, a Checklist for the New Unschooler.  

Now go forth and have a wonderful weekend, beautiful people!  XOXO, Leigh

Join Us for The Our Time Shows THIS WEEKEND!

Our Time invites you to its upcoming Pre-Teen & Teen Shows:

Awesomealicious and If You Go

Friday, June 19th, 8pm (Reception to follow)

Saturday, June 20th, 8pm

Sunday, June 21st, 3pm

Tickets are $12, reservations are a must! 

Tickets are on sale in the Our Time website or you can call (212) 414-9696 or email us at moreinfo@outimetheatre.org to make your reservations.

Hope to see you there!

We Have a Winner!!!

Congratulations to Bill_4, winner of the advance copy of "Listen"!  Thank you to all who entered the giveaway and helped to spread the word.  Stay tuned for more news and updates about the album as we near the release date (June 23).

Photo via We Heart It.

Marvelous Giveaway: Advance Copy of "Listen"

I am SO thrilled to be offering this giveaway.  Thanks to the generosity of my husband, Taro, one lucky winner will receive a special advance copy of Listen, the upcoming album benefiting Our Time Theatre Company.

On June 23rd, a remarkable album, eight years in the making, will be released. Listen is a collection of 15 original songs, written by children who stutter, and recorded by iconic artists including Carly Simon, Daryl Hall & John Oates, Duncan Sheik, John Forte, Mandy Patinkin and many others. 

Our Time is a non-profit organization centered on a one-of-a-kind Arts program that provides children who stutter with an environment of unconditional acceptance…a creative forum, where they can express themselves through art, music, writing and theater, slowly and without risk of being shamed.

‘Listen’ will be released on Sh-K-Boom Records, and proceeds will benefit Our Time. 

Click here to listen to a streaming audio sampler of Listen!

To enter the giveaway, leave a comment (with your email address) on this post by Tuesday, June 16 at 11:59 PST.  Get extra chances by telling me that you spread the word via Twitter, Facebook, or a blog post!  I'll give you an additional entry each time you link back to this post (just be sure to leave the URL of your posts within the body of your comment).  Thank you so much for participating, and good luck!  

Next Fall

On Sunday, Taro and I went to see our sister-in-law, Maddie Corman, perform in a new play called Next Fall.

A production of Naked Angels Theatre Company (of which Taro is a member), Next Fall is a play that is as sensitive as it is provocative in its examination of faith and doubt, love and sexuality, life and death. We were riveted by the story, incredibly moved by the humanity of the characters, entertained by the wittily well-written dialogue, and completely impressed by the fantastic ensemble cast. It was the first time in a long time that we've been to see a piece of theatre and had to stay there, past the curtain call, composing ourselves before leaving our seats. We were both really emotional and have been thinking about the play ever since. It was profound and beautiful and funny and all the things that great theatre really should be.

If you're in New York in the next few weeks (the show runs through June 21) I highly recommend that you go. Reserve tickets here. And let me know what you think!

UPDATE (6.11.09): Ben Brantley raves about the show in today's New York Times! Read the review here, and be sure to check out the accompanying audio slide show.

Birthday Fun

Thursday morning got off to a fun birthday start when I made breakfast in bed (buttermilk pancakes, fruit, scrambled eggs and O.J.) for my boys.

After chillin' in the bed for a while and opening presents, we went out for a stroll, and ended up relaxing in Madison Square Park.  It was a magnificent day and all the benches were full, so Taro and the Kiddo relaxed beside the fountain.

A little while later we met up with Taro's mom, Riki, who treated us to lunch at one of our favorite restaurants, Peryali.  

After our wonderful meal (and more presents!) we went home for a while before Taro and I departed for our evening activity:  attending a performance of HAIR on Broadway!

We had excellent seats, and the show was fantastic, so we had a blast!  We even ran into a friend of ours during intermission who assisted with costume design on the show, and he gave me lots of fun behind-the-scenes info about what it was like assembling the incredibly groovy outfits for the show :)

Once home for the night, Taro had one last birthday hurrah by blowing out candles in a tiny little two-person Haagen Daz coffee ice cream cake, which was soooo yummy!  Yay for birthdays!!!

Our Time in USA Today...TODAY!

I know I've been hyping a lot of Our Time-related things lately, but you'll have to bear with me while I continue to post about Taro's genius company and the exciting work he's doing :)  

So, one thing I haven't shared yet is that an incredible album, Listen,  is set to be released in June, featuring songs written by the young company members of Our Time, recorded by acclaimed artists, including Carly Simon, Daryl Hall & John Oates, John Forte, Duncan Sheik, and Mandy Patinkin!  

Taro has been working overtime on the production of this incredible project for more than two years alongside Our Time's musical Director Everett Bradley, and the results are AMAZING.  I seriously cannot wait for you all to hear this phenomenal music.  Now, as the album nears its release, we are starting to get some exciting buzz!  Case in point:  today's USA Today ran a piece about Listen on the front page of their "Life" section.  Check it out online, here, and on newsstands while you still can!  You can read some more of the press that came out today regarding Listen, here and here.

Stay tuned for more exciting Our Time updates, and thank you for all of your amazing support and wonderfully kind comments!

Our Time Featured on NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams

In case you missed it!

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Must-See-TV Alert

This Friday, April 17, be sure to tune in to NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams.  My husband, Taro Alexander, and Our Time Theatre Company will be featured in the "Making a Difference" segment, including coverage of the gala.  There will also be supplementary footage and interviews on the NBC website after the episode airs...I'll let you know a specific link as soon as it is up!  SO EXCITING!!!

Photo of rad orange television set found here.

Partied Out

This is where my men are right now.  Snoozing away, snuggled blissfully in each other's presence after several hard weeks of not enough time together while the Papa worked overtime getting ready for the gala.  

Yesterday was amazing -- the culmination of all that hard work -- and totally worth it.  I have stories for days, and hopefully soon I'll have a bunch of photos to share.  The evening was totally inspiring and entertaining and fun, and we had a packed house for the show and dinner.  I was so busy having a good time that I totally neglected to take any photos!  But the place was swarming with cameras (the press totally turned out for the event) so in a way it was probably better to just enjoy the fun and trust that everything was being documented quite thoroughly.  As soon as I see pics I'll be sure to post :)  

Thank you to all the well-wishes from those of you who read about the gala on the blog but were unable to attend.  It warms my heart to feel the love and support of my blog friends from near and far.  Ya'll are too sweet.

Meanwhile, I hope you're all having a wonderful beginning of the week, and I look forward to getting back to regular posting soon.  XOXO.

Starstruck Kiddo

Over the weekend, we were thrilled to attend a production of Annie, starring the Kiddo's very own amazing cousin, Isabelle Moon in the title role.  To fully convey to you the level of excitement that this event inspired in the Kiddo, I will have to give you a little background:

I spent the ages of four through six living and breathing everything Annie.  I saw the 1982 movie version in the theater, and I owned the original cast recording on vinyl, which I think I listened to approximately four million times while creating my own choreography to go along with it in the middle of the living room.  Last year I stumbled upon the 25th anniversary special edition DVD of the movie and decided to snap it up for old times sake, and the thought also occurred to me that the Kiddo might enjoy watching it.  

Well, did he ever.  I guess the Annie obsession is genetic, because at the Kiddo's request we have watched that DVD about four million times in the last year.  We also downloaded the soundtrack from iTunes and we have to listen to it at least once a day.

So, imagine our mutual fever pitch excitement and anticipation when we learned that our beloved Isabelle would be starring in a community theatre version of the musical.  We have been looking sooooo forward to it, and yesterday was the big day!  And we had the best time.  Isabelle's performance was phenomenal, the entire production was entertaining, fun, and touching, and the Kiddo was glued to his seat, eyes fixated on the stage, the entire time.  Here he is cheering for his beloved cousin/favorite fictional character (thanks to Riki for the photos):

And here is the leading lady herself, post show, as she greets her adoring fans:

Here we have her numero uno biggest fan ever, so thrilled to be meeting his icon:

And here we have the Kiddo being carried around by Isabelle while she continues to greet her fans.  Note the look of serious devotion emanating from his eyes, coupled with the death grip on her shoulder.  The one time that Isabelle passed him back to me so that she could give someone else a hug and accept another bouquet, the Kiddo met me with sudden, violent, and tearful shrieks of "BELLE!!!!" while he attempted to leap from my grasp, back into Isabelle's arms:

And here we have one of the more adorable photos ever, taken at the after party, at Isabelle's house when all her siblings and friends were piled in the bed watching cartoons.  Note the devoted Kiddo cuddled to Isabelle's side in the middle of the bed.  Heart-melting cuteness!

It was a wonderful day -- one for the ages, and we are so proud of our Isabelle Moon!

I have to take this opportunity to share the exciting news that Isabelle will soon be making her film debut, with a role in the upcoming Away We Go, written by Dave Eggers and Directed by Sam Mendes.  Have you seen the trailer yet?  It looks like such a wonderful movie, and of course everyone in the family is bursting with excitement and pride for Isabelle.  Here's the preview: