On our final days before the Holiday Break, we had the privilege of escaping the cold and flying to sunny and 65 Laguna Beach, California! A few nights on the oceanfront made all of us leave insanely refreshed and happy to perform prior to visiting our families for break.

We arrived to California on Thursday, December 19 and have had a whirlwind of a time since we left on Saturday, December 21. After arriving and settling quickly at our hotel, we walked to our venue at a beautiful church location in Laguna. We had 90 minutes in the space to figure out how to make the choreography we had prepared in Chicago for the 6 songs we were performing to in the Opera. Adjustments had to be made especially since the space proved to be quite tight. It’s nothing we are not used to – as professionals we are equipped to make quick changes and adjust to the space or stage we are utilizing. After the spacing rehearsal, we got dressed in our crimson red costumes and prepared for a Dress Rehearsal run of the full opera show with singers, musicians, and all of us dancers.

The show was titled “Handel’s Messiah” and is considered the “Nutcracker of Operas” in the Opera world. It’s a show patrons love to come see around the Holiday season. The dress rehearsal went off without a hitch, we had all of Friday to enjoy the city of Laguna, enjoy the crashing of the waves, and soak up the sunshine! Friday night’s performance was packed with viewers and the audience seemed to love it. We are so happy to have worked with Opera Laguna and hope to have the privilege to see and work with them again.

Here’s to a wonderful Holiday Break – enjoy the time with your loved ones and we will see you in 2025! Happy New Year!