STRASBOURG ENCOUNTERS PART ONE.
Mar. 21st, 2011 11:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lesmisloonySweet French Jesus. You guys, I think Patrice Maktav may have stolen me away from Flo.
It freaks me out to think that in the space of a few days I can totally ditch an obsession that's been the only thing in my brain for three months, but then again it only took a few weeks for me to abandon my first MOR love Mikele, with whom I'd been obsessed for over a year, when Flo was being so nice and amazing at the PDS. Maybe all it takes for me to be in love with you is for you to cyberstalk me, and Maktav being all up on my facebook was slightly more delightful than Flo telling me he'd read my livejournal once. Or maybe it's just easier to adore Maktav since you don't have to fight off the entire female population of France to get his attention. Or maybe it's because I don't think anyone in the world has ever been nicer to anyone else than Maktav was to me this weekend.
But since it's finally time for me to buckle down and tell the magnificent stories of my adventures in Strasbourg, you guys can be the judge.
Gosh okay. So we got to the hotel door a little later than planned Saturday morning and the girls had already gone by... or so we were told until Melissa appeared and started signing things in her incredibly awkward, quiet way. I finally got in there and gave her the doll... She just kinda went "Waaaoouhh c'est toi qui les as fait!" or something. I have a video of it but I'm going to wait until the videos of Marjolaine and Nuno make their way into my life and I'll post all the reactions separately from this. But we got a picture.
It was SO WINDY. And because I am incredibly stupid I was not dressed warmly... AT ALL. It had been kinda slightly warm in Paris so I thought maybe that weather just applies to the entirety of France. Apparently not. I was cold all weekend. In fact, I am still cold right now. I may be cold until I die.
The girls always leave pretty early in order to get their hair did, so there was a lot of waiting around after Melissa left. But in the meantime I got a picture with the best automobile I've ever seen.
I need a car like this in my life. I'll throw Flo and Maktav in the back and drive them back to America with me.
Then Solal came out! Lara gave him a present and wtf he just up and started speaking German to her! Apparently he lived in Germany for like ten years or something?!? I had no idea! I was taking a video with Lara's camera at the time. Omg Solal speaks German.
And suddenly a cascade of dancers began to appear! I learned all the guy dancers since Bruxelles because I love them and want flotos with all of them, so I was really proud of myself for being able to stop them and ask for flotos by name this time.
Jérôme!
Guillaume! (He was almost definitely the one who was sitting next to me on the train.)
Valery je t'aime!
(You see, there's a video he took backstage last year in which Mikele keeps yelling "Valery je t'aime! I love-a you!" and now my brain just thinks that that's his full name. Valery je t'aime.)
Stefano!
Corentin!!
I didn't see the two Alexandres or Nico or Mas, which was quite disappointing. Then again, I already had a floto with Mas from Amneville even though it sucks and he looks like he hates me. Now I gotta learn all the lady dancers. I only know Tamara and sometimes Berenice... fan fail.
Then Estelle came out wearing these shoes.
She's a floral ninja!!
A second later Jean Michel came out and I had to chase him a little ways to get a picture.
Meanwhile JP Asian (previously referred to as GP Asian because I suck at the alphabet) was telling him to hurry up, so... I asked *him* for a floto. He looked alarmed but he agreed.
You know you're a legit fan with you have a picture with JP Asian. AW YEAH.
At some point Merwan went by too, but he had a tiny little baby with kinky black hair and was fussing over how cold she was, so no one even said hi to him. We all just stood back and gawped.
A few minutes later Maktav came hurrying out looking REALLY ATTRACTIVE and I'm not just saying that because of my recently-born obsession with him but because he actually looked hot. He had on a toboggan, as usual, but it was pulled back enough that you could see his hair on either side, plus he was wearing shades and he was all scruffy. The giant flobo coat is gone and I never noticed this before but Maktav likes skinny jeans! I believe the appropriate reaction is "Awriiight." I think he stopped to sign a thing or two before he went rushing past to the giant bus. When he passed me without seeing me I dramatically reached after him and went "Nooooooooooooo...!" with a look of melodramatic despair. I didn't even realise I was doing it until I looked up and saw other fans giving me WTF faces. SHUT UP THAT'S MY FACEBOOK FRIEND PATRICE MAKTAV. YOU DON'T KNOW ME.
At some point Nuno came out with a guitar on his back, wearing a thin shirt and still all scruffy from that Adam and Eve photoshoot. HE ALSO LOOKED HOTTER THAN USUAL. We stopped him and Lara gave him an amazing book she had made.
It was that story I wrote wherein all the characters Nuno plays are the same guy who is secretly conspiring to steal Mozart's life, and she had added a bunch of gorgeous pictures that Joanna took during the show. She let us all write him notes at the end and stuck pictures of us in. And there was a page where we all put where we were from! It was a really great present.
And Nuno's reaction was PERFECT. He bisous'd the three of us and then opened it to a random page, read it, and started giggling adorably. He chatted with us for a while and I video'd the whole thing with Joanna's camera. When she gets this video online it will blow everyone's minds. It's ADORRRRABLE.
And then the sun of my soul came out, totally mobbed by fans as always. I hovered awkwardly on the edge of the crowd, as one does, and when he saw me Flo said Bonjour but then someone else jumped in for a Floto. So then I took pictures with him and Joanna, then with him and Lara, and I backed away... but suddenly I realised I hadn't gotten a Floto for myself! Retarded. So I passed Joanna my camera and hopped forward like a bunny. Yep, I literally hopped at Flo. I'm smooth like that. When I got up to him he said Bonjour again and then Ça va? and I just stared at him for a while in confusion before I said Oui. I coudn't figure out 1. why he was speaking French which he has never ever done and 2. what language I was meant to respond in. GAH FLO.
I wish I looked less windswept and ridiculous in the Floto because Flo looks ADORABLE.
I like our inversely coloured leather jackets and Flo's ginormous headphones. Awww.
Then Flo went back inside, which was mildly confusing, but the bus full of dancers and such had already left for the theatre.
A short time later a van pulled out from behind the hotel. I recognised Flo and Yamin inside, and someone else told me they had seen Mikele in the front seat. The other fans all rushed down the hill to photograph the van as it passed, but I stayed where I was and just waved sadly. AND THEN FLO WAVED BACK. Hahaha. He's too cute.
So then I met Bénédicte and we wandered around Strasbourg with Joanna's friend Laetitia. It's a really pretty town! We eventually got super cold (and by "we" I mean "I") so we went into some cafe thing and hung out for a long time. We came up with a few memes, my favourite of which being "And then Maktav will LIKE IT." because of recent facebook activity. There was a lot of speculation as to what exactly was going to happen backstage after the show. It was cute because they're both French girls who understand English and I'm an American who understands French, so our conversation was totally bilingual. It didn't matter which language somebody said something in, and if one person didn't understand we switched to the other language. It was fun and I'm sure we sounded crazy.
Finally we went on over to the Zenith and picked up our tickets and backstage passes. IT WAS SO COOL the tickets even said "invites - 0.00 euros" in the price part. We were pretty well placed, though nothing like front row. I was beside myself, dancing around being annoying and singing a lot which is... well, it's what I do.
I suppose I shall review the show in a separate entry and no one will read it because let's be honest you guys are here for Flotos and you know it. But I can say that Marjolaine did an Alsacien accent, I couldn't stop lol'ing due to a combination of Mikele's acting and the dancers' amazing antics (most notably Train Buddy Guillaume's sexy faces during Six pieds sous terre), and I high-fived ALL THE MAN DANCERS during Victime de ma victoire.
Also when Flo came down the aisle before Vivre à en crever, for the first time I've seen he was actually looking around at the audience. He looked down his nose as he passed us with this haughty Salieri face and I know I just beamed up at him like HIIII FLOWWWW and he just kept glaring and trying to be all mean until he was past. Also during curtain call Flo did an eyebrow waggle at me and I was like Awriiight. Then Bénédicte and I had to wait off to one side of the stage with a pretty massive crowd of nosy people to see what we'd won.
And then JP allowed us to pass behind the curtain...
...to a box painted on the floor.
And so here's me like OOH BACKSTAGE BACKSTAGE I WANT A PICTURE OF ALL THESE THINGS
Except then I got fussed at because I had apparently stepped out of the box so I was like But I'm trying to walk the line for REALLLL and then I was so proud of my joke I said it fifteen more times.
The main members of the Troupe passed us one by one on their way to the dédicaces (we always heard SCREAMS a second later as they arrived) and then they returned to us to sign things and take pictures. I felt SO LAME for being there because I've already met them and gotten pictures, you know? But Bénédicte hadn't, so I felt good about taking pictures for her. The best was that with Solal her camera went all Lille on me and first the flash wasn't on, then Solal started talking before it took the picture, and then finally they got one right. She apologised for being troublesome and he was like We've got time! or something. It was lovely.
And then Maeva showed up and I said something either to her or Bénédicte which prompted her to ask where I was from, so I was like American... I'm the doll-making one. And I held up my bag with the Princesse d'Orange and Rosenberg and she and Estelle, who was nearby, were like OHHH LOOK! and got super cute about it. Then they were like But I think Marjolaine and Yamin have probably already left and I was like I'll get 'em later. Then I asked for a picture with the two of them and it was pretty stellar.
The problem here is that the flash on my camera takes a million years to go off, so by the time the camera takes the picture your smile is starting to slip off...
I got similar pictures with other people who failed to recognise me but it's okay because I love them anyway.
Then this beard-y guy I think I've seen somewhere before showed up.
I had my camera on because I'm a ninja like that, so I'll put that in the post with the other videos. For now, what you need to know is he said Bonjour to me and I was like Why are you speaking so much French today??? and he said some random weird thing like I thought you wanted me to speak French now and I was like wtf no you have the cutest accent ever and he was like okay. And then I was like Oh I have a question for you. And then some little girl wanted a Floto so I stepped back and waited. Then he pops back up and says "Tell me." So I'm all You have this striped sweater... it has a logo on it which is the logo of my university. And Flo is like Ees eet? and I'm like YES it says NC and he's like what's you're university? and I'm like ...UNC. And I was like my friends and I just decided you wear it because you love us. And he said I do! And I said Wonderful. And then he said I do! again. And I was like in that case can we take a picture?
Haha.
And Flo had just started to walk away when Mikele showed up being all Mikele-y and upgraded and stuff. When he got to me he said "American girrrrl!" and pulled me into one of those long, never-ending, weird and delightful Mikele hugs. And I just went "You remembered me!" in English in total shock and he was like "Of course!" and a few seconds later "You're-a crrazy!" lol why.
And then he just kept on hugging me. I would love to know what goes through Mikelangelo Loconte's head when he stands completely still and hugs a fan for like four full minutes. Ridiculous and delightful. And because the hug wouldn't end and I was making a wtfff face at Bénédicte she took a picture.
Hahaha my confusion.
And so finally after seven years of my life went by Mikele let go... and he grabbed my hand, kissed it, and said "Bellisima!"
HOW INCREDIBLY ITALIAN HE IS. Then some other fan came back over asking for a second floto with Mikele and he was like NO you have already had your pictures! And he bisous'd me and went on his glittery way. Lol Mikele what planet are you from.
Then JP Asian chased us back out into the salle and told us to get out of there, so we did. Unfortunately no one was picking up on the other end of the taxi number and no buses were running and my heart was breaking in half because I had just gotten a text from Joanna (who was at the hotel) which said that everyone was already inside. We waited out in the cold for perhaps an hour or so until some other fan who had also been backstage was sweet enough to call two taxis instead of just the one. And we zoomed through the night to Bénédicte's hotel, then off to the Hilton where I assumed I wasn't going to see anyone else.
I WAS SO WRONG.
But since I've made you beautiful people wait THREE DAYS to hear details, I'm gonna stop my adventure right here. I'll tell the rest of the stagedooring stories within the next twelve hours, I promise. But here's you something to read while I get to my favourite part.
And it is gonna be... MAKTAVSTIC.
It freaks me out to think that in the space of a few days I can totally ditch an obsession that's been the only thing in my brain for three months, but then again it only took a few weeks for me to abandon my first MOR love Mikele, with whom I'd been obsessed for over a year, when Flo was being so nice and amazing at the PDS. Maybe all it takes for me to be in love with you is for you to cyberstalk me, and Maktav being all up on my facebook was slightly more delightful than Flo telling me he'd read my livejournal once. Or maybe it's just easier to adore Maktav since you don't have to fight off the entire female population of France to get his attention. Or maybe it's because I don't think anyone in the world has ever been nicer to anyone else than Maktav was to me this weekend.
But since it's finally time for me to buckle down and tell the magnificent stories of my adventures in Strasbourg, you guys can be the judge.
Gosh okay. So we got to the hotel door a little later than planned Saturday morning and the girls had already gone by... or so we were told until Melissa appeared and started signing things in her incredibly awkward, quiet way. I finally got in there and gave her the doll... She just kinda went "Waaaoouhh c'est toi qui les as fait!" or something. I have a video of it but I'm going to wait until the videos of Marjolaine and Nuno make their way into my life and I'll post all the reactions separately from this. But we got a picture.
It was SO WINDY. And because I am incredibly stupid I was not dressed warmly... AT ALL. It had been kinda slightly warm in Paris so I thought maybe that weather just applies to the entirety of France. Apparently not. I was cold all weekend. In fact, I am still cold right now. I may be cold until I die.
The girls always leave pretty early in order to get their hair did, so there was a lot of waiting around after Melissa left. But in the meantime I got a picture with the best automobile I've ever seen.
I need a car like this in my life. I'll throw Flo and Maktav in the back and drive them back to America with me.
Then Solal came out! Lara gave him a present and wtf he just up and started speaking German to her! Apparently he lived in Germany for like ten years or something?!? I had no idea! I was taking a video with Lara's camera at the time. Omg Solal speaks German.
And suddenly a cascade of dancers began to appear! I learned all the guy dancers since Bruxelles because I love them and want flotos with all of them, so I was really proud of myself for being able to stop them and ask for flotos by name this time.
Jérôme!
Guillaume! (He was almost definitely the one who was sitting next to me on the train.)
Valery je t'aime!
(You see, there's a video he took backstage last year in which Mikele keeps yelling "Valery je t'aime! I love-a you!" and now my brain just thinks that that's his full name. Valery je t'aime.)
Stefano!
Corentin!!
I didn't see the two Alexandres or Nico or Mas, which was quite disappointing. Then again, I already had a floto with Mas from Amneville even though it sucks and he looks like he hates me. Now I gotta learn all the lady dancers. I only know Tamara and sometimes Berenice... fan fail.
Then Estelle came out wearing these shoes.
She's a floral ninja!!
A second later Jean Michel came out and I had to chase him a little ways to get a picture.
Meanwhile JP Asian (previously referred to as GP Asian because I suck at the alphabet) was telling him to hurry up, so... I asked *him* for a floto. He looked alarmed but he agreed.
You know you're a legit fan with you have a picture with JP Asian. AW YEAH.
At some point Merwan went by too, but he had a tiny little baby with kinky black hair and was fussing over how cold she was, so no one even said hi to him. We all just stood back and gawped.
A few minutes later Maktav came hurrying out looking REALLY ATTRACTIVE and I'm not just saying that because of my recently-born obsession with him but because he actually looked hot. He had on a toboggan, as usual, but it was pulled back enough that you could see his hair on either side, plus he was wearing shades and he was all scruffy. The giant flobo coat is gone and I never noticed this before but Maktav likes skinny jeans! I believe the appropriate reaction is "Awriiight." I think he stopped to sign a thing or two before he went rushing past to the giant bus. When he passed me without seeing me I dramatically reached after him and went "Nooooooooooooo...!" with a look of melodramatic despair. I didn't even realise I was doing it until I looked up and saw other fans giving me WTF faces. SHUT UP THAT'S MY FACEBOOK FRIEND PATRICE MAKTAV. YOU DON'T KNOW ME.
At some point Nuno came out with a guitar on his back, wearing a thin shirt and still all scruffy from that Adam and Eve photoshoot. HE ALSO LOOKED HOTTER THAN USUAL. We stopped him and Lara gave him an amazing book she had made.
It was that story I wrote wherein all the characters Nuno plays are the same guy who is secretly conspiring to steal Mozart's life, and she had added a bunch of gorgeous pictures that Joanna took during the show. She let us all write him notes at the end and stuck pictures of us in. And there was a page where we all put where we were from! It was a really great present.
And Nuno's reaction was PERFECT. He bisous'd the three of us and then opened it to a random page, read it, and started giggling adorably. He chatted with us for a while and I video'd the whole thing with Joanna's camera. When she gets this video online it will blow everyone's minds. It's ADORRRRABLE.
And then the sun of my soul came out, totally mobbed by fans as always. I hovered awkwardly on the edge of the crowd, as one does, and when he saw me Flo said Bonjour but then someone else jumped in for a Floto. So then I took pictures with him and Joanna, then with him and Lara, and I backed away... but suddenly I realised I hadn't gotten a Floto for myself! Retarded. So I passed Joanna my camera and hopped forward like a bunny. Yep, I literally hopped at Flo. I'm smooth like that. When I got up to him he said Bonjour again and then Ça va? and I just stared at him for a while in confusion before I said Oui. I coudn't figure out 1. why he was speaking French which he has never ever done and 2. what language I was meant to respond in. GAH FLO.
I wish I looked less windswept and ridiculous in the Floto because Flo looks ADORABLE.
I like our inversely coloured leather jackets and Flo's ginormous headphones. Awww.
Then Flo went back inside, which was mildly confusing, but the bus full of dancers and such had already left for the theatre.
A short time later a van pulled out from behind the hotel. I recognised Flo and Yamin inside, and someone else told me they had seen Mikele in the front seat. The other fans all rushed down the hill to photograph the van as it passed, but I stayed where I was and just waved sadly. AND THEN FLO WAVED BACK. Hahaha. He's too cute.
So then I met Bénédicte and we wandered around Strasbourg with Joanna's friend Laetitia. It's a really pretty town! We eventually got super cold (and by "we" I mean "I") so we went into some cafe thing and hung out for a long time. We came up with a few memes, my favourite of which being "And then Maktav will LIKE IT." because of recent facebook activity. There was a lot of speculation as to what exactly was going to happen backstage after the show. It was cute because they're both French girls who understand English and I'm an American who understands French, so our conversation was totally bilingual. It didn't matter which language somebody said something in, and if one person didn't understand we switched to the other language. It was fun and I'm sure we sounded crazy.
Finally we went on over to the Zenith and picked up our tickets and backstage passes. IT WAS SO COOL the tickets even said "invites - 0.00 euros" in the price part. We were pretty well placed, though nothing like front row. I was beside myself, dancing around being annoying and singing a lot which is... well, it's what I do.
I suppose I shall review the show in a separate entry and no one will read it because let's be honest you guys are here for Flotos and you know it. But I can say that Marjolaine did an Alsacien accent, I couldn't stop lol'ing due to a combination of Mikele's acting and the dancers' amazing antics (most notably Train Buddy Guillaume's sexy faces during Six pieds sous terre), and I high-fived ALL THE MAN DANCERS during Victime de ma victoire.
Also when Flo came down the aisle before Vivre à en crever, for the first time I've seen he was actually looking around at the audience. He looked down his nose as he passed us with this haughty Salieri face and I know I just beamed up at him like HIIII FLOWWWW and he just kept glaring and trying to be all mean until he was past. Also during curtain call Flo did an eyebrow waggle at me and I was like Awriiight. Then Bénédicte and I had to wait off to one side of the stage with a pretty massive crowd of nosy people to see what we'd won.
And then JP allowed us to pass behind the curtain...
...to a box painted on the floor.
And so here's me like OOH BACKSTAGE BACKSTAGE I WANT A PICTURE OF ALL THESE THINGS
Except then I got fussed at because I had apparently stepped out of the box so I was like But I'm trying to walk the line for REALLLL and then I was so proud of my joke I said it fifteen more times.
The main members of the Troupe passed us one by one on their way to the dédicaces (we always heard SCREAMS a second later as they arrived) and then they returned to us to sign things and take pictures. I felt SO LAME for being there because I've already met them and gotten pictures, you know? But Bénédicte hadn't, so I felt good about taking pictures for her. The best was that with Solal her camera went all Lille on me and first the flash wasn't on, then Solal started talking before it took the picture, and then finally they got one right. She apologised for being troublesome and he was like We've got time! or something. It was lovely.
And then Maeva showed up and I said something either to her or Bénédicte which prompted her to ask where I was from, so I was like American... I'm the doll-making one. And I held up my bag with the Princesse d'Orange and Rosenberg and she and Estelle, who was nearby, were like OHHH LOOK! and got super cute about it. Then they were like But I think Marjolaine and Yamin have probably already left and I was like I'll get 'em later. Then I asked for a picture with the two of them and it was pretty stellar.
The problem here is that the flash on my camera takes a million years to go off, so by the time the camera takes the picture your smile is starting to slip off...
I got similar pictures with other people who failed to recognise me but it's okay because I love them anyway.
Then this beard-y guy I think I've seen somewhere before showed up.
I had my camera on because I'm a ninja like that, so I'll put that in the post with the other videos. For now, what you need to know is he said Bonjour to me and I was like Why are you speaking so much French today??? and he said some random weird thing like I thought you wanted me to speak French now and I was like wtf no you have the cutest accent ever and he was like okay. And then I was like Oh I have a question for you. And then some little girl wanted a Floto so I stepped back and waited. Then he pops back up and says "Tell me." So I'm all You have this striped sweater... it has a logo on it which is the logo of my university. And Flo is like Ees eet? and I'm like YES it says NC and he's like what's you're university? and I'm like ...UNC. And I was like my friends and I just decided you wear it because you love us. And he said I do! And I said Wonderful. And then he said I do! again. And I was like in that case can we take a picture?
Haha.
And Flo had just started to walk away when Mikele showed up being all Mikele-y and upgraded and stuff. When he got to me he said "American girrrrl!" and pulled me into one of those long, never-ending, weird and delightful Mikele hugs. And I just went "You remembered me!" in English in total shock and he was like "Of course!" and a few seconds later "You're-a crrazy!" lol why.
And then he just kept on hugging me. I would love to know what goes through Mikelangelo Loconte's head when he stands completely still and hugs a fan for like four full minutes. Ridiculous and delightful. And because the hug wouldn't end and I was making a wtfff face at Bénédicte she took a picture.
Hahaha my confusion.
And so finally after seven years of my life went by Mikele let go... and he grabbed my hand, kissed it, and said "Bellisima!"
HOW INCREDIBLY ITALIAN HE IS. Then some other fan came back over asking for a second floto with Mikele and he was like NO you have already had your pictures! And he bisous'd me and went on his glittery way. Lol Mikele what planet are you from.
Then JP Asian chased us back out into the salle and told us to get out of there, so we did. Unfortunately no one was picking up on the other end of the taxi number and no buses were running and my heart was breaking in half because I had just gotten a text from Joanna (who was at the hotel) which said that everyone was already inside. We waited out in the cold for perhaps an hour or so until some other fan who had also been backstage was sweet enough to call two taxis instead of just the one. And we zoomed through the night to Bénédicte's hotel, then off to the Hilton where I assumed I wasn't going to see anyone else.
I WAS SO WRONG.
But since I've made you beautiful people wait THREE DAYS to hear details, I'm gonna stop my adventure right here. I'll tell the rest of the stagedooring stories within the next twelve hours, I promise. But here's you something to read while I get to my favourite part.
And it is gonna be... MAKTAVSTIC.
