VoxSusana Blog

My life has gone to the Dogs!!!

2009-11-04T08:46:00.000-08:00

Find me at RascalDarla.blogspot.com

Flickr

2008-12-25T14:47:00.001-08:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T14:32:00.001-08:00

Darla Christmas2
Originally uploaded by armenjc

I wanted to wish you a Merry Christmas! I'm in Connecticut right now visiting my mommy's family and it's the first time I've seen snow! My daddy let me out of the van when he went sledding and let me run around in the snow. He even let me pee in it!

He said I looked like a bunny hopping around in the snow. That was fun. I hope I get to play in the snow some more while I'm here.

My latest distraction...the poochie!

2008-06-03T12:45:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

I haven't been blogging for awhile because I've been so busy with my doggie, Darla! She was a Valentine's present from my hubby. She's so cute, I decided to give her her own blog too at rascaldarla.blogspot.com. We'll be posting her adventures really soon!

This is a pic of her at about 9 weeks old.

She has so many fans already from our walks and going to cafes. They know her by name but only know me as Darla's mommy. That's okay, though. She's so cute she deserves the attention and I get to meet some really nice people who might not have even stopped to talk. Here are some more pics from the past few months. She's about 3 months here. Armen thinks she's got attitude....................

What do you think? Enjoy!

Amazing Show, Amazing Friends

2008-01-05T11:52:00.000-08:00

Anyone who gets the chance should see Kooza. I saw it in San Francisco after Thanksgiving and it was amazing. It's the closest thing to Saltimbanco with it's street performer vibe, the dramatic story, and the dynamic music and band ! I really encourage anyone to buy tickets for this one. It's now one of my favorite Cirque shows.
Also I have some amazing friends from our Cirque family who we were able to see in SF. One friend in particular brought herself back from an aneurysm and coma and within 7 months was walking and talking as if nothing had happened to her. Honestly, I think she is the one who really deserves applause! It goes to show you the power of your will and the power of you brain to learn all over again. We had a great time hanging in in Union Square, the Cirque site (which is the same reconditioned Saltimbanco tent for you Cirque fans), going out to eat and walking around the town. It's was a lot of fun!
Happy New Year!!!!

It's been forever....

2007-11-22T22:35:00.000-08:00

So it's been forever since I last posted but I thought I would write since I am going to see some of my Cirque friends tomorrow. I did see Corteo when it came to LA and went to the premiere party. It was cool but not as wild as I thought it would be. I also saw some Saltimbanco friends who work on the crew. Now, I am going to San Francisco to see the newest show, Kooza. I'll let you know how it all goes when i get back!

The fastest 3 months ever!

2007-03-31T12:37:00.000-07:00

I know, I know... I've been really absent! But let me tell you what has happened in the last 3 months 'cause my head is spinning!

First, I come back to Southern California where I am offered back my job at TEEN LINE as the training coordinator for the Reseda Teens. In case, you don't know it already, I work for a Teen to Teen hot line. I begin to see my clients in private practice. I start up with my voice lessons again, sure that I am going to start singing and recording. I send my demo to Cirque and they accept it although they don't think I am right for the Saltimbanco songbird...funny, huh. Of course that leads to Armen not taking the Saltimbanco gig because he doesn't want to leave me. He's so sweet. Then, (scre-e-ech!) I get offered a position as the Deputy Executive Director of TEEN LINE. So....

Now, I have started my position as the person who is supposed to take over for the Executive Director in the next year and I'm thinking, "what about the singing?" I have to say this feels crazy but I'm going with it because that's what life is offering me right now. I am not giving up on the singing though. I just have to find a way to integrate it ALL in my life without feeling like I'm about to keel over from exhaustion.

Ah.... Brazil....things were peaceful....laying by the pool....what a life......

New Years Resolutions!

2007-01-07T13:19:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone and Happy New Year!

I know we all don't believe in New Year's Resolutions but it is a great time of year to make a declaration for your life. I did things this year that I never thought were possible. So these are some of my resolutions.

1. To stay positive about my life directions and open to possibilities! So I'll continue to pursue some goals like auditioning for Cirque and creating an audition demo for other music jobs. So, I'll keep focused on what I can do rather than what is hindering me, like looking for jobs and opportunities that will create wealth and fulfillment.

2. To continue with my new fitness regimen that I started with my friends from Cirque while in Brazil. I joined a gym already and have been going regularly so far.

Please share your resolutions if you'd like. Make sure to include an action step with your resolution. Having a plan makes it work!

Goodbye to Saltimbanco, Hello CA!

2006-12-16T21:00:00.000-08:00

The last two weeks have been such an emotional trip. I'm not sure if I can describe it well enough to give you an idea of what most everyone has been going through but I'll try. The last days of the show, Saltimbanco, were intense to be sure. Everyone knew the end was near and there were the typical symptoms of loss and separation anxiety. Some people were staying distant and others were bonding even more. We were getting together to toast each other every night and former Saltimbanco players who had moved on to other shows came into town to be a part of the goodbye. I made some really good friends, including Elisa, Chris and Maggie. I will miss them so much. I also just started getting to know some of the other wives and partners so it was a little frustrating to get cut off so quickly. It really showed for all of us on the day of the last show and on the next two days as people were leaving.

So there we all were, family, friends, crew, staff, and former castmates at the last show. We were seated in the first few rows of the audience and we witnessed the best show the cast had performed so far. All the while, there were tears from those in the audience and the Saltimbanc's were teary-eyed as well. I remember the wife of one acrobat who kept saying "this is too hard." She was right. It was so emotional. We were called to the stage during the bows to be a part of the family goodbye and then the cast went back into the artistic tent and we were asked to go straight to the buses which took us to the party. The party was loud and not very intimate so there wasn't as much of an opportunity to bond for a final time. It was really elaborate but more like a premiere party then a final party.

The next day Armen and I, and anyone who was staying for a few more hours or days, met everyone who was leaving at the airport shuttles outside the hotel. It was so difficult to say goodbye. I had a particularly hard time saying goodbye to the band and the singer since we became good friends, especially Chantal and Serge. They live in Canada so there is definitely an opportunity to visit unless they get another gig really soon. I couldn't hold back the tears. We continued to say goodbye to others during the day. The next day, I just couldn't say goodbye to another big group that was leaving because it was just too much. I opted to stay in my room and continue to pack. We were leaving now on the 6pm bus and some friends gathered outside to say goodbye to our group. One of my good friends Elisa, with whom I shared the singer role in the Tech show, was there to send us off. We really bonded so it was especially difficult to leave. She is moving on to Allegria with her boyfriend who has taken a job on the staff. She was going to Madrid and to a whole new group of people. I was going home back to my old life but life has changed now.

I've changed and I want to keep this excitement alive. I've rediscovered some things about myself and my life and I intend to do what I can to keep that going. I guess my fear is that I might get so involved in the day to day grind of my old life and I might leave what behind what I learned. Of course, when you are so affected it's hard to just put that aside. I know there will not be another Saltimbanco. So many other performers who have moved on say that this was the one special show to be a part of and that they are not experiencing the same comaraderie elsewhere. I don't want to try and recreate what I experienced with Saltimbanco but to build upon it so that I express myself completely as a person and as a performer again. It was really a gift to have to opportunity to meet new people from around the world, travel, and learn so much about myself in this creative environment. I guess I'll look at it as a new beginning.

Allez, musiciens...et techniciens!

2006-12-04T06:50:00.001-08:00

If you've been wondering where I've been and why I haven't been writing, it's this simple...the 69 Techno Show. That is the name of the Technicians Show, a parody of Saltimbanco, which we presented for the Saltimbanco artists. (69 is because Saltimbanco has performed in 69 cities.) Some of the acts are funny, some are serious and some are both. Some of the techs and crew learned how to do Chinese Poles, Russian Swing, Trapeze and Bungees. They were actually pretty good! For me, it was both fun and nerve-racking. I was the pink singer (the songbird) and it was really fun to step into Chantal and Francine's shoes for a little while. Elisa sang as well and we became good friends during this time. I sang parts of Adagio and Amazonia with Elisa and as a solo, I sang a Michel Colombier song, for the beginning of Bungees, which went over well and is really suited to my voice. Thanks Michel! You're with us in spirit...

Here are the kids with Elisa and me. They performed Adagio.

So, I achieved my goal of singing front of an audience again! I got to experience being on the Saltimbanco stage and feeling that energy of performing. It felt natural. Also, I learned how difficult it is to use in-ears especially for the singers and band when they work with people who don't know how to do the sound. Also, there are those who just don't get what it takes to put on a musical show and working with that can be hard for my perfectionist side. All in all, I had a great time and want to do it again.

I am going to definitely get back to singing and work on a CD at home. There's only one more week here so I may not post again until I come home. I've made some great friends and I'll miss them dearly but I know that I have many places in the world to visit in the future.

The best part of the deal

2006-11-08T05:58:00.000-08:00

Now that we are in Rio, the spouses/partners get the best part of the deal. We get to sit by the pool, go to the beach, the gym, and go shopping. So, we've been so-o-o-o busy that I haven't written. We've walked Ipanema Beach and Copacabana and explored some of the nightlife here. There is so much to see. I've made some really good friends in a short time so it will be hard to leave in a few weeks. Everyone is feeling a bit of that stress. But at night we fall asleep to the sound of the waves which is enough to relieve the stress for a short while.

Okay well, there have been a couple of parties to go to. You wouldn't expect this group to just go back to the hotel every night. We had a premiere party which wasn't much of one and that was disappointing since I never attended a real Cirque du Soleil party. The Halloween party a few days later made up for it a bit. Getting dressed up is really fun for this group!

The girl from Ipanema

2006-10-24T22:46:00.000-07:00

We are finally here and absolutely thrilled to be sitting in our room listening to the waves crashing from the beach outside our hotel. We've only been here a little over 24 hours and we've already driven around Ipanema, Copacabana and visited Corcovado Mountain to see the Christ the Redeemer statue. What an amazing view! Everyone is in a better mood now that they have a little time off and well..., we're in paradise! There is going to be a lot more to write about in the weeks to come.

I´m really glad that Cirque picked this setting to be the last one for Saltimbanco. It is getting more "real" by the minute that this show is going to end. It is sad because this is a really great show. It´s so uplifting and the music is great. I´m really going to miss the cast and crew. I´ve gotten to know some people pretty well in the short time I´ve been here and for some others, they´ve been together for years. My hope is that everyone will have great opportunities in front of them and that we won´t lose touch completely. Ate logo!

Birthdays are fun! Time to recharge.....

2006-10-21T21:48:00.000-07:00

I don´t think I´ve partied this much since college. I'm finally staying home to recover from all the antics. In fact, Armen is out tonight, again, because some of the guys from the Barbatuques are performing in a band but I just had to bow out. Gotta have boundaries! So I now have an opportunity to put down some thoughts. There hasn't been much time to blog with moving hotels, going out and staying out late, preparing for the tech show and music class, etc. Oh yeah, I signed up to give a few music classes to the students here.
My birthday dinner was a great time. We went to the Grill Hall, a Churrascaria, which is a Brazilian steakhouse where the waiters continuously go around with all kinds of barbequed meats on skewers, in rodizio style, until you tell them to stop. Well, you get a token or a sort of hourglass shaped wooden piece that has red on one side and green on the other, meaning stop and go obviously. Of course, the red doesn't seem to stop the waiters from offering you more. The first one I ever went to was in West Covina, CA, called Greenfields and this was very similar except the salad bar here in Brazil had traditional Brazilian items.

Our hotel has an arrangement with the restaurant to pick up guests at the hotel with a van, which they did so 10 of us piled in and went for a culinary excursion. It was delicious!

We then asked the driver if he would drive us to our favorite place in Sao Paulo for music and fun, Barnaldo Lucretia, instead of the hotel. He agreed and we partied for another few hours. It was especially cool because we danced, some learned to played the pandeiro, and some of my friends got up on stage and serenaded me. It was an amazing way to spend a birthday far from home. Here's a picture at Barnaldo's with some of my friends taking a break from learning how to Samba. That should come in handy when we head on to Rio on Monday!

"Let's go the band!"

2006-10-04T21:05:00.000-07:00

That's what the stage manager calls out when it's time for the band to take their place at the top of the show. I guess it's the equivalent of "Places, please!" This past Sunday, after a full week of shows (10 for the week and 2 that day), the Cirque band performed for us at a club called Bleecker Street and rocked the house! The party started at 1 am and went til around 4:30am. It was a lot of fun! I took some pics and video, as well as danced like a mad women. (You can tell that since some of the pics are blurry..haha!)

Fun at Barnaldo Lucrecia!

2006-09-22T23:22:00.000-07:00

If you're in Sao Paulo and want to go to a great place for Brazilian food, music and fun, you must go to Barnaldo Lucrecia. This is a great place! It's high energy. The bands there are amazing and the food is great. Everyone here sings with the bands and dances in the aisles, even the waiters. http://www.barnaldolucrecia.com.br/

It's so much fun!

A September 11th story

2006-09-14T21:38:00.000-07:00

I am so far away from the US but I'm often reminded that "there's no place like home." First if all there is a lot of poverty in Brazil and it's right in your face. We can see one favela (slum) from our hotel window in the midst of a nice part of town. (The picture is a favela from Rio so you get the idea). Also, being one of only a handful of Americans here on the tour, it can be difficult to hear the regular jabs against Americans that I hear from non-Americans and some Americans who choose not to see the positive in our country. Americans are often characterized as materialistic, loud, obnoxious and narcissistic towards the rest of the world. It's strange to me how often I've seen the non-Americans on this tour lose their cool over something.

But no matter what anyone says, I really believe that there is so much good we do in the world that often goes unrecognized. And when I received this email, I was reminded of that and felt a little closer to home. The following is an email from my friend Jeff. I met him my freshman year at the University of Hartford, when I was attending the Hartt School of Music. He is a great musician and a really cool guy and you can read in this email he sent about his way of observing September 11th. Check out his site...http://jeffersonthomas.com/

"There is simply no better way to observe this anniversary than what I did this weekend...first of all, I got on several PLANES and ended up in Charlotte, Columbia, and Charleston, running into our military folk and tipping my hat to them all along the way. Then, on one of the dates, I got to play for them at the naval base in Charleston on Friday night. I got to play songs like "Grand Central Station" and other little bits of New York, and refused to accept their money for CDs ("dude, save it to buy your own kevlar"), and it is my humbling privilege to now be corresponding with several "sub-dudes". I spent much of Saturday hanging out with little Brody, the 18-month-old son of a dude who happened to call home while I was there and apologized to his wife for being grumpy on the phone earlier. "Sorry, darlin', they lobbed a few mortars at us while I called last time." A picture of him sitting on his helmet in Baghdad is the screen saver on their computer, and he sat there smiling at me all night as I tried to catch a wink on their couch. I kept waking up and looking at him and feeling extremely awkward. Slept very little. I'm back in New York now, feeling incredibly insignificant, and wondering why this still isn't a national holiday." - Jefferson Thomas

Getting to know...me

2006-09-08T18:34:00.000-07:00

Up to now I've been writing about what makes being here with Cirque really fun and interesting, and it is. But there is also another side for family members that can be not so fun, even taxing and discouraging. I don't mean to bring anyone down but sometimes I am really bored and it can be depressing in a city like Sao Paulo since there so much fear around going anywhere alone. Anyway, I try to get involved in as much as possible but then again, this is a workplace and when the cast and crew is at work, there isn't a lot to do socially. I see some of the family members but the Russian wives hang out together and the other family members usually have things to do with their children. Now, this can be sad and boring but I fill my time with online courses and learning music. The thing is when you are alone, you only have yourself to talk to and that is not easy. We often fill our lives up with so much that we don't even know who we are without all that stuff. That's some of what I am experiencing. It's not that I don't know myself. It's more that I haven't visited myself in a long time and there are parts of me that I am getting reacquainted with. Ever have that experience?

Barbatuques Pizza Party and Workshop

2006-08-30T19:08:00.000-07:00

One of the most interesting things I've done so far in Brazil is hang out with the Barbatuques. This is a famous Brazilian body percussion group. Our Artistic director, Matthew Jessner, set up an exchange with the group which included some "getting to know each other time." On Monday night, we had a pizza party with them at their director Fernando Barbaros' house in an area of Sao Paulo called Vila Madalena. I tried to talk to the people there and worked on my Portuguese a bit while they practiced their English. We had pizza made in a dome shaped brick oven in the back yard. Later we hung out in the house and participated in a jam session. Everyone clapped and sang or grabbed an instrument and played along.

The next day we all gathered to learn body percussion. It was really amazing. Here's a video of the group.

Double Dark at Praia Camburi

2006-08-30T18:14:00.000-07:00

Every few weeks, the cast and crew of Saltimbanco gets to enjoy double dark days when they can go and explore the place they are touring in or just relax by the pool. We decided to get out of Sao Paulo for some clean air and fun in the sand. Monday morning, we rented two cars and eight of us went on this journey. We weren't exactly sure which beach we would be staying at but we had Betty with us (one half of the Boleadoras act). She speaks 5 languages including Portuguese so we were in good hands and were not too concerned about getting lost. After having lunch at one of the only restaurants we could find in this remote area, we came upon an area called Camburi. It's a tiny beach town north of Sao Paulo on the coast. We stayed in a pousada which is basically a bed and breakfast. It was like finding a needle in a haystack.

When you get off the main highway, you basically turn down one of many dirt roads and it can be really confusing to find a place to stay or eat. But we were in luck because some of the regulars who were staying there told us they come there every year and it's the best place in the area. The people who run the place are so nice and the food was good.
Since it's off season, there weren't many places to eat or even open. Weekends are much busier here. We did find a pizza place down the street. Brazilian pizza is a little different for me. Being from the East Coast, I'm a bit of a pizza freak but it satisfied my hunger. I can't help it, I just love New York pizza. At night, we hung out downstairs in the common living area and played cards and watched movies. In the morning there was a really delicious breakfast waiting for us. Then it was off to the beach. The waves were enormous. Apparently, this is a big surfing area but the waves may have even been a bit too much for them. So, we soaked up the sun for a little while and then went back to the pousada. We really enjoyed it!

A typical birthday bash

2006-08-15T18:40:00.000-07:00

We had a great time Sunday night celebrating some Cirque cast and crew birthdays. Here are some pictures to prove it!

not your typical Father's Day

2006-08-13T16:25:00.000-07:00

In case you don't recall, Mother's Day (in May) was very exciting here in Sao Paulo. There were bombings and shootings; just the usual family fun. So the authorities decided it would be a good idea if they let the petty criminals out of jail for Father's Day (today) and warned us to be careful out there. Oh, and by the way, they are supposed to turn themselves back in.

We were instructed by the consulate to stay around the hotel or at the site for Sunday and Monday and not to take any buses or go to ATM's in case there is violence. For me, I stayed at the hotel for the most part. Sunday seems to have been a relatively quiet day. Of course, there's always tomorrow and it's our day off so we'll have to figure out something.

Some people were really worried but we have some new Brazilian-Armenian friends who said we shouldn't worry too much. People don't like the police apparently; especially the criminals. These friends testified to having run-ins with the police. One guy was beat up by the police for no good reason. He says he is much more afraid of the police than the criminals. He says that you at least know the criminals want your money but with the police here, you never know.

So, I was expecting an adventure right?

I'm here!

2006-08-08T12:53:00.000-07:00

So I finally arrived in Sao Paulo yesterday morning and have started my adventure with Cirque du Soleil and the Saltimbanco cast and crew! The flight was long and tiring but I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw the first signs of civilization. What started as beautiful rolling hills and a landscape of houses in suburbia quickly became a concrete jungle from the aerial view. It's not exactly a paradise but being back with my husband makes it worth it. I do have to say it was one the smoothest landings I've ever experienced. Thanks John Kennedy! (pilot for AA flight 995)

Shortly after I landed I realized that my bags didn't make it with me. Actually, I had a strange feeling about that the night before my flight. My husband said that the flights were overbooked by 20% and some Cirque families were having difficulties getting bumped from flights. I read some tips for travelers which said if you check-in very early you will be assured a seat on the plane but the downside is that you may have a problem with your luggage being misrouted. That seems to be what happened. I was a little concerned at first because the airport is so far from the hotel where Cirque is staying. But the baggage people assured me that my bags would be delivered to my hotel. They were delivered today.

more later.....

Joining the Cirque

2006-07-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

This the official 1st blog entry - yeah! It's T minus 7 days until I take off for Sao Paolo, Brazil and join the Cirque du Soleil family. I'm actually along for the ride since my husband, Armen Chakmakian, is in the Saltimbanco band. I've already been on the road with them once (in June for 10 days in Buenos Aires) which was amazing and I'm back in LA now. The next leg of the tour is about 4 months! Do you think I'll survive? If you know me, you know that I need to have a purpose and for the next 4 months that might just be writing this blog. Of course, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity. So, I've taken an extended leave from my job and put everyday life on hold to go and live abroad until the end of the year with one of the best Cirque shows and an amazing group of talented people. Armen has already gone ahead to get settled and hopefully not get into too much trouble. The premiere party is supposed to be a blast especially if the Russians want to party with you. You can check out Armen's blog to hear the gory details.
Stay tuned for an interesting view of Cirque life from the inside out as I tag along and record my experiences, including all the hijinks!