Mad T Party Hiatus - A Heartfelt Thank You

As I was browsing my Facebook page not too long ago, I found a status update from one of my favorite Alices, Dani Kerry, regarding her last performance at Mad T Party.  My initial reaction was shock and sadness, as I thought it was HER last performance, but it turns out that the Mad T Party itself will be having its last show on November 30th. I have had a several days to let this fact sink in and while I hold back that lump in my throat and suppress this comedically over dramatic urge to cry, I can't help but thank Disneyland for creating something truly special in my eyes. 

Taken on December 8th, 2012 - A day that Heather and I will never forget

It goes without saying, from a photographic standpoint, Mad T Party has been huge for me. In fact, I associate a lot of who I am as a photographer to this glorious band. I have used it as a place to practice my craft, test out my gear and more importantly, make new friends.

Another shot from that wonderful night. Both this shot and the one above are hanging on our wall

It was December 8th 2012 when I first really fell in love with Mad T Party. I think it was the first day I was able to convince Heather and my cousins to stay at California Adventure to watch all four sets. I still remember the leads: Nathan Shrake was killing it as the Hatter, Jenny Kidd won me with her stage presence and Dan Franklin was summoning his inner Billy Idol as Dormouse (we gave him the nickname, Billy Idol, before we knew his name). This night also happened to be the night they performed their first encore, "Faithfully" by Journey. Combine the energy of the crowd, our love for live music and the sudden realization that I could witness this every time we take a road trip to Disneyland, I was simply ecstatic. 

I took my camera with me this past weekend not knowing it would be one of the last few times I would be photographing these performers for a while. 

That same night I jumped on Facebook to "research" the band and ran into a lot of fantastic photos, but the ones that stood out the most in my eyes were the ones taken by Rachel B. Photography. You can bet, I immediately "liked" her page. It took me a while to gather enough courage to message her just to talk about her process (and to compliment her work), as I am a huge nerd about settings and technique. Heck, we even discovered we love the same brand of equipment. Because of this friendship over MTP, I was able to meet other wonderful artists who inspire my work today and I wanted to give a big shout out to the following people:

Rachel B. Photography (and Susie Brogan)

Joyous King Photography

Ed King Photography ;)

Brianna Garcia Artist

Kate C. Photography

Emily Peterson Photography

Tom Hodges

Even though the powers that be are removing this show from their lineup (hopefully the rumors are true this is a temporary hiatus), I can't help but feel thankful for all the memories this show has given me and the friendships I have developed through shared admiration. I find it extremely easy to hate change, but it was this same change that brought us from elecTRONica to the wonderful world of Alice In Wonderland. For now I will hold on to faith that Disneyland will replace this show with something truly special because they always do. 

So Say We All,

Dino