Here I am in Minneapolis! Everything is pretty good--I feel a little like I'm camping, but that's all good. It would be really difficult to describe what we're doing. Well, I mean we have movement classes (which have me totally sore!) and rehearsals (our scene is SOOOOO cool), but generally the program is all about integrating all elements of performance--voice, body, mind--to help us become singer-actors, not just singers who put on some sort of mask or something. It already has me thinking about, well, my approach to life in general, not just to singing. The concepts are really transformative.

The only issues we have are logistical--such as, is there a supermarket we can walk to? Where should we eat dinner? (There's this Thai place we went to last night which was just not good and gave me some serious reflux.) And there is a problem, actually, and I'm not sure how we can address it. The participants here are diverse--they range in age from 17 to 40-ish, and come from different backgrounds and experiences. There's a girl I live with (who's also in my scene) who's about 20 and has a great voice with lots of potential, but is nearly blind, has hearing problems and is also a little slow (though I can't tell the extent of her disability). Apparently the Institute was not informed ahead of time of her special needs (they found out Sunday, along with the rest of us), and it's been causing problems. She gets around pretty well, but she pretty much needs somebody to walk around with her whenever we're not at the dorm. And she's had noticeable difficulty understanding concepts and directions in movement classes and in rehearsals. If the program's directors had been informed, they could have at least arranged to have her in a first floor apartment (though at least we have elevators). But they may have decided the program wasn't right for her in the first place. I mean, so much of what we're doing is physical and visual, and a lot of it defies easy description to someone who has limited vision. I think it's more her mental disability that's the problem, though. And she's pretty much latched on to me and Elena and Emily (another girl in our scene). Honestly, we've pretty much been babysitting her for the last two days (her mother stayed here through Sunday evening). And while I totally don't mind looking out for other people who need help, I paid all this money to come here to learn, and it's taking away from my dearly-bought education to take care of her. Plus--I don't mean to sound like a bad person--she's always tagging along with us, and sometimes we just want to be by ourselves. And I don't think she understands that. And I don't want her to feel left out, but sometimes I just want to say, "Why don't you ask somebody else what they're doing for dinner tonight?" It makes me feel really bad. I do want to help her. But I'm starting to resent the situation--and Elena and Emily feel the same way. I think I may say something to the directors--though I'm not sure what that would accomplish. We'll discuss it amongst ourselves. I don't know. Does it make sense to feel how I feel? I guess knowing I'm not alone on this (and Elena and Emily are both REALLY nice people--Emily didn't even know me yet, and she helped me carry my huge suitcase up to the dorm Sunday afternoon) makes me feel like I'm not being shallow, but I want to know what you all think I ought to do.

Okay, I have to go to the bathroom. But rest assured I'm having a great experience here. :)