Catching up with Kerry Butler

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There are definitely moments in our lives that will shape the way in which we look back and either remember fondly, or remember how nervous we were! Weddings, birthdays, family vacations… meeting Kerry Butler.

Chris and I love(d) Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders! From memories of waking up on Sunday morning eagerly anticipating the latest episode, to waking up at the earliest point in the day when the very first broadcast came on the television just to catch the rerun of the show that we had seen three years prior, the show meant a lot to us. If you are a fan of any show and have the opportunity to meet the talented actor who brought your favorite character to life whether that be through voice work or on screen acting, you will know what a rush it is to be able to meet them!

This year, I was celebrating my birthday in Avalon, ironically, when I read a tweet from Kerry stating that she was going to be performing for a benefit concert not far from Avalon (located on Santa Catalina Island). I was beyond excited! A chance to see the New York based performer here in California! Moments later, tickets were bought for later that week. The Jewel Riders Archive had been following and retweeting Kerry’s social media profile for a little while and we contacted her asking if we might be able to meet to conduct an interview, and to our surprise and delight she responded with – yes!

The night of the performance, I was rushing to complete the character lithographs that I had created especially for the occasion. As Murphy’s Law goes, anything that will go wrong did go wrong. The printer wasn’t working correctly, the editing software was being fickle, and I was running late. My shirt was a little tight, but it was the color that I wanted – the signature Princess Gwenevere pink. We left about 20 minutes after the show was already supposed to have begun. We hurried to the venue which was a couple of miles away, rushed through valet and scurried up to the main ticket counter. As luck would have it, the show’s start time was on California time! LOL The show didn’t end up starting until nearly an hour after it was advertised to begin. Meanwhile, that gave me a chance for my nerves to settle, my stomach to calm, and for me to enjoy the show. Kerry did an amazing job! To hear her sing so many favorite songs from musicals like Hairspray and Little Shop Horrors… I was thrilled! As you can see in the photographs taken from the performance, she was there just truly having fun. As were we.

After the show, we waited outside, impatiently. There wasn’t any of the cast to be seen. While my scout (date) stayed in the foyer, I proceeded backstage to find our princess. I was told that she had already left so I rushed back out to the main entrance trying to track her. I caught a glimpse of Kerry speaking with some other fans and called out her name. She turned around and I walked up and introduced myself.

Queue the video! …

(A note from Chris: the video was taken on a cell phone, so here is the original video as well, Vertical Video Syndrome and all!)

Thank you all for coming along on this adventure with us! We can’t say thank you enough to Kerry for being so gracious and taking the time out of her busy schedule to speak with us!

Follow her at her website, or follow her on Twitter @KerryButlerNyc!

Jewel Power!
– Ronnie & Chris

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