Big Hair and Eyeliner

The “One and Only” music video was being shot in the Orlando Repertory Theater. I did a sketch in the dressing room as the actresses and dancers got ready for the 80’s styled sequence. Megan Hinkle seemed to be a hair and makeup specialist. She helped Jessika Meriko with her eyeliner. Jessica had large curlers in her hair and she quickly changed into a firehouse red dress for the shoot. Britt Daley was busy teasing Darci Ricciardi’s hair. When Megan offered to help, Britt quickly acknowledged that she could probably do a better job. The room was a constant flurry of activity. I had to sketch extra fast. The male actors had dressed quickly in the same dressing room. They waited outside when they were done. Everyone looked primped and proper for the final scene.

The Repertory Theater’s Backstage Dance Studio

Shooting continued for Britt Daley’s music video, “One and Only.” A door at the back of the actors dressing rooms opened into a backstage dance studio. I never would have guessed that this room existed. Andy Matchett lounged in front of me along with Megan Hinkle and Kyle Raker. For much of the day, Britt had been worried that her break dancer hadn’t shown up. Scott Wilkins the writer for the music video shoot said that the one thing he needed more than anything else was a break dancer. The dream sequence was saved for last since everyone in the cast had to change into their flashiest 80’s outfits.

Will “MainSwitch” Campbell and Darci Ricciardi began working on their dance moves. “MainSwitch” brought Darci up to speed until they were a well oiled break dancing machine. Jessica Mariko had her own dance moves worked out. She wore a sleek red dress and her sensual moves could make any James Bond actress blush. Nicholas Corcoran was a bit nervous since he isn’t a dancer and he was being asked to light up the dance floor like John Travolta in “Saturday Night Fever.” The biggest surprise came when Katie Peters rolled onto the dance floor in a classic roller skating disco queen outfit. She had performed as a singer during the audition scenes of the video shoot. The actress who was going to skate didn’t show so Katie stepped in. Nicholas didn’t have to work on many dance moves, he just had to help guide skating Katie as she glided around him. Tape on the rehearsal floor was a bit of a stumbling block at first but soon Skating Katie and Nick had a smooth routine worked out. Everything was worked out for a stellar dream scene.