#overture contest

[overture-contest]

Round 1, Poll 16

Propaganda for Anything Goes:

It's just so fun and sounds so quintessentially musical-y and overture-y

Propaganda for Phantom of the Opera:

It's the Phantom of the Opera overture. It's THE overture. It needs no introduction. It's a 27-piece orchestra blasting your eardrums off while a giant haunted chandelier levitates over the the Majestic Theatre and the pipe organ rattles the audience in their seats.

When the full orchestra pauses for a moment then soars in with that melody, is possibly the best thing ever put to stage. I think you could invent books full of new adjectives to describe the experience of listening to the Phantom overture.

It is one of the most iconic, most well known overture, showcases all the music that will be playing perfectly, and is paired with the rising of the chandelier

[the-count-and-the-raven]

Happy valentines :}

[looneylounna]

WELLCOME TO 2025 LOA

Tumblr sexyman competition!!!

In total, there are 42 PC forms, main and min campaign of the legend of avantris it just boys, no lady, they get their own competition next time, and the bracket was chosen based on a random wheel generator the order of bracket is left then right then move down to go back to left then right

The PC that don't have official Artwork I will put my art or use my fellow LoA artwork for polls artwork

this will have SPOILER to Campaign that have PC that show up later or leave so far waring to folks that don't know about them

Luck for the fan of one-shot Campaign

I made mistake of forgetting to add main PC on list so rejoice your one-shot Campaign may win the competition as the wild card!

to the fan of the patreon exclusive campaign. I only added one since it's part of the Wikipedia for LOA, so sorry to folks fan of other patreon exclusive campaign

As for what campaigns are part of this

Prime,Icebound,once upon a Witchlight, Edge of Midnight, Curse of Strahdanya,Beneath Dark Wings, Stardust Rhapsody: Overture/Anthem,Uprooted,Shroud Over Saltmarsh,and 13 beers at the local cheese

if you want to share or talk about this competition, please use it at less one of these tags

#2025LOATumblrsexyman

#2025LOATumblerSexyManCompetition

#LOAtumblersexymancompetition

#LOATumblerSexyMan

#LOATSM

#2025LOATSM

If you have questions please use my ask

My vote will be on the random wheel to keep me fair, so it's not based on my own choice, but by random chance

As for bribing with art or fanfic or making me laugh or making your case as to why this PC should go forward into competition is OK

with given me the host money as bribing is NOT Ok

To artist am cool being used as Art gallery for this contest art

Ok, to explain more how bribes me works if one of your choice PC lost a round, then you need to give me a good case and a compelling bribes, then l let's lose go to next Round instead

will only vote in your favor if you are really good at convincing and bribing me then yes l vote in your favorite if don't work in your favor then my vote will be random generator

I will state when the one that moves forward is because of bribes!!

otherwise, it be voter choice going forward !

Once round 4 have started, l will no longer accept bribes to make one of the choices to go forward regardless of who wins or loses

I will still go vote in your favor for Bribe me, but if your favorite is still lost, I'm not going to make a move forward in up to the voter choice

But if polls end with ties, then l as host will pick who goes forward!!

The voting time will last about 1 week

Time zone: PST when post polls

This will be pin so can go back easily to reread anything you miss :]

[jezabelle9299]

Halloween S.R x Fem!Reader

Overture- You and Spencer are the only ones wearing costumes in the bureau this Halloween, he just got called in for a case, and you're dropping some things off for your roommate (Y/R/N). I want it to be fall so bad, it's 90 degrees where I live and my car does not have A/C. Also reader is a weeping angel from doctor who, which is essentially a creature that while it is being perceived by anyone looks like a statue (Specifically of an angel usually), very freaky, but reader's costume is a little more cutesy. (They're also only in the second iteration of the show, but as far as I'm concerned Spencer and reader are still matching.)

C-Ws- It's all fluff, there's a kiss? Teasing, reader is referred to as a girl, wears makeup, heels, dresses, etc, holding hands, they're like in love almost immediately.

Your roommate forgot the paperwork she needed. Again. This time she called you while you were on your way out the door to your halloween plans, begging you for a stack of files she definitely was not supposed to take home, that were nevertheless on your dining room table. This was far from the first time she’d asked you to bring her something, but it was the first time she said she wouldn’t meet you in the lobby or the coffee shop around the block. She was, in her words, “Chained to her desk”. So she required you to actually check in with security, and bring her files to her desk. The lovely kicker being that you were already in full costume.

She shut down your contesting with the promise of making her amazing pumpkin bread when she got home.So you swallowed your ego as you took one last look in the mirror. Your costume was cute, verging on sexy, but dorky enough to keep it from fully reaching that point. You were a weeping angel from Doctor Who. You were in a short gray dress with a stone pattern, gray tights with accompanying high heels, and gray lace gloves with don’t blink embroidered on them. The look was completed with some small angel wings and makeup that was smokey enough to tow the line between sexy and spooky. 

You walked into the building files in hand, up to the security desk. After picking up your visitor pass, you made your way to the elevators. Safely alone in the silver box, the doors started to close. That is, until someone turns on their side to slide through them. He’s exhausted, after clearly running through the lobby somehow not spilling the coffee in his hand. He was also in costume, giving you huge relief after passing all of the serious suit-clad agents in the lobby.

You smiled at his choice in costume, he was dressed as the 4th doctor, making your costumes kind of match. The doors closed once again and you stood side by side in silence. He was looking at you, almost like he was trying to figure out what you were. You expected this of course, but he clearly watched the show. Until he cleared his throat as you were approaching the 2nd floor. 

“I’m sorry-Hi-sorry I just, I have to ask. Are you… a weeping angel? You smiled at that. He did get it. But you pushed down some of your excitement to make an attempt at a cool headed response.

“I am! I’ll be very disappointed if that was an odd pickup line and not a guess.” His eyes got as big as saucers, and he put his hands out like he was trying to stop a runaway train, still clutching a coffee cup in his right hand, but doing the motion all the same. 

“No!-That’s-It was a guess. It’s a great costume.” 

“Thank you, I like yours too, a doctor dressed as the doctor.” You said that referencing the ID tag hanging from his bag, but he looked.. Skeptical? 

“How did you know I was a doctor?” He was just too cute. He worked at the FBI and couldn’t seem to gather that his name tag was giving him away? You just gave a small giggle and pointed to the plastic. When he looked down confused, he came back up embarrassed. Then the elevator did a final chime as the doors opened to the 5th floor.

“I guess on that note, this is my stop. Will I see you around the building?” He looked hopeful in a way that made you wish the elevator hadn’t stopped just so you could spend a few more minutes with him. That is, until you realized you also needed to get off at this floor. 

“Actually, could you help me? I’m supposed to drop some stuff off for my roommate, but I don’t know where her desk is. It's somewhere on this floor.” 

“Definitely-sure, what’s her name I can-” He was cut off by a man who was the epitome of the phrase ‘Tall, dark, and handsome.’ Not your type, but very classically handsome.

“Well, well, well, pretty boy who did you bring to work?” He reached his hand out to you, but you were busy with some extreme embarrassment, feeling even more out of place than you had in the lobby. The man next to you was’t better, his face reading as exhausted and humiliated. You eventually pulled your mouth shut where it was agape and offered your hand back to him. 

“Im Y/N, I'm actually just dropping some things off for my roommate, Y/R/N. Dr.Reid and I only met in the elevator, just similar tastes in costumes I guess!” Now the embarrassment that was once dawning on your face, dawned on him as he realized his error.

“Apologies for the presumption, I’m Derek Morgan, I work with Spencer.” 

You just couldn’t stop the words that came out next. “No worries, I should be so lucky to accompany Dr.Reid.” Derek raised his eyebrows in a small expression of shock and clapped a now beet red Spencer on the shoulder. 

“Well it was lovely to meet you Y/N, I would love to leave you two to it believe me but we’ve got a case.” You forced yourself to look Spencer in the eye again. 

“It was nice to meet you Derek and you too Dr. Reid.” Derek gave you a smile and a nod as he turned back to head up a small staircase, but Dr. Reid didn’t follow him. 

“You can call me Spencer, Dr. Reid is too formal for someone wearing this silly of a costume.” 

“I happen to like your costume, Spencer. And as much as I’d love to keep talking to you, your boss is staring at us.” you gestured to the dark haired stern man in a suit looking down at you from the door to the conference room. 

“Happy Halloween Spencer, I hope I’ll see you around.” You turned back towards the clusters of desks and started looking for the one your roommate was sitting in. It didn’t take long to find her despite the hustle and bustle still crowding the floor at this late hour. When you spotted her she was fixated on even more paperwork, not noticing you until you approached her desk. 

“Thank you so much, you are my savior. I promise that pumpkin bread is coming your way.” You laughed at the unnecessary seriousness with which she said that. 

“Thank you, and it’s no biggie since I was going out anyway. But I do need to ask you something. Spencer– Dr. Reid, is he single?”

“Wow, you’ve been here 5 minutes and you’ve already found your dork match. I saw him walking with Hotch a second ago, you’re even matching!” She was keeled over and cackling, when you stomped your heeled foot to get her to stop and answer your question. She pretended to wipe tears of laughter from her eyes just to rub salt in the wound. 

“Ok, ok, yes he’s single as far as I know, but I’m not setting you up. If you’d like to do something about your freaky little crush, you can leave a note on his desk.” She pointed to a neatly kept desk, piled high with books on every subject. 

“They have a case, so he’ll probably be out of town for a few days, but he might see it before they leave. No go on, do, and get out of here. I do still have a job to do, and no offense, but you’re kind of making me look ridiculous by association.” She tossed a notepad with a purple pen clipped to it towards you. You grumbled a quick thanks, still annoyed by the dig at your costume. But you jotted down a quick note, hopeful he’d see it sooner rather than later,, because it would be all the more humiliating if he’d forgotten about you before he saw it. 

Spencer, 

I only got to talk to you for a few minutes but I’d like to get to know you more in a place with less costumes and government agents watching over us. Call me if you’d like to go out sometime ♥️ 

(XXX)-XXX-XXXX

You drew a small pair of angel wings as a signature, then left it on his desk on your way back to the elevators. 

When Spencer left the round table, with only 30 minutes before he needed to be on the plane he made a beeline to Y/R/N’s desk approaching cautiously with a small wave. 

“Hi– Sorry to bother you, but I was talking to your roommate earlier, and I was wondering–” She cut him off, putting her hand up to stop him in his tracks. 

“I’ll tell you what I told Y/N. I’m not getting involved in this cute freaky little thing you guys have going on. Check your desk, go on your case, thank me later.” He turned back towards his desk, made it about two steps before turning back. This time with a hopeful look on his face.

“What you told her? Did she– Did she ask about me?” Y/R/N just rolled her eyes and refocused on her paperwork. 

“Goodbye Dr.Reid.” She left no room for argument, so he turned back to his desk, later finding your note neatly placed on top of some files. He read it twice, just to make sure he wasn’t daydreaming. He felt like he was in a high school movie, with the prettiest girl passing him a note in class. He was just getting lost in that train of thought, when he saw the rest of the team heading for the elevator bank, ready for the case. He’d gotten so distracted mooning over your note, he’d run out of time to change. He’d have to make his best attempt to get into his regular clothes in the small airplane bathroom.

It was a fast case, a spree killer in Georgia they were able to catch by sunrise the next day. He’d re-read your note maybe 20 times in less than 12 hours, even though he remembered every word, garnering significantly more teasing from Derek, along with the rest of the team after he caught them up. He could tell they were all happy for him though, despite the teasing. 

When they landed back in Quantico he swiftly deboarded the plane, and headed home paperwork in hand, to be done later. He’d typically do it at his desk, but he wanted to call you with minimal chance for interruption.

It was barely 6am. It was your day off, and your phone was still ringing. Normally you’d check and see if you could ignore it, but you couldn’t even gather the energy to look before answering. Luckily you didn’t drink last night, so you weren’t hungover, but even without that added layer of discomfort you were not in the mood to be up and talking to people. So you grumbled a dreary hello into the line, eyes still closed. 

“Hey– Hi, I’m sorry, I woke you up.I just– we just got back from that case and I wanted to know if you wanted to..go out? Tonight? If you don’t have other plans, that is.” You perked up at the sound of his voice, and fully shot up in your bed when he asked you out. You weren’t tired anymore. 

“I’d love to! I actually have tickets to this  re-showing of the original Frankenstein, if you'd like to go with me?” You could hear a shaky exhale coming from his side of the line. 

“That sounds great! What time should I pick you up?”

“8 o’clock would be perfect.”

“Awesome–I’ll uh, I’ll see you then.” 

“Ok, bye Spencer. Now go get some rest? I’m assuming you haven’t slept yet?” You were sure he could hear the smile in your voice. 

“You would be correct. I’ll do that, and I’ll see you tonight?” You said your goodbyes, hung up, and squealed into your pillows. You were up for good now, but luckily that gave you more time to plan. You wandered to the kitchen to make your roommate some of the expensive coffee you usually saved for special occasions as a bribe for her to break her silence about Spencer. She told you he was a literal genius, a fact that did not help your nervousness. She also told you he was a behavioral analyst, that he didn’t like touch, and that he was from Vegas. That was all she’d tell you before heading out the door a half hour early, while denying any further questions. 

Then you threw on some sweats, removed the last bit of makeup that was clinging on from the night before and headed out the door. You got another coffee, before picking up some of the things you needed around the house, in addition to things that would help you feel ready for your date. You’d gone on a few, but not enough to feel like you knew what to expect, and you were usually focused on making sure the person you were out with didn’t think you were dorky or weird, but that was kind of out the window already. 

You were already supposed to go to lunch with some of your friends, so you chose to ask their advice. They were the only people you could really trust with that sort of thing, but that didn’t stop you from immediately looking up every trashy advice column you could find online, most of which were filled with categorically horrible advice, but it was a great way to kill time. 

Once it was all said and done, you decided to start getting ready 3 hours early, taking a long shower, spending almost a half hour getting your eyeliner to be perfectly even, instead of the sort-of even you usually settled for. You threw on a comfortable skirt, with a form fitting sweater and some matching boots to keep you warm in the cold theater. Ultimately you were glad you got ready early, as it was still 10 till 8 when Spencer was knocking on your door. He looked petrified. In a good way?

“Wow– you look, wow. I’m–uh sorry I’m so early. I was just–really excited for this.” You smiled, and gave yourself a little internal high five that you picked the right outfit. 

“It’s ok, I’m really excited too.” Then you gave yourself a second to really look at him, no costumes this time. His hair was different–good different. He was dressed really nice too, in a polka dot button up, with a purple sweater vest, and a black tie tucked into it crooked. At first he was staring back at you, studying you as you were him, until some insecurity crept onto both of your faces at the close observation. You straightened your posture as much as you could, and asked if he was ready. When he gave a shaky exhale and a resounding yes, he walked you from your apartment door with a hesitant, almost hovering touch on your lower back before arriving at his car, only removing his hand as he opened the door for you. 

He played classical music, and you talked about your days, his case, and your Halloween plans from the previous evening. When you arrived at the theater his hand once again found your lower back, until you got in the concessions line, when he dropped it to brush your wrist before looking to your face. 

“Is this…alright?” He moved closer to clasp your hands together as you smiled up at him. 

“It’s more than ok, although I am kind of surprised.” You maintained your smile so he would know it wasn’t nervousness or reluctance, but confusion painted his face at the perceived contradiction. 

“Y/R/N said that you weren’t a big fan of touch with people you don’t know very well.” 

“She said that?”

Oh. I guess that’s not something someone would say out of the blue. 

“Yeah I sort of–asked about you. Is that too weird?” He blushed at that and a little of your anxiety dissipated. 

“I don’t think it’s weird, I tried to ask her about you but she sent me away so I could find your note. Which was definitely better, by the way.” The idea of him liking your note sent you into the stratosphere. 

“She wouldn’t tell me anything about you either at first, which is why I wrote the note. Which I’m glad you liked, I was worried it was too dorky. But I got her to tell me a little bit about you by bribing her with coffee this morning.” He laughed a little at that, and you realized how easy it was with him. I mean not that you were particularly experienced, but you were certain they weren’t usually this natural. You were pulled from spiraling into that train of thought when you realized there was only one person ahead of you in line, and Spencer spoke. 

“What would you like? I think they have most of the regular snack and candy things, but they might have real food if you’re hungry. I’ve never actually been to this theater before, I didn’t know they did re-showings here.”

“Me neither, I only found out about this because I saw something for it online. But a cherry coke would be great. And if you’re sure you don’t mind my germs we could share some popcorn?” 

“Popcorn sounds great.” And without a second thought he kissed your hands where they were laced together. He was just about to horrifiedly ask you if he took it too far, when you giggled and smiled like there was nowhere else you’d rather be, and no one else you’d rather be with. Truthfully there wasn’t.

You got your concessions from the apathetic teenager behind the counter, and quickly found your seats in the back of the theater. You’d gotten there well before the movie started, so Spencer told you all of the fun facts he could think of. And as shocked as you were that he knew them, he was even more surprised he’d found someone to listen to them. 

After sitting in one spot for so long, you were starting to feel the exhaustion from this morning creep back in. Emboldened by the fact your hands were still clasped, you decided to lay your head against his arm. His button-up was surprisingly soft and you had to fight the urge to fully rest the side of your face on him, in an effort to not get makeup on his mostly-white shirt. He relaxed into your touch immediately, giving you the validation you needed that it was ok. 

When you left the theater, and climbed into his car once again, you talked, but the conversation was decidedly less nervous. You talked about your friends, your job, and your family, and he talked about the coworkers he loved as family. When you arrived back at home he walked you to the door. Had it been anyone else you would have assumed that was a ploy to stay the night, but you felt like you’d known Spencer much longer than you had, and were certain that was not why. So you let him, and when you reached the door, his hand finding yours once again, he pulled you in for the best first kiss. 

His lips were a little bit chapped, you’d seen him biting his inner lip a few times when he got especially bashful, so you kind of expected it, but his hands found your face, and his touch was so reassuring it melted all of your nerves away. When he pulled away, you were both beet red and smiling. 

“Can I see you again tomorrow?” 

“I’d like that, as long as you don’t have to go away for work.” You were on cloud nine, but you didn’t want to get your hopes up for a second date to happen tomorrow, his work schedule was unpredictable, and you wanted to be as prepared for that as possible.

“Dear god, I hope not. Tomorrow already feels far away. I’ll make reservations and I’ll take you to dinner? When would be an alright time to pick you up?” You wouldn’t usually like someone offering to drive you twice in a row, but Spencer didn’t even sound like he was offering, it was just a given. 

“I get off work at 6, so I could be ready at 7?” 

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. Goodnight Y/N” And with that he placed another kiss on your hand as you said goodnight, before he let go, and headed back to the parking lot. 

[neil-gaiman]

Hello Sir Gaiman! Against better judgment I entered a cosplay contest dressed as the female Dream from Overture and in the event I make it to the stage, a small skit is recommended. My question is what would white on black cursive speech bubbles sound like? Are they a deep feminine? Did you have someone else's voice in mind when you wrote it? Have a good evening wherever you are and may the odds be ever in your favor.

Probably easiest to sound either like a female Tom Sturridge or a female James McAvoy.

[hananoami]

[Desire Savage, Embrace Tomorrow] Fan Art Contest

In a world collapsing and off balance, we intertwine amidst the ashes. Participate in the [Desire Savage, Embrace Tomorrow] Fan Art Contest for a chance to win cash and in-game Diamonds!

■ Event Duration

Contest Duration: Feb. 10, 2025 - Feb. 28, 2025

Submission Review: Mar. 1, 2025 - Mar. 21, 2025

Result Announcement: Mar. 22, 2025

■ How to Participate

During the event, post your original artwork on X/TikTok/Instagram with the hashtags #LoveandDeepspace and #TomorrowSavage to participate. Submission Form: https://forms.gle/UqoW4c2edyfFd8U1A*Please ensure that your submission account and posts are public until the end of the event.

■ Submission Theme

Create fan art featuring Xavier/Zayne/Rafayel/Sylus/Caleb, inspired by the new Memory series [Tomorrow's Catch-22], the [Savage Overture] event, and other exciting content from the latest version.

[bewareofdarkness]

FOUR IN HAND by John Lennon

I never see anyone mention this, and honestly, we should talk about it more. John wrote this short play for the show Oh Calcutta! in 1969, a comedy revue organised by Ken Tynan. The skit is most likely inspired on The Beatles group wanks, which we all know about. Four In Hand is under the cut:

(Four chairs, backs to the audience. Facing them, a large projection screen divided into four sections, one for each chair. Three men impatiently waiting. A doorbell rings.)

1: There he is now. I told you he’d make it. (He opens the door.)

(George enters: he wears a fedora.)

1: If you’re going to join the group, George, you have to remember we always start on time.

George: Sorry I’m late, fellas.

2: We don’t like people breakin’ the rules, George.

George: I already said I’m sorry.

3: Look--We gonna talk, or we gonna jerk off?

1: Ok, let’s get started. This is your seat, George. Now this (pointing to screen) is a new kind of machine--a telepathic thought transmitter. Whatever you think about flashes on the screen. Now the rules of the game are this: all of us think of things to jerk off to--until somebody comes--and the first guy who comes has to stop everybody else from coming. Got it?

George: Got it.

1: All right. Let’s give it a try. Whatever comes to mind, George.

(1 goes to his seat. George sits between 2 and 3. Rhythmic music starts. Images start to flash rhythmically on the screens. The men’s arms start to move rhythmically in front of them. The screens facing 1, 2 and 3 show Hollywood and Playboy-type pinups. George’s screen remains blank. The rhythm builds up while screens 1, 2 and 3 are all pulsating with glamorous women. Suddenly, we hear the strains of the William Tell Overture, and during a crash of cymbals, a picture of the Lone Ranger flashes on George’s screen. All screens go blank and all four men stop masturbating.)

3: What the fuck was that?

1: What are ya tryin’ to do, George?

2 (rises, adjusting his pants): I told you not to invite outsiders.

George: I’m sorry, fellas, it’s just the first thing that came into my mind.

2: We haven’t had a vacancy in six months, George! Harvey only left because he got a divorce.

3: How’d you like a silver bullet up your ass?

1 (walking to George): You sure you’re all right, George?

George: I’m fine, thanks.

1: All right, let’s try it again.

(They all sit down again.)

1: And cut the horseshit, George.

(The music starts again and the images start to flash. They are slightly more nude than before--close shots of breasts and bottoms. By trial and error, the four screens begin to form a composite picture. George is dutifully collaborating. Finally, at the height of the rhythm, screen facing 1 shows a nude model’s head, screen facing 2 shows her breasts, screen facing 3, her legs. Pause. The recumbent image of the model is almost complete. Suddenly the strains of the William Tell Overture are heard again with another image of the Lone Ranger on George’s screen.)

George (exultantly): Aha! A-a-a-a-ah!

(He rises. His screen continues to flash the Lone Ranger. With one jabbing sweep of his arm, he flashes Lone Ranger pictures on the other screens as the music builds. As each image flashes, 1, 2 and 3 lose their concentration completely and give up the contest.)

George (turns as he goes to exit): See you next week, fellas.

1: Get the fuck outta here!!!

(Sound of four “whistling” gunshots as each remaining screen blacks out.)

[thornsamigurumi]

spop saturday

my post for @tippenfunkaport's spop saturday

i love longfics, so narrowing down to even these 6 was a bit of a struggle.

a mountain to climb, for your love @jezmatronwrites - Catra did a bad thing. A REALLY bad thing. She'd been through the ringer since. She's changed.

Now she wants to make good, to fix the things she's broken. Can she reach the people she hurt? Should they forgive her? And what about the one she tore down the most? Is it better if she lets well alone, or should she try to rebuild that bridge?

High School was a while ago; the world has moved on. Have the people from her past? Will her overtures be met with success, appreciation? Or just seen as too little, too late?

A journey of forgiveness, growth and dealing with trauma.

love, adora by harrowhawk - 'Glimmer would have a field day if she knew. Adora can almost hear the inevitable teasing of 'wow, Adora, you have a crush on someone and you don’t even know them'.

She ignores inner-Glimmer for once. No, she doesn’t know Cyra’s real name, and Cyra doesn’t know Adora’s. All Adora knows for sure about her real identity is that she’s also a senior at Etheria High.

But Adora knows her. She knows her heart, knows her soul, and that’s what matters.'

top of show @bazaarwords - Bright Moon Playhouse puts on a show. It is (as many productions are) a complete nightmare.

blonde is the new black by vagician - When Adora's sister makes a failed dash and grab at a department store and ditches her at the scene, Adora gets pinned with all of her outstanding charges, tainting her pristine record. Will our blonde little innocent lamb be able to make it out of the lions den of Bright Moon Penitentiary unscathed?

vague notions @ari-kari - When Adora’s lifelong battle with anxiety tips from “manageable” to completely out of control, she winds up in the last place she ever expected; a mental health treatment center, smack dab in the middle of nowhere. And she’s far from the only client here in desperate need of assistance.

roses & thorns @n7punk - Adora doesn’t know if it’s possible to find love on reality TV, but she’s willing to try and set an example as the first lesbian Bachelorette. All her plans are thrown into chaos when her ex shows up in the pool of contestants, leaving her to doubt Catra’s intentions and her own readiness to get married.

[termiteterraceclub]

Termite Terrace Club - April 17th

1937 - Porky’s Duck Hunt - Dir. Tex Avery 1943 - The Unbearable Bear - Dir. Chuck Jones 1948 - Hop, Look and Listen - Dir. Robert McKimson 1954 - Bell Hoppy - Dir. Robert McKimson

TV 1991 - Bugs Bunny’s Overtures to Disaster 2023 - Bugs Bunny Builders Season 1D: “Blast Off”, “K-9: Space Puppy”, “Cousin Billy”, “Cheddar Days”, and “Taz Recycle”. 2025 - Bugs Bunny Builders Season 2: "Coaster Contest"

[helluvascribe]

Hazbin Hotel Season One Episode List (reordered/remastered by HelluvaScribe)

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 1: “Overture” (Focus: Charlie)

Charlie meets with Sera, Emily, Adam, and Lute at the Heaven Embassy to discuss her issue of Sinners being killed by the Exorcists who are both male and female in this version. Adam swears less and is more of a tragic villain than a sexist swearing jerk. Sera explains that Sinners are killed to balance out Hell’s overpopulation and worries that too many demons will rise against Heaven due to Roo’s influence. She realizes that Sinners and Hellborn who die become food for Roo, but not knowing how to stop the chaotic eldritch goddess from taking over all the worlds (who is watching Sera, Lilith, and Alastor also), she allows Adam to continue his killings to at least stop the overpopulation and satisfy her master Roo. But to Charlie, it appears that the angels want to instill fear and control them like Lucifer told her in her childhood. Sera explains that she doesn’t like seeing Charlie’s people killed but at the same time, it can be considered a freedom from their immortal suffering in Hell. Charlie then proposes to create a rehabilitation hotel to redeem Sinners, to get them to do behaviors opposite to their sins in life, this method would then weaken Roo and increase Heaven’s safety. Adam and Lute still hate all demons and Lucifer because of how they were raised, but with the persuasion of Emily, Sera is willing to give Charlie a chance. Sera gives Charlie six months to redeem a Sinner before the next Extermination. With more people going to Hell in the modern world, Roo becomes stronger, thus the Exorcists try to eliminate more demons who they suspect may be under her control (Sinner and Hellborn alike). The Hazbin Pilot continues after the meeting, Alastor, Husk, and Niffty enter and the hotel commercial is made. Song: “Chasing Rainbows”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 2: “Radio Killed The Video Star” (Focus: Sir Pentious and Vox)

Sir Pentious arrives at the hotel threatening to destroy it, but is defeated by Alastor. He is taken in by Charlie and she tries to do the clapping game, trust falls, and the no drugs roleplay, but Angel Dust and everyone thinks it’s stupid. Vox and Alastor get into a heated rap battle. After Vox loses the battle, Vox plans to use Sir Pentious as a spy to humiliate Charlie and the hotel on TV and it works. Charlie nearly gives up her hotel project, but Angel Dust catches Sir Pentious as a spy. Sir Pentious apologizes to Charlie and she forgives him, but he and everyone else don’t trust each other. Song: “Stayed Gone”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 3: “The Brain” (Focus: Baxter)

Baxter enters the hotel, creates his lab and plans to take over Hell, and sings about his backstory. He and Sir Pentious get into an argument over who’s the best inventor. Baxter later searches for cactus juice to use against his enemies, leading him to a desert. Charlie and friends go after him and after being tied up by outlaws, Baxter rescues them. Baxter unleashes a giant sea monster once they return to the hotel. Song: “Hell Domination”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 4: “World’s Fair” (Focus: Baxter, Sir Pentious)

Sir Pentious and Baxter argue over who is the better inventor. Charlie tries to curb Angel Dust and the client’s desires to use weapons. Only for a weapon’s expo to tempt them. Alastor’s shadows cause mischief, making Baxter and Sir Pentuous more angry at each other. They both sign up and during the sign up, Vox mocks Sir Pentious and tricks him into revealing the location of Angel Dust’s pet pig Fat Nuggets. Using the pig to bring Angel Dust and the hotel staff against each other, he sends Velvet to the hotel to steal the pig. The expo goes underway with contestants from all the Rings in a singing and weapon display acts including Helluva Boss inventors, judged by Carmilla Carmine the top weapon’s dealer. Sir Pentious is tempted by Vox to experiment his ray gun on the pig to win the contest and Vox’s approval but Sir Pentious nobly trips and works with Baxter to save Fat Nuggets and return him to Angel Dust. The crew return to the hotel on Baxter’s sea monster. Song: “Sir Pentious vs Baxter”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 5: “Hell’s Hyena” (Focus: Crymini, Husk, Angel Dust, Katie Killjoy/Tom Trench, Velvet)

(Crymini and Cherri Bomb cause trouble/vandalize the hotel – Husk takes her in, she talks with him at the bar several times. Crymini causes trouble as she sets fire to things and does graffiti on the walls and plays loud punk rock and metal at night…earning a bad review from Katie Killjoy, Tom Trench and Velvette as they do a surprise inspection on the hotel to try and ruin Charlie’s rep once again. Thankfully, Crymini scares them off and rips their papers.)

(Crymini, Angel, Charlie, Vaggie and Husk go to a carnival and Crymini is upset at Husk telling her what to do)

(Crymini runs off and shops with Loona and Octavia at Stylish Occult, becoming fast friends. Sadly, Loona and Octavia do not take her offer to check out the hotel yet.)

(Crymini later gets attacked by a rival hellhound gang, her hellhound group fights them off, but she gets terribly wounded. Her gang, all grown up, says “you’re on your own, we let you couch surf, but now we have better things to do than babysit.” This creates a flashback to Crymini being neglected/abused by her mortal parents, neglect at foster homes, her 90s hazing death, and almost being homeless like Loona but finding work in the porn model industry. Narrowly escaping the Hellhound gang (and an evil Valentino) she begs to stay at the hotel. Husk takes her in, and she lets out her feelings to Husk at the bar…they apologize and have their father-daughter moment, teaching her card tricks and sharing drinks. She, Husk, Angel Dust and Cherri Bomb get along, but she is more tense with Vaggie and Villa).

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 6: “Masquerade” (Focus: Angel Dust, Husk, Valentino)

Charlie decides it’s time to put her ‘Princess’ status to use with Angel’s boss. Song: “Poison” In Part 2, Angel endures a rough day of work on the porn set. His abusive director feeds his drug habits and brings him down. After he returns home and suffers yet another rejection from Husk, he leaves and nearly gets himself into serious trouble, only saved by Husk intervening. The two have a more real conversation and a more solid friendship blossoms.” Songs: “Poison” and “Loser Baby” (no singing Angel in Loser Baby)

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 7: “Angel In The Dust” (Focus: Angel Dust, Aracknis, Henroin, Valentino)

“Things get ugly when Angel Dust encounters his homophobic mafia boss father and his cynical brother Arackniss. It gets worse when a rival gang tries to attack the hotel with angelic weapons. Angel Dust has to confront his family and his past, making a decision to continue his redemption journey.”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 8: “I Wanna Be Loved By You” (Focus: Mimzy, Alastor, Charlie)

Mimzy, a rundown jazz club owner in debt, seeks refuge at the hotel. Her presence attracts loanshark collectors, who not only want their money back, but her blood. The Hazbin gang are forced to protect her from the collectors, despite her being a bit of a diva. Vox sends loan sharks after Mimzy.” Song: (1920s jazz Alastor Mimzy duet: “I Remember Now”)

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 9: “The Helsa Hotel” (Focus: Charlie, Vaggie, Helsa, Sevaithan)

“Charlie runs into her old boyfriend and her princess rival at a dinner party/Baphomet Ball hosted by the Von Eldritch family. Part 2: When Helsa creates a rival hotel for the rich to outshine the Hazbin Hotel, Charlie must plan on bringing it down.”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 10: “Deadly Grace”

 “In this 2 part Episode, we learn of the origins of the Sinner Carmilla Carmine and Vaggie as a Sinner turned Exorcist turned demon. We see her ex-Exorcist life.”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 11: “Unholy Romance”

“Charlie is distraught after learning that Vaggie is an Exorcist. Vox uses the information to brainwash the demons of Hell against Charlie and her friends. Charlie must find a way to forgive and reconcile with Vaggie.” Song: ?

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 12: “Cherri Bomb’s Away!”

Angel Dust’s reunion with Cherri Bomb gives him an opportunity to show how far he’s come.

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 13: “Welcome to Heaven”

“Charlie goes to Heaven to try and prove that her clients are improving. Not having fully fixed their relationship, Vaggie becomes jealous when Charlie forms a bond with Emily. Since there was no proof of redemption, Sera allows Adam to continue the exterminations.”

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 14: “Hello Rosie!”

Charlie and Alastor recruit demons to protect the hotel. Rosie reminds Charlie that her hotel is about redemption and she and Vaggie finally come back together.

Hazbin Hotel (Helluva Scribe Remix) Season 1 Episode 15: “The Show Must Go On”

Charlie and her team fight the Exorcists. Vaggie earns her wings after defeating Lute, Charlie fights Adam until Vaggie delivers the finishing blow. Lucifer arrives and helps the gang rebuild the hotel. Lute demands Lilith to go down and defeat the Hazbins. The Vees plan their next brainwashing/technology scheme while the Eldritch family is up to no good. Sir Pentious becomes an angel and Adam becomes a demon.

[overture-contest]

Round 1, Poll 12

Propaganda for Cats:

None submitted.

Propaganda for Camelot:

From the lost era of Broadway, when men were men, women were women, and overtures were three minute medleys of all the best tunes in the musical Also the march at 2:24 rocks and you cannot convince me otherwise

Feel free to rb with any additional propaganda and I will rb it here

[just-before-dawn]

did i ever talk about my Cats RCCL Cast 14 experience on here? i dont remember

anyway so flashback to september 2023, i went on the oasis of the seas cruiseline for the second time and ofc i watched cats ALL three times it showed on that boat (along with dragging my family along to see it with me all three times hehe)

cats rccl cast 12 made me REALLY get back into cats so me going again made my heart fucking soar!! now i knew everything!

first night, we lined up early so we could snatch the front row and i was dead center (bc at this point my entire family knows that im actually insane about this show) and not only did i tear the fuck up during the overture, SO MANY MOMENTS happened while watching!!

first show: during naming of cats, gus and i were literally having a full on staring contest. dude was UP CLOSE to my face and my fixating ass was mouthing the poem with him. my family was fucking laughing at the whole interaction. (during this, i think tantomile was scaring my older brother lmao)

the entire first show was so great, i was literally having the time of my life and trying not to tear up. its so refreshing to see the jellicle ball in full and to see the entire mr mistoffelees dance. daniel chesnut is such an amazing misto. he encapsulates that cat so well, his dancing is amazing!!

i think it was during moments of happiness or something, rumpleteazer and mungojerrie snuck up on me. rumple rubbed her head against my knee i was fr like "AHHHH" in my head.

anyway, the first show was so amazing i was literally starstruck i did not want to leave that theater 😭 got noticed by misto so many times and had an overall blast. i was shaking walking out of the room

second show, we just came back from dinner so we didn't get to snatch seats and had to sit in the balcony seats but it was funny to see misto blind everyone with the bright light during skimbleshanks when they made the train.

THE THIRD SHOW HOWEVER!!

this time we sat front house left. and OH MY GOD THE INTERACTIONS DURING THIS SHOW. AGAIN DURING NAMING OF CATS. okay so this time, misto and i were having a staring contest, mouthing the poem to each other, then suddenly BOMBALURINA POPS OUT OF FREAKING NOWHERE!!! AND SHE'S UP AND CLOSE TO ME! SHE'S IN MY FACE. GIRL WAS LIKE 3CM AWAY FROM ME, ONE FOOT ON THE CHAIR. MY HEART WAS RACING. during this, misto was like 😳 to my cousins as they watched this whole thing happen.

during moments of happiness, mungojerrie would literally not break eye contact with my cousin, it was so fucking funny. THE WHOLE NUMBER he was staring at her. mungojerrie also like fnaf 2 jumped at us during the end of the show.

DURING MR MISTOFFELEES!! after misto made old deut appear again and he was standing at the edge of the stage waiting for tugger to show old deut who saved him, he made a lil heart shape at us and i fucking died. i deceased.

he did so again a second time!! during bows and tugger noticed us as well going like "sir who tf are you making a heart at" and haha guilty :3c

but as misto left the stage, he gave us a high five and AHHH wanted to scream and die again. we literally had the most fun that night and i miss it so much 😭😭

im in such show withdrawal right now. i miss this show so much. bootlegs and the 1998 recording isnt enough, PUT ME BACK ON THAT SHIP!!

[blackswaneuroparedux]

An artist has to pay for the gift of his genius. Wagner paid. He was defeated, one way or another, all his life. His own self-destructiveness always pursued him. There wasn’t one of his triumphs that was not spoiled, at the moment of triumph, by his own self-destructiveness. But what he couldn’t do, his characters do. In his operas, he splits his many-faceted self into those characters. He drains off the evil in himself and, as the long dramas move towards their great catharses, he brings the good together. Hans Sachs does what Wagner wanted to do but never could – renounce his own wilfulness and open up in understanding and compassion to others.

M. Owen Lee, Wagner and the Wonder of Art: An Introduction to Die Meistersinger

Of Wagner’s great operas, “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg” often gets overlooked when the conversation of “greatest works” begins. Perhaps partly because the story is pretty straightforward and is also admittedly one of the composer’s more intimate operas. The opera opens on Midsummer's eve, Nuremberg in the 16th century - a setting many productions have played loose with for example I went to one of Glyndebourne's production that updated the setting to the early 19th century.

The story revolves around the real-life cobbler-poet Hans Sachs and the guild of mastersingers - poets and musicians who pursue their craft according to traditions and rules. A goldsmith's daughter, Eva, and a knight, Walther von Stolzing, fall in love, but Eva's father has promised her to the winner in the forthcoming song contest. Walther must learn the mastersinger's art rapidly, under the wise tuition of Sachs (considered Wagner's most generous and human character) - and despite a challenge from the foolish town clerk Beckmesser.

The premiere of Richard Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg was generously supported by Ludwig II of Bavaria, at the Munich Court Opera on 21 June 1868. Hans von Bülow conducted, and Franz Strauss, the father of Richard Strauss played the French horn at the premiere. It was enthusiastically received, and Eduard Hanslick wrote in Die Neue Freie Presse, “Dazzling scenes of colour and splendour, ensembles full of life and character unfold before the spectator’s eyes, hardly allowing him the leisure to weigh how much and how little of these effects is of musical origin.”

Within a year of its premiere, Meistersinger was performed across central Europe, and Hans Sachs’s final warning at the end of Act III for the need to preserve German art from foreign threats became a rallying point for German nationalism, particularly during the Franco-Prussian War, the Wilhelmine Reich, the Weimar Republic, and most notoriously, during the Third Reich. But - and quite rightly so - many contemporary productions have attempted to redeem it as one of Wagner's most approachable, tuneful and likeable works.

The opera itself was not based on any major myth the way some of his other works were and its tame and comic nature make it seem ripe to overlook in the context of his other massive philosophical works. Yet this opera is every bit as good, if not better, than many of Wagner’s best works. It’s overture has become a staple of the standard orchestral repertoire, but its themes of longing and the nature of art and its purpose are among the most immersive and potent discussions that the creator engages his audience in. The main draw I think is the character of Hans Sachs himself that Wagner himself readily identified with.

As a 15-year-old Wagner saw Deinhardstein’s comedy “Hans Sachs” on a Dresden stage, which captivated him instantly. It was about the Nuremberg poet and Meistersinger Sachs, who was known for his poetry in the 16th century. The art of the Mastersingers went back to minstrels who made music according to free rules and who recorded their art rules in fixed tablatures as they gradually settled in the cities. This art was subsequently administered by the guild masters, of whom the shoemaker Sachs was the most famous.

17 years after his experience in the Dresden theatre, Wagner felt the need to create a cheerful counterpart to the tragic “Tannhäuser”. He recollected the comedy and created his first sketches in 1845 during a spa stay in Marienbad. His involvement in the Dresden Revolution and the hectic flight to Switzerland interrupted the work and it was to take another 15 years before he resumed work.

Why it took him so long to write could partly be explained by financial woes which despite taking a heavy advance he failed to turn in a credible draft. It was not until the work on the opera continued when Ludwig II of Bavaria relieved him of his financial needs and he was able to complete the work by 1867. But also he needed time for ideas to marinate as it was only later that Wagner had come across a chronicle by Wagenseil (“von den Meisters Singer holdseligen Kunst”), which gave him a comprehensive insight into the rules and regulations of the Meistersinger.

But yet another reason exists which was the emotional turbulence in his life, in particular his relationship with his then secret lover, Mathilde Wesendonck. At the invitation of his Zurich patrons, the Wesendonck couple, Wagner spent a few days with them in Venice in 1861. There he discovered that his secret lover Mathilde Wesendonck was pregnant with her husband’s fifth child. After the love affair was already in a crisis, Wagner realised that this love, which inspired him to “Tristan and Isolde” was over. Now Wagner decided to philosophically transcend this indirect “rejection” and saw himself as Hans Sachs, who renounced love for noble reasons.

The philosophical framework for this was provided by Schopenhauer’s work “Die Welt als Wille und Vorstellung” (The World as Will and representation”), which he had become acquainted with a few years earlier. In Schopenhauer’s pessimistic view of the world, the will of the predator “man” results in destructive torments. This inherent mania leads to war, self-destruction and loss of love, whose only way out is renunciation (of the will).

Thus the shoemaker poet Hans Sachs became a Schopenhauer figure whose world philosophy Wagner expounded in the delusional monologue of the third act. This philosophical change explains the paramount importance of Hans Sachs’ figure in Wagner’s Meistersinger: Sachs is the master himself. Wagner identified himself with no other figure more than the cobbler-poet, and he has him quoted in the third act “Tristan and Isolde”: «Mein Kind, von Tristan und Isolde kenn’ ich ein traurig Stück. Hans Sachs war klug und wollte nichts von Herrn Markes Glück». (“My child, I know a sad tale of Tristan and Isolde. Hans Sachs was clever and did not want anything of King Marke’s lot”). Isolde now became Eva!

Apart from Sachs, all other figures fade away, even the revolutionary hero and iconoclast Walther (who also has a little Wagner in him) must take a back seat to the light figure Sachs. If the Junker Walther were the hero of the final act in a “normal” opera, the third act now becomes the two-hour “Hans Sachs Festival”, which begins with his Wahn-monologue and ends with his «Verachtet mir die Meister nicht» (“Don’t despise me the masters”), forming one of the most gigantic par force tours in all of opera literature. The part of Sachs demands the whole range of the singer’s repertoire: high lyrical passages, long declamatory stretches and of course the high passages of the third act and the enormous final scene.

Marco Jentzsc sings a snippet of Walther's prize song in David McVicar's 2011 production.

[beardedmrbean]

April 29 (UPI) -- Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf quit Monday ahead of two no-confidence votes he had little-to-no-chance of winning.

The 39-year-old Scottish Nationalist Party leader resigned four days after he collapsed a coalition with the Scottish Greens that kept his government in power in a row over carbon emissions targets.

"After spending the weekend reflecting on what is best for my party, for the government and for the country I lead, I've concluded that repairing our relationship across the political divide can only be done with someone else at the helm," Yousaf said in an emotional address at Bute House, his official Edinburgh residence.

"I have therefore informed the SNP's national secretary of my intention to stand down as party leader."

The resignation of Yousaf, Scotland's first Asian-Muslim leader, triggers a contest to find a new first minister -- which as the largest party falls to the SNP -- although he will remain until post until that happens.

Party grandee Fergus Ewing immediately endorsed Kate Forbes, who came a close second to Yousaf in last year's leadership contest, saying that with the party in urgent need of a reset he had "no doubt whatsoever" she would would make the best leader for the SNP and for Scotland.

Crediting Forbes with being Scotland's most popular MSP, Ewing said the last thing the SNP needed was "another candidate that, frankly, is associated with some of the problems that have brought us down in the polls and lost us trust and confidence."

Yousaf had insisted he would not resign and would continue to govern without a majority but has been unable, or unwilling, to gain the support from rival parties he needed to do so.

His former arch-rival and potential kingmaker, Ash Regan of the pro-independence Alba Party said she was perplexed by the SNP's intransigence but pledged to work with whomever the party chose as its new leader.

"Bizarrely some forces in Humza Yousaf's own party would rather see him resign than deal with a party who really want to advance independence," said the lone MSP of former SNP First Minister Alex Salmond's breakaway party.

"However, a new SNP leader and a new first minister will not change parliamentary arithmetic. I continue to stand ready to work in the best interests of Scotland and to advance the cause of Scottish independence."

The end came after the Greens, furious at being unceremoniously kicked from a coalition Yousaf had only days previously said was "worth its weight in gold," rejected his overtures while he ruled out of hand any deal with the Alba Party.

The failure to broker a deal meant he lacked the votes to survive no-confidence votes later this week -- one in him as first minister and a second in his government -- leaving him no choice but to quit.

Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie signaled earlier Monday his party would support an SNP minority government, but only if Yousaf, whom he accused of breaking trust and creating an unnecessary crisis, quit.

"The SNP remain the largest party in the Scottish Parliament, just short of a majority, and they are capable of governing a stable minority government. Greens are ready to help make that happen.

"But I don't think Humza Yousaf is in a position to be able to lead such a stable minority because it depends on trust and I don't think there is anything that he will be able to say to restore the trust he has broken."

The resignation of Yousaf, who has been in office for a little over a year after taking over from Nicola Sturgeon after she unexpectedly quit in Feb. 2023, gives the Scottish Parliament 28 days to select a new first minister.

Failure to do so within the time limit will result in parliament being dissolved and a general election being called.

[jules-has-notes]

2015 Sing-Off tour

The first Sing-Off national tour in 2014 was a rousing success. So, even though the show's fifth "season" was reduced to a one-night holiday special, the second tour was expanded. The schedule was nearly twice as long, packing in 56 cities over the course of 9 weeks.

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Rehearsals

The singers didn't document their rehearsals for the second tour the way they did the year before. Why? Because the VoicePlay guys lost most of the first of their two allotted practice days to weather related flight troubles. Once they finally made it to upstate New York, it was crunch time on the group numbers with their new compatriots to be ready for opening night.

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Performances

Not only did the second tour visit more cities, for one night it was also livestreamed through Live Nation. Thanks to the forethought of an Exchange fan, the full Louisville concert from March 25th — including season 5 winners the Vanderbilt Melodores — has been archived in one convenient place.

(But because more is better, I've also provided links to audience recordings of individual songs from other stops on the tour.)

[0:00:25] Overture — Sing-Off opening theme & judges' comments compilation

[0:01:15] Group opener — "Under Pressure" by Queen & David Bowie ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[0:04:40] Introductions — Geoff Castellucci & Adam Chance

Vanderbilt Melodores set

[0:06:20] "Trumpets" by Jason Derulo ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:09:18] "Take Me to Church" by Hozier ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:13:40] "Lay Me Down" by Sam Smith ** additional performance — Wilmington, DE show (28 February)

[0:19:30] "Wiggle" by Jason Derulo, feat. Snoop Dogg ** additional performance — Nashville, TN show (15 March)

[0:22:30] Transition banter — Adam Chance

The Exchange set

[0:23:20] "Runaway Baby" by Bruno Mars ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[0:26:30] "Sing" by Ed Sheeran ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[0:29:25] introductions

[0:31:40] "Love Runs Out" by OneRepublic ** additional performance — Verona, NY show (17 February)

[0:33:55] "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (17 February)

[0:37:30] history of The Exchange

[0:39:20] "Georgia On My Mind" by Ray Charles (off mic) ** additional performance — Los Angeles, CA show (12 April)

[0:41:45] banter, merch shilling, & contest promo

[0:43:35] "Wavin' Flag" by K'naan

[0:49:35] Vocal percussion showcase — Mark McLemore, Jonathan Lister, Layne Stein, Richie Steighner, Kurt Zimmerman, & Tony Huerta ** additional performance — Santa Rosa, CA show — part 1, part 2 (9 April)

[0:56:08] Transition banter — Mark McLemore

VoicePlay set

[0:57:15] "Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:00:10] intro banter

[1:00:55] "Wow! Vol. 1" medley — "Beauty and the Beat" by Justin Bieber; "Bang Bang" by Jessie J, Ariana Grande & Nicki Minaj; "Animals" by Maroon 5; "Birthday" by Katy Perry; "Steal My Girl" by One Direction; "Drunk On a Plane" by Dierks Bentley; "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj; "Let It Go" from Frozen ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[1:06:10] introductions

[1:07:55] "Aca Top 10 — Broadway" countdown — "Everyone's A Little Bit Racist" from Avenue Q; "Sherry" from Jersey Boys; "Belle" from Beauty & the Beast; "Seasons of Love" from Rent; "Master of the House" from Les Miserables; "All That Jazz" from Chicago; "He Lives In You" from The Lion King; "Popular" from Wicked; gentle mockery of Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark; "Phantom of the Opera" from Phantom of the Opera; "Hello!" from The Book of Mormon ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:12:00] audience time

[1:13:45] Auditions, featuring Brian ** additional performance — Huntsville, AL show (17 March)

[1:20:40] banter & merch shilling

[1:22:05] "Elvira" by The Oak Ridge Boys ** additional performance — Huntsville, AL show (17 March)

[1:27:45] Transition banter — Geoff Castellucci

Street Corner Symphony set

[1:28:30] "Down on the Corner" by Creedence Clearwater Revival ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February) — first two songs

[1:31:12] "Hard to Handle" by The Black Crowes

[1:33:50] "Voodoo" by Street Corner Symphony ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:38:33] banter

[1:39:38] "Johnny B Goode" by Chuck Berry ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:42:35] introductions

[1:44:10] "Creep" by Radiohead ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:47:30] audience thanks

[1:48:25] "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson ** additional performance — Minneapolis, MN show (29 March)

[1:52:20] Transition banter — Adam Chance

[1:53:10] Group closer — "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" by U2 ** additional performance — Red Bank, NJ show (20 February)

[1:57:00] Encore — "Fix You" by Coldpay (off mic) ** additional performance — Buffalo, NY show (24 February)

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Addenda

Award-winning barbershop quartet Forefront weren't included in the streamed video, but they did a great job warming up the crowd at the Louisville show.

Although they didn't perform it for the streamed concert, VoicePlay and Street Corner Symphony's cover of "Don't" by Ed Sheeran that had served as the tour announcement was included in at least some of the shows during the tour. There is a video of it from Red Bank, NJ.

Because they'd used most of their songs from the competition during the previous tour, VoicePlay's set was comprised of numbers from their established stage rotation, a recent addition to their "Aca Top 10" series, and one medley exclusive to the tour that featured video clips from some of their season 4 compatriots.

At the Seattle show, The Exchange slipped a version of "Can't Hold Us" by local boy Macklemore into their set.

The eldest Lister brother, Richie, was on the tour with Street Corner Symphony for the first few weeks, then handed his microphone off to Kaleb Jones for the rest of the run.

While Layne was away for one weekend to be in his sister's wedding, first Richie Steighner from The Exchange, and then VoicePlay's hometown pal Antonio Fernandez stepped in to cover percussion.

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Shenanigans & reunions

When you put 16 creative guys in close quarters for two months straight, they're going to get up to some nonsense eventually. During this tour, it manifested most notably in the form of a Nerf war that then escalated to water guns and Super Soakers.

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A post shared by Geoff Castellucci (@geophr3y)

Of course, sometimes their friendly combat happened in the form of many colorful pixels.

Video games are a great way to pass the time on the road and make friends.

And sometimes they just enjoyed each other's talents.

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A post shared by Geoff Castellucci (@geophr3y)

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VoicePlay tossing Twinkies into the crowd every night meant that sometimes they needed to resupply, which Hostess apparently helped out with.

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A post shared by VoicePlay (@thevoiceplay)

And sometimes they had extras to distribute at the end of the night.

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A post shared by VoicePlay (@thevoiceplay)

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Surprisingly, one of their victims auditioners early in the tour turned out to be a Paul Simon fan.

♫ "Why am I soft in the middle, now? Why am I soft in the middle? The rest of my life is so hard." ♫

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Swinging through Florida meant that VoicePlay's family and friends could attend one (or more) of the shows.

Guess which of their significant others hadn't worked in entertainment. Hint: It's the one who heard the photographer call for a "kiss pic" and went in for a full snog.

And their buddies in The Edge Effect joined them as the opening act for two of those three dates.

Having a day off at home also allowed Tony to pick up everyone's favorite member of the backstage crew.

Fletcher is a good boy, and friend to all.

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Emoni Wilkins, VoicePlay's partner in crime for the first Sing-Off Tour, popped in to visit during their shows in Nashville and Louisville.

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One of their rare days off in Minneapolis coincided with a break in Home Free's touring schedule, so Tim Foust came to hang out with his Sing-Off colleagues.

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The Filharmonic from The Sing-Off season 4 and the first tour were the openers for all three southern California stops. Jeremy Lewis from the AcoUstiKats also came to visit at the Los Angeles show.

Jazz a cappella group m-pact opened for the Riverside, CA show, which reunited VoicePlay with their pal Jarrett Johnson, who had helped with their 2012 album, "Once Upon An Ever After".

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The boys got to see DeeDee Yancey again when Ten opened for the final two nights in Dallas and Houston.

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Side trips & meal times

There wasn't much time in the schedule for tourist activities, but some of the guys did manage to see a few sights.

And there were many snacks and meals along the way.

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Press coverage

There were several nice write-ups about the show in various outlets, both before and during its run, as well as a few television appearances.

A pre-tour interview with Geoff covered the a cappella scene in general and gave hints of the tour to come. The resulting article by Alan Sculley appeared in both The Sun Chronicle (Attleboro, MA) and the Detroit Free Press.

A very nice recap of the Providence, RI show by Jathan Fink was published on the website for the New Bedford, MA talk radio station and on his personal blog.

When the tour passed back through NYC, VoicePlay stopped in to visit with Nick Lachey at his new gig on VH1's Big Morning Buzz. The guys also got to meet actress Jane Lynch and social media darling ToastMeetsWorld while they were there. The video doesn't seem to be available anywhere anymore, but there are still a few pictures.

Alix Jansma of Boston University's Daily Free Press had nothing but praise for music director Deke Sharon — an alumnus of both Tufts University and Berklee College of Music — and the tour itself, particularly VoicePlay's set.

Local outlets in Florida were, of course, proud to have VoicePlay bringing the show back to their home state. The Broward Palm Beach New Times had a nice preview interview with Geoff by Natalya Jones for the Coral Springs stop, and Boca Raton Magazine published a lovely recap.

Crew member Jacklyn Krol provided a backstage peek on the Stage Right Secrets blog.

The VoicePlay boys had an early morning appearance on the local NBC affiliate in Kansas City to promote the tour, show off their talents, and give the hosts an impromptu a cappella lesson:

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If you've made it all the way to the end of yet another very long post, I hope you enjoyed yourself, and maybe found something interesting.

[stellarspecter]

for the music asks: #11, #20, & #27? <3

11: A song that you never get tired of

well, i've had maisie peters' new album on repeat basically since it came out, but i also do tend to go through phases of listening to something a lot and then never again lol. one song that i've really loved for a while because of the production and the silly lyrics is ghost by nelward! it just absolutely bangs

20: A song that has many meanings to you

i'm gonna go for the copout answer here and say suburbia overture by will wood, because it's literally 3 songs in one and also sets up the whole album, and i really couldn't think of anything better after scrolling through my liked songs for like ten minutes lmao

27: A song that breaks your heart

inevitable by orla gartland, no contest. it's not even in my liked songs because if i listen to it too much it will get me way too sad