The ladies felt they were extremely well received. It was such a pleasant surprise and they could feel the warmth from the audience there. It was a very nostalgic trip for them.

Joyce commented that it was so hard to shop at the last minute for gowns for the show. They were running all over the Los Angeles area trying to come up with something. They found dresses that were orange and cranberry bugle beads, close in color but not an exact match. Although it was something they used to do all the time she was so surprised how exhausting it was to do now. Some things fell right into place but others were more difficult to do, more from being out of the habit than anything else. Jet lag, adapting to a 3-hour time difference and trying to sleep in strange beds in hotels were tough things to deal with.

The show was sold out by the time they arrived in Pittsburgh. They were told it would not air until September (locally) and March 2004 (nationally). Disappointing, of course, but that may change. We will let you know if they are told about a schedule change.  There will be a CD and Video released eventually.

They only had an hour rehearsal before the show. At rehearsal they fell back in like they had never stopped doing it. They sang Yellow Ribbon, Candida, Knock Three Times, He Don't Love You, and Sweet Gypsy Rose. Tony did Fire & Rain. I'm sad to say they didn't get to perform a duet. They did several promos and the intros for the other acts. It held a sense of déjà vu for them--that the intervening years had slipped away and nothing had changed.

After the show they sat around reminiscing about some of the hilarious things that had happened in the past. An idea was floated by a producer there to do something similar for TV--getting together and chatting unscripted. So who knows…

Some other ideas are rolling around and the wheels are turning. David Brokaw mentioned that there may be 2 more things to do. Telma said that she's available through August and if anything come up she's game for doing it. After that her TV taping schedule is 3 weeks on and 1 week off so there are even possibilities then!

Although it was a lot of hard work, the overall feeling was that it was good being back in that environment again.

This was all arranged on very short notice by WQED (the TV station).  They contacted the ladies directly on May 8th.  Negotiations were handled on Friday.  Telma and Joyce went shopping for shoes, jewelry, and their outfits all day Saturday courtesy of WQED.  (Although, the station wanted matching outfits they couldn't find anything that would work, so they chose something that would blend.)  A day of rest on Sunday-Mother's Day and then fittings on Monday.  Telma and Joyce flew out this afternoon at 1:50 PM from LAX to Pittsburgh and were at the hotel around 11:00 PM (Pittsburgh time). 

As of tonight, they still haven't spoken with Tony or have any idea what they are going to sing tomorrow!

For those of us who are not in the Pittsburgh area, it will be aired later on other PBS affiliates and there will also be a CD made of the performances.