Wednesday, June 1, 2011

ANNIE VIDEO and PHOTOGRAPHS:

GREETINGS FROM SOUTH AFRICA
MAXMOM here...
Shannon McKay
(Toby's chief instructor and owner of
Toby and Maxmom, after the final show)

Dear friends,

It is only due to the kindness of my dear friend -
LORRAINE
- that I am able to show you some footage of Toby's performances as well as a few pictures
Thank you so much, Lorraine, for your encouragement and support throughout the ANNIE adventure.  I am sure my readers will join me in a collective thanks for the photographs and the video. We are all extremely grateful. Thank you!
Above: Toby resting in his 'dressing room' between scenes.
Above: Toby surrounded by young fans, after the show.

Above: Meeting two little girls.

 Above: Shaking paws.
 Above: Getting a cuddle from a little boy.
Above: "Such a beautiful doggie"
 Above: Toby giving a 'wink'
 Above: A little girl asks Toby to 'talk'...he does.
 Above: "What about a kiss?"
Above: An adult fan wants a photo too.

---xXx---

Many of our readers have asked me:

"What about video footage of the ANNIE production?"

Yes, there will be an official DVD available for purchase from the
in a few weeks time.
If you would like to order one of these videos, you may call the school at:
011 782 6226
In the meantime, however, I have put together a 8 minute video of some of the snippets of Toby's performances at the theatre.  I know it's a long video (by youtube standards), but hopefully it will satisfy everybody's curiosity...
If you are unable to view this video, please click
HERE

---xXx---

It's a very cold day here today. 
Despite the chill, the sun is shining and our own little world is slowly getting back to normal after the climax of 'ANNIE' last week.  We so miss those kids! Toby especially - he hangs around the car in the early evening, in an attempt to remind me:
"Isn't it time for Annie, Maxmom?"

To make up for his 'Annie-sickness', I took him back to his formal dog training classes last night.  We have graciously been allowed to return to his CGC training, after having missed out on so many weeks.  He will be taking his assessment for his 'bronze' level in three weeks' time, so we have a bit of catching up to do.

That's all our news for the moment. 
With our sluggish internet access, it took me over 15 hours to upload Toby's video.  I really hope you are able to see it - and enjoy it.

Sending lotsaluv to you all

27 comments:

Dexter said...

I remember the first time I saw that show and I cried and cried. Well, you did it to me again. Even that little snippet of the Christmas scene got the old water works going again. Funny how that is. What an amazing experience for all involved. Toby was incredible as was the talented cast and crew. Now that he has a taste of fame, who knows what will be next.

Thanks again for bringing that sunshine to us.

Mango Momma

P.S. Nice to see that orphans carry liver treats in their pockets.

Huskee and Hershey said...

Toby is growing up to be such a handsome boy! Thanks for sharing those wonderful pics and video of Toby in action. The pics of him and his young fans nearly brought a tear to our mom's eyes... it's so wonderful to see the bond between a child and dog.

Frankie Furter and Ernie said...

BRAVO BRAVO... WELL DONE TOBY!!!

Amber-Mae said...

OH Toby, you did so wonderful! And you made me giggle everytime you got up & ran away. Too cute! And my most favourite part was when you jumped out of your crate during the christmas scene. That was great! And the ending almost made me tear up. BTW, loved your leaping bow!!

Big applause to you my friend!!!

WFT Nobby said...

I loved the video. It even bought a lump to my throat (to my surprise!) You must be so proud of Toby, and of yourself. I had to smile at the image of Toby hanging round the car in the evenings, to remind you it was 'Annie time'. It brought back memories of Hamish, and how I always used to take him on Tuesday evening to join my 'German group' (a small group of friends who try to practice their German and have in common also a love of dogs). On the weeks when we did not meet, he would hang around the front door at 6:45pm wondering what was happening. It amazed me that he knew it was Tuesday. Well, I guess - and I hope - we will never cease to be fascinated by our pets' behaviour!
Cheers,
Gail.

MySpecialDoggies said...

Congratulations Toby on a great performance! We're so proud of you!

Woofs
Nadine & golden Neeli

Homer said...

Encore! Encore!

Well done Toby! You are brilliant and thanks for uploading the video. We are so proud of you!

Love,
Homer

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

Mom and oldest grandbiped watched the video together and loved it. K actually arrived today with the Annie CD in hand as she had just been to see a local Christian Youth Theater presentation of Annie. She was very impressed with "Sandie" a.k.a. Toby. Thanks for sharing and now we hope Toby gets some rest and relaxation. Good luck to him in his classes.

Woos ~ Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

sprinkles said...

I wondered how he would be once the play ended, if he'd miss it.

Great video! I wish I could purchase a copy of the video but calling all the way to Africa to inquire about the details is probably a little out of my budget so I'll just enjoy the one you've posted. I've watched it a couple of times now.

Jake of Florida said...

As I sit here wipng my eyes and swallowing hard after watching the video, I'm glad to read above that I'm not the only one who teared up at seeing the play, especially the Christmas scene.

With so many of our pals crossing the Bridge in the last few days, tears of joy are very welcome!

Thank you for sharing this fabulous adventure with us, Caryl!

xxxx Joan

Molly the Airedale said...

The video was awesome! What a treat! Thank you so much!

Love ya lots
Maggie and Mitch

The Life of Riley said...

Loved watching the video. Toby is a real star, and so good with his fans too!

Chester said...

I could hardly wait to get home from work tonight to watch this. It was wonderful! Thank you so much for taking the time to upload the video. I know it wasn't nearly as good as being there but it was the next best thing considering I would never see it otherwise. You must be so proud-I am proud for you too! Chester is my first attempt at training a dog and I know just how tough a job it is. But I think Toby is an exceptional dog for taking on such a big job at such a young age. BRAVO to you and all the cast for all the hard work and talent they shared to put this all together.

I've always loved this play but now I will never forget I "know" a dog who played Sandy!

Chester's Mom ♥

Chester said...

I just shared this video on my FB page and I went over to visit Max and didn't realize that it was almost a year to date since he went to the Bridge. What a coincidence that Toby's performances were just a year later. I'm sure he was on your mind....and lookin' over Toby's shoulder.

Woofs and slobbers,
Chester

Piappies World said...

Thank you so much, MaxMom for "letting us into the theatre" to watch Toby's big performance by sharing the video. So sorry for the 15-hour hassle though.

As we watch Toby, we could not help but think of Max smiling and being proud of you and Toby. At some scenes we also felt like being part of the crowd and shouting: "that's our pal, Toby!" Toby, you also made us teary eyed during the curtain call. It was wonderful to see on stage, too, MaxMom.

Congratulations! Great job to you and your whole production.

We are so proud of you, Toby!

Love,
Piappies Fudgie, Princess, Frappie, Mocha, Sugar, Wai-Pai, Wai-Max & Forgie

Anonymous said...

Mom and I were so very happy to see the video of Toby STARing in the show. What was the name of the show again??? Oh yea, Toby!

Woo Hoo Toby! I wish I could have seen you in pawson and gotten you paw-dagraph!

woo woos, Tessa

Tweedles -- that's me said...

Thank you Maxmom for sharing this awsome experience with us.
Toby shined like a bright star!
And you look so proud when you look at him.
When I look at Toby,, I notice his eyes,, and I notice that he looks at everyone with love.
There is something about him that glows,,, he radiates a feeling that is hard to explain.
There is something special about Toby.
And there is something special about you.
The scenes brought tears to our eyes,, just because,,, just because. It was so beautiful
thank you
love
tweedles

Kasha The Dainty Great Dane said...

Hi Caryl and Toby,

Thanks for sharing your Annie journey with all of us, it was an amazing performance and we loved hearing all about it. The videos were wonderful as well. You have such a talented doggie there in Toby. We look forward to all of your posts.

AARF Kasha the Dainty Dane & Denise

Mrs. JP said...

Thank you for that video. It was such a treat. Bravo Toby!!!

NanaNor's said...

Hi there, I loved watching this video-made me feel like I was right there with you all. Toby is so beautiful and did an amazing job. I know he'll continue on with his training and do really well. Thank you friends for taking us along with you!
Hugs & much love,
Noreen & Reggie-dog

Kari said...

What a dog!

(we are all teary eyed here.)

What an amazing did!

Golden Samantha said...

OMD! Just watched Chester's vid version and Momma had bitsy tears come out of the side of her eyes - wow, Toby - you are one talented young doggeh. We are besides ourselves thinkin' of what we can say other than kudos to you, pupper! We are just gettin' back to blogging here and we see this! How impressive and amazing! Hope to see many more of you actin' out in wondrous plays and musicals!
Huge HUGGERS AND LOVE XOXOXOXOXO
Sammie and Avalon

TwoSpecialWires said...

Congratulations, Toby and MaxMom. We never had any doubts but that your production would be wonderful. And it was!

Jake and Fergi

Suka said...

hey Toby,

Bravo! The video was awesome! Well, I could only see half of it as my computer messed it up, so I will finish it later, but what I did see was just amazing. You did an incredible job and looked very professional and confident on stage. The actress playing Annie was amazing as well, such a powerful voice.

Love the photos of you with all your fans! You are such a star! But my favorite photo is you curled up in your dog bed napping. I am sure it was an exhausting ride, but thrilling while it lasted. Enjoy getting back into the groove of your "normal" life. :->

K and Suka

WFT Nobby said...

Hi Toby
Recovered yet? Hope you're having a nice restful week at home with the family.
You asked me about tree marking. You know what? I am not sure that I did ever mark either of those fallen trees. What we can be quite sure of is that Hamish did. Many times! I am apparently still a mere novice in the tree marking business, although my skills do now seem to be developing quite fast...
Toodle pip!
Bertie.

Scout and Freyja said...

I've watched the video over and over again - each time seeing a little something that I missed previously. What a treat! Showed it to my grandchildren and to Jeff, too.

Martine said...

Dear Caryl,
Many thanks for sharing this wonderful video. Toby is so sweet...
I have tears in my eyes. You are so lucky to have such a marvellous dog.
Hugs to you from Alsace.
Martine