A Star is Born...

What an exciting day it’s been…WOW!  I have no choice but to be a proud mom and brag about my childJ  I am in awe and feeling sort of guilty.  I NEVER expected what I saw last night.  The talent that my son displayed was amazing; he captivated the audience and stole the show…literally, the Producer and many others told us so all night.

Joe had his first show last night with his performing arts Youth Company.  He was Lord Farquaad, from Shrek. To see him on stage acting, singing, dancing, in and of itself was a treat.  But to see how great he did and how everyone reacted to him made me cry.  His producer told me he had raw talent, I wasn’t sure exactly what that meant, now I do.  He is a natural; he was totally in his element last night.  I wish all of you could have seen him.  He was as funny and charming as ever.

During the play, intermission, and after when people realized I was his mom, they were raving about him.  One dad affectionately named me “Mother Farquaad” and then told me to be careful how I say that J  In Joe’s Youth Company there is a Junior and Senior group.  Joe is in the junior group.  The only time they interact with the senior group is around show time.  Well the senior group has taken notice to Joe.  We were on our way out of the theatre to pick Joe up in the back.  Nick was walking with us; one of the young ladies ran up alongside Nick and posed next to him while another young man from the senior group snapped a picture.  She jumped up and clapped her hands and said, “I took a picture with Lord Farquaad!”  We all laughed and said, “No you didn’t, this is his brother”.  We all laughed, she was so disappointed.  Another young couple saw Nick and said, “Wow, you were great, you stole the show.” So Nick just laughed and said, “That wasn’t me”.  It was hilarious!  We went to the cast party afterwards at Charley’s; Justin was sitting eating and parents came up to him and said, really loud, “King!  It’s the King!”  TJ and I laughed and said, “No, it’s not, that’s his brother.”  We all laughed together.  I guess my boys really do look alike.

So, when we finally caught up with Joe, I just wanted to hug him.  I was so proud of him.  He handed me his makeup and said, “Can I ride with Jasper to the cast party?”  Of course I couldn’t say no, so we met him at the restaurant.  When we arrived he was seated with all his friends, we wanted him to enjoy his moment so we waived to him and sat at a table on the other side of the restaurant.  It wasn’t too long before he came over to us.  He was exhausted.  It was already after midnight.  When he came to us, TJ said to the couple who came over earlier, and said, “this is the King” the lady ran over and gave him a hug and just bragged about how great he did.  Her husband looked over and she yelled, “He’s the King!”  Before we knew it kinds from the senior group were coming over to take pictures with him.  Even the young lady who took a picture earlier with Nick got her picture with Joe.  Last night truly was the start of an amazing dream come true for him.

He was overwhelmed, he was tired and excited, but he was humble.  Maybe not so humble with us, but the strangers that came up to him he just smiled and was even a little embarrassed.  I hope he holds onto that forever J

The production as a whole was incredible.  Every child was amazing, funny, and looked like they had a blast.  Aside from Joe we had our favorite…we adored 1/3 of the 3 Blind mice J  They were all so cute but Keelyn was the cutest for sure!  Keelyn’s mom, Jennifer, is the cause of all this.  She let me know about the Charleston Youth Company and said she thought Joe would be great for it.  I told Jennifer last night that if he makes it big, she will be the first person he thanks when he accepts his Tony Award.  Looking forward to the second and final show tonight!

As for me, it’s been a rollercoaster ride of wonderful emotions.  Once again with all those emotions I stayed on track.  I celebrated this wonderful time with friends and family, not food.  By the time we ate I was starving but nothing, not my hunger or emotions, caused me to stray from my eating plan.  I am feeling very proud his morning; proud of Joe and all my boys and even proud of myself, for holding true to me.

Here’s what was on the menu yesterday for a mom of a future Broadway Star:

700                         Turkey bacon, eggs, prune juice (Have you noticed a pattern here?)

100                         Protein Shake

500                         2 hardboiled eggs

1239AM                 steak, salmon, broccoli

Water intake         approx. 64 oz.