I was productive today! Got that visit to SeaWorld in, finally. It was seriously rough getting up at 9. :P

Got there around 11:15 and hurried over to Shamu to tape Believe. Third viewing, and I'm still not really a fan... I do have to say, though, that the music is growing on me. I wish they'd put out a CD for that one like they have for other shows in recent years! I'm actually really surprised that they haven't, given the large amout of "Believe" merchandise I saw all over the park. Anyways, I did get that one taped! I'd love to get a better tape of it later, though, as I was towards the top of the stadium and there's a few heads in the way at times.

After that, I wandered for a few minutes, then headed over to claim my spot for Cirque. Much, much love for that show. And I saw sana_chan and richiied! Got a great tape of this one, too, although I think it was a lot easier for me, considering that a) it's highly choreographed and stays more or less the same from show to show, and b) I saw it a few hundred times last summer, so I could pretty easily plan what I wanted to shoot at each show. ;) It is kind of a bummer not to have the pyrotechnics in the show, though. :( As those of you in San Diego may have read in the paper, SeaWorld got caught without a permit they needed for fireworks, so all of the park's pyrotechnics (including the nightly fireworks show) have been scrapped indefinitely. Unfortunately, that even includes all the little cold-fire fountains and such that Cirque used, not to mention the other small-scale pyrotechnics at the end of the show.

A pit stop to say hi to Ulises in Close Up, then a run over to the Hospitality Center for the obligatory free beer, then it was back to Cirque! Alas, as often happens in Mission Bay, the water was teh icky, and so it was a dry show (meaning the performers don't go in the water, and the show is significantly modified). Would you believe that this was the first time I ever saw a dry show? I think we only had a couple days of them last year (mostly due to red tides) and it was always on days when I wasn't working. Anyways, I got this show on tape, too, and focused on the stuff I didn't get on tape the first time around (lyra, side poles, some closeups, etc). Luckily, the stuff I really wanted to get footage of wasn't affected by the dry show. I think the only thing I didn't get was tighter Russian swing shots (I used a wider shot at the first show) since Russian swing is removed for a dry show. I would like to add, however, that I remember during the last day of rehearsals last year when they did a dry show run-through, they actually left the Russian swing number IN, but no one actually got on the swing. They just jumped around onstage for four minutes. And not even like on the trampoline - I mean like the crazy choreography. Yeah, for once I think they made a change for the better. ;) Anyways, I hung around for a bit after the show and chatted with a few old friends.

Wandered out again after that, and stopped for snacks and to watch the BNDs at Rocky Point. One of them was having a ball with the scale in the wave pool - repeatedly hauling out, rolling around a bit, sliding back into the water, and then doing it all over again. It was really cute! I headed over to Pets Rule, where I ran into Jen. It's been forever since I've seen her! So I sat and watched the show from a great view with her and chatted it up. Once again, so much fun catching up with people I haven't seen for awhile!

I made a quick pit stop at Close Up on the way out and watched Corky for a bit. Not much going on - her usual circles, and the occasional stop to check out the kids at the glass. I did have a fun little conversation with the education department girl there. We were talking about working at the park, and when I said I worked crew for Cirque last year, she totally fangirled. That amused me to no end. :P (I'm usually the one doing the fangirling - it feels really odd to me when people freak out over something I've gotten to do, and that amuses me) Traded a few cute whale stories - most centered around Kalia - before I headed out.

I'd really like to go back on Monday afternoon and catch the final Cirque shows of the season, but I'll have to see what my schedule allows. I have to say, though - Cirque people, you better start planning your last-day pranks! I'm daring you to try and top last year's fish-guts-in-the-vaccuum prank (one thing that I give Andy credit for, surprisingly).

Since I was focused more on video, I didn't take many pics. I did get a few, though! They're all pretty much of just a couple of subjects, so they're rather repetitive. :P Nothing all that great, either, although there's some that I'm definitely going to icon. :P http://xfkirsten.smugmug.com/gallery/1842784

Now comes the video editing process with the two Cirque shows I shot, and hopefully I'll get a better view of a very busy show without making everyone sick from panning back and forth. ;) If I go back on Monday, I'll probably try to get some pickup shots then, too.

I also got a nice sunburn on my legs. Gah. At least I remembered to put sunscreen on my face this time!