May Favourites - 2019

It is that time of the month again, and I must apologise that this months list is a little bit delayed. I have many favouries this month that are directly from my showcase that I performed at the end of May, which I didn't mean for this much to sneak through onto this list, but there we go. Hope you enjoy reading my favourites from the month of May!

Music

She's my Sister
(from The In-Between) 

Before researching for my showcase, I had not heard of the concept musical The In-Between. It was suggested for my and the girl I was working with to have a look at this duet and play with it to be in the show, and when we listened to it I really liked it. t had a very realistic sister relationship to me, one which reminded me of my relationship with my own sisters, which I loved and wanted to work to bring to life on stage. It was also exciting that there is not really a filmed video of a fully staged version of this song, so our ideas were original and we were able to interpret the characters ourselves and not worry about imitating somebody else's portrayal..

They don't make glass slippers

 (from Soho Cinders)

What a beautiful song! I am ashamed that I have never heard of this song before now! This is yet another song we used in our end of year showcase that I was introduced to (spoiler alert, that is pretty much what the entire of this section is) and it just hasn't left my head. The music is amazing and the lyrics are hauntingly beautiful in a sad way (if that made any sense at all). I am interested to see Soho Cinders as a full musical one day and will be looking further into the soundtrack.

Bring on the Monsters

 (from The Lightning Thief)

I appreciate a song with good harmonies and parts where people sing different things on top of each other (there is probably a technical term for that!), so this song is right up my street! Although there is no alto harmony in the cast recording when it is written in the sheet music with is a little bit annoying, this song is very feel good and quite empowering. I had no idea there was a Percy Jackson musical and I am totally useless when it comes to explaining the plot of the books/movies so I cannot say how faithful it is as an adaption, I'm just approaching this song from a "hey, this is a song I appreciate" perspective.

So in Love 

(from Kiss Me Kate)

This is a song where I don't have an awful lot to say about it, I just listen to is and am like "that is a nice song". I'm not 100% sure of the context of the song, I have only seen Kiss me Kate once and did not really understand what was going on, but this is a song that I really liked.

Breathe 

(from In the Heights)

I am one of those terrible rare people who have not listened to In the Heights (in my defence, it is one of those musicals that I would prefer to see first then listen to). But this is a song I have heard a few times being sung by people in my Musical Theatre classes, and it is a song that I really love. The fear of disappointing everyone you know for dropping out of college is something a lot of people can relate to - hey, even I was wondering if I had made the right decision at the beginning of the year and feared what my parents would say if I came home - and that sort of emotion is really brought across in this song. Again, I have no idea the context of this within the musical, this is just stuff that I have picked out from listening to the song a couple of times so I could be completely wrong in what I'm saying.

Daryl is a Boy (and he lives in my closet)

This is a song that I was contemplating doing as a solo in m showcase and is a song that I love. It is from a musical theatre cabaret and isn't in a full on musical, but it is still a very silly but good song. I was told to look a lot more at comedy in classes which is why I came across this song. Although I didn't do this in our show at the end of it, I still really like this song and would love to add it to my rep book!

Shopping

Mickey Mouse Bag and Purse

This might be the rainbow mickey mouse bag that everyone has been going crazy over in Primark. I absolutely loved these purchases, the bag was £12 and the matching purse was £6, and I have to say they were very much worth the money! I feared that glitter would shed everywhere when I initially saw it online and thought that after a couple of uses there would be little patches where there was no longer glitter, but this is not the case! This bag is all packed up now to take on holiday, which I know already this is going to be a holiday hit! The purse is just as lovely, it is very spacious inside with plenty of rooms for cards and money.

Minnie Mouse Ears

I have always wanted a pair of Minnie Mouse ears every since I first visited Walt Disney Wold in 2007, but the official Disney ears are rather pricey. For my holiday this year I bought custom made Minnie Mouse ears online and they are absolutely lovely! I cannot wait to wear these in the Magic Kingdom!

New Hair Style

So I changed up my hairstyle a little bit during the month of May. I have been cutting it myself for about a year now, and decided it was time to get it sorted. I got it cut and highlights added, and I absolutely love how it looks. As expensive as hair salons can be, I love how my new hair looks and it was definitely worth the money!

Showcase leotard and skirt

The end of this month was my First Year Showcase at University, so I needed to get my costume sorted! I bought this leotard and dance skirt off Amazon, not expecting much from them since they were inexpensive and were not from an official dance shop. However, I was very impressed with what arrived in the post. The leotard was very well made for the money it cost, and I am incredibly impressed with how the dance skirt looks on. The downside was that I totally underestimated the size that I needed for the leotard and we had a couple of wardrobe malfunctions during the dress run of our show. This was resolved though for the final show, I ended up having to sew myself into it, which meant that there were no bathroom breaks for me during the show! Still, I am very pleased with how it looked on the night of the 

Revolution Pro Full Coverage Camouflage Foundation

My foundation was running out, and the foundation I had was the No7 Stay Perfect foundation. I bought this when I was at work and had a bit of extra spending money, but I couldn't really afford to get this foundation again once it had ran out. So I hit the highstreet trying to find a cheaper alternative to my older foundation. Then I came across this foundation. It is very full coverage, I accidentally put too much on my face the first time I used it meaning I looked like a ghost, so it needs to be used sparingly, but I love this foundation, and don't think there is another drug store foundation that I would buy alternatively to this. 

Foundation available to buy here.

Revolution Pro Loose Finishing Powder

As with the above item, I needed a new setting powder and found this in the revolution section of my local Superdrug. I was a little skeptical at first, since the powder is completely white so I did not know how it would look on. But I have fallen in love with how this looks. I would say a downside to this product is that it seems to go all over the place whenever I use it, but I'm not sure if that is the product itself or if its just me being unable to function like a proper person.  Still, this was a great substitute to my other setting powder.

Setting powder available to buy here.

Shows

Avenue Q

Avenu Q was a production that was put on at my university, about two days after we finished up with Bare: A Pop Opera. So I went with my fellow cast members to support the cast of Avenue Q and I was very impressed. I loved what they had done with the set design and was very impresses with what they had done with the puppets. I think that some people were cast very well in their roles and could easily be switched with some cast members on the UK Tour and people wouldn't realise that they weren't supposed to be there. Well done guys, you did a fantastic job.

Trouble in Tahiti

This is another production that was put on at my university, this time by my friends in the first year Performing Arts class. I had no idea what Trouble in Tahiti was before seeing it at the Stanwix Theatre - I believe this was the reaction of most people who came to see the show - but these guys did an amazing job with it. I believe it is actually supposed to be an opera, but the cast performed it in more of a contemporary musical theatre style which was anything but a bad decision.  I don't think there was one member of the cast that felt out of place in the show. Plus the set design was phenomenal! I know that there had been a couple of unavoidable hiccups before the show, but I am so glad that you got over this and pulled this off since I really enjoyed it!

So there you have it! My favourites for the month of May. Let me know what your favourites were for last month, I would love to know! I have been doing this series since January and have a post for each month, so if you have not read those posts yet, click the links down below!

January Favourites - Here
February Favourites - Here
March Favourites - Here
April Favourites - Here

Last Days at University

So if you have not been keeping up with my social media posts, you may not have been aware that this weekend I moved out of the Halls of Residence at my University, as I have finished with first year. I grew very attached to the flat that I stayed in, so I created a video of the last couple of days I spent at my accommodation so I will have those memories of that flat to keep.

Hope you enjoy, and as mentioned before I would like to continue creating content like this so let me know your thoughts and if you have any suggestions!

April Favourites - 2019

It is that time again! I would like to apologise about the lack of posts lately, this was due to the amount of work I had for uni plus having rehearsals every night, but now things seem to be calming down a little bit so I will try to get back to my usual upload schedule. Anyway, if you have missed any of my previous favourites lists you can find them here:

• January Favourites
• February Favourites
• March Favourites

Without further ado, here are my favourites for the month of April!

Movies 

A Star is Born (2018) 

I missed this move when it was in the cinemas due to being too busy with Uni work at the time, but while I was home over the Easter Holidays I made sure to find time to watch this, and it was a great decision. A Star is Born is not the movie I expected it to be, but it was a good one. The music was beautiful, and I was also really impressed with Lady Gaga's acting skills (though there was never a doubt that she wouldn't be good, since she has been amazing since day 1). I absolutely loved the story, as tragic as it may be, as it displayed what being in the music industry may be like and also the troubles celebrities may go through with drugs and alcohol without sugar coating or glamorising that type of lifestyle. 

A Star is Born (1976) 

I watched this straight after the 2018 remake since my mum had told me that she really enjoyed this version more. I really liked watching this version of A Star is Born; I felt like the characters in this version were much more likable than the characters in the 2018 version. However, this could just be due to the time period that the movie was made in and the type of characters in movies at the time that this movie was made. Although this version was very good, it did feel very dated and it was obviously set in the 70's. This does not hinder the movie in anyway; it's my opinion that the 2018 version updated the story very well.

Avengers: Endgame 

Arguably the most anticipated movie of 2019, Avengers Endgame met a lot of my expectations. Following on from the story of Infinity War, it is the perfect end to the 11 years that Marvel has spent building up the MCU. I love the character development in this movie, this is referring to both older and newer characters. A particular favourite character of mine was Black Widow; I have always liked her, but she was particularly good in this movie. There were so many great action sequences and many emotional moments. It is a movie you do not want to miss, so if you have not already, get yourself down to the cinema!

Hanna

Here is a movie that I have not watched since it came out originally on DVD. Hanna is a movie I rediscovered when looking for something to watch and I found it collecting dust in one of the cupboards at home. It is one of those rare movies with a strong female lead who is not over-sexualised and who doesn't have a romantic plot line. It is so refreshing to see, and I can't believe I forgot about this movie. The soundtrack is also very good, not to mention the performances from the actors in this movie.

Shows

The Addam's Family Musical 

This was a musical that was being performed by the second year Musical Theatre students in my university, so I went along to support them and it was brilliant. I loved the music in this show, even though I had heard the songs "When you're an Addams" and "Pulled" before, and was surprised at the story line as it did not follow my expectations for the show. I went into this show having no idea what was going on (which in my opinion is the best way to go and see a show!) and I had also never seen anything Addams Family related, and I was surprised that I really like it. It was a very good show, and my friends in second year did a very good job performing it!

Bare: A Pop Opera

At the end of April, I performed Bare: A Pop Opera playing the character Rory. I had an amazing time being a part of this show and I am now very sad that it is over. I have previously spoken about my thoughts on the show itself in my March Favourites, so if you would like to see what I thought click here.

I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this production, having the chance to work with a lot of talented people and make new friends from different year groups and courses. It was challenging to step into since this is the first show that I have been involved in in two years, but it was so nice to be able to get back into the swing of things and to do something that I love. 

 Shopping

Doughnut Skirt (Lindy Bop) 

I have been in love with Lindy Bop for almost a year now, with many of their skirts and dresses making their way into my wardrobe. I was looking for clothes for my upcoming holiday, and found this lovely doughnut skirt, which I instantly fell in love with!

Each doughnut on the skirt has a different design making the skirt a colourful and quirky item. I wore it over the Easter Holidays and was complimented by many people on it. It is a lovely length - personally I have a preference for longer skirts, and this style is perfect for the warmer summer months, especially if you are someone who doesn't really want to show much leg! You could probably wear one of the Lindy Bop petticoats underneath to get the 1950's silhouette if you wanted to achieve that look, but I personally prefer it without the petticoat, especially for what I want to wear the skirt for.

You can find this skirt on the Lindy Bop website here. 

Red Trousers (Primark) 

These were an amazing find for me while I was shopping in Primark for more holiday clothes. Ususally I go for jeans or leggings and I tend to avoid trousers, but I found these and wanted to give them a try and I loved them! The fabric is nice and light so they are definitely perfect if you are going somewhere and want to keep the sun off your skin but also want to stay cool (I need stuff like this since fair skin does not mix well with the sun!). They have definitely become one of my favourite pieces that I have bought for my holiday and I can see myself getting a lot of wear out of them.

Sandles (Primark) 

Another thing from Primark! I fell in love with these sandals when I saw them - I am a victim for anything shiny though so its no surprise these ended up in my shopping basket!). They are of lovely quality, especially for the price that I bought them for - and I thought they would be nice for any time I need to go somewhere on holiday and be a little bit more dressy. 

The Game of Thrones Box Set

I have been waiting for years for George R R Martin to write the next Game of Thrones book so I could make a start on reading the series, but it does not look like that book is going to be released any time soon. So I decided to read the series anyway! I absolutely love this boxset, it was a bargain since it would have cost me much more to buy all of the books separately, plus if came with a map which is handy to look at when reading so I can figure out where all of the chapters are happening and where each character is heading. This is my introduction to the Game of Thrones Series so no spoilers please! I already get enough from my family talking about the TV show!

This boxset is available on The Works website here.

Other

Malteaser Cakes

I love baking and it makes me so sad that while I'm at University I don't really have the things I need to bake in my flat. I took advantage of going home and made some chocolate malteaser cakes which were amazing! It's fair to say they did not last in the house for very long! The recipe I followed was from the Hummingbird Bakery but I cannot remember the exact recipe or book that I got the recipe from.

That's it for another month! I hope you enjoyed reading about my April Favourites! Please let me know what your favourite things were this month!

March Favourites - 2019

A new month means a new favourites list! If you have missed my previous favourites posts, you can find my January Favourites here and my February Favourites here.  March has been an incredibly busy, but exciting month for me, so here are my favourites for this month!

TV Shows

Young Justice: Outsiders

I have been waiting for so long for Young Justice Season three to be released and I was so glad when it finally was released this year! I watched the first half of this season in March and I really enjoyed where the series is going. I really like the new characters that have been included, and the older characters are still as fabulous as they have ever been! The animation in this series also looks so much better than it has in the previous two seasons and it has really helped keeping Young Justice relevant. I am looking forward to the second half of this season which is set to be released in June, so I am sure you will see it making a reappearance on a future favourites list!

Books

On The Other Side by Carrie Hope Fletcher 

This may be a little late to the party, but I finally read Carrie Hope Fletcher's first book! I really enjoyed this story, I thought that the concept was an original idea. Something I think that lets this book down is the names of some of the characters, like "Evie Snow" and "Vincent Winters". Not that there is anything particularly wrong with the names, I just feel like they sound like Carrie couldn't think of any other surname to give to her two main characters, and they took me out of the story sometimes by thinking "These names sound a bit silly". Nonetheless, the book is written very nicely, and it is a lovely feel good book. 

Shopping

Aldi Chocolate Unicorn 

This may be something really silly to include on this list, but I was really happy when I found this unicorn in Aldi whilst out shopping. It looks so cute and the chocolate itself was actually really nice (yes, Sparkle the Unicorn is no more! RIP). It was a lovely little buy this month and I felt like it needed to be included in this list.

Revolution Make-up (Various)

So I needed a new eyeliner and I walked down to my local Superdrug, and I ended coming home with ten lipsticks, a concealer, a brow-kit and a primer as well as the eyeliner that I originally needed. My Bank Account was not best pleased with these purchases but it was definitely worth it in the long run. Just to clarify, these are the products that I bought that weekend (plus the links to them online in case you wanted to buy them yourself!):

• Revolution Pro Full Coverage Camouflage Concealer: C2 - Click Here
• Revolution Pro Lipstick Collection: Reds - Click Here
• Revolution Pro Lipstick Collection: Bare - Click Here
• Revolution Ultra Brow: Fair to Medium - Click Here

Firstly, lets talk about the concealer! The coverage on this concealer is very good, it is easy to blend and stays on until I take off my make-up. It doesn't look cakey underneath my foundation either which is a plus! The only thing I would say is that you shouldn't use a lot at a time, since it is a thick consistency, so a little goes a long way!

Next are the lipstick collections that I bought. I think I was going slightly mad when I decided to buy ten lipsticks, but it happened. The lipsticks them selves are really nice. I wouldn't really say there is a shade that I dislike in the packs that I bought, all of them are really nice shades that compliment my skin tone. They are also quite long lasting. You do need to do a re-application after eating, but other than that the colour stays.

Lastly, the Brow kit. I was not someone who really cared about my eyebrows before buying this kit, but it has changed my whole perspective since buying it! It comes with two waxes and a selection of powders which look really great; they also allow you to change up your look a lot - if you want a more bold brow or a more subtle brow. 

Shows

Bare: A Pop Opera 

I was obliged to watch this show since I had been cast in it, and I had no idea what it was about. I think it's fair to say that Bare: A Pop Opera is now up there with my all time favourite musicals! I absolutely love the music in this show, there are some amazing songs, not to mention the harmonies in this show! (I love a good harmony! Don't Judge!) The show brings up the topics that nobody wants to talk about in a normal conversation - religion, coming out, teen pregnancy, drug use ect - and I am really surprised that it is not more popular than it already is. The way the characters are written also make them seem realistic, and they actually behave like teenagers probably would put in that situation - take away the speaking to music but it wouldn't be a musical without that part!

Blood Brothers 

I went to see this show for the second time after being given tickets for Christmas, and it did not disappoint. I have always loved Blood Brothers, ever since looking at it in my GCSE classes, but seeing the musical live has made me find a new found love for it. For my school assessment, we acted out the script and cut out all of the songs; after seeing the show live this decision  baffles me. The music is something that makes Blood Brothers so great, it just wouldn't be the same without it! The performances of each of the actors were amazing, some still being the same actors that were on the 2018 tour, some being new cast members, but over all it was such an emotional piece. 

Music

Heathers (2018) Cast Recording 

So the 2018 Heathers cast recording was released at the beginning of this month, and I am so happy that it was! This is not to say that there is anything wrong with the original cast recording, it is absolutely fantastic, but there is something so refreshing about hearing the same songs sung buy these new talented actors.

There were three new songs added to this album, You're Welcome, Never Shut Up and I Say No. I would like to address these songs individually since they are the major differences to the original soundtrack (other than the new cast).

First of all, You're Welcome. This song replaced Blue from the Off-Broadway cast recording, and I am so glad it did. As much as I love Blue, it always felt a little out of place for me and kind of took away from the rest of the album. To me, the song always sounded like it was trying to be funny for the sake of being funny. You're Welcome is s a much better fit for the album in my opinion. I have not see this in the context of the show, but seeing two different productions of Heathers the Musical with Blue being performed at my college confirmed my feelings about the song. You're Welcome is so much darker than Blue, one line in particular that stands out to me is, "Hey, you wanted to be popular", implying that when becoming one of the Heathers Veronica automatically consented for the boys to make sexual advances on her (which is obviously not the case, but it really comes across in Kurt and Ram's character and makes them seem to be much more of a threat to Veronica rather than being there for a moment of comic relief). This song fits the dark comedy tone of the musical much better and sounds brilliant on the new album. 

In the original script for Heathers, there is a reprise to the song Blue, but on this album, Never Shut Up is in the place where this should be. I do not think this is necessarily a direct replacement for the Blue reprise, but since Blue had been cut, they would naturally have to replace this reprise with something else. Personally, this song is one of m favourite songs on this album. I had always felt like the original version of Heathers the Musical was missing a song for Heather Duke, Heather Chandler and Heather McNamara both had featured parts in Candy Store and then solos later on in the show, but Heather Duke never really had a moment to shine, which didn't really make much sense to me. This song really enforces that Heather Duke is now the person running the show at Westerburg High, and again like with You're Welcome, this song really fits with the tone of show and I feel like it really shows the darker side of what High School life can be like.

Finally, I Say No. This is a completely new song that was put into the musical, it hasn't replaced a previous song unlike the other two songs I have looked into. I absolutely love this song, it really gives Veronica a strong moment to stand up to JD and shows that she is finally done with him. My issue with this song is that Seventeen just a little bit before it and is pretty much the same character moment for Veronica. It's not that I think that this song should full on replace Seventeen or that this song should not have been added into the show, it's just that it feels like a bit of a repeat moment that isn't necessary and is put in to make Act 2 longer. All in all though, this is a brilliant song. 

The new cast sound really good on the recording, and this is just a very good cast album that you should give a listen!

All Grown Up from Bare: A Pop Opera 

Further up on this list, I talked about Bare: A Pop Opera, and one song that really stood out to me was All Grown Up, a song that comes in Act 2 of the musical. I love a good belt song in a musical, and this song is no exception. Again, like the whole musical, it talks about a taboo subject - teen pregnancy. When you usually hear about this subject, it usually blames the young mothers for being irresponsible and says that they got themselves into this situation, when in reality this is not always the case. This song seems to show the other side, and although this song may not speak for everyone going through a teen pregnancy, it certainly shows you a different perspective of the subject. I really love this song and it is definitely one I have added to my rep book!

So there you go, that was my favourites for March. I hope that you enjoyed reading this post and I will see you in the next one!

On the Other Side by Carrie Hope Fletcher - A Review

This may be a little late to the party, but I finally read Carrie Hope Fletcher's first book! I really enjoyed this story, I thought that the concept was an original idea.

Evie Snow has lived a long and relatively happy life but now she is dead, she's suddenly faced with a door that won't open. Evie realised that her three biggest secrets are holding her back from entering her own heaven and she now has to face them and share her biggest, and secret, love story with the people in her life.

This was a really lovely idea for a story, and I love the idea that people face doors when they enter the afterlife. There is a hint of magical realism portrayed in some of the phrases of the book that gave it the feeling of a fairy tale. The story was enjoyable as a sweet romance, but there was not really much more to it than that.

Evie Snow felt very much like a self insert character for Carrie Hope Fletcher, which isn't really an issue but she felt very much like a Mary Sue character. She was constantly being told how great she was by the other characters in the book. We were told a lot of things about Evie from other characters, but we on't actually see much from Evie herself.  It was a story about an adult woman being told what she should do with her life by her adult mother.

Considering these characters are supposed to be 27 years old, they came across as rather childish. Not that a 27 year old cannot come across as a bit immature, but when reading the book I did feel as though I was reading about a group of children, this coupled with the was Evie is treated by her mother emphasized the fact that I believed these characters were much younger than they actually were. I do believe that this may have something to do with the fact that this is Carrie's debut novel, so I do hope that there is some improvements in the writing of the character's in her other books.

Another thing that bothered me a little with this book was the surnames of some of the characters we meet, like "Evie Snow" and "Vincent Winters". Not that there is anything particularly wrong with the names, I just feel like they sound like Carrie couldn't think of any other surname to give to her two main characters, and they took me out of the story sometimes by thinking "These names sound a bit silly". Nonetheless, the book is written very nicely, and it is a lovely feel good book.

All in all,. this was a very lovely feel good book that is a nice quick read for someone looking for something to make them feel happy, but it is not a complex novel. Not that it is trying to be a very complex story, but if that is the type of book you are looking for then I would suggest looking elsewhere for a different book.

The Surface Breaks by Louise O'Neil - A Review

A book that has been on my to read list for quite some time HAS FINALLY BEEN READ! This was definitely a 50% cover buy 50% book buy because the artwork on the cover of this book is beautiful!

The story is a retelling of The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Anderson, and when reading a synopsis before purchasing the book it was clear that this would not be the sugar coated Disney tale that most people are familiar with. Having said that, the story was much darker than I expected it would be. The store clearly sold this book as a feminist retelling, which is exactly what the story is, and is something that I have never come across before for the story of the Little Mermaid.

The Story starts out when the youngest daughter of the Sea King turns fifteen years old. We are taught how the monarchy works underneath the surface and are introduced to all of his daughters. The royal family live in a rather sinister way and it is clear that there is definitely a corrupt side to the king. The Women are basically seen as pawns that are only good to be sold to a potential suitor. They have no voices of their own and are told to smile whenever it is necessary. Gaia is just a girl with her head in the clouds who is willing to risk everything. She is searching for someone who will adore her for who she is and not because of her looks and her royal status.

This book definitely captures the dark essence of the original book. It brings into the play the question: is it truly love at first sight or is is lust at first sight? It is a tragic tale for Gaia, but it is understandable why she desires to leave home.

This is one of the best fairy tale retelling stories that I have read. The author managed to capture the devastation and gruesome tale that we are familiar with, and added a modern twist to it which made it such a unique read. The feminism arc in this story is very important and it shows that women aren't as weak as men may perceive them to be, they have their own voices and demand to be heard.

Hunted by Megan Spooner - A review

Hunted was a book that I really enjoyed reading.  I really liked how it was a retelling but tried to be different to the story that we already know. Yeva used to go hunting with her father in the wood as a child, but then when she grows up, she stops since it is something that a young lady shouldn't do. When their father is forced to sell his home and move to his hunting cottage with his three children, Yeva begins hunting again. Her father goes missing and Yeva goes into the forest to see what has happened to him, which is where she encountered the Beast.

I liked how the relationship built up between Yeva and the Beast, but overall I was not a huge fan of the romance as I felt like that element of the relationship was very rushed into the story. It was great that you could see that they began to understand each other, and a sort of friendship formed between them.

It was a fun book to read, not the best but every book has its flaws and I personally really enjoyed reading this book. It was a very easy to get through and took me three days to finish. I'd say if you were looking for a more romantic book or a book with intensive world building, then this book may not be for you since as mentioned before, the romance feels very rushed, and there is little to no world building in the book.

An Update...

So I will not be posting a proper blog post this week, this is due exam season coming up so I am currently prioritising my work over my blog at the moment. I knew that if I did not post this week then it would break my cycle of uploading every Monday of the year, and the blog will start looking more like it did in 2018/2017 and we do not want that. So I thought I would share some exciting news with you.

I have been cast as Rory in Bare: A Pop Opera. This is one thing that is changing up my schedule a lot, since we have eight weeks to put this musical together and combined with exam stress I just have not managed to write anything this week. Make sure to follow this blog so you can be updated with any further news of the production!

I am super excited to be a part of this show though, it will be my first show that I have done in two years so it is really exciting (unless you count performing on Children in Need, but that was a whole other experience!)

It's a shame that I could not come up with anything to post this week, but these things do happen sometimes to the best of us!

February Favourites - 2019

To kick off the month of March, I have decided to make a February Favourites post. If you did not catch my favourite list from January 2019, you can click here and find out what I liked most from that month. February has been a very busy month for me, especially considering the work that I have been doing for uni, so here are my favourites from this month:

Shows

Starship

I started off the month re-watching Starship - a musical by Team Starkid. It seems as though I am going to watch a Starkid musical every month at this rate (which I am not complaining about!), since it has been such a long time since I have actually sat down and watched the Starkid Shows; since coming to uni I have found myself introducing more and more people to them. Starship has always been on of my favourites though. It was the first Starkid Musical that I was around for to wait for it to come out on YouTube, and the difference in production quality really set it apart from the potter musicals at the time. I felt very nostalgic whilst watching it, and it reminded me why  am currently on the course I am on now. I love the whole concept of the musical and I love the puppet work in the show. It is fantastic! It is also up on YouTube for free, so if you do find that you have some spare time do give it a watch!

Spies are Forever

I rewatched this fantastic show when introducing it to my flatmates at university. This show is definitely in my list of favourite shows of all time! I love how you go into it expecting it to be one thing and then it turns out to be something completely different. I did not expect a musical about Spies would work, but then again people didn't think that a musical about a barber killing people and a baker making them into pies would work but there we go! That is the wonderful world of Musical Theatre! The cast in this show is absolutely fantastic, as well as the music. This is another show that you will be able to watch for free on Youtube, so you should definitely give it a watch!

Games

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time

A game that I feel so much nostalgia for. It has been years since I have played Ocarina of time, so I decided that this month would be the time that I revisit this classic game. I am still yet to finish it, but I forgot how amazing this game is, especially for the time that it came out. With the updated edition being released on the 3DS, it proved that this is a completely timeless game that you can just keep going back to. I have a lot to thank this game for, with it being the second Zelda Game that I played in my lifetime, and without it I don't even know if I would be as interested in games as I am now.

The Sims 4: Vampires Game Pack

Yes, I bought another Sims 4 Expansion pack this month, please do not judge me! I have always wanted the Sims Vampire Game Pack, and managed to get round to buying it this month. I love everything that has been added to this pack, the furniture, the new world, the CAS items ect. I am yet to actually play as a Vampire in the Sims, this is due to me currently trying to do the Disney challenge (I'm in generation 4 so it might be a little while before I get to play as a Vampire) but this is a game pack that I have really enjoyed playing so far and I am really looking forward to the other surprises I may find in this Game pack.

Films

I ship it 

The Harry Potter and Scott Pilgram vs the World crossover that seemingly nobody expected, but we all deserved. I Ship it is a short film about a couple who were in a band and then broke up, and the girl is entering into a battle of the bands competition against her ex and his new girlfriend. The film is beautifully shot, with great costuming and set designs. The original songs in the piece are also fantastic. I Ship it is a free film on Youtube, it also stars Mary Kate Wiles who was in Spies are Forever which is mentioned in the list above!

The King and I 

I had a tutorial with my singning teacher a couple of weeks ago and she said that I should really look at the character Anna from the king and I and add some of her songs to my rep book. I had only ever seen the animated version of The King and I which was made in the 90's, so I watched the film which inspired it first. I was surprised to see that there were no monkeys or dragons or evil magician, but it is such a lovely story, and I love the songs and the music too. It is such a lovely story, and now all I want to do is dance around in a big poofy dress.

Edgar Allan Poe's Murder Mystery Dinner Party

I went on a bit of a re-watch marathon this month, and re-watched Edgar Allan Poe's Murder Mystery dinner party. I am a lover of murder mystery, and have been for as long that I remember. When I was younger, my favourite game to play was Cluedo. I love this show and its unpredictable plot, not to mention that the beautiful sets and costumes! The actors are brilliant and the script writing is on point. This is definitely something that you need to add to your to watch list.

Books

A Problem Like Maria: Gender and Sexuality in the American Musical by Stacy Wolf 

So I was given an essay to do at university on misogyny, and that lead me to reading the entire book. I found this book fascinating to read, I was only going to make some notes on what I needed but I found what it said very interesting. It explores how different women throughout periods of musical theatre were treated at the time and looks at many different characters and shows.

Changed for Good: A Feminist History of the Broadway Musical by Stacy Wolf 

This is another book that I was originally going to skim for information to help with my essay, but I ended up reading the entire book. This book allows you to see the shows that you are familiar with and may even love through fresh eyes and explores how the role of women changed over the last few years. It is highly informative and - like the other book by Stacy Wolf on this list - explores the history of women in musical theatre.

The Surface Breaks by Lousie O'neil

A book that has been on my to read list for quite some time HAS FINALLY BEEN READ! This was definitely a 50% cover buy 50% book buy because the artwork on the cover of this book is beautiful! The story is a retelling of The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Anderson, and when reading a synopsis before purchasing the book it was clear that this would not be the sugar coated Disney tale that most people are familiar with. Having said that, the story was much darker than I expected it would be. The store clearly sold this book as a feminist retelling, which is exactly what the story is, and is something that I have never come across before for the story of the Little Mermaid.

The Story starts out when the youngest daughter of the Sea King turns fifteen years old. We are taught how the monarchy works underneath the surface and are introduced to all of his daughters. The royal family live in a rather sinister way and it is clear that there is definitely a corrupt side to the king. The Women are basically seen as pawns that are only good to be sold to a potential suitor. They have no voices of their own and are told to smile whenever it is necessary. Gaia is just a girl with her head in the clouds who is willing to risk everything. She is searching for someone who will adore her for who she is and not because of her looks and her royal status.

This book definitely captures the dark essence of the original book. It brings into the play the question: is it truly love at first sight or is is lust at first sight? It is a tragic tale for Gaia, but it is understandable why she desires to leave home.

This is one of the best fairy tale retelling stories that I have read. The author managed to capture the devastation and gruesome tale that we are familiar with, and added a modern twist to it which made it such a unique read. The feminism arc in this story is very important and it shows that women aren't as weak as men may perceive them to be, they have their own voices and demand to be heard.

Music

Freedom (from The Unauthorized Autobiography of Samantha Brown) 

I listened to this song whilst looking for duets to sing at university, I really liked this song for the harmonies in it. I haven't listened to it to much since I am unable to find it on spotify and we have ultimately decided that we do not want to so this song for our assessment, but it is such a lovely song and I urge you to listen to it. If you are looking for a duet between two women with some challenging harmonies it is definitely worth having a look at. It is also a rather unusual song choice so is great if you want to perform something a little different. 

Casting Call for a Best Friend (from The Girls Night Out)

This is another song that I looked at when looking for duets for my singing assessment. What I loved the most about this duet was the humor in the lyrics and how relateable the song can actually be. When you walk into an audition and meet the other people auditioning you do sometimes have these little thoughts and you do try to big yourself up in your head to make you feel like you are the best person for the job. Admit it, we all have been guilty of this at some point.

 Somethings are meant to be (from Little Women)

This is the song that we have decided to do for my singing assessment. I absolutely love this duet, there are some beautiful harmonies and there is a great relationship between the two characters. The song is about two sisters reflecting on life and how it is precious, but some things are set in stone. Little Women as a musical is absolutely amazing, but this song in particular is a stand out song for me.

 Company (2018) Cast Recording

As mentioned in my January Favourites, I absolutely love the Company Cast recording. Then the Company 2018 Cast Recording was released and I fell in love with it all over again. I love the effort that has been put into bringing this show together, there was no lazy "okay, we will just make Bobby a girl and keep literally everything else the same". The have transposed songs where needed, switched and rewritten characters to fit into the modern world, changed lyric ect. The Company 2018 Cast Recording is definitely on my frequently listened to list. Not to mention that I feel like the gender reversed Company reflects a lot on women in society today, many people expect women to get married and settle down almost as soon as they hit their twenties (I know that a lot of family members have asked me when I'm planning to have kids, little do they know I want to adopt twelve dogs). I think it is just really effective to have Bobby as a female and to show that she has hit thirty five and she has still not settled down in a long term relationship, men are kind of allowed to have the time to be single, but as mentioned there are different expectations for women. I would love to be able to see this show one day, but unfortunately I do not think I will be able to see the current version that is running in the West End.

So there you have it, here are my favourites for the month of February. What were your favourites of this month? Let me know!

30 before 30

In October 2018, I turned 20, which is rather scary. I had entered the second decade of my life, and had so much that I wanted to acomplish before I turned 30. I thought for fun I would make a list of thirty things I wanted to do before I reached to big 3 0. I do not have my heart set on doing absolutely every one of these things, but it will be fun to look back in ten years time and to see what I managed to do and what things that I did that maybe weren't on the list but felt satisfying to accomplish. So here it is, 30 things I want to do before I turn 30.

1) Dye my hair a fun colour

Everyone gets to a point in their life where they think that they want to dye their hair a crazy colour, and I feel like I have been at that point of my life for the past four years. I remember saying that as soon as I left secondary school I was going to dye my hair purple. But then I was in a production of Les Miserables, and after that it was my sisters wedding, and then I was in Into the Woods, and time has just flown by and I still have not really dyed my hair an extreme colour.

In summer 2018, I did go to a salon and had a rose gold colour put onto my hair, which looked fabulous, but didn't really look unnatural. It looked more like a ginger colour had been put in my hair than a rose gold colour, but this was probably due to the dye being applied directly on top of my natural colour and my hair not being bleached before the colour was applied. Although I loved this look, I don't really count this as having my hair dyed a crazy colour. 

As an aspiring actor, it is going to be very difficult for me to dye my hair a different colour and still get hired. Every time you change your appearance, you have to update resumes and head shots, along with many other things. These things all cost time and money, so I don't think that it is likely that I will manage to reach this goal in the next ten years unless I totally give up on being an actor, but honestly, I'll take the acting career over the pastel pink hair. 

2) Visit atleast two other Disney Parks

I am lucky enough to say that I have visited Walt Disney World in Florida six times and I am going back again for the seventh time in summer 2019. The parks are fantastic there and I do not want to sound like I am being ungrateful or unprivileged to have been given the opportunity to go there as many times as I have, but I would like to see what else is out there, and see how different Disney Parks compare.

I have had the idea in my head that I want to have a solo weekend adventure to Disneyland Paris at some point, since it is not too far away or as expensive for me to get to as some of the other Disney Parks in the world. Plus I think it would just be fun to go on an adventure for the weekend.However, I do not know how realistic this is with the dark cloud know as Brexit currently hovering over the UK and the rest of Europe at the moment. 

I would love to visit California Disneyland, since obviously that was the first Disney Park to ever be built and it would just be so good to go there and to be able to say that I have been to the original Disneyland. I'd love to see their version of Fantasmic too, since that is my all time favourite Disney Show. 

3) Go to New York and 4) See a Broadway Show

These two things are probably on every theatre kids bucket list, but I would absolutely love to be able to go to New York at some point in my life, even though New York is apparently a more expensive London. In the theatre world, I feel like Broadway is where the money is at, and I would absolutely love to go and see a Broadway show in order to have a better understanding of the talent it takes to be on one of those stages and so I know how far I will need to take my training to be able to get there, even though I need to break the West End first (wow I sound like such a petty actor, I promise this is all jokey! Being on broadway/west end would be absolutely lovely and I would be lying if I said that it wasn't among my absolute dream jobs, but these two things are not in my realist goals).

5) Meet a Celebrity

It would just be fun to be able to say that I have met a celebrity. There's not really anyone in particular I would like to meet, but I think it would be very funny if we met in weird circumstances, like in the like for KFC and being like "Oh my god that is Katy Perry!" or in a launderette or something similar. The weird circumstances isn't necessarily a part of the whole meet a celebrity goal, it would be pretty cool if I just bumped into Emma Watson on a street corner and was like "oh hi", but I just think the strange circumstances would just make the story much more interesting.

6) Go to Japan

There isn't really a reason behind this one, I would just like to see as much of the world as possible, and I have been to both America and Australia multiple times, so I just feel like Japan is the next country that I would like to see.

7) Grow my hair out and donate it to charity

Over many years I have suffered with body image issues and have struggled with how my hair looks. When I had it all cut off, I felt like I had finally found myself, but then it all grew out again about a year later and I was working. My life just felt like it was spiraling out of control and I cut my hair back to the length it was (very badly too) and felt like I was taking back that control. I feel like it causes me stress if my hair grows too long, and I cannot handle it being longer than a certain length.

Something that I have always wanted to do is to grow my hair out and donate it to The Little Princess Trust or a similar company, but other than when it was originally all cut off, it has not really been long enough for me to cut and donate. 

I would love to try and battle this issue and allow my hair to grow longer again, and I feel like with the motivation of knowing that the next time it would be getting a proper cut it would be getting donated may help me push aside all of my issues and just allow it to grow and give it to a good cause. 

I actually have intentions of beginning to allow it to grow out in autumn of this year, I feel like mental health wise I am in a much better place to allow this, and the reason why I have decided autumn and not now is because I think short hair would just be much more manageable in the Florida Weather during my holiday in summer.

8) Get a Selfie with an Alpaca

This is another one of the random ones on the list. I managed to get a selfie with a cow in the first few weeks of university, so the next animal that is on the selfie agenda is an alpaca.

9) Be in a professional production of a show

As I am currently studying musical theatre at university, I am hoping that I will be able to get something out of this. It has always been my dream to be performing on stage since I was six years old, and although things may have changed in my life, this still remains the same. I would love to be an actor on stage and would not mind what show or part I am given to achieve this since the industry is so competitive as it is so you cannot be picky with what jobs you are offered. I have been involved in many School/College productions and amature productions, but my ultimate dream is to be able to break into the professional industry of Musical Theatre.

10) Make my own Halloween costume and wear it

I have been making my own costumes and dresses for years, especially when I was younger, I had a huge interest in cosplay. I remember spending all of my money on fabric and craft foam to make a new cosplay, and my mum would tell me off for wasting my money. I have a huge passion for costume design and I would love to be able to make a costume for an occasion to wear, and what is the one night of the year where everyone has the excuse to dress up? Halloween! I would love to make an outfit to wear one day, especially since I enjoyed dressing up for Halloween 2018 so much!

11) Spend a week of my life without the internet

The amount of people who are dependent on the internet is scary. Sometimes I get the impression that if the internet went down for a day people would think that th apocalypse has hit. I wouldn't say that I am 100% reliable on the internet, but I would be lying if I said that a week without the internet didn't scare me. But before the internet exsisted we survived, so I believe that it will be refreshing and interesting to try out.

12) Manage to read 50 books in a year

I have been trying to read 25 books in a year for quite some time, and 2018 was finally the year I reached my target. This year my target is to read 30 books, but I would eventually like to be able to read 50 books in a year. 

13) Work a Summer in Disney

I feel like it is everyone's dream to work in Disney at some point in their life, I would absolutely love to work there at some point if I an lucky enough. During my two years at college, I had a job as a Princess for a Company in my area and I absolutely loved it! Although I understand that there is a very intensive casting process to be a character, I would love to be able to say that I even worked in one of the shops at Disney or I walked around with the characters in the parks to make sure they were okay and to take people's photo's with them.

14) Adopt a Dog

I want to adopt a dog more than I want a relationship at this point. I have no idea what type of dog I would like to get, but we shall see what happens. If I ever get the money I want to adopt every dog that has been abandoned or put in a shelter and give them the life they deserve to have.

15) Make a start on my own business

I would love to be able to work for myself and not have to listen to anyone else, or go through the issues of having a shady manager who messes with my paycheck again. In the last few years I have thought about running my own business and what I would do, I do not have everything figured out in my head yet, but I do have a few ideas.

16) Write a Book

Having a love of books myself, I have always wanted to write my own book. I have no idea what the process is of actually writing a books and what you would need to do or even how much it would cost to get published, but this is something that has been on my bucket list for many years, and this is something I would absolutely love to accomplish in the next ten years.

17) Go on a night out and stay later than 12am

Having been over the legal age for drinking for the past two years, I am surprised to say that I have not been on a night out drinking before, unless you would count a pizza and a glass of wine at my local Weatherspoons at 7pm. I don't really feel like I have to go out, I feel like I have enough life experience without having to go out, but it is something I would like to do at least once, just so I have the experience of this.

18) Live in another country for a year

There is so much in the world that it scares me to think that I would have to stay in one place for the rest of my life. I would absolutely love to live in another country for a year just to experience other cultures and to see what life is like there. I don't really have a country in mind that I would like to live in, maybe not an english speaking country though so I will also pick up the skill of learning a new language at the same time as experiencing the culture.

19) Read Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Les Miserables has been in my life since I was 13 years old, and I would absolutely love to be able to dedicate the time and effort to read the book that it was adapted from. I believe that there is so much depth and character development that may have been brushed over due to the two hour constraints of the stage play. I love reading classic stories, and so many people brush them aside because they are old. True, some of these stories are over 100 years old, but I think it is still important to appreciate older literature and to see how far we have come over time. Although I will probably finish the Lord of the Rings series before I finish reading this, which will also take a long time. 

20) Go Sky diving

Because why not!

21) Play all of the Legend of Zelda Games and get as close to 100% as humanly possible

So the Legend of Zelda games have been in my life probable since I was about 7 years old when my brother got Twilight Princess. I believe I have played all of the "main" Zelda games, but I would love to be able to say that I have played every game in the series. Here are the games that I have managed to play so far:

• The Legend of Zelda
• The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
• The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 
• The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
• The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker
• The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword
• The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hour Glass
• The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks
• The Legend of Zelda: A Link between Worlds
• The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

I won't be including all of the spin off games in this (like Hyrule Warriors and the CDI games (this one in particular since they just seem to be so terrible that I do not want to put myself through that pain)) just since the list is already so long and I want to try and 100% the games in the main series which is going to take a while. The game that I have come closest to completing in Breath of the Wild, but even then, I have no idea where all of those Korak seeds live!

22) Learn another Language

This one kind of goes hand in hand with living in another country for a year. I would really like to learn another language since I feel  like people born with English as their first language sort of have an expectation for people who speak foreign languages to speak English so they can communicate rather than learning french when they know they are going to France. I learnt French and German in secondary school, but it was all the really silly stuff like "I like going to the cinema" and "My favourite colour is blue", so wouldn't really be beneficial in a real life situation. Honestly, why is Languages taught the worst in schools? Its so bad because I would have loved to be able to master a different language at an earlier age!

23) Have a non-stop Harry Potter movie marathon

This would be excluding Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them franchise, but I would absolutely love to have a marathon watching all eight Harry Potter movies. They will always be among my favourite movies of all time, especially since I grew up with them. Kids these days will not know how it felt to go to the cinema every year or two to find out what happens in the next Harry Potter movie, although I guess that's what the generation growing up with the books would have thought about us growing up with the movies. This marathon has been a life long goal ever since Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows part 2 was released, so hopefully I will eventually be able to make this happen at some point.

24) Go to a book signing 

I would love to go to a book signing one day. I have only met one of the authors whose books I had read (I hope that makes sense), but she was invited into our school to give us a talk so it does't really count (although it was really cool! If you are curious to know, it was Juno Dawson who I met, she was really awesome!) But I would like to go to a book signing and meet more authors and get the chance to discuss their books with them (or whatever you do at book signings!)

25) Get a Master's Degree

I would love to carry on in education if I can, but I'm not entirely sure of how master's degree's are funded and how I would go abouts getting on. I will also have to wait and see how I feel in my third year of university before I go into making any drastic decisions to add more student debt to my name.

26) Be on TV

This has been on my list for a while, but technically I can cross this off my list as in November 2018, I worked with the BBC for Children in Need. This featured a 3 second clip of me appearing on TV in my area, but still that is an achievement!

27) Get a decent gaming PC

Currently I am using my laptop for most of my games, and the lag is absolutely terrible. I would love to get a decent gaming PC at some point so that I will be able to run games more smoothly (hopefully). But let's be honest, the only reason why I want a decent gaming PC is so that it can handle all of the Mods I want to install for the Sims!

28) Upgrade Eye-makeup skills

Eye makeup is a special kind of art, and is one that I would love to be able to master at some point. I would say now I am okay at eye makeup, but it doesn't necessarily look the best all the time. 

29) Go to a Gay Bar

Yes, I have managed to make 20 and not go out clubbing yet. I remember officially starting uni and one of the staff asking me if I enjoyed my first night out and I said to her I went to bed and 9pm, and her face was a picture. I'm not really a going out person, I enjoy nights in with a hot chocolate and a movie more, but this is something that I would like to do at least once before I turn 30, plus, where else am I supposed to find some women appreciating women?

30) Go Horse Riding

Do you know when something has always been on your agenda, but you just haven't been given the opportunity to do it? That's my relationship with horse riding. It's something that I have never done before but I have always wanted to do!

So there we have it, 30 before 30! I would love to be able to come back to this list in ten years time and tick off everything that I have done and say what I have still yet to do! What are somethings that you want to do in the next ten years? Let me know!