Tales from my Bucket List

We lose ourselves in the things we love; We find ourselves there too 

~ Kristin Martz

I found this quote on Pinterest recently and it really resonated with me. I have been so lucky to have some amazing opportunities to do what I love and learn so much about myself in the process, and last Friday and Saturday proved to be no different.

Ash and I were lucky enough to be putting on our fourth cabaret in the last two years. When we started tossing around themes for this show, the idea of our dream roles and shows popped up and thus began The Bucket List show.We wanted to choose songs that reflected a mix of things that we had already accomplished on our bucket lists, some of our dream roles as well as those things on our bucket lists that we have yet to accomplish. I wanted to write this post to share the back stories to some of the songs I chose for the show.

Please note - we've yet to sort through the video footage, so I've linked to some of my favourite versions of other people singing them

Come Down from the Tree

I initially chose this song because I've wanted to sing it for quite awhile and it's from a show called Once on this Island, so I was going to be able to easily tie it into some of the travel I've done already, specifically my trip to St. Lucia. The more I sang it and talked to Tara about it, the more I realized how much it really applied to my life and the changes that came as a result of St. Lucia. The song is about asking someone to make tough changes out of a safe, comfortable, familiar place. And while sometimes that's quite scary, it is also really rewarding. Sometimes you gotta step out of your comfort zone, and often the things on your bucket list enable you to do just that.

Climbing Uphill

The Last Five Years and pretty much anything by Jason Robert Brown is absolutely on my bucket list. Continuing to be onstage is definitely on my bucket list and there are definitely some things that I still need to do while up there! One of the joys/downfalls of performing can be the audition process and all the factors that work for/against you in the casting process! This song really depicts the ups and the downs of what can happen in the audition room and it is so much fun to sing for that reason.

I Wish I May

When you're young, dreams seem limitless. We are unafraid to dream big and us our imaginations. Somewhere along the course of life, many people lose that sense of wonder. I don't believe that needs to be the case. We sang this song to reflect on the way it used to be and encourage our audience to continue aspiring to great, big, wonderful dreams, especially with regards to their bucket lists.

My Book

Writing a book is up high on my bucket list. That's probably obvious, considering that I've been writing this blog for 4 years now. Jeff Blumenkrantz's song is hilarious (and challenging to sing) and was a super addition to the show in sharing that item from my list.

Remember Me

I fell in love with this song the very first time I heard it. I had done another Michael John LaChuisa song in class and after doing some more research on his music I found Remember Me. The song is about the impact we have on others, but really the impact they have on us. "The only way we live beyond our lives is to connect, and carve ourselves into the souls of those we love". I surprised Ashley at our first show my dedicating this song to her. She has had a profound impact on my life and I am so thankful for her friendship and the fact that we get to do what we love together.

The Story Goes On

This song grew on me the more I sang it. With people around me getting married and having babies, it has been a constant reminder of "growing up" and what's to come. I know that one day I do want to get married and have a child. I know that there are a lot of things I am setting out to accomplish first, and I'm not there just yet, but I will be. The Story Goes On is about the legacy that we leave through our children and how we enable the story to "go on".

Falling Slowly

If you were at the first night of the show, you're probably thinking - the Ashleys didn't sing Falling Slowly at their cabaret?! Unfortunately due to time constraints, we had to cut in on the first night. For me, that made it even more special on the second night. I love the movie and the musical Once and I've said a few times that it is on my bucket list to sing Falling Slowly with someone that I love. I love Ashley, so it was perfect. I had goosebumps and tears when we sang this together. It was pretty magical. So happy we crossed it off my list.

One of my favourite parts of the show was having our audience members write down items from their bucket lists for us to share

Their answers were inspiring, hilarious and awesome. Lots of travel, adventures and big dreams. I think my favourite was "Colin Farrell". 

Definitely not a bad thing to have on your bucket list. 

I can't wait to share video from the shows with you very soon! For now I hope you enjoyed gaining some insight into my bucket list as well as why I chose some of the songs for the show!

What are some things on your bucket list that you've already accomplished? What's still to come?