January 20, 2012
Hello there, and welcome to my new website! As many of you know, I started my musical journey as a solo artist, playing coffee shops and solo gigs for years...I put the Ryan Lee music aside for the past 4 years, because I wanted to stay focused on In The Cinema, my band with my brother, Joe. I have always enjoyed getting back to basics, and have decided that this year I will work on some new solo material and play more solo gigs! Joe and I will still be rocking our band stuff, and even have 3 new songs near completion, with several more on deck, so 2012 will be a very busy and exciting year for both of us!
This past fall I had the amazing opportunity to work again with my second home, Interact Theater. I played music for a show called "JOY...A Holiday Cabaret"...The show was a nod to an old TV Variety Show called The Joy Hour, and featured some of the theater's greatest hits from years past, as well as dance and comedy. I had an absolute blast, as many of you are aware, from all of the gushing on Facebook.
That experience led me right into my current state. On January 1, I landed in paradise--Chiang Mai, Thailand! I am here for 2 months, with a creative team from Interact, helping to set up a new Arts Program for Thai Artists with Disabilities!!!! How lucky am I?!!! We are working with a group of about 35, aging anywhere from 5 to 70, making music, creating scenes, dances and even learning sign language...We will put on a show sometime in late February. The work is challenging though...In Minneapolis,we work with very talented adults, who know how to sing, dance and act, and the shows that Interact puts on are the best of the best. But here, this theater thing is foreign territory, and we quickly realized that we had to start with the basics. Here are a few pics of us in action:
When we aren't working, there is plenty of time to enjoy this amazing country:
So this is what I'll be doing until March. Plenty more pics and videos on my Facebook Page, and also more blogging about this amazing adventure soon. A Homecoming Show is in the works for early March, so I'll be in touch about that as well.
All the best, Sawatdee Khrap from beautiful Thailand!!!
-Ryan Lee
