Day One: From the Counselors

Hello there lovely parents, families and followers of the arts-X-press BLOG!!


we had a lovely day today.  It started with some tea and crumpets in the morning.  On the bus.  And then on the patio.  The butler, Garret, was very hospitable and courteous.  JUST KIDDING!!  Your LOVELY artists arrived to campus excited and ready for the first activity of the day: NEW GAMES!!  We played the Human Knot, Concentration, the Name Game, Little Sally Walker, Who's the Chief?, the Number Game and MUCH MUCH MORE :)  It was a splendid way for the campers to meet and learn new names.

Then we had lunch in our LOVELY cafeteria with special guest Ian McKinnel.  He spoke with a few students about being a cellist in the Pacific Symphony.  We all got really excited to see him perform in the evening!

Then we got to go to our Arts Workshops and Creative Expression classes.  Everybody was raving about all the fun they had singing their songs and dancing their dances and drumming their drums and painting their paintings and acting their acts.  We can't wait to show you what we've done at the Parent Presentation on Tuesday night!

Finally we got on the bus to go to the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater for Cirque de la Symphonie.  We learned the arts-X-press song and other various LOVELY camp songs.  La la la la!  Upon our arrival on the special "limo road," we were treated to an EXCLUSIVE arts-X-press ONLY backstage tour.  Then we got to meet the LOVELY conductor himself, Maxim Eshkenazy.  He was AWESOME!  Did you know that he is a pilot?  Of airplanes, and helicopters.  And he parachutes too!  But most importantly, he taught us to pursue our passions through thick and thin.  He practices many hours a day and he sure puts on a great show!

We ate dinner and then had a surprise visit from another special guest!  It was Josh Roach, conductor of the Pacific Symphony Youth Wind Ensemble.  He gave us a few inside secrets of the concert and then we were off to our seats in our little family groups.  The concert was FANNNNTASTIC!!  Splendid, awesome, and LOVELY.  The music was inspiring and the acrobatics mind-boggling.  I'm sure you'll hear all about it after the Parent Presentation on Tuesday during your three minutes of LOVELY time together.

The bus ride back was very m ellow and now everybody has showered (3 minutes is up!!!) and gone peacefully to snoring sleepy sleep in the LOVELY dorms.  Everyone loves to be in college (dorms.)  We'll be waking up bright and early, so this is Darlene and Tina SIGNINGGGG OFFF.  Good night, friends.

(written 12:43 am after Day 1.  Posted late due to continuing internet outage on campus!)