Nathan Lehmann

I'm done with the first semester of my Sophomore year! Life is speeding up so quickly that sometimes it's hard to just stop and enjoy life. The perfect example is how fast winter break flew by. The 2 weeks I spent in Madison felt like 2 days. It was so nice to catch up with my family and friends. Michigan's schedule is not in sync with other schools so I was pretty much alone the first week back as all my friends were in the middle of finals... but when they all got back in town it was so nice to hear about their college experiences.

Over break I also had to prepare for department auditions. The Musical Theatre Department is producing CAROUSEL and CAUCASIAN CHALK CIRCLE next semester. CCC is a play by Brecht and promises to be a very interesting piece of theatre. The head of our department has been talking about doing CAROUSEL for years and has finally made the decision to produce it. This promises to be one of the biggest and best productions Michigan has ever put on.

I, unfortunately, was not cast this semester. While I completely understand that I am not exactly right for either show it is still hard to be attending a school where you are a performance major who's not performing. I'm ecstatic for my fellow classmates but I can't help but feel a bit bitter about their good fortune.

This weekend is shaping up to be spectacular. My best friend from home is coming in to town, an alumni, Alex Brumel, is having a concert and it is one of my closest friend's birthday. My next post promises to have a lot of great stories from this coming weekend.

-Nathan Lehmann

Finals start next week... TERRIFYING! I have one week to do an obscene amount of work in addition to working behind the scenes on the University's Production of A GOOD BOY. I would have plenty of time to finish my work if I didn't have rehearsals to go to every night... but I signed myself up for it so I guess I'll have to deal. I am so excited to go home for the holidays... there is something about Christmas time and the holidays that makes me instantly happy! The decorations, the music and just the overall tone of the season is so uplifting... I LOVE IT!

If you don't have any plans this weekend you should come to see A GOOD BOY... it plays Friday, Saturday and Sunday night. It is a very interesting piece because it neither a play nor a musical. It sits artistically somewhere in between these two art forms. The dance inserted in to scenes throughout the piece is what makes it, to some extent, a musical but the lack of singing makes one shy away from this label very quickly. The show follows the story of a boy whose first love is dance growing up in a family that has its troubles... to say the least. Scott's mother is also highlighted in the piece. We see her relive her troubled childhood as Scott grows and matures. So come see it! It's not the most uplifting piece of theatre ever created but it definitely has its moments of brilliance.


-Nathan Lehmann

I’m sitting in an airport right now on my way home for Thanksgiving! I am so excited to be back in Madison and to see all my family and friends again. I don’t think I have ever been more anxious to eat a meal in my life. It’s easy to forget with my busy schedule at school that I hardly ever eat real meals; a power bar and a piece of fruit is what my diet at Michigan mostly consists of. Turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, stuffing and pie… I CAN’T WAIT!!!! And family is good too…

ROCKY HORROR closed last weekend. It was so much fun. The audience was so enthusiastic and invested in the performance. All the hardcore fans of the movie came out and dressed as their favorite characters. The things that are usually yelled back at the movie screen were shouted at us on stage. Being a part of the show was like being a rock star for a weekend because of how crazy the audience was. Usually in theatrical productions the audience is much more subdued but these people were not afraid to hoot and holler throughout the show.

Cross your fingers that I’ll be cast next semester in the University’s production of CAROUSEL, which is a very different show from ROCKY HORROR but great nonetheless.

-Nathan Lehmann

I am now 20 years old... say goodbye to being a teenager! I think I might be having my quarter life crisis! All the responsibilities of being an adult are becoming a reality; I'm not a kid anymore.

The thing that I love about being a Musical Theatre major here at the U of M is that I have a built-in family. My fellow MT's are my family here in Michigan and they made my birthday simply amazing! My classmates bought me a Magic Bullet Blender! I have been talking about how I wanted the Blender since I came in September. It is pretty much the most phenomenal blender you will ever see. My parents gave me a gift certificate to a dancewear shop in Madison that I will be liquidating once I get back to Wisconsin.

All in all, I had an awesome birthday. I'm one year closer to 21! Now I go in to Tech Week for ROCKY HORROR and I'll be sure to keep you updated on that as I begin performances.

- Nathan Lehmann

Sooo... my life has gotten way more complicated in the past week. I have recently found out that the rough draft for my Art History final paper is due next Monday! I just found an accompanist for my voice lessons and we're meeting on Monday to finalize the rep I am singing for my voice professor Tuesday. I haven't even started looking at the pieces I want to present. I also have 3 new rep songs to learn for my performance class! Most of you probably don't know what a performance class is... well I'll let you know right now! It is pretty much the best class I have ever taken. As a musical theatre performer it is very important that you are able to act and convey emotion through music and this class teaches you just that. We get up and perform Musical Theatre pieces in front of class and then the professor gives us pointers on how to improve. He asks us about our "want" and "the battle" in the song. I have already learned sooo many skills that I will use later in my life for my career.

This week is going to be hectic to say the least but there is a light at the end of the tunnel because this Friday I will be turning 20! I am so excited for my birthday and I'll make sure to keep you all updated on what gifts I get. Last year my class took me out to eat and then we went to a party together. Hopefully they'll try to top that this year!

-Nathan Lehmann

My mother is one of the most organized people I know. She is constantly updating her date book and making her "to-do" list for the following day. As much as I don't like to admit it, I am very much like my mother and the chromosome carrying the "organization" gene was most definitely passed to me. I am constantly making lists of what tasks I need to accomplish. I make lists of my schedule each day even when I have only one class to go to and nothing more. Most people might call this OCD, but I call it smart!

I am an extremely stressed out person and for some reason writing out exactly what I need to do alleviates this stress that is always looming in the back of my mind. Crossing off tasks on my list makes me absurdly happy. My friends laugh at me when they see my list but I think organization is something all college students need! The life of a student is very hectic. We have class in addition to extra curriculars in addition to just being a person and keeping our social lives in tact. I am at school to grow intellectually but also to grow as a human being.

So at the end of the day, I think my OCD makes my life, ironically, less crazy! I am able to schedule my time in such a way that I am able to keep my sanity while still meeting my scholastic demands.

-Nathan Lehmann

The four days I had off for fall break was a much needed rest from the crazy schedule I keep for most of the school year. There was no class, no rehearsal, no work in the costume shop, NOTHING; just time to relax! I was supposed to use this break to study for my midterms and work on my huge paper I have due for Art History but this time off was spent mostly with friends and not in a library.

Last weekend was the opening of the University's production of BIG RIVER. I was able to attend a preview performance and it was amazing! All of the productions put on by the Musical Theatre department are great but BIG RIVER really struck a chord with me. The music and the talent on that stage was astounding to witness and I count myself lucky to be in the same department as those performers. After the show closed on Sunday there was a cast party for the whole department at one of my fellow MT's house. I had the most fun I've ever had at Michigan at this party!

To top the weekend off I went to see THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, the musical, in Detroit. There were two graduates from Michigan in the production and watching them perform was so inspiring. The fact that they are performing professionally so soon after they graduated last May is amazing and makes me very hopeful about my life after Michigan!

-Nathan Lehmann