Hello! I’m Amy Justman, a member of the Ensemble for Where’s Charley?, and I will be your guide to the Encores performer experience for the next two weeks. I’m very honored that City Center’s marketing department has asked me to be their guest blogger, although I’m still not entirely sure why they chose me. It may have something to do with this being my third Encores production or the fact that my husband is a very talented blogger himself. Unless it has to do with the poetry contest that I won my senior year of high school when my family had to drive all the way to East Lyme, Connecticut, for me to accept my plaque.

My plan was to spend lots of time on this introductory post, polishing and editing until it was in pristine yet faux-casual form. Unfortunately, it’s 10:50 PM and I’ve just gotten home from a 3-hour recording session, so it’s going to be the best I can do while still getting enough sleep tonight.

The night before rehearsal starts always feels like the night before the first day of school: What will I wear? Will I remember to bring my pencils and highlighters? What if I don’t know anyone? Luckily, the longer you’ve worked in New York, the more the first day feels like a reunion rather than a scary new experience. I’m looking forward to seeing several folks I already know tomorrow, including principals Lauren Worsham (we first worked together at the Edinburgh Fringe) and Sebastian Arcelus (we played opposite each other in Taxi Cabaret at NYMF) and music director Rob Berman, with whom I’ve worked on my other two Encores experiences, Music in the Air (German beermaid costume) and Lost in the Stars (Afrikaaner/Banana Republic circa 1990 costume). I’m probably most excited, though, to work again with director John Doyle, whom I have to thank for my first Broadway experience, the 2006 revival of Company. I won’t have to memorize any piano scores this time around, but I will have to dance, which is a much more frightening prospect for me, Singer Who Moves Well.

So I am looking forward to the Meet and Greet tomorrow morning — reminding myself to eat the free fruit and not the free pastries — as well as the first day of music rehearsal with my fellow ensemble members. Will fill you in on more details tomorrow!