Singing into hair brushes and bopping like nobody’s watching… you all did that …didn’t you? Well I was certainly no exception. Oh how I flourished in my bedroom…. my rehearsal studio. My dressing room. My costume department. My stage. My performing arts haven.

In that room it was unrestrained, full-on SHOWBIZ-NESS.

I was Ann-Margret in ‘Bye Bye Birdie’ – though attempting to create major cleavage with my pint-sized boobs, while singing the refrain from “Bye, Bye Biiiirdieee”, was more like trying to make a mountain out of a molehill. But I persevered.

And when it was time for my big scene – I was in full character mode. AND I DON’T MEAN DRESS REHEARSAL. It was full costume, full out, opening night…lights, camera, action. I was all “Hallelujah I’m Sixteen” and “I Had That Lovely Female Feeling”. And I lip-synched my way through ‘like a ‘motha’.

Taking it from the top… I shrugged on that ginormous sweater and shimmied my clothes off top to bottom like a professional escape artist. I mean I killed it.

While taking my final bow – I waited for my mirrors’ reflection to request my usual encore. And then I turned-in and elbowed my way through the choreo of “A Lot of Livin’ to Do”. If only I had gotten my hands on that ruffled midriff top…the standing ‘O’ would have gone on for days.

My next bit of theatrics, “If They Could See Me Now”, was in great demand. I WAS GWEN VERDON AND SHIRLEY MACLAINE AND CHARITY HOPE VALENTINE! Without YouTube enabling me to brush up on (copy) the original choreography I had to do a little finagling with the routine. But all those hat and cane moments were mimed to perfection.

This was no amateur portrayal.

And I clearly reaped the benefits of strutting my ‘Sweet Charity’ stuff again and again… as I sang that tune FOR-EVER. “Like” for every audition I ever had!

Barbra, Barbra, Babs… my ‘Funny Girl’ album was threadbare from being overworked, but that didn’t hinder my version of “Second Hand Rose” – IT WAS A SHOW-STOPPER. I belted out that ditty (a capella) with much chutzpah and impeccably accented delivery.

Although a staple in my bedroom concert hall I often ventured down to the living room as it was an oft requested piece of mine; with a potential segue into “Sadie, Sadie Married Lady” …

While sporting my parted-in-the-middle-down-to-there hair I let my spontaneity flow. “I let it fly in the breeze” –  the counterculture revolution taking place in my very own bedroom. Bell-bottom-ed and fringe-vest-ed my spirit tripped the light fantastic while I lifted my voice to croon “Aquarius”. And as I thundered through “White Boys” and “I Got Life” – I felt all psychedelic and ready for my quickie nude scene.

I was all for the beauty, the splendor and the wonder of my ‘Hair’…

Then, as the director of my adaptation of ‘West Side Story’ I thought it best that I play all the roles; traversing seamlessly between Jet and Shark I “sang” through the Prologue with detailed nuance. I snapped my fingers in unison with my fellow Jets as we sang our song.  My 11 o’clock number was a toss-up between “America” and “I Feel Pretty”.

I proved the brilliance of my musicianship when I covered every part in “Tonight” and danced at the gym with much urban grit. And when we (me, Anita and Maria) sang “A Boy Like That” I was brought to tears.

I sang and danced my little tushy off in all those revues and concerts, revivals and openings that took place atop my orange and yellow wall-to-wall shag carpeting. Wish you had been there. It was ah-mazing.