The return is now complete.
We reestablished connections lost and revived the ones we had kept beyond Second Life, and got Birdland up and running. There were lots of expectations as to the way it would hold its own, and for the most part the answers were clear as we knew them before hand.
People loved it, old friends were happy to see it again and we moved on to promoting the club by adding the Live Music factor to the mix. We had a great official opening with Tamra Hayden as the main attraction and a taste of Showgirls and Burlesque, and we went on to secure a weekly line up of regular singers, among them Harry Frychester and Pippa Exonar - a SL/RL couple - and Amereck Arabello.
We had a good time with these artists, and they brought magical and unique moments to Birdland, in particular Harry, who we love dearly because of his amazing talent as a singer as well as his unparalleled and irreverent wit as an entertainer. As much as we'd love to keep them forever, at this point in time we were forced to make hard choices. Real Life interfered and new responsibilities demand our attention, so we had to let go of Harry and Pippa. Amereck had RL responsibilities to look after and so we lost him too, but truth be told he would follow as well, since we have to cut back on all expenses.
That leaves us with the club itself and the singers who agree to perform without fees involved, investing their talent and time to help us keep it running. We have a few of those: Kitty Zeddmore, who has been with us for a few weeks now, Crooner Carlucci and now Jackie Lefko. They are amazing artists and we are privileged to have them on our stage. They may, however, be too few too late.
Though the reality is this decision should have been made sooner, as RL hit us, I in particular am too attached to the Bird to let it go, so we held on. But it's time for a reality check. Without support from our patrons there is no Birdland. Circumstances changed dramatically and we can no longer sustain it without that support, much as I would love to. So we are giving it another week. If by this time next week things remain the same, Birdland will be folded once more and it will remain safely put away until a better time.
As for me and Blysse, we have Showgirls to look after, and that is something that involves a lot of friends that have become a second family to us. We will not let them down. Our stage is settled in San Diego City, at the Balboa Theater, a venue put at our disposal by Ayesha Lytton, Tamra Hayden's assistant and a Showgirl herself, and we will continue rehearsing there and bringing our shows to the public there as well.
You will learn about it here too, since this blog will live on to perpetuate Birdland's legacy and prepare the ground for a future, better, day.
So if you want to show us your support, come visit us and help us keep Birdland up as long as possible under these circumstances, if you can't help, we understand and hope you at least come see it and enjoy it while it still stands. We thank you all for your support so far, appreciate all you can do at this time and hope to see you soon, either at the Bird or the Balboa.
Love,
Alma
