Sister Adventures

Saturday morning, Sister & I woke up and decided to go on adventure. Ready to see the details? Here we go. First, get bundled up to walk to the bus stop in -12 degree Celsius weather.

Winter shot.

Posers at a bus stop.

Art at a bus stop.

Destination #1.

Our mission???? LES MISERABLES ON DVD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 More posing.

Of course, no adventure is complete without a trip to Starbucks.

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We interrupt this adventure post to say that at this point Theresa from McMurray Musings came up to me to introduce herself and talking blogging. So awesome to meet this inspirational woman in real life. I was little bit starstruck. Anyways, everyone go check out her blog before finishing the adventure.

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Waiting for coffee & being silly.

Someone doesn't know how to spell Sister's name.

The adventure ended with a wonderful morning full of beautiful, haunting melodies! 

Thanks for a great adventure, sis!

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Don't forget about the transition from Google Reader to Bloglovin'.

This is effective July 1st, so don't forget to follow A Silver Snapshot here.

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Let's Talk About The Oscars

So did you watch them? Because I did and they were GREAT!

Yay for Seth McFarlane! He kept us laughing the entire four hours with some great and quite relevant jokes. "The family Von Trapp!" "Mission to make Tommy Lee Jones smile begins now.""This next woman needs no introduction" *leaves stage*.

Best dressed? Hands down, our girl Jennifer Lawrence. She not only had the best dress but she won Best Actress! And the girl crush continues.

Best moment of the entire evening right here, ladies and gentlemen. Les Mis, great job on three awards!

Happy Tuesday!

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Let's Talk "Les Miserables"

Yes, this topic gets its own blogpost.
Deal with it.

Here are my detailed thoughts on the film {Spoilers}. 

• Hugh Jackman (Jean Valjean): Absolutely brilliant actor. His performance in What Have I Done?/Valjean's Soliloquy was heart-wrenching. He played the perfect rescuer to Fantine and the perfect father to Cosette. A couple of nasally notes, however, overall a 4.5/5. 
• Anne Hathaway (Fantine): Scene stealing. Breathtaking. Oscar shoe-in. All these phrases and more apply to our darling Princess Diaries girl. How can you not be moved by her ONE TAKE I Dreamed a Dream???? Definitely a 6/5.
• Russell Crowe (Javert): This actor created a lot of controversy in the reviews. A lot of people categorized him as the weakest and out of his league. However, I wouldn't agree. He doesn't have the vocal ranges of the previous two actors, but his acting and attempts are still wonderful. I would give him a 3.5/5. I still get bored during Stars no matter who sings it. 
• Sacha Baron Cohen & Helena Bonham Carter (Monsieur & Madame Thenardier): They were hilarious and provided the necessary comic relief. Their interactions with each other and everyone around them were always enjoyable. The only criticism I have was the toned down version of Master of the House compared to the raucous version on stage. 3.75/5.
• Amanda Seyfried (Cosette): She was all the wide-eyed, in-love, innocent character that she needed to be. Plus she hit those difficult soprano notes with ease. Her chemistry with Marius was believable {difficult to pull off}. No complaints. Cosette is an interesting role because she is talked about for about 75% of the entire show, but she is actually only in it for approximately 25%. 4/5.
• Eddie Redmayne (Marius): Why have I never heard this actor sing before? He was absolutely brilliant, and his seasoned voice was very apparent. One of the best renditions of Empty Chairs at Empty Tables I have ever heard. I hope he has a long and musical career! Plus, he made Marius someone worth fighting for and not just a annoying, lovesick puppy. 5/5.
• Aaron Tveit (Enjolras): Another new face who also did a wonderful portrayal as the zealous revolution leader. I don't have much to comment on this guy other than I'm glad they kept the traditional death pose the same in both the film and stage. It was a respect move. 3.5/5.
• Samantha Barks (Eponine): As is with most gals my age, Eponine is the fan favourite. Everyone has related to her at some point in their life, so naturally everyone always roots for her. Why, I even sang On My Own during my brief singing stint back in high school. So then also naturally I would be the pickiest when it came to her role. Samantha Barks was excellent! She obviously knows the part inside out due to her long history with the role. Yes, she was the most inexperienced screen actor. My biggest disappointment was the sacrificing of Eponine's role for more screen time for Gavroche. Don't get me wrong, I love the kid, but not at the disposal of Eponine. A Little Fall of Rain and its emotional punch was cut short. She didn't even appear in the Valjean's Death number, which I see why they made that decision, but . . . ya . . . . Anyways, Miss Barks was excellent. 3.5/5.

Now, that I've officially written your ear off {um, what}, here are a couple other thoughts.

• Rearranging the order for I Dreamed A Dream worked brilliantly and dare I say, fit so much better where it was placed in the film.
• Lots and lots of added scenes and dialogue. Again, probably necessary in order to create a flowing storyline.
• Gavroche was cute and perfect.
• I liked the presentation of One Day More better on stage. The intercutting on the film takes away from the build. 
• What the heck was that whole Santa thing???? Unnecessary . . .
• The scenery was so good!!!! That is one thing that can't be captured on the stage.

Yet in all my picking apart and details, I absolutely loved it! Go see it. Go see it twice {I'm going again tomorrow}. And remember, do you hear the people sing???

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12/26 {Colour}

Today's Dressember challenge is Rainbow. My dress has several shades of turquoise, green, brown, and white, so I'm going for a rustic rainbow :)

Sweater: Rikki's // Dress: Rikki's // Tights: Joe Fresh

P.S. So who saw Les Miserables last night??!?!?! Cause this girl did. And as I said on Facebook, I'm speechless, and I can't shut up about it. Anne Hathaway killed it, Eddie Redmayne's voice is to die for, and Hugh Jackman's acting is superb. I could say something about everything and everyone, but I'm going to force myself to stop now. 

Happy Boxing Day!

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12/23 {I Must Be Crazy . . . }

. . . because it is MINUS THIRTY-TWO outside. Grrrr. However, Dressember is still going strong!

 

Heading off to church and nothing says Sunday morning more than a clean cut dress and a set of pearls.  Then later today, BROTHER AND SISTER COME INTO TOWN! This girl is excited :) I'm also going to try to purchase my Les Miserables tickets today {yes, we are that family}.

 
Earrings: Rikki's // Pearls: Forgot // Necklace: Rikki's
Sweater: Forgot // Dress: Winners // Tights: Joe Fresh

 

Two days! Are you excited???

Happy Sunday!

 

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I Dreamed A Dream

I have talked ad nauseam about Sister on this blog {blogger's privileges}. At the beginning of October, she took off for a crazy two month adventure in the amazon to help pastors learn more about the Bible. So proud.

You know what else I've obsessed over??? LES MISERABLES . . . which is premiering on December 25th.

So before Sister left, she recorded a guitar cover of "I Dreamed A Dream", a solo sung by the character Fantine in the musical. She dedicated it to me, which touched my heart so much. So I decided to record the same song on the piano {this is a first for A Silver Snapshot}.

Here is my piano cover of "I Dreamed A Dream" for my Sister. Love you!

Here's the official trailer!!!

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She's Going To The Amazon

My sister, Crystal.

She's going with YWAM Montana on the Titus Project to Columbia. 

She's leaving in 8 days.

Wow.

She'll never know how proud I am of her.

She'll never know how so very alive and accepted she makes me feel.

She'll never know the impact.

Last night, she posted a video of her cover of "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables on guitar.
She posted it, because it's our thing.

I love her.

 

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No. 296 - Les Miserables The Movie

Have you ever heard of the Broadway production Les Miserables?

It is based on a novel by Victor Hugo that was published in 1862.

The musical was written by Claude-Michel Schonberg and opened in 1985.

It follows the story of ex-convict Jean Valjean.

The antagonist/villain is the policeman Javert.

We meet Fantine, the mother who turned prostitute to support her daughter.

We meet Cozette, the starving child Valjean raises.

We meet Marius, the lovestruck scholar who joins the revolution.

We meet Eponine, the street rat with unrequited love.

We meet others such as the Thenardiers, Enjolras, and Gavroche. 

But it is not just the characters and their stories that grip you,

it is the music. 

In a word, it is thrilling.

I first heard of Les Miserables in 2006 when my vocal instructor took myself, Crystal, and Isaac to a neighbouring town to see a high school production. Wow. I think my world changed. I soon went on to sing "On My Own" in a recital competition. Since then, I've kept up with the music on YouTube and whatnot, and {along with Phantom}, it has remained a favourite. Moreover, it is a musical that both my sister and I geek out over
{check out this amazing high school production on YouTube here}. 

And now, it is going to be a movie {after 26 years}.

Watch for it on December 13, 2012.

And a few days ago, the first trailer was released.

I have watched it several times since then.

Enjoy!

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No. 260 - A Little Fall of Rain

Eponine: Don't you fret, M'sieur Marius.

I don't feel any pain.

A little fall of rain

Can hardly hurt me now.

You're here, that's all I need to know.

And you will keep me safe.

And you will keep me close.

And rain will make the flowers grow.

Marius: But you will live 'Ponine, dear God above.

If I could close your wounds with words of love.

Les Miserables is one of my favourite theatre productions (that and The Phantom of the Opera). In preparation for the movie coming out in December with Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, and Amanda Seyfried, I have been listening a lot to the soundtrack. I think my favourite song from the play is A Little Fall of Rain sung by Eponine and Marius. Eponine is my favourite character in the play, but also the saddest. Anyways, the rainy weather today reminded me of the song. Here is a cover by Nick Jonas and Samantha Barks (who will be playing Eponine in the movie) at the 25th Anniversary Concert.

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