Bruce Momjian: News

News

Theatre December 27, 2009	We completed our last performances of A Christmas Carol at Hedgerow Theatre, and helped dismantle the set to ready the stage for the next show.
Telethon December 21, 2009	Christine and Matthew answered phones during the Greater Philadelphia Salvation Army telethon (video).
Theatre December 2, 2009	My family and I did our first of thirty-two performances of A Christmas Carol at Hedgerow Theatre.
Travel November 26, 2009	I just ended a 42-day period where I was away from home for all but eight days, either at conferences or family vacations; I visited seven cities on three continents. My schedule is empty for the next few months so I will re-adjust to life at home.
Vacation November 8, 2009	I returned from a family vacation that included a seven-day cruise of the Western Caribbean. Before the cruise we visited SeaWorld and The Holy Land Experience in Orlando, Florida.
Cousin October 15, 2009	My cousin Mark Momjian has been in the news lately because he is representing Kate Gosselin, costar of Jon and Kate Plus Eight, in her divorce. Mark even appeared on Larry King Live (time index 20:04 – 24:35).
Driving October 15, 2009	Matthew passed his on-road driving test so he now has a permanent license which allows him to drive without a licensed driver in the passenger seat.
Lecture September 26, 2009	Christine, Matthew, Luke, and I attended a lecture by Armenian retired Associated Press photographer Harry Koundakjian at a local Armenian church.
Rodeo September 19, 2009	We attended a local rodeo.
Vacation September 15, 2009	We just returned from an 800-mile, eleven-day family vacation to the Southwest. We visited Sedona, the Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, Zion National Park, and Las Vegas. We hiked; did rock climbing, rapelling, and canyoneering; kayaked, piloted a power boat, saw a Cirque du Soleil performance, took a sightseeing train ride, and visited the Hoover Dam.
Bowling August 29, 2009	Everyone but Christine went candlepin bowling in Massachusetts.
Star Trek August 25, 2009	We visited the Star Trek exhibit at the Franklin Institute.
Baseball August 12, 2009	Matthew, Luke, Pater and I attended a Wilmington Blue Rocks baseball game with a group from our church. The Blue Rocks won both games.
4-H August 8, 2009	Today was the annual Delware County 4-H fair. Matthew was judged for lamb showmanship and his lamb came in third in its class and was auctioned at a very high price. Christine helped at the book sale tent.
Shooting August 6, 2009	Matthew went pistol shooting with my brother Chris in Philadelphia.
Drive-In August 4, 2009	I had an interesting meal at Weber's Root Beer Drive-In in New Jersey. You can see from the user reviews that other patrons were impressed too.
Award July 21, 2009	I received an award at a conference I attended.
Matthew July 16, 2009	Matthew is attending Worldview Academy this week in Lancaster, Pennsylvania; he returns home tomorrow.
Anniversary July 3, 2009	Christine and I celebrated our twentieth wedding anniversary with a backyard party for 108 guests with a catered shish-kebab dinner and the Heliotrope Wind Quintet.
Marbles June 25, 2009	Luke tied for fourth in the marbles competition; Catherine finished twelfth. At night we rode the Wildwood amusement rides with the marble team (admission is free for marble competitors).
Marbles June 24, 2009	Luke was one of the top eight boys and will compete in the semi-finals tomorrow.
Professor June 23, 2009	Today I taught my first class as adjunct professor at Drexel University (details). I am teaching one course this summer in addition to my regular job at EnterpriseDB.
Marbles June 23, 2009	Christine, Luke, and Catherine were quoted in a newspaper article about the National Marbles Tournament. They took a nice picture of Luke (photo by Dale Gerhard of the The Press of Atlantic City). Update: There is also a video featuring Catherine at the end.
4-H June 22, 2009	I accompanied Matthew today on his 4-H chores at the Garrett-Williamson Farm, which is less than a mile from our house. He takes care of market lambs (image). You cannot imagine the cacophony of bleating we heard when we entered the barn --- they knew we were coming to feed them. Luke is raising laying hens and we get over a dozen fresh eggs every week. Peter is raising roaster chickens.
Marbles June 21, 2009	Christine took Luke and Catherine to Wildwood, New Jersey to compete in the National Marbles Tournament; they return on Thursday night.
Swingset June 19, 2009	We inaugurated our new background swing set today. We chose a model that would allow all four children to swing simultaneously (image), and one high enough to be used by adults. The horizontal ladder was also a much-requested feature. It took 1,300 pounds of concrete to anchor; Matthew and Luke did some of the concrete work.
Graduation June 10, 2009	Christine went to California with Wilma and all the children except Luke to attend Hilda Nuyujukian's graduation from Fullerton High School; they return on Wednesday evening, June 17.
Dance Performance June 5, 2009	Catherine had her year-end dance performance at the Church of the Good Samaritan.
Blog June 5, 2009	Matthew now has his own blog.
Anniversary June 3, 2009	Christine and I celebrated our twentieth wedding anniversary today.
Homeschool May 29, 2009	We had the TEACH homeschool co-op closing program tonight at Bethany; Luke graduated from 8th grade and will no longer be part of TEACH. Christine is a TEACH co-leader.
Gaming May 18, 2009	We had an early family birthday party for Peter, and he got the Wii game Guitar Hero World Tour. We chose the game because of its superior band equipment and more popular music selection compared to Rock Band. My children perform as a full band, with Luke on drums, Catherine on vocals, and Matthew and Peter on guitars.
Opera May 7, 2009	Most of the family attended Curtis Institute's performance of Rossini's Il viaggio a Reims at the Prince Music Theater. It was good to see the singers from previous operas in new roles; it was hard identifying some of them because of wigs and makeup.
Robotics May 2, 2009	Matthew and Christine are in Dallas so Matthew's robotics team can compete in the 2009 VEX Robotics Competition World Championship. Update: They have returned, and came in 60th out of 140 teams. (article, video)
Church April 26, 2009	My family attended a concert by David Kim at Proclamation Church. There was record attendance (750) and people were sitting in the choir because all other seats were filled. I wrote a blog entry about David Kim a week ago.
Theatre April 25, 2009	Christine and I attended Hedgerow Theatre's 86th anniversary banquet (image) at D'Ignazio Towne House.
Church April 19, 2009	My family attended Proclamation Presbyterian Church and heard guest preacher Herb Lusk give a powerful message. Pastor Lusk was known as "The Praying Tailback" (video, article), before becoming pastor of Greater Exodus Baptist Church. He is also known for his work in ministering to Africa and for heading several Philadelphia ministries Update:The sermon is now online.
Band April 18, 2009	Christine and I saw a Johnny Cash tribute band, with Terry Lee Goffee as Johnny Cash. He was amazing, as you can see from his videos.
Opera April 13, 2009	I have collected images from my children's last two operas. I have two photos from Impressions of Pelléas (image1, image2) and several from Wozzeck (image1, image2, image3, image4, image5, image6).
Marbles March 28, 2009	Luke and Catherine participated in the Upper Darby Marbles Tournament. Luke and Catherine came in second and will compete in the National Marbles Tournament in June.
Theatre March 24, 2009	We attended a performace of Behold The Lamb at the Sight & Sound Theatre near Lancaster; we also played minature golf.
Ballet March 20, 2009	Christine, Catherine, and I attended a Pennsylvania Ballet performance of Cinderella at the Academy of Music; we had great seats. Between opera, theatre, and ballet, it seems this is my season for performing arts.
Theatre March 19, 2009	We all attended George Bernard Shaw's Arms and the Man at Hedgerow Theatre.
Opera March 18, 2009	The last performance of the opera Wozzeck is over. The opera was very emotional and the children performed well. I attended every performance and the applause was prolonged. The review from The Bulletin, "A Worthy Portrayal Of Pathos", was positive and perceptive; their review of Peter's previous opera was also excellent.
Opera March 13, 2009	The first performance of the opera Wozzeck is over and two newspaper reviews (review, review) have been published. Update: more reviews (review, review)
Opera March 8, 2009	Opera practices for Wozzeck are now at the Kimmel Center in preparation for the first performance on Friday.
Science Fair March 4, 2009	Matthew won first place for 11th grade physics at the Delaware County Science Fair and will continue on to the Delaware Valley Science Fair. Luke received honorable mention for middle school biochemistry.
Robotics February 28, 2009	Matthew's robotics team won Robot Skills, Tournament Finalist, and Build awards at a robotics competition and will advance to the VEX Robotics World Championship in Dallas in April.
Opera February 28, 2009	The program notes for Wozzeck are now online; a more complete summary is also available. Update: more complete summary
Opera February 22, 2009	Peter's brief visit with Plácido Domingo last Sunday was reported in the newspaper today: On his way out, [Placido] Domingo gave an autograph to Peter Momjian, a 10-year-old singer still in makeup from his performance at the Curtis Opera Theatre.
Opera February 20, 2009	Peter has started rehearsal on his next opera with Curtis, Wozzeck. Luke and Catherine were also cast. Performances are March 13, 15, and 18 at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia.
Theatre February 17, 2009	Everyone but me is performing Once Upon a River for two weeks at Hedgerow Theatre for school students. They just completed two weeks of practice.
Opera February 15, 2009	Peter finished his last performance of Impressions of Pelléas. After the opera we dined at The Prime Rib, where we met Plácido Domingo.
Science Fair February 14, 2009	All four children entered the Greater Philadelphia Homeschool Science Fair. Catherine won first place and outstanding project in her grade, Peter won first place, Luke and Matthew won second and third place honors.
Opera February 12, 2009	Peter has received a positive review from the Philadelphia Bulletin for his Tuesday opera performance.
Ballet February 11, 2009	I took Catherine to see a ballet downtown.
Opera February 8, 2009	Peter had his first dress rehearsal for the opera Impressions of Pelléas. The program notes are now online.
Robotics January 31, 2009	Luke's and Peter's team won first place for quality robot design in the regional First State FIRST Lego League competition.
Opera January 23, 2009	Peter has his first practice for the opera Impressions of Pelléas (summary, summary) at the Curtis Institute of Music. Performances will be the week of February 9th.
Robotics January 17, 2009	Luke's and Peter's team won first place for creative presentation in a local robotics competition and advance to the First State FIRST Lego League competition in Delaware on January 31.
White House January 13, 2009	My father was featured again in a newspaper article when he took some Hedgerow actors to the White House to help them prepare for an upcoming play about a White House butler.
Newspaper January 6, 2009	My father is featured in a newspaper article covering his upcoming talks about White House china at Hedgerow Theatre. The article also has a few quotes from me.
Theatre January 2, 2009	We attended a one-man performance of A Christmas Carol. It was interesting to see a play I have seen performed with a full cast a hundred times done as a one-man show.