Denver, CO

Here we are in Denver. I'm staying at the Magnolia hotel and it is beautiful. I'm staying in of one the extended stay suites with a kitchen, and what a treat it has been to be able to cook food and not just eat microwavable meals (or P & J ). We're a block away from the 16th Street Mall which is a 2 mile strip of stores. It's been wonderful to have everything within walking distance. Gizel (Rosalia) and I have become frequent shoppers at the corner Walgreen's, as have many of the other cast members. If anyone wants to see any of us out of character after a show that's the place to go! The first week in Denver we had some press to do. Ross Lekites (Tony), Ryan Ghysels (our dance captain) and I did a sit down interview with Eden Lane for her show on PBS "In Focus with Eden Lane".

Here is the link:

http://blip.tv/infocustv/in-focus-with-eden-lane-411-west-side-story-evergreen-players-5845757

I also did an interview for Big Hollywood.

Here is the link:

http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cftoto/2011/12/22/bh-interview-west-side-storys-evy-ortiz-tackling-a-timeless-romance-with-a-21st-century-spin/

After press I was free to explore with my guy who came to visit me. We walked all over, looking at the beautiful architecture and even visited Occupy Denver (although there didn't seem to be much occupying going on, just a few people hanging around smoking.) We walked Larimer Street which is pretty and quaint with lots of little shops and decorated for the holidays.

We walked along the Cherry Creek Trail which runs thru Denver to get to the aquarium. Another successful day of exploring in yet another city.

Its been busy here in Denver with a 16 show run with no day off the first two weeks and flying home for the holiday. We all needed those days off to finally recover! After going home to NY for the holiday, it's the final week here in Denver and I'm getting ready to head to the next stop Portland, OR. We have two shows on New Year's Eve and a matinee on New Year's Day, so the celebrations aren't going to be too crazy for me.

So far Denver has been a great city to perform in and explore!

Denver: Behind the Scenes

BEHIND THE SCENES WITH THE CAST

I asked some of the Jets..."What is your favorite thing about Denver so far? What has been your favorite restaurant or meal?"

Chris Rice (Baby John/ Tony understudy)

"I really love the responsive audiences. There's a really big theatre community here and its really exciting to have good audiences and to feel like they're excited to be a part of the show.

I had these amazing nachos at Rock Bottom Brewery on 16th Street. It was delicious so definitely check it out if you're in Denver!"

Clay Thompson (A-Rab)

"My favorite thing about Denver has been the beauty of the mountains.

My favorite place to eat so far has been Sam's No. 3 Diner. I had the french toast and it was really good. I've been there multiple times and I plan on going again before I leave."

Casey Garvin (Deisel)

"My favorite thing about Denver has been the beautiful landscape we're surrounded by, it's mind blowing. And it's good to be back doing the show. Everything here is so festive and there's something on every block, whether it be food or a store, the town is so easily accessible.

One of my favorite place so far to eat is Sam's No. 3 Diner. The omelettes are so good!"

Christie Portera (Velma/ Graziela understudy)

"I love the free mall ride on 16th Street and Larimer Street because it has a ton of little individual shops.

The best meal I've had so far was at Rioja. And the Euclid Bar was great too. The chicken and waffles were amazing!"

Layoff

It's been a month since I've done the show and it seems surreal that I will be performing again in 2 days! I have been home in New York for a month and it has been wonderful spending quality time with my Mom, puppy and special guy :) I've been lazy, gone to the country to learn how to fish, be lazy some more, buy taffy, shop at Kmart, put up Christmas trees, have visits with old friends, build a ginger bread house...It's been so good to be home and I feel rejuvenated. New York how I missed you!

Vocally and physically I'm well rested and its exciting to sing the music again. I had a voice lesson this week to check in and it's amazing how all the music can come back so quickly, even after a month. The next stop is Denver, CO. I'm ready to take on the altitude and dry air

with my humidifier and tea!

Happy Holidays everyone!

East Lansing, MI

Hi everyone!

This is going to be a quick short blog because as you know (if you've been following the blog) this entry is very late! East Lansing was a tough week because of some fatigue and home sickness setting in. Our opening night party was at a local restaurant and we had some of the best food so far of our opening parties. I treated myself to a facial and massage at the local spa attached to our hotel and it felt great! The week was mostly about performing at night and preparing to go home the following week. We were all excited to have a month off!