Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!

FANTASMAGORICAL NEWS! Zachary has been cast in the Broadway National Tour of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang! He will be one of two boys playing Jeremy. For more information, go to http://www.chittyontour.com/!

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang begins its flight across America in November 2008. Zachary is currently in New York in rehearsals.

We're back home!

Well, it's been a long time since we posted. Honestly, tour life makes you get to a point where you get tired of posting, but I thought I'd write an update so everyone would know what is going on. Zachary and I returned home on September 2. We completed the first leg of the Sound of Music tour in Macau on August 21, then Zachary and I went to Thailand for a wonderful little vacation before returning home. One thing we've learned about Asia is that nothing is in stone until it's already happened! That was the case on this tour. Things in Asia seem to change regularly and as a result, our producers ended up deciding to bring the show home on a hiatus. We are told that there are plans to take it back, but at this point, that information is forthcoming. In the meantime, Zachary is going to New York in a couple of weeks for an audition and we hope to meet with some agents. The future is a bit unclear at this point, but that's life in the theatre. There are certainly many possibilities on the table, but we just have to wait and see what happens. Thanks to everybody who has been keeping up with this blog. We have continued to post photos and there are some really great pictures, so make sure you visit the photo site. For now, we'll sign off, but keep checking back occasionally to see what's going on!

Thanks! Carter & Zachary

Guangzhou - Hotter than Alabama!

It's hard to believe that a place can be hotter and muggier than Alabama in August, but we found it. Guangzhou has been unbelievably hot. So hot, they seem to bottle sweat here! We have all truly sweat buckets here. Thankfully, we got a bit of a respite yesterday as some rain moved in and cooled it down a bit. The show has been held in a gorgeous theatre called Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall. Sun Yat-Sen is known as the father of modern China and the hall is in his honor. From the outside, it looks like a huge Chinese palace. Guangzhou is a fun city with all kinds of things to see. It is said that they eat anything that lives and breaths here and they sell them live in the markets. It is also a great place to buy pearls. We got some incredible deals. Tomorrow we fly to Fuzhou, then on to Macau from there. We found out recently that the tour is going to end after Macau. Everyone was a bit sad as the show is really amazing, but with the Olympics and the earthquake, bookings have been difficult. They hope to remount the show, but that remains to be seen. Zachary and I are going to spend a little over a week in Thailand before we come home on September 2.

Earthquake Relief Performance

Tonight was opening night in Shenzhen. It was a benefit performance for the victims of the Sichuan Earthquake. It was a very touching experience as about 20 children who survived the earthquake were in attendance wearing their native Sichuan dress. The children were from the city of Wenchuan which was the epicenter of the earthquake. We were told that their school was one of the many that collapsed and they were some of the few survivors. We were told that many of them no longer have parents. It was amazing to see them smiling and having fun trying to communicate with us. We counted together in Chinese, then we did it in English. They seemed to really enjoy teaching us Chinese words and thanked us for coming to China. At the end of the performance, the older children went onstage to present the cast with flowers. Somehow, it seemed the opposite of what it should be. They should be the ones receiving the flowers, but it was a very moving evening. You can see photos on the photo page.

Arrival in Shenzhen

Today, we flew from Nanning to Shenzhen. Our flight was only one hour, but it takes 12 hours by road. Glad we flew! Shenzhen is just across the border from Hong Kong. Unfortunately, Zachary and I won't be going to Hong Kong because my visa only allows a single entry into China and I would be stuck in Hong Kong! We can visit Hong Kong when we get to Macau in a few weeks, so it's not a big deal. Shenzhen is obviously a big city and has a very urban feel. It makes Nanning seem like a much smaller city, even though it was quite large with multi-millions of people. Tomorrow is the set load-in day and we have a press event in the morning. Our hotel is OK, not nearly as nice as in Nanning, but it will do. We've got the National Geographic Channel, BBC, and Cinemax, so at least we have some TV to watch!

Nanning's Next!

Today is our last full day in Harbin. The cast had the day off and Zachary and I struck out on our own for a while and explored the city a bit. The highlight was a wonderful lunch at a Russian restaurant that has been there since 1914. It looked like someone's well-decorated living room. The food was great and a much welcomed changed from Chinese and fast food.

Tomorrow we fly about 2,000 miles to the south to Nanning, China. Nanning is near the Vietnam border. We hope to visit Detian Falls which is the second largest border waterfall in the world behind Niagara Falls. Half of the falls are in China and the other half are in Vietnam. You have to be careful not to cross into Vietnam because a visa is required for entry and if you don't have one, it could be problematic!

After Nanning, the show goes to Shenzhen, which is just across the border from Hong Kong, Guangzhou, Fuzhou, and Macau.

Next update will be from Nanning!
Carter

Siberian Tigers!

The other day, the cast took a field trip to the Harbin Siberian Tiger Preserve. It was an amazingly upclose view of some beautiful wild animals. The experience was certainly something that you couldn't have in America! We boarded buses that drove us into what felt like Jurassic Park-like cages - very large. The bus drove through the cages and we were surrounded by tigers that were roaming free. It was absolutely amazing to get so close to them. At times they would walk directly around the bus. We were able to get some amazing pictures. Go to the photo site to see all of them. At the end of the tour, you had the option to buy LIVE animals to feed to the tigers! A couple of cast members bought a duck and a rooster. We were all a bit concerned that it would be brutal and nasty, but it was actually very National Geographic-like. There is a video of the duck's demise on the photo site. Needless to say, PETA would have a fit over this, but in China, it's just fine! At the end of the tour, Zachary got to hold a baby tiger which he absolutely loved!

After the tiger park, we went to a huge park called Sun Island Park. This park is the home of the annual Harbin Ice Festival. We went to a museum that was well below freezing and saw amazing ice sculptures. All in all, it was one of the most interesting and fun days of touring I've ever had. Definitely not something we would see at home!

Our next stop on the tour is 2,000 miles away in Nanning, China. We fly on Tuesday. Nanning is very close to the North Vietnam border and is known for its signature dish, dog hot pot! Should be interesting! Supposedly Nanning is a mix of about 100 different cultures and nationalities, so it will be very different from Harbin, which is almost all Han Chinese (or at least that's what I was told).

SOMA Opens in Harbin

The Sound of Music opened last night in Harbin. The show was fantastic! It was full of energy and could have easily been sitting on a Broadway stage! The performances are remarkable and the cast is solid as a rock. The audience absolutely loved it. They clapped along, and it is obvious that Do Re Mi is their absolute favorite. The children were amazing and the whole show was wonderful until the the bows which were received with cheering and a standing ovation from the audience. I couldn't help thinking, as we sat in chairs behind a Communist-style voting desk, that it is truly amazing that we are here in China with this treasure of a show. The photo above is from this morning's Harbin Daily newspaper. Click here to go to an English translation of the Web article. The actual newspaper is much longer and has a lot more pictures. I'll take some pictures of the paper and post it to the photo site.
Carter

We're Back! SOMA lands in Harbin, China!

The Sound of Music is now back on the ground in China! After about 38 hours of travelling and a 10 hour delay in Shanghai, we got to the hotel in Harbin at 3:30 a.m. local time. Amazingly, the trip wasn't that bad. Zachary and I both slept for at least half of the 14.5 hour flight from Chicago to Shanghai and we spent a lot of time talking to the other families from the show, so the time seemed to pass very quickly. Our flight was supposed to leave Shanghai at 6:55 p.m., but got delayed until almost midnight. The good thing about this was that Zachary and I split a room at the airport hotel with Caitlin (Brigitta) and Jan so we were able to drop all of our carry-ons in the hotel and go see a bit of Shanghai (I also got a much-welcomed shower!). We took the fastest train in the world, the Maglev, into Shanghai. It runs on magnets and went 350 kilometers per hour! During the mid-day, it goes 450 kmh! It got us into Shanghai in 8 minutes. There we saw the famous TV tower which was all lit up. It was really beautiful. Unfortunately, I didn't have the camera with me. Shanghai is like a Chinese New York. It's a really cool city and I really would like to go back and see it in depth. We took the Maglev back to the airport, I took a shower, and then we caught our flight to Harbin. We were flying on China Southern airlines and we had the worst turbulence and food I've ever had! The flight attendants literally evacuated their carts and ran to seat to buckle in.

We arrived in Harbin as the sun was rising at 3:30 a.m.! We're really far north and east, so it gets daylight very early. Luckly, our room has very good curtains, so it blocks out the sun. Zachary and the rest of the cast had a very long rehearsal yesterday, and the parents explored Harbin. China is a fascinating place. It's chaotic - there seem to be no rules for traffic, or walking down the sidewalk, which seems strange since there are so many people. It's kind of a free-for-all - just go where you can find a hole! I wouldn't call Harbin beautiful, but it is a fascinating mixture of Chinese and Russian influences. We saw the St. Sofia cathedral, which has been turned into a museum. When we arrived, a Britney Spears song was blasting from speakers from the top of the Eastern Orthodox church as fountains in front danced to the music - ahhh, China! What a weird place!

We had a delicious meal of Chinese dumplings and what the servers swore was asparagus, but we swore it was shredded celery (we didn't eat it). The total bill for Zachary and I for dinner total $4.40. Not bad. We got back to the hotel and decided to call it an early evening, although I stayed up and talked to Pam for a while on Skype. Then, I uploaded the pictures from yesterday (go to the photo site to see them). I'm also going to try to get some videos posted today.

That's all for now!

Carter

The Sound of Music Returns to China!

We got official word from the producers that the cast will return to China on June 21. Due to the earthquake, things had to be changed up quite a bit. We will open for a brief run in Nanjing, China, then fly to Harbin for a full-week run. We continue with performances in four other Chinese cities before leaving for Macau and the other countries. We think we may return to China later on to pick up some of the cities we missed. Of course, this is all subject to change! Keep checking back to the blog and we'll keep you updated!

Carter & Zachary

Pray for the People of China

Many people have been wondering how the earthquake has affected the cast of The Sound of Music. Thankfully everyone was safely away from the Chengdu area when the quake hit. Christine, who plays Maria, was in Xi'an and felt the quake from the 12th floor of her hotel and said it was terrifying. Some of the cast was staying on a beach in Malaysia and the rest of the cast, including all the kids, had returned back to the United States for the hiatus.

We continue to be shocked and saddened by the horrible images coming from Sichuan province. The cast spent three weeks in Chengdu and grew to be very attached to the city and its people. They continue to be shaken by the close call. It's hard to imagine that the place where this wonderful show began has been so devastated only weeks later. What the people of Sichuan province have and are experiencing is beyond comprehension and we pray that, somehow, the great sorrow the Chinese people are feeling will be eased.

At this point, it is our assumption that the tour will continue as scheduled, but we have not received official word as of yet. At this point, the departure date has been pushed back by one week to June 7 and performances will begin in Guiyang, China and continue through the end of November. Of course, at this point it is subject to change. Check back here for updates as we get them.

Please continue to pray for the people of Sichuan province.

The Sayle Family

Chinese Newspaper Photo

"I leave and heave a sigh and say goodbye!"

BIG NEWS! The Tour is Being Revamped and Zachary's Coming Home for Four Weeks!

We just got the super-surprising news that Zachary is coming home for four weeks on April 28! The producers, who have been in China and Korea negotiating, have completely revamped the tour. Zachary will head back to China on May 31 for the new and improved Sound of Music Asia Tour that now includes an extensive continued tour of China, plus a 7-week run in South Korea, as well as runs in Macau, Taiwan, Thailand, and Singapore! The producers are also in negotiations to extend the tour to include India, Russia, and Dubai. Here's the new tour schedule (as we've learned firsthand... this is subject to CHANGE!) Click the cities for Wikipedia pages about them,

(Edited on May 15) The schedule below is no longer valid! The tour schedule has changed yet again and now extends to the end of November and involves some different countries! We're not going to post the schedule quite yet as we are waiting to get word on how the earthquake is affecting the tour - stay tuned!)

April 19-28 - Wuhan, China
April 28 - Zachary flies to the United States! Carter flies to Chicago to pick him up!
April 28-May 31 - Hiatus - Zachary at home!
May 31 - Zachary and Carter fly back to China. Tour resumes!
June 2-8 - Xi'an, China (home of the Terra Cotta Warriors!)
June 8-12 - Jinan, China
June 12-15 - Qingdao, China
June 16-18 - Wenzhou, China
June 19-22 - Hangzhou (Xiaoshan), China
June 23-29 - Tianjin, China
June 30-July 6 - Harbin, China
July 7 - 13 - Xiamen, China
July 14-23 - Shenzhen, China
July 24-31 - Guangzhou, China
August 1-9 - Haikou, China
August 10-22 - Macau
August 23-October 10 (7 weeks) South Korea (specific cities TBA)
October thru November, company in Taiwan, Thailand, and Singapore
Negotiations are ongoing for runs in India, Russia, and Dubai

Hello Dalai! An update from China!

This is Zachary's dad, Carter. I'm sure some of you have been wondering why posts to this site and to the photo site have slowed down. There are a couple of reasons for that. One reason is that Pam is now home from China and my brother-in-law is with Zachary for six weeks until I get there. He's not a computer person. The other reason is that the cast has been staying in a 5-star hotel in Chongqing. Sounds great, and it is great. However, as you probably know, the nicer the hotel, the more they charge for stuff. Internet access is very expensive so they have limited their access to just what they need for Zachary's schooling. Zachary will hopefully be posting more photos when he arrives in the next city, Wuhan. I've called their new hotel and Internet access is much cheaper in Wuhan. The cast flies to Wuhan tomorrow. We are awaiting information on the following week. The show was originally scheduled to be in Beijing, but right about the time the mess with Tibet broke out, some authority (we suppose the government) didn't want the show in Beijing to open the newly renovated theatre - their way of getting back at Nancy Pelosi?!?. Another example of politics affecting something that has nothing to do with politics! The head audio guy for the show posted on his site that we should remember that China is not a communist country, it's a communist government. The Chinese people have been nothing but gracious and delightful and it's sad that the people of Beijing won't be able to see this wonderful show because of something that is completely out of their control. The good news is that, in May, the show will be in Tianjin which is only an hour from Beijing so everyone will hopefully still get to go to the Great Wall and see the sights of Beijing. Our understanding is that the producers are possibly booking one or two other cities in place of Beijing. We should know that in the next day or so. Bottom line is, who knows where Zachary's going after Wuhan! The show continues to sell out and everyone is beginning to settle in to "tour life." The hotel in Wuhan is overlooking the Yangtze River. How did this happen?!?

A Hit in Chongqing!

Yes, that's Zachary dancing with Maria! Click the photo for a larger version.

The Sound of Music opened last night in the second city of the tour - Chongqing. The review in the Chongqing Evening News was another rave review! Zachary appeared on both the front page and inside on the review page! Here are links to the newspaper pages (in Chinese, but fun to look at!)

Front Page of the Chongqing Evening News

Review Page of the Chongqing Evening News

VIDEOS FROM THE SHOW ADDED TO THE PHOTO ALBUM!!!

Click here to go to my photo & video album. Now you can see video clips of the show!

Chinese Television News Videos!

We found some news stories on the Web from Sichuan TV about our show! Click the photos to link to the videos. If they load slowly, just be patient until if finishes, then slide the slider back to the beginning and you'll be able to watch it without it stopping.

Video from the opening of the show!

This video was from when we were in rehearsals.

No clue why they have male nuns!

REVIEWS! The Show is a Hit!

The Sound of Music 2008 Broadway Asia Tour opened last night in Chengdu, China. The sold out audience gave the cast a resounding standing ovation, which we understand are rare in China! Here are reviews that have appeared on the Internet! The translations, from Google, are a bit rough, but you can get the idea! Click the links below for English translations.

Jenchu Network News
Chongqing Evening News
Sichuan News Online

By the way, "Do Re Mi" translates to Pyridoxine to Microphone for some reason!

Bottom line... looks like it's a HIT! - Carter

Photos from Chinese News Websites

New Countries for Sound of Music Tour?

As it always goes with theatre, things change and nothing is for sure until it actually happens! We learned in a company meeting yesterday that their are some possible changes in our tour. The first is that our producers are negotiating with some other countries! It appears as though there is a possibility that our show might go to India, Russia, and/or Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, among other countries! Nothing is for sure at this point. We'll just have to wait and see! We learned that Taiwan and Thailand are now confirmed. We also learned that we may not be performing in Beijing. Apparently, we were supposed to be in a newly renovated fancy grand theatre. The Sound of Music was going to be the first show to debut in the newly renovated theatre. Well, our producers were just told that they (we suppose the Chinese government) have decided that they did not want an American show to be the debut production in the new theatre. We think it may be because of recent political events in that controversial Himalayan "province" and America's stand on the situation. Our producers said they may book the show in another Chinese city, or give us the week off to play in China, or the Chinese government people may change their minds! Keep checking back. This is getting very interesting!

The Sound of Music Opens on Tuesday!

It's hard to believe that the time is upon us, but opening night of The Sound of Music is this Tuesday, April 1! The show will open at the Jin Cheng Arts Center in Chengdu, China for an eight-performance run before moving on to the People's Mansion (Palace) in Chongqing, China the following week. Members of the orchestra have been arriving. Many of them are coming from Russia, while others are from Europe and the United States.

This has truly been an amazing experience... to put together a full-fledged professional theatre production in two weeks! Seems impossible, but we hear the show is great and with the tremendous attention it has gotten in the Chinese press, it looks like it will be a huge hit! Thanks to everyone who has been keeping up with this blog and scouring the photos site. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family members who have been so supportive of this unbelievable experience for Zachary. Zachary will always be able to sing, "somewhere in my youth and childhood, I must have done something good!" -- Carter
(thanks to Vivian for the photo)

SOMA Cast on Chinese TV with Pandas!

CAUTION!
The sound on this video is really loud! Turn down your volume first!

This video is from a TV station in Chengdu, China. The first half is a story about a news crew from Changsha coming to film the Pandas. The part featuring our cast starts about 3-1/2 minutes into the video. The sound seems to not be in sync. If you want a better version go here (this is a slower loading video, but the sound is correct).

Check Out My New Photo Link!

We're now posting our photos to the ImageEvent Web site so you can see all of them! Click here to go to my photo page. Check back regularly. We will post all of our photos there (like this one of of a giant panda!)

Official Show Website

The official marketing Web site for The Sound of Music Asian Tour is up! Click here to see it. You won't be able to open the photos because they are for media outlets and require a password (that we don't have), but you can at least see the cast. By the way, the photos of the show are from a previous production since we haven't done publicity shots yet (the set is not all here yet).

Some Photos From China!

Thanks to Vivian (Louisa) for these photos (some were taken by others, but Vivian gave permission!) - Posted by Zachary's Dad, Carter


The SOMA Cast is greeted like stars by the Chinese press!


The billboard at the Theatre in Chengdu - (l to r) Rolf, Ursula (maid), Liesl, Louisa


Swank "Sound of Music" Tour Buses!



And one of the results of the Chinese press photos!

Picture Time!

These are some pictures from my New York week. The Glove filled with water is Slappy Babie. My freind Emily made it so she could take pictures of it in Asia. I have had a really fun time this week. Tonight we fly to China!

We are in New York!!!

Hello, We are finally in New York! Watch the video to meet Gretl.

I'm on TV!

Yesterday, I was on Good Day, Alabama on our local Fox station. Click Here to see the video!

Here's a fun fact... The guy talking on the commercial at the beginning of the video is "Dollar" Bill Lawson, a really popular radio personality here in Birmingham, Alabama. Bill played "The Old Man" in A Christmas Story when I played "Ralphie" this past December. Here's the promotional poster with Bill (with the leg lamp) and me (with the BB gun)! Click the photo to make it bigger.

Tickets are on Sale!

In case you happen to be in Chengdu, People's Republic of China the first week of April, you can purchase tickets to The Sound of Music! Tickets are on sale at this site! Pretty cool!

So Long, Farewells...

This is Zachary's Dad. Here are some folks who are going to miss you!

I'm on Public Radio!

WBHM, Birmingham, Alabama's public radio station, did a story on me on their weekly show, "Tapestry." Check it out here!

Two More Weeks!

Hey everybody, Its me Zachary. Now it is exactly two weeks until I fly to New York to start my journey. I will be there for one week before flying to China. My next post will be on March ninth. Thats when the real fun will begin.

A Little More Info...

Hey, this is Zachary. I just wanted to give you further details about the tour. The cast will fly to New York on March 9 for one week of rehearsals and publicity stuff. Then we will fly to the city of Chengdu in China. We will be there for three weeks. Two for rehearsals and one performing. Then we continue to many other Chinese cities. We will be in Asia for a total of nine months.

Meeting Zachary

Hello, my name is Zachary and I will be going on the Asia tour of the Sound of Music in the role of Kurt Van-Trapp. We will be touring all over asia but we will be in China for the bulk of the tour. Then I will continue on to Thailand, Macau, Taiwan, And the Philippines.

Bye for Now,
Zachary