Rockapella at Tracy
Friday, December 9, 2016
Grand Theatre Center for the Arts
Tracy, CA
Jenny had to cancel on this trip because of her foot injury, so I was solo for the flight from Burbank to San Jose. I actually had the whole row to myself because the flight wasn't full, so I let Scotcherbreadman relax for a bit.
My flight arrived before the rest of the posse's flights, so I sat in the baggage claim area to wait for them. Once everyone arrived, we walked to the rental car center. Weff had rented a Hyundai SUV so us kids sat in the back and commented about our hunger because it had been a while since we ate breakfast. I asked if we could go to Hobee's, and got my wish! Mmm....Joe's Scramble and Cinnamon Orange Tea and Blueberry Coffeecake! Happiness. Thanks for granting my wish, guys!
We decided to pick up our tickets from will call since we had plenty of time before hotel check-in. They had the poster of the current group in front of the theatre, but had the poster from the previous line-up (cruise era) in the entryway and the brochure. Weird, and I got sad because I miss people.
We took a quick look around before going to our hotel to rest in our rooms. The hotel was part of a large shopping center, and we were on the first floor. After I took a shower, I walked out into the room and realized that only the sheer curtains were covering the windows. I quickly tried to get to the blackout curtain and had a hard time trying to reach the rod without exposing myself to the world. I mean, if we were on an upper floor, I still would have freaked out, but people are less likely to be looking into the upper windows than in the one RIGHT NEXT to where cars are parked. Hilarity ensued, and I laughed to myself at my craziness after I was properly hidden.
Auntie Milda arrived and she, KP and I went back to the "main drag" as Auntie M called it, which is the street where the theatre is located. She said we could go get Thai food, but couldn't remember the name of the one she preferred because there are three of them in the area. We found Thai Jasmine and I texted Jen to let her know where to meet us. Jen had just parked, so it was good timing! Our food was quite tasty and we filled in Jen on the Rockapella obsession levels of those with whom she was dining.
As we walked to the theatre, Jen and I stopped to look at a cute-looking dessert place. She wondered why she felt a drop of water go down her back. I swore that I didn't spit on her. Later, more water started to fall from the sky. Oh, RAIN! Duh, us. We stepped it up to get to the theatre, because, of course, neither one of us had our umbrellas. The lobby was quite busy and I was happy to see so many people there for my guys. Our seats were in the front row. YAY! Jen was house left with KP, and I was house center with Auntie M and Weff.
SUN BROTHERS
I'm Gettin' Nuttin' for Christmas
"Can we get a tic tac?"
Scott took a very long pause after "President" and looked over at me as I shook my head. There were a couple of cheers in the audience. Toto, I don't think we're in LA anymore.
ROCKAPELLA
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
I like Mitch's tie as well as Jeff's vest and Scott's shiny tie.
Scott is Malibu Barbie.
Hope We Hold
Scott: Congratulations on having this [theatre] in your town.
Scott asked if anyone was celebrating Hanukkah. Bryant and Calvin tried to get people to raise their hands by raising their own, but nothing.
Scott: Still more than we got in Texas.
Dreidel
Mitch!!! So funny.
Silver Bells
Mitch had to take a big breath after the really long note of Scott's "Soon it will be Christmaaaaaaas Daaaaayyyyyy."
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree
I love when Scott whistles right in front of us!
Glow Worm
Hi, Mitch!
JT made himself dizzy while slapping himself.
Scott to JT: Thank you for your sacrifice.
Winter Wonderland
Nice reaction to Scott's rendition of Elvis' hip action.
Simply Having A Wonderful Christmastime
I think it's hot up there on stage. JT kept wiping his forehead.
Scott, talking about the different types of media, such as DVD, VHS: WE didn't have any of those acronyms to save it (TV shows) and wait for you.
Scott: Not a lot has changed in 40 years, but ...I love Rudolph.
Me, too!
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer
Calvin said that his favorite things about Christmas are family, giving, laughter, and hot chocolate with marshmallows.
Merry Christmas, Darling
Scott and Mitch did the intro, which I guess Mitch liked, because he smiled and quietly said, "Yeah." Wait. Did I know that JT sings during this song? Bryant almost fell off his stool, it was that good.
Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer
JT made bunny ears on Bryant during "Easter bunny" and subsequently almost fell off his chair.
Don't Be Late
JT started his solo, and Auntie M said loudly, "Ohhhh...." and got embarrassed. I giggled.
Jingle Bell Rock
JT gave a BIG exhale after that one. I guess it wears him out. This is what happens when y'all don't have an intermission.
Please Come Home for Christmas
I figured that today, Wendy was in the money seat. But no. Hi, Bryant! He started to sing to me, and Wendy tried to get in on the action. I hugged her to try to get him to look at both of us, but he would have none of that. Hellooooo! Thank you for the stage love, Bryant! Whew, that got me all flummoxed.
Scott talked about a magician that opened for them when they were in Branson. "Anywayyy..."
He then asked if anyone was celebrating Kwanzaa. <barely any reaction>
Scott: Just like Hanukkah.
Matunda Ya Kwanzaa
JT is dancing, too!
Scott, at the end: "KWANZAA!"
Scott jumped down from the stage and, again, made me nervous because of the big drop. He chose Rosie, whom lives in Tracy. The stool was small.
Scott: This is the elf stool from Santa's workshop.
Rosie, when asked about her job: I'm retired, so I just do whatever I want. (She used to drive a bus).
Scott: Do you want to drive Rockapella's bus?
Santa Claus is Comin' To Town
Rosie didn't sing for Mitch, but at the end, she said, "To Tracy!" She was fun to watch, because she didn't cause me to cringe.
Grinch
While they were spinning around, Mitch and Scott almost ran into each other.
Scott: I didn't realize you harbored so much anger inside of you, Bryant.
Auld Lang Syne
I love the harmonies during Bryant's solo.
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
The picture of the baby sleeping is little Mitch.
Angels We Have Heard on High
Mitch got all into the "Gloria".
Encore
All I Want for Christmas is You
Snow! There's snow falling from the ceiling!
Carmen / Billie Jean
Scott ad libbed some lyrics about getting the beat from JT.
Hold Out for Christmas (off mic)
More snow! The machine was loud, though, and Scott's facial expression was priceless.
Afterward, I shook hands with Cal and Mitch, whom said he'd see us soon, and I said bye to Bryant.
Meet and Greet
Only JT was there. He said that "those other bitches took the red eye", so only he and Fred stayed the night.
They had a backdrop available for photo ops. JT put the boa on me and said it suits me. Perhaps he thinks I'm some kind of burlesque performer. Then I got excited about the reindeer headband, and he said, "That becomes you." Oh, thank you!
Wendy had made signs for Rockapella to hold so that we could send a picture to Jenn because she couldn't make it to the show. We decided to just ask JT to hold all of them. I told him what happened to Jenn and asked if he could hold all of the signs, and he happily said, "Sure!"
Also, JT likes Nick's shoes.
The Posse went to Red Robin near our hotel. I thought that our friend Robin was going to join us, but she never showed up. I ordered a Tropical Mai Tai and Fruffles. Look at that cool glass! I refrained from stealing it, though.
We returned to the hotel. Wendy mentioned something about there being a show at one of the hotel windows on the first floor. It took me a second to understand that she meant me and my unplanned exhibitionist show. The next morning, Auntie M picked me up for our flight back to Burbank. She travels a lot so she had TSA Pre check and was already in line for boarding by the time I finally made it through the very slow riff raff line. She was excited about going down the air stairs at Burbank because she felt like a movie star, as I do.
It's been a good year of seeing Rockapella, even though I haven't seen Steve at all in 2016. But we have a house concert to hold, and that's going to be a lot of fun.
Thank you, Rockapella, for allowing me to spend some fun time with you this year. Thank you, Posse, for all of the laughter and love.
I don't see any official plans in 2017 to see Rockapella in California yet, but I'm hopeful!
My flight arrived before the rest of the posse's flights, so I sat in the baggage claim area to wait for them. Once everyone arrived, we walked to the rental car center. Weff had rented a Hyundai SUV so us kids sat in the back and commented about our hunger because it had been a while since we ate breakfast. I asked if we could go to Hobee's, and got my wish! Mmm....Joe's Scramble and Cinnamon Orange Tea and Blueberry Coffeecake! Happiness. Thanks for granting my wish, guys!
We decided to pick up our tickets from will call since we had plenty of time before hotel check-in. They had the poster of the current group in front of the theatre, but had the poster from the previous line-up (cruise era) in the entryway and the brochure. Weird, and I got sad because I miss people.
We took a quick look around before going to our hotel to rest in our rooms. The hotel was part of a large shopping center, and we were on the first floor. After I took a shower, I walked out into the room and realized that only the sheer curtains were covering the windows. I quickly tried to get to the blackout curtain and had a hard time trying to reach the rod without exposing myself to the world. I mean, if we were on an upper floor, I still would have freaked out, but people are less likely to be looking into the upper windows than in the one RIGHT NEXT to where cars are parked. Hilarity ensued, and I laughed to myself at my craziness after I was properly hidden.
Auntie Milda arrived and she, KP and I went back to the "main drag" as Auntie M called it, which is the street where the theatre is located. She said we could go get Thai food, but couldn't remember the name of the one she preferred because there are three of them in the area. We found Thai Jasmine and I texted Jen to let her know where to meet us. Jen had just parked, so it was good timing! Our food was quite tasty and we filled in Jen on the Rockapella obsession levels of those with whom she was dining.
 |
| I learned how to use the timer on my camera to take this picture, and still chopped off Jen's sleeping face. |
As we walked to the theatre, Jen and I stopped to look at a cute-looking dessert place. She wondered why she felt a drop of water go down her back. I swore that I didn't spit on her. Later, more water started to fall from the sky. Oh, RAIN! Duh, us. We stepped it up to get to the theatre, because, of course, neither one of us had our umbrellas. The lobby was quite busy and I was happy to see so many people there for my guys. Our seats were in the front row. YAY! Jen was house left with KP, and I was house center with Auntie M and Weff.
SUN BROTHERS
I'm Gettin' Nuttin' for Christmas
"Can we get a tic tac?"
Scott took a very long pause after "President" and looked over at me as I shook my head. There were a couple of cheers in the audience. Toto, I don't think we're in LA anymore.
ROCKAPELLA
I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
I like Mitch's tie as well as Jeff's vest and Scott's shiny tie.
Scott is Malibu Barbie.
Hope We Hold
Scott: Congratulations on having this [theatre] in your town.
Scott asked if anyone was celebrating Hanukkah. Bryant and Calvin tried to get people to raise their hands by raising their own, but nothing.
Scott: Still more than we got in Texas.
Dreidel
Mitch!!! So funny.
Silver Bells
Mitch had to take a big breath after the really long note of Scott's "Soon it will be Christmaaaaaaas Daaaaayyyyyy."
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree
I love when Scott whistles right in front of us!
Glow Worm
Hi, Mitch!
JT made himself dizzy while slapping himself.
Scott to JT: Thank you for your sacrifice.
Winter Wonderland
Nice reaction to Scott's rendition of Elvis' hip action.
Simply Having A Wonderful Christmastime
I think it's hot up there on stage. JT kept wiping his forehead.
Scott, talking about the different types of media, such as DVD, VHS: WE didn't have any of those acronyms to save it (TV shows) and wait for you.
Scott: Not a lot has changed in 40 years, but ...I love Rudolph.
Me, too!
Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer
Calvin said that his favorite things about Christmas are family, giving, laughter, and hot chocolate with marshmallows.
Merry Christmas, Darling
Scott and Mitch did the intro, which I guess Mitch liked, because he smiled and quietly said, "Yeah." Wait. Did I know that JT sings during this song? Bryant almost fell off his stool, it was that good.
Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer
JT made bunny ears on Bryant during "Easter bunny" and subsequently almost fell off his chair.
Don't Be Late
JT started his solo, and Auntie M said loudly, "Ohhhh...." and got embarrassed. I giggled.
Jingle Bell Rock
JT gave a BIG exhale after that one. I guess it wears him out. This is what happens when y'all don't have an intermission.
Please Come Home for Christmas
I figured that today, Wendy was in the money seat. But no. Hi, Bryant! He started to sing to me, and Wendy tried to get in on the action. I hugged her to try to get him to look at both of us, but he would have none of that. Hellooooo! Thank you for the stage love, Bryant! Whew, that got me all flummoxed.
Scott talked about a magician that opened for them when they were in Branson. "Anywayyy..."
He then asked if anyone was celebrating Kwanzaa. <barely any reaction>
Scott: Just like Hanukkah.
Matunda Ya Kwanzaa
JT is dancing, too!
Scott, at the end: "KWANZAA!"
Scott jumped down from the stage and, again, made me nervous because of the big drop. He chose Rosie, whom lives in Tracy. The stool was small.
Scott: This is the elf stool from Santa's workshop.
Rosie, when asked about her job: I'm retired, so I just do whatever I want. (She used to drive a bus).
Scott: Do you want to drive Rockapella's bus?
Santa Claus is Comin' To Town
Rosie didn't sing for Mitch, but at the end, she said, "To Tracy!" She was fun to watch, because she didn't cause me to cringe.
Grinch
While they were spinning around, Mitch and Scott almost ran into each other.
Scott: I didn't realize you harbored so much anger inside of you, Bryant.
Auld Lang Syne
I love the harmonies during Bryant's solo.
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas
The picture of the baby sleeping is little Mitch.
Angels We Have Heard on High
Mitch got all into the "Gloria".
Encore
All I Want for Christmas is You
Snow! There's snow falling from the ceiling!
 |
| Snow A Pella |
 |
| All Bryant wants for Christmas is Me OK, maybe not. |
Carmen / Billie Jean
Scott ad libbed some lyrics about getting the beat from JT.
Hold Out for Christmas (off mic)
More snow! The machine was loud, though, and Scott's facial expression was priceless.
Afterward, I shook hands with Cal and Mitch, whom said he'd see us soon, and I said bye to Bryant.
Meet and Greet
Only JT was there. He said that "those other bitches took the red eye", so only he and Fred stayed the night.
They had a backdrop available for photo ops. JT put the boa on me and said it suits me. Perhaps he thinks I'm some kind of burlesque performer. Then I got excited about the reindeer headband, and he said, "That becomes you." Oh, thank you!
 |
| SherDeer |
Wendy had made signs for Rockapella to hold so that we could send a picture to Jenn because she couldn't make it to the show. We decided to just ask JT to hold all of them. I told him what happened to Jenn and asked if he could hold all of the signs, and he happily said, "Sure!"
 |
| Thank you, JT! |
Also, JT likes Nick's shoes.
 |
| JT and the PellaPosse |
 |
| Hey, that's my name! |
The Posse went to Red Robin near our hotel. I thought that our friend Robin was going to join us, but she never showed up. I ordered a Tropical Mai Tai and Fruffles. Look at that cool glass! I refrained from stealing it, though.
We returned to the hotel. Wendy mentioned something about there being a show at one of the hotel windows on the first floor. It took me a second to understand that she meant me and my unplanned exhibitionist show. The next morning, Auntie M picked me up for our flight back to Burbank. She travels a lot so she had TSA Pre check and was already in line for boarding by the time I finally made it through the very slow riff raff line. She was excited about going down the air stairs at Burbank because she felt like a movie star, as I do.
It's been a good year of seeing Rockapella, even though I haven't seen Steve at all in 2016. But we have a house concert to hold, and that's going to be a lot of fun.
Thank you, Rockapella, for allowing me to spend some fun time with you this year. Thank you, Posse, for all of the laughter and love.
I don't see any official plans in 2017 to see Rockapella in California yet, but I'm hopeful!
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