[Music] Hi everybody welcome to The
Balancing Act I'm Julie Moran and I'm Olga
Villaverde-- Today Amber Milt is going behind
the scenes on Disney's Aladdin, the
musical.
Sitting down with the actress playing
Jasmine on the national tour, and she
even tapped with the truth.
Wow that sounds like a blast, we're also
in for some fun in the kitchen with chef
Stuart O'Keeffe.
That's right we're
celebrating Cinco De Mayo and our guest
of honor today is the deliciously
versatile fruit, the avocado.
I can't wait to help Stuart it in the kitchen.
Plus a Mother's Day gift that's picture-perfect, I mean look at
these photos, aren't they fantastic
they're beautiful, they're easy to get,
you're gonna want to tune in.
The Balancing Act
starts right now.
[Music] Broadway Balances America
brought to you by Broadway Across America
bringing the best of Broadway to a city near
you.
Time now for Broadway Balances America,
Our series that takes you behind the
scenes of some of the most beloved
Broadway musicals as they appear across
the country and in your local theaters.
Today we're taking a magic carpet ride
with Disney's Aladdin.
Amber met with some
of the stars of the national tour, she
had a tap lesson, and discovered a whole
new world in this magical musical based
on the Academy award-winning animated
Disney film.
It's been called pure genius
for a reason.
This new production of
Aladdin is filled with unforgettable
Beauty, magic, comedy, and breathtaking
spectacle.
It's an extraordinary theatrical event
where one lamp and three wishes make the
possibilities infinite.
Isabelle McCalla wish came true when she
found out she'd be making national tour
debut as the feisty Princess Jasmine.
Isabelle we're over here in Jasmine's bedroom
and this is like magical and I've got to
be honest this is like my dream
because Jasmine was my princess--
what is it like to experience this and
get to play her in this tour.
When I got the call that I was playing
Jasmine it was a lot of high-pitched
screaming followed by some incoherent babbling and
a lot of giggling, because when I get
excited I either cry or I giggle, and it
was just pure giggling but it was, I mean it
was pure elation, and joy and a
dream come true.
And that multi award-winning
creative team has made Disney magic a
visual and musical extravaganza.
From the staging,
[Music] to the handmade costumes
designed by Tony winning costume designer
Gregg Barnes.
There are over 300 costumes in
this show which is about a hundred more
than any other Disney production-- which
is pretty insane-- and also there's over a
hundred costume changes that happen in
less than a minute during one of the
numbers so there is as much choreography
backstage as there is onstage to make it
all happen.
The fabrics they look authentic.
So these fabrics are pulled from countries from
Morocco, Turkey, Uzbekistan, China,
Guatemala, Italy, England, basically to
make this seem like this beautiful melting
pot of cultures in Agrabah.
So let's talk about
some of your costumes-- do you have a
favorite?
Well I have to say that Jasmine
day wear is the most-- the blue two-piece--
because it makes me feel the most like
a Disney princess.
It is a classic look
but I also have to say that my wedding, it's so fantastic
and this skirt weighs actually 12 pounds
because of all the crystal beading on
it.
Which is like most wedding dresses I feel like.
So heavy.
The beauty of the show isn't
limited to the costumes, it's also
reflected in the set.
So I feel like I've
died and gone to heaven but really we're
just here in the Cave of Wonders, I'm
here with Matthew and Lissa deGuzman,
you guys are both swings here in the
show-- so before we even get into this, for
people who might not know what is a
swing?
Oh well a swing we like to call it
the safety net of the company or like
the superheroes of the company so I
cover 7 girl tracks and I understudy
Jasmine, and I cover 11 male tracks which
includes two featured characters in the
ensemble.
And so if any of them need to
call out for whatever reason we are
there to swing in—which is why we're called swings--
at any moment.
We both have tracking sheets for the
individual tracks that we cover and so
you know exactly where you need to enter,
where you need to exit, what prop you
need to pick up, and the biggest thing
for us is if people don't notice that
we're on, that's when we know we did our
job.
So having roles that are so physically intense and mentally
intense how do you stay prepared for
them?
Sleep definitely a lot of sleep and
reviewing a lot it's definitely all about
balance, but we do like you have to eat
well to perform well, you have to go to
the gym, you have to be ready at a
moment's notice.
And now Lissa this is your first national tour, but you've done
them before Matthew, do you turn to
your big brother for advice here absolutely
I feel spoiled rotten because I can ask
him any question from the dumbest
question to the most intense question
and he'll have an answer for me and I
can always trust that he'll give me the
straight-up answer too - not that I exactly
know what's going on but in my experience what we've done
before.
We're in this Cave of Wonders and I
hear that you guys are going to teach me
how to tap dance.
Yeah- okay, safe space right?
Absolutely.
Three wishes what will I wish for next?
Okay so I'm here with Michael Callahan
you're the dance captain, I am.
The numbers in this
show are ginormous and they are incredible.
I mean so what do you think
you can teach me here as a new tap.
So the only tap lingo we're gonna
start with is called
a shuffle.
Close close
close close So we're going step shuffle
step step step shuffle step step.
Oh wait I messed up.
That's okay, that's okay- again here we go
(tapping) I'm killing it back here.
Yeah I mean
from what I saw awesome.
Alright so as
fun as this has been and Michael and
crew thank you so much I think I'm gonna
let the pros show you how it's really
done.
[Music] And that's some terrific
tapping.
Thank you so much thank you guys all that was
awesome.
Alright.
The whole show
is truly magical and they can't wait for audiences across the
country to experience it for themselves.
I want them to have a wonderful escape
from whatever's going on in their lives
to just come here and laugh a lot and
look at the beautiful colors and the
detailed costumes and the amazing set
pieces and scenes and all that and just
enjoy this romantic love story between
two young adults.
I would love for people
to leave this show with a sense of hope
and inspiration and sense that you
should not feel defined by your circumstances or defined by your
monetary wealth or the materialistic
aspects.
I would hope that I could
inspire some women to realize their full
potential and to go out and say I can
absolutely become a doctor or a pilot
or I could run a country because what's
wrong with a woman running the kingdom?
There's absolutely nothing wrong so I'd
hope that people leave with a sense of
possibility.
[Music] The North American tour of
Aladdin is coming soon to a theater near
you.
Check out Broadway Across America,
Broadway Balances America or you can
always go to our website thebalancingact.com
for all the show information tour dates
and more.
[Music]
[Music] Calling all avocado aficionados
Olga and Chef Stuart O'Keeffe are in the
kitchen and they're making much more
than just guacamole.
Okay so are you ready to
celebrate Cinco de Mayo?
Yes!
Of course
you are, Chef Stuart O'Keeffee always ready
for a party uh-huh.
Always you know me of course and
today it's all about avocados you know
they're native to Mexico and Central
America and they're grown around the
world.
You know I feel like they grow them
everywhere now because they're always
available.
They're so good they become
really mainstream part of our daily
diets and why not I mean they're delicious they're nutritious and
you're gonna just show us how versatile
they are.
Do you know that the avocado is
actually a fruit though- no I thought it was a veggie.
It's considered a berry because its
fleshy pulp and it has a seed.
Oh that's news I didn't know that.
So there were several
types of avocados one thing is for sure
they're super delicious- I love them.
I love them completely- do you know how
to say it in Spanish?
No what is it in Spanish?
Aguacate.
Aguacate-there you go an Irish man
speaking Spanish-wooh.
But today we're using
frozen ripe avocados from Welch's.
Really?
Super good- so they're in the freezer you
pop them out and after about 30 minutes
you can use them.
Frozen?
Yeah and look what
we have here this is great- so much.
You know how many times I've gotten an
avocado I use half of it and what do you do?
Throw it away.
You trash it because it gets brown.
Like all the time for me even on my chef
I can't keep them from going brown why
didn't I think of this this is amazing.
Okay so you got the famous guacamole- with some
sun-dried tomatoes they're super good, plantain
chips love them on plantain chips also.
So many
kinds of guacamole too.
What this has a
little bit of what in it?
Sun-dried tomatoes with onion in there
some green onion, some cilantro, lime juice, you know your usual
guacamole.
And I can add
chipotle?
Mhmhm what ever you want.
This is fantastic man this is good.
Okay keep going.
Love
this-- KeyLime Pie- we're saving a bunch of calories here.
Key lime pie with avocado.
Avocado cause we're taking out the condensed
milk which is just basically a can of
sugar and fat.
Oh wow so we're gonna put in the
avocado and you get this beautiful green,
healthier?
Healthier absolutely so instead of one
slice -maybe I'll get two slices.
I'm gonna borrow this as well for St. Patrick's Day look
it's green.
We can do that as well right?
I love it avocado in there so then
we have little bite so we've meatball
bites with like some cheese bacon and of
course avocado on top.
Super cute for a party.
Like a simple guacamole
just a smashed guacamole with just some onion in there.
These are
really non-traditional Cinco-de mayo things- appetizer yeah
love that.
Because I'm always just like
the guacamole but look at this.
Now we have to bring a little bit of
Irish into the whole team with a potato and
then we're gonna fill it up with this
beautiful mix that I'm gonna do with
tomatillos, guacamole.
So here we go we have the
avocados in here right?
Okay frozen unbelievable look at
that.I know but they're fantastic- just like
that.
It's absolutely perfect so I'm just
gonna pop these in a food processor
right?
Right there mm-hmm we got some
lime juice can't do anything without that
lime juice gotta get your onion in there
this is really good- some jalapeno,
jalapeno jalapeno nice and spicy alright I'm gonna tomatillos
are good.
And you know what something about avocados healthy
fats cholesterol free so many great
nutrients in it.
Do you know why I'm so excited in the mornings- I'm
such a fan of avocado toast like I'm
obsessed I do egg whites with it add
some tomatoes on it yes mm-hmm all the time is just such a
great breakfast to go in the morning.
But like having this in my freezer easy
its like perfect.
It's super easy- it's gonna pulse that get that all
chopped up.
Now I know I ate it right out of the bag
but you kind of thought for how long
about 30 minutes.
30 minutes okay 30
minutes and you're good to go.
Because that's why it was so soft and
delicious.
All right so let me grab two of these
potato skins right here this is really
creative this is so good I love this.
This is fantastic.
So we have some black beans here just
cook them up and just mash them up.
Okay another lesson how do you say
that in Spanish?
How do you say black beans in
Spanish/ frijoles Negros frijoles Negros.
This is good, the Irish and the
Latina coming together.
All right.
Just like this potato skin
coming together.
This one I'm telling you.
I'm caliente.
And she brings the game every
time.
Okay so we got some shredded
chicken here.
Chicken breast or if you've
got rotisserie chicken-- which you guys
all know is one of my favorites—mmm!
Some chicken on top there, we got a
spicy salsa here.
Easy recipe kids can can have fun doing this with the
family.
I've got ahead of myself.
‘Cause you're too
excited.
Oh they're so tasty.
You know what this reminds me of, also
I'm gonna grab this real quick so I know
this is your book, The Quick Six Fix,
you even have a good little I saw this
the other day, a Mexican recipe.
My Mexican Street corn?
So the Mexican Street corn in the book you could
substitute this for the mayonnaise, you can
save yourself calories.
Look at this beautiful appetizer here.
oh gosh wait
what I thought you were gonna give that to me what's
wrong.
I'm so rude, my goodness.
I say this product is cut quite large.
Mhmmm this is really good!
Okay great ideas using
Welch's frozen avocados--where can
we get these recipes and more.
These recipes and more you can go to
Welch's frozen foods dot com or we can
go always to our website the balancing act
dot com.
This has been so much fun.
Ok so before we leave let's do a
little quiz, how do you say avocado in
Spanish?
(Stuart tries to speak Spanish)
that's what you mean right?
oh my god.
I need to take classes
(laughter) Thank you so much.
I'll get there.
You're the best, another bite.
Happy Cinco De Mayo [Music]
[Music] It's that time of year again and
special occasions are all about making
precious memories and if you're capturing
those moments with your camera phone,
why not find a really special way to
keep and to share them.
Well here to tell us more
about turning those pictures into
something truly special is Warren Struhl of
MyPhoto and joining him as one of
his greatest inspirations, his mom Alice.
It is so great to have you guys here
today I'm so excited about this segment--
it's very exciting, because I have a
phone here that has you know, thousands
of pictures on it that I never do
anything with but you've created a way
to do something with these photos.
Exactly.
Believe it or not Julie this
year, one trillion pictures will be taken--
now everyone's a photographer; my kids, my
mom, my wife, friends, everyone, the problem
is that no one does anything with
even the best pictures that you take, so
as a crazy entrepreneur for many years I
went into high gear to invent something
that's really the most simple way to
take that precious picture off your
phone and make it into an awesome
product.
Thank you!
And believe it or not
it's just with an email.
And Alice tell
me, I mean you must think that you've
created the most special son in the
world, I know that, but why do you think
that MyPhoto is so unique?
Well I received a smartphone and finally
was able to take pictures on the smartphone and I was so excited
but then I said now what do I do with the
pictures and I was so thrilled when
Warren invented the MyPhoto and it was
so easy now to just email your photo and
there you are, it's done and I told all
my friends and they're also very excited.
Oh well I'm telling all my friends and
what I can't believe is you're saying
it's one, two, three, easy as one, two, three
well here's my phone um just show me how
easy this is.
So let's find a picture you want to use.
This picture.
I like it, so all we have to
do is email that to one two three at my
photo dot com no subject needed, send it off and guess what
within 60 seconds if you look in your
email box, there you go there's that
picture that we just sent in a beautiful
picture frame and all you have to do is
hit this button and you'll be able to see
that picture on all the products:
metal, acrylic, glass, even something
great for Mother's Day, and from that
email just a few seconds later you can have
that bought and in your hands in less
than five days.
Wow so my email can turn a
picture into something like this tray?
Or something like this!
Oh my gosh, you are
too sweet.
My pleasure.
We hope you enjoy it!
Oh my mom.
Look at that.
So great oh I
just love that.
I don't have one like that.
It's just such a great shot and so,
so great to have and just tell me again
where can our viewers if they want to find
out more where do they go?
It's as easy as
sending an email, just email any picture--
it's free obviously-- to one two three at
my photo dot com wait 30 seconds, we'll send
you an email back.
We do all the work for
you, and from that email you could buy
anything you want and we express ship it
to you within five days and it's always
free shipping.
And of course for more
information go to our website thebalancingact.com—it was great
having you guys here I feel like I'm
going home with gifts
and presents.
[Music]
you You know I am so impressed with
MyPhoto I have all these photos on my
cell phone they're just sitting there doing
nothing, you can make works of art out of
that.
It's such a great Mother's Day gift, and
speaking of gift boy, Amber has the gift
of talent with tapping and all that.
That's right it was so good.
That was so fun, and you in the kitchen,
this avocado aficionado.
Now let's say it in Spanish let's see if she
listened.
Oh my gosh I can try it say it again
(Julie tries to speak Spanish) I've told her one time and
you're going to learn Spanish.
Oh okay all right head
over to our Facebook page and our
website and follow us on Twitter.
You can also check out our Instagram
@Julie Olga Thanks for watching everyone
we'll see you next time.
So long (laughs)
[Music]