Such Fun at the Suffolk

 Rockapella in NY

Sunday, December 11, 2022

Suffolk Theater

Riverhead, NY

In the afternoon, we called for a Lyft to Riverhead, because the LIRR wasn't scheduled to get us close to the venue.  It showered most of the way there, and it was cold, so it was nice to be in a warm car the whole way.  

Bro and I saw that there was a Cuban restaurant about a block away from the theater that had good Yelp reviews, so we ate there at Lucha Cubano.  I ordered a Media Noche and plantains, and Bro ordered the Lechon.  I texted Stacey to tell her where we were eating dinner, and she and Elisa joined us, so we moved to a bigger table.  I hadn't seen Elisa since the cruise!  I'm glad that they enjoyed my plantains so much that they got another order.  They had a bar, so I had a Mango Mojito.   Bro had a regular mojito.  Later, Bro also had some kind of  Adult Gingerbread or Peppermint Latte and enjoyed that, too.  The food was great, and I was sorry to discover today that they closed down permanently just a couple of weeks after we were there.

Media Noche and Plantains

Bro and his Christmas-y Concoction

Scotcherbreadman and Nutcracker Drummer

As we were leaving, I heard my name being called, and turned around.  MJ and Ross!!!!!  I was really excited to see them, because I had hoped they'd be there that night.  I called out to Bro to come back inside, and there were hugs all around.

It had begun to snow while we were eating dinner.  A White Christmas for a Rockapella Christmas show!  I took video of myself walking in the snowfall, but it didn't come out right, which was a bummer, because it was just so pretty to be standing there.  

The Suffolk Theater is a gorgeous establishment, with the restrooms up a flight of stairs, nice and big and roomy.  Bro told me that there was a guy at the top of the stairs to tell you where the restrooms are located, because they're not right next to each other.  I talked to him for a little while about the theater. 

View from upstairs

We had seats in the front row.  I know you're not surprised.  MJ's seat was right behind us.  Ross was recording the performance for the guys.  Elisa and Stacey were seated at the tables.  

So happy to see MJ!!

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

Got a smile from CSL4.  HI!!!

CSL4 is Billy Joel Tribute Act.

Hope We Hold

CSL4 said the Suffolk Theater is so beautiful.  Agreed!  Before the show, the host said that they have a lot of shows and events there, including a big bash on New Year's Eve.  That would be a great place for a NYE party!

Dreidel

Cal and Manny were a lot of fun to watch during the breakdown.  "Get happy!"

Silver Bells

JT was encouraging Geo to join the tenors, but Geo just couldn't keep up. 

There was a guy loudly yelling out sutff during the show, and at first they thought it was someone heckling them, or maybe he was drunk.  It took a little while, but we all realized that he had mental issues, and CSL4 would sometimes ask what the guy said so that he could understand and respond.  

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

Glow Worm

Fun to watch Cal watch JT rubbing his cheek after JT slaps his own mouth so much.

CSL4 said that JT was "slapping himself silly for the season slappily".

JT: "I felt like I was hallucinating there, but I enjoyed it."

It took about 3 times for CSL4 to get the right key for the next one.  "Third time's a charm."

Winter Wonderland

Manny walked like a zombie, or maybe he was Frankenstein.  He did not walk like Elvis.

CSL4: "It's winter out there, with icy roads, don't you love it?"

Manny has a classical piano degree.  CSL4 saw him on stage and asked him to "please come sing with us" when he met him at the stage door.  I love that CSL4 is a fan and waits by the stage door after shows!  So NYC.  

Simply Havng a Wonderful Christmastime

Manny gestured the way I would if I was singing his part during the Nutcracker portion.  Rockin' out with Tchaikovsky!   I like the little embellishment on "This time of year."

Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer

CSL4 so cute with all the emotions.  Manny added antlers with his hands.

CSL4 liked the spinny chairs / stools.

At this point, CSL4 was still not understanding what was going on with the audience guy, and I could kind of hear him muttering under his breath about it as he pulled out his pitch pipe.

Merry Christmas, Darling

So buttery and yummy, that Cal.

CSL4 said that Geo was in Rockapella "from 2002 to 2016, but then he left us.  We're so lucky to have George back in the house."

(I do not know why my notes say something about JT and "no more diapers, just"...something, but I feel the need to share that with y'all anyway.)  He also said, "Comes around, goes around.  Am I right?"  Wow, I wish I remembered what all of this was about.

Wait.  OK, I'm reading this again, and it has something to do with JT starting with Rockapella in diapers, and he'll be in diapers again.  Don't you love how I just type out my thought process with no regard to the actual narrative?

Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer

Manny made the sign of the cross.

Don't Be Late

Manny was busy playing with the Christmas tree and something came off of it when CSL4 called because he was startled.

INTERMISSION

I went upstairs and talked to my friend, and he was enjoying the show.  So were the ladies in the restroom.

Jingle Bell Rock

CSL4 is such a goofball.

Please Come Home for Christmas

Cal was making goofy faces during CSL4's attempts to get more cash.  

Kwanzaa

Ah, Cal, that melisma!!

CSL4 pointed at me and asked what I wanted for Christmas.

Sher: "You guys!"

CSL4: "For us to sing a song, or for us to show up at your house Christmas morning?"

Sher:  "YES!!!"

CSL4: "You'll need to make a formal request."  

Sher in her mind: (OK, so he didn't say no....)

Phyllis wants a past dryer.  CSL4 asked her if she was Italian.  She said, "Ya think?!"

CSL4: "Why are there so many different names and shapes for pasta?"

Phyllis said they all had a "different mouth feel".

Bro said that if they had picked him, his time on the stage would have been shorter.  Yeah, the conversation with Phyllis did take a while.  :)

(I am now imagining CSL4's impression of Phyllis Diller, and I can't stop giggling.)

Santa Claus is Comin' to Town

Yay!  Phyllis was such a good sport!  

CSL4: "I know that pasta dryer is on its way.  You sang fine.  It was a bad key for you and you still stuck with it and sang harmony!" 

Manny was freestyling, it was fun.  

Geo:  "Some of stuff that we performed, I must have been out of my mind."  He still has the range, as he noticed when the "hot water hit me" in the shower, and he told us to watch his butt when he sings high.  I mean, he TOLD us!

He said, "Just being up here has been a blessing.  Being a part of the connection with music is amazing.  You should feel privileged to be a part of this history, because these guys have been doing this over 30 years."

Not the usual segue, but I had tears in my eyes.  He was just so sincere about his enjoyment of this time with the guys.

Grinch

Cal bowed to Geo afterward, in a "We're not worthy" way.

CSL4: " So that's what hot water does to you?  I wasn't sure where you were going with that."  He continued after thanking George, "That's a perfect sentiment for the next song."

Auld Lang Syne

I'm all emotional again.

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

I liked JT's picture with the drum, wearing an Underdog shirt.

Angels We Have Heard On High

Encore

All I Want for Christmas is You

DO IT ROCKAPELLA!

Carmen

They had a breakdown portion.  Geo did his bass thing.  Cal was doing a scratching vinyl thing.  Manny chanted "PBS".  CSL4 was dancing.  It was awesome.

Hold Out for Christmas

CSL4 really enunciated the "p"s on "jeep" and "cheap".  

Meet and Greet

The guys just kinda hung out afterward again.  Elisa had made Hamantaschen cookies, which the guys love, so they were happy to see her and her bags of cookies.  I gave them all cards with our photo from Friday's meet and greet.  

CSL4 approached us as we were waiting for Geo to stop talking to a guy, whom, we found out later, is his future brother-in-law.  CSL4 asked what we did yesterday (they had a show in New Hampshire), and we said that we stayed in Farmingdale because Stacey and the Today Show told us to stay away from Manhattan because of Santa Con.  He said that they did a funny bit on SNL about it last night.  The hosts were Steve Martin and Martin Short.  He's loved Martin Short since forever.  He hasn't seen their live show and I recommended it.  He loves "Only Murders in the Building".  I still need to see that episode of SNL.  

We told Manny that we would try to see him in Vegas, and he said to send him a message if we do.  (The schedule didn't work out for us, though, so I'm sorry, Manny!)  A couple of days later, Manny included me on his Insta reel as he showed the card I gave him and talked about how awesome Rockapella fans are.  I was, like, THAT'S ME!!!  Love you, Manny.  Hope to see you again with Rockapella.

I only got a moment with Cal and JT just to wish them a Merry Christmas and give them their cards.  It's just so good to be able to talk to them and get hugs again after all of this COVID blech.  

When we talked to Geo, he told us about the guy he was talking to, and said that he would be proposing to his girlfriend at Christmas time.  So when he posted it later on FB, I thought, "Hey, I knew that was going to happen!"  Geo said that now that he's a manager, he can get away more often to do gigs because he trusts his team.  He did need to fly out late that night, though, because he needed to get back to work, so Armand would be performing the next day in Boston.  I'm hoping that this all means that maybe we'll get to see Geo again at other shows, as long as they're weekends.  

After saying bye multiple times, we finally left the theater.  Elisa drove us back to the hotel because Stacey went with someone else, and Elisa doesn't like to drive by herself in the dark.  It was very kind of her, and saved us Lyft money, and we also got cookies of our own to taste.  :)  Also, Elisa is hilarious, so I like to hear her stories of first meeting Rockapella and how she gets to spend time with Sean and El sometimes.  So cool.

The next day, Bro and I took the train back to LaGuardia.  

Snow at Farmingdale Station

I was too early to check my luggage (cannot load more than 4 hours ahead), so I did some repacking of liquids and decided to just carryon my luggage.  Bro was just hanging out and watching planes, so I joined him in the fancy place until it was time to board.

Dodgers and Giants of old

View of Manhattan skyline

  But then, THEN!  There was a huge mess at my boarding gate because flights were delayed, and they didn't have the organized lines due to the fact that Southwest shared those particular gates with JetBlue (you'd think they'd just have them available nearby since this is a regular thing, but whatever).  They also had a couple of flights going out of the same gate at relatively the same time.  I don't know how all of that works!  They finally moved the other flight to another gate, so they didn't know how that works either.  Also, there were at least a dozen wheelchairs waiting for the people to get off of the plane we would be boarding, so that took forever.  We were told that the flight crew was late because they were stuck in traffic.  Don't they always tell us to plan to be at the airport early?  Do they not take their own advice?!   When we got onto the plane, the flight was delayed even further because people could not just allow the attendants to check their carryon bags once the bins were full.  I, like, wanted to scream.  I mean, hello, I checked my bag at the gate.  Why couldn't they?  

The timing wasn't too bad, so Bro was still around at LAX when my flight landed.  I stayed at his house and my dad picked me up the next day.

Despite the airport trouble, I had a great time, and I was really happy to see the guys sing their Christmas show, and most of all, I was happy to see George perform again!  What a treat that was.

To end this blog post, I leave you with this video of a very cool fountain at the food court in LaGuardia.  Turn the sound on, and enjoy.

Free Day in Farmingdale

 Rockapella in NY

Saturday, December 10, 2022

Relaxation Day

On Saturday morning, Bro and I woke up in time for hotel breakfast, and I had some French toast.

Bro's sandwich can be seen at top

We were content with staying in the hotel for the day and just chilling.  I wanted to walk to Wal Mart, because I had ordered some photo prints from the previous night to use as Christmas cards for the guys.  Bro walked with me, and this time we didn't get lost trying to get out of the huge parking lot like we had done so the day before.  (I forgot to write that we went to Wal Mart to stock up on snacks after the breakfast at Starbucks, and thought that there should be an opening in the wall between that parking lot and our hotel, which was just across the way.)  

I was hoping that Bro would be able to watch planes land at the nearby airport from our hotel window, but there wasn't much activity over there.  Oh, well, he had some Emoji Blitz to play.

For dinner, we ate at Houlihan's, which was in that same parking lot next door.  We didn't really want to walk very far because it was really cold outside.  I do not remember what Bro ordered for his cocktail (maybe it was a seasonal drink?), but I ordered a Mango Rita.

Cheers!

Dinner itself was OK.  I ordered dessert, and it was yummy, though.  

Here is the description:

SALTED CARAMEL GOOEY BUTTER CAKE: St. Louis’ signature dessert, Houlihan’s style-finished with Ghirardelli salted caramel sauce, powdered sugar and vanilla ice cream.  

Yes, it was gooooooood!

We walked back to the hotel, and were in time to watch the TV show that CSL4 had to miss because he was performing:

Scotcherbreadman's Favorite

We had thought of maybe going in to Manahattan to either hang out or see a show, but the news warned us about Santa Con taking place that day, and our New Yorker friends advised us to stay away from the drunken madness. I'm glad we took their advice, because it really was a nice, restful day.

Next up:  Rockapella on Long Island

O Come, O Come, Manny!

 Rockapella in NY

Friday, December 9, 2022

South Orange Performing Arts Center

South Orange, New Jersey

Sorry for this huge delay between Rockapella blogs and regular blogs!  I've been kind of an organizational mess, so just taking out my laptop to type looked like a chore to me and I've been lazy.  But I'm on vacation now, and Drum Corps is happening soon, so I've got a bunch of catching up to do!  Let's see if I can remember anything that happened seven months ago outside of my notes, or even inside my notes, because you know, my writing in the dark is not always legible.  :)

First off, yes, I know that New Jersey and New York are different states, so my headline is kind of confusing.  It's just kind of how I labeled this particular trip, and it will help me later when I search for it.  OK, all of the apologies are out of the way.  Let's get to blogging, Sher!!!

We walked across the street to get breakfast at Starbucks.   We would have gotten breakfast in the hotel, but we arrived just as they had shut off the lights in the breakfast area.   I got us seats by the window so that we could get some warmth from the sun.  I may have gotten us too much sun, because then it got really warm, especially when the hot drink kicked in.  They used little snowman stickers to close our bags, and I put mine on my sweatshirt.  

Snowman seems anxious

We didn't want to risk being late due to all of the transit issues that could happen, so I called for our Lyft after just a couple of hours, and we went to Farmingdale Station.  It was a lot less crowded than when we had arrived the night before.  It was also a lot easier to ride the train because I didn't have luggage.  Our train gradually got full as we picked up folks on the way, including what looked like a team of college athletes.  

Scotcherbreadman also liked riding the train

We arrived at NY Penn Station, and we were a little bit confused at first, trying to look for where we should board the train.  There was also a little waiting area that seemed separate from all of the hubbub, and I wasn't sure if we were supposed to be there.  We eventually figured out that we should wait downstairs from that area.  I'm sure glad we had each other so we could use both brains!  I did like that the station was decorated for Christmas.

I made a seat for Scotcherbreadman

When we arrived at South Orange station, we saw that it was a short walk to the theater.  I mean, REALLY short.  Like, the building was next to, if not sharing walls with, the train station.  There was also a movie theater as part of the venue, so the door was open, and we went inside and talked to the lady in the box office.  I can't remember why we talked to her, but we did hear the guys doing their sound check.  So we were in the right place!  We saw that there was a Japanese restaurant across the alley, and decided to eat dinner there.

Bento Box at Ariyoshi

After dinner, we still had lots of time (told you we left early), so we walked around town a little bit.  It was cold, but the fresh air was nice to walk in.  There was a little park next to the train station where the different things to play with were musical instruments.

    

Oh, and animals, too.

Nunchuk drum mallets?

View of train station from
 a couple of blocks away

Beautiful Farmingdale Fire Station

We returned to the SOPAC and we were still early, so we hung out in the lobby.  They were setting up the SOPAC souvenir table, so we talked to the gal, and she told us that the band was allowing for video to be taken.  But you know, I'm too busy writing to focus on all of that.  Bro bought SOPAC socks because he liked the colors.  

Socks Purchase

Can you see Rockapella in this pic?

As we were waiting, Stacey walked in and we gave big hugs.  I told her that I decided to surprise everyone, so I wasn't posting anything on social media yet.  As we were talking, Scott walked into the lobby, and I waved at him and loudly said, "SURPRISE!!!"  He said, "Sherry?!  What are you doing here?!"  I told him that we were there for the NY and NJ shows.  I was really happy that my surprise worked.  Bro said that the other guys would soon find out that we were there because of course he told them.  I thought they might have other stuff to talk about, but later they didn't seem surprised to see me when they took the stage, so maybe Bro was right. Once Scott left, Stacey went to the movie concessions stand to get some veggie empanadas.  Yes, at the movie theater.  They do not have such food at the movie theaters I go to, but they are also not collocated with a theater, so what the heck do I know?

Our seats were at front row center because hello, we did come all the way across the country to see them!  The floor was wobbly due to the fact that there would normally be an orchestra pit in that area

Look at the happy faces!

Standing next to the set list

The New Jersey Youth Chorus sang a few songs to open the show.

Rockapella

I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day

I got waves from JT and Geo!  GEO!!!!  I mean, I knew he would be there, but I've missed that voice so, so much!

CSL4 was wearing his Valentine heart.  He is Yukon Cornelius.  He was also having issues with the spinning microphone on the mic stand.

Hope We Hold

CSL4 said that when they were in Michigan, 2 people had seen them before.  When he asked that crowd who celebrates Hanukkah, there were crickets.  Now that they're in Jersey, there was much more noise for both.

Dreidel

SPIN THE DREIDEL!  Do you know how much I've missed seeing Geo do that??  A LOT.  

I wrote down Manny's last name 3 times before I heard it correctly and spelled it right.  Welcome, Manny Houston!

Silver Bells

It was at this point that I finally noticed that Scott had cut his hair.  Either I had just noticed, or I just wrote it down at that point of the show.

Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree

I love the interaction between CSL4 and Geo.  The whistle!!!  It's been a long time since I've heard that live.  

Glow Worm

How they sounded in the 1930s.  JT's drummed on his own face, then caressed his own cheek, only pausing to slap himself on the butt.  He said that he "will need little velvet gloves to last the tour."

Winter Wonderland

I love that, and I've missed Elvis.

Manny joined for the Christmas tour, and he also performs in "Freestyle Love Supreme" starring Lin-Manuel Miranda.

Simply Having a Wonderful Christmastime

That Nutcracker portion is soooo good!

CSL4:  "Y'all like Rudolph?"  Cheers from the audience. "Giuliani?" No cheers.  He talked about the reindeer and not wanting to watch on DVD/streaming because "I want to watch it when the rest of the country is watching it, in front of the TV, in my onesies."  He was irritated when he saw on the screen, "Upgrade to see program."  "I've known Rudolph since he was born." I can't remember who said to him, "I had to stream," and CSL4 retorted, "You're part of the problem!"  

Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer

Wait.  Have they always said "Nixon" instead of "Vixen"?  Is that why JT does the "V" sign?  I thought it was because it starts with a V.  

"YAHTZEEEEE!!!!

It is like "American Idol" at Christmastime in CJ's house with his big family, and his uncle sitting in the corner with his arms crossed like he's Simon Cowell.

Merry Christmas, Darling

Ahhhh, Cal on that ad lib!  Like buttah.

Wait.  CSL4 discovered Calvin?!?  I don't think so.  I'm pretty sure that someone with the initials of FFE brought him to the group's attention.

CSL4: "Welcome back the legend, George Baldi III!" "It was from 2012 until when you...got incarcerated?  No, that's not nice.  Now you're back in the fold."

Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer

"T Bone"

Geo chewing on the "R"s makes it funnier.  My cheeks hurt from smiling and laughing.

Don't Be Late

"CALVINNNNNNNN!"  

"Me, I want a Kardashian"...and "Rockapella DVDs."

Manny, not that kind of "pitching" wedge.  It's supposed to be about golf, although, like you, I prefer baseball.

Jingle Bell Rock

Please Come Home for Christmas

Geo called me over to the stage!!!!!  HI!  Aw, he remembers that this is our song!  M..e..l..t!

Kwanzaa

I love their dancing.

CSL4 asked Stacey what she wanted for Hanukkah.

Ciran wants a stuffed animal snake.  She's wearing a unicorn.  I love her.

"We're going to try to convince Santa Claus to bring your Hanukkah presents."

Santa Claus is Comin' To Town

Ciran sang!  

CSL4: "Santa's gonna come for 8 days in a row."

Geo: "I was incarcerated by a comopany that's called Banker's Life.  We might have been calling you.  Answer your phone, New Jersey!"  He talked about getting back into the tour: "So many songs and you get to hear different renditions of what is in other people's hearts.  What an honor to remember all of the Rockapella songs that I haven't sung for 6 years."  Then he brought his Whitney.  "It's not a tenor 'cause you just squeeze your butt cheeks together to get there."  

At work, he manages different characters.  Like....

The Grinch

That was worth the entire trip!

CSL4: "We're glad you're back."

Geo:  "I can't believe how much I remembered.  It was the hardest thing for me to walk away from, but I knew they would save a place for me."

Sherry (in her head):  SAVE?????

CSL4: "That's the perfect segue."

Auld Lang Syne

I'M CRYING.

Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

Nice, Manny!!

Angels We Have Heard On High

Encore

All I Want for Christmas Is You

Thank you, Sound Guy, Nate!

CSL4 was talking about "Do It Rockapella" and some guy yelled it out.  "You gave us the go ahead!"

Carmen

Hold Out for Christmas  (off mic)

"Merry Christmas, everybody."

The going away music was I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas!!!

Meet and Greet

The guys were scattered about, so we walked up to wherever they were and I asked to take a photo with each one. Thank you, Bro, for taking most of the photos of us!

I said hi to Jesse and Natalie, and introduced them to Bro.  I asked CSL if I could meet Lisa and he introduced us.  She took lots of pics of us together.  I actually wanted a pic of all 3 of us, but I was good with just CSL4, too.

I apologized to JT for not waiting for him after the show in Thousand Oaks.  Stacey thanked him for his help with the WITWICS parody song during the signing show.

I got big hugs from Cal.  I've missed his hugs and I apologized for not baking but it's a long way, and you know, luggage.  I'm glad he could come out and give hugs.

Manny talked about Freestyle Love Supreme and going back and forth between Pella shows and Vegas.  He will be there full time in January.  He told us to hit him up on Instagram when we go.  "Manny" is short for "Emmanuel".  "I guess that's Christmas-y.  

Sher: "Yes, it actually IS Christmas!  O Come, O Come, Manny!"  He laughed.

I thanked Geo for the stage love.  He seems happy to be on stage again.  His mom keeps the book I made for him at her house because he doesn't want to lose it from moving so much.  I told Bro about Geo's indoor pool.  Geo said it was a good bachelor pad and now his girlfriend is changing everything.  He said that he found God and has been following wherever He leads.  He is serious about this girlfriend.  I asked if there is a ring in his pocket.  He said "Not this pocket, but another one; it's going to happen pretty soon."  His daughter got married and he's going to be a grandpa!  She was kinda tired when at his house after her honeymoon and wouldn't take offers of wine.  She couldn't get a hold of him to tell him about the baby and ended up just leaving a balloon for him with an announcement that the baby is a girl.  Oh, I'm so happy for him!  

We needed to catch the train to get back, and Stacey got on with us.  The Leonards were on our train, too.  The nice thing about Penn Station being so busy is that it's not scary to be there late at night.  I saw a girl crying and I hope she was OK soon after that.  The rest of train ride and Lyft home were thankfully eventful.

Even with the time difference, I was still too tired from the traveling to blog.  I was just very, very happy to see a Rockapella Christmas show again!

Next up:  Free Day