Didn't want to have to do this..but I guess I have to

Okay, so a few months ago, I posted a blog on here I entitled "Day Job". This is the blog where I mentioned that it takes me $28 to get into the city, and without a day job it's hard.

THIS is the post everyone has decided to jump on and comment on...so I feel it's neccessary to defend my position, instead of going on, telling people about the show that I'm in.

First off, let me say I'm very sorry for putting that ONE statement in the blog post, because you all grabbed it and ran with it and beat me over the coals for it.

Second, I KNOW that I'm not in NY bussing tables or anything like that-don't you think I'd LOVE to be doing that? LOVE to be in NY somewhere, taking shifts at a part time job? I'm on survivaljobsforactors.com everyday looking for stuff just like that-haven't found anything yet. So let's start there.

I know I'm in community theatre in the suburbs right now-and Im not going to be here much longer, and am scouring playbill.com everyday looking for open calls since I don't have my equity card and can't go to equity calls yet.

As for living at home-anyone that's a RECENT college graduate almost has no choice but to live at home. Unless they've got something set up in terms of a significant other, or a roommate to live with and split the rent with, neither of which I have.

And where did I ever say that I think my life is like Mark and Roger's? I've never used those words, not once, not ever. I know that I don't live that way, I'm not dumb.

I know auditions aren't easy to get, I'm not delusional..but, I could still "audition my ass off" at the auditions that I DO get-right? Right.

Now. If there's anything else I've missed, any other grievenece my "Anonymous" posters have for me...let me know.

If not, let's all move on. I'd really hate to lock comments so that just these 7 people can read them again. And it wouldn't be because I don't want to hear what people say-you guys think you're the FIRST ones to tell me this? Please...

It'd be because that ONE poste, is NOT what this blog is about. If you don't like what I have to say-don't read.

And this is the last time I'm entertaining this type of conversation here. I do plan to make big moves and changes in the next year.

End of story.

The Countdown is ON!!!

Well, here it is folks...FOUR DAYS TIL OPENING!!

Gotta say, I always start to get butterflies as we go into tech week and are fully in groove and tune with out characters, and with each other. Now's the time for the last second fine tuning, and making sure the sound, lights, and props are all where they need to be, and fill in the missing gaps.

This is also the week that we all may as well set up cots in the theatre as we are there longer hours than with regular rehearsal. This is why actors affectionately call this week "hell week"!

Here's what this week has in store for me:

Monday-need to be at the theatre for 6pm...need to be able to eat dinner around 5, or grab something on the way and eat it at the theatre as I get into costume, hair and makeup.

Tuesday-Important e-mail to be written in the morning, 2 hour workout, and need to be at the theatre for 6pm

This goes on until Thursday. On Thursday night, we have our one and only preview performance-we call it our "dress rehearsal", but we DO have an audience, so I call it our preview performance.

Usually, we open the theatre up to anyone who wants to see the show for free-remember, this is the dress rehearsal- and then after the performance, the actors sit onstage and answer various questions and take compliments from the audience.

However-that is NOT the case with this show. On Thursday night, we are having the "women in business" group come to the theatre, and we are hosting a special night full of finger sandwhiches and lessons about how far women have come since the 1850s-now.

The show is scheduled to start...at 6:30pm! This means, I need to be at the theatre for 5pm..Thursday's going to be fun as I make last minute arrangements for people who want to come to the show in the coming weeks, and make sure my butt is in the makeup chair by NO LATER than 5:15, and I've eaten, no later than 5:30.

Man I love this industry!

This will also be the week that you see actors doing their pre-show rituals, more bonding will occur backstage now that we're no longer allowed to sit in the audience and watch each other, and THIS is where the memories start coming from when all is said and done.

I am incredibly excited to begin this show on Thursday night, and even more excited for opening on Friday night!

On Friday afternoon, I'll post another blog and document the pre-show feelings as I sit at home in preparation for leaving for the theatre.

Until next time.... :)

Holy techweek batman!!

Here I am again, getting ready to launch-HEAD ON into another tech week, or as we call it affectionately "Hell week"- the week that we as actors kind of almost have to take a back seat to the tech guys and stage crew and let them rehearse what THEY have to (lights, sound, prop moving), things like that.

It's also the week that we as the actors put the final touches on everything-on our characters, get our final costumes, ask any last-second questions, and sprinkle the theatre magic around the stage and on ourselves that make the show come to life!!!

We have one more rehearsal this week that's just a rehearsal-and we're adding just a part of our costumes this week too. Starting Saturday, we begin "hell week".

With that in mind-I do what I always do right before a show I'm in starts-I take some money and head into the city to see a show. I do this either by myself, or with a friend. This time, I went by myself. I do it as a way of reflection, or reminding myself what the goal is.

I went to see "La Cage Aux Folles" since it announced it will be closing on May 1st, to my absolute HORROR! But, that's another story, nevermind.

Anyway, I got into the city early and got my student tickets (box seats for $36.31-YES PLEASE!).

And I passed the day, doing this and that and meeting up with friends and such. I saw the show and I have to tell you guys-it was the most beautiful show I've ever seen!!! The chemistry between Harvey and his leading man- Christopher Sieber was amazing!!!!

I stagedoored after the show for Harvey, and also for my friend again-I wanted to talk to him! They came out together again, and I grabbed my friend after he was done doing what he needed to do, and we went for a walk.

While we were walking, he was telling me about another acting theorist named Meisner. Now, I had never heard the name before-I was taught Stanislavski, and that was pretty much all I knew. I told him about some difficulty I have been having, remembering my cue lines and everything like that, and how it was worrying me.

He smiled and nodded, listening to what I had to say, and then began to tell me about Meisner's theories. Here's what I've come up with in my understanding, since I purchased the recommended book and have begun reading it:

1) Acting is NOT a representation of life-it IS life. When you go out onstage as a character, that is the ONLY world you have ever know.

2) You and your character are 2 different people. You are you, but when you walk out onstage, you are your character. And they know different people, have seen different things, and know different things. They may even live in a different time period, or be higher or lower on a social scale-but you ARE that person.

3) Saying your lines is instictual. How you deliver your line solely depends on how the person you're in the scene with gives you the line before, or how you deliver your line depends on the circumstances of why you deliver the line.

For example, the way he was teaching the class, he brought up one male student, and one female student. With the male student he told him his only line was "mr. Meisner", he had the student repeat it, and was happy with the results of the repeat. He then went behind the male student and pinched him-causing the male student to scream "MR. MEISNER!"

See what I mean? The male student yelled his line, because of the action of being pinched. But, it was the same line!

My friend by no way discredited Stanislavski-hell, my friend studied him too. But what he told me is that Stanislavski doesn't help in SCENES. It helps in monologues, but in scenes, this guy works better.

I'll let you all know what I think after I read the whole book :)


Well,I think that't it for me today-next update I hope will have costume pictures and everything :) Very excited!!! :D

Updates and Aplogies!!

Hey everyone! Sorry I haven't written in a bit, but when I got home from vacation, I found out my aunt had passed away while we were gone, and now rehearsal has me all swept up and such..but! On with the show! First, I'd like to thank everyone for voting in the Rent video competition. At the end of voting I had something like 355 votes, and a 1.8 rating. Now, while that's nowhere NEAR what the winner ended up getting, I am still so thrilled, and honored to have gotten those votes, and a decent rating! You guys are awesome! I took another leap of a faith this past week, as well. Around last Friday/Saturday, a friend of mine sent me an audition notice for a program called "Making it on Broadway", a one-week musical theatre intensive in NY. After researching the program, I realized that this is a program I have been looking to do for the past 3-4 years. After getting my headshot and resume and a short cover letter together, I sent it to the person running the program and got an audition time 5 minutes later! This program only has 40 spots for the week, so everyone has to audition in. I was more than stunned to get a reply and an audition time so freakin quickly! So this past Wednesday, I got my music together, my headshot and resume stapled together, and made my way into the city for my 2:30 audition time. Before I went to the audition, though, I made a stop at my spot :The Drama Book Shop, and purchased the newly released libretto for "The Addams Family". Apparently it came out about a month ago. I go into the audition and sing my prepared song "Superboy and the Invisible Girl" from Next to Normal. When I was done, both the piano player, and the person running the audition smiled at me, and the piano player, in all his enthusiasm asked me "Do you have anything else?!" HELL YES! I bought a brand freakin new libretto before I came over! So I ran out to my seat and got it, handing it to him. I told him I had been working on "Pulled" with my vocal coach, and he began playing the song-from the middle. Now, for anyone that's never auditioned for a musical before-being asked to sing more than your prepared piece is a huge deal! Always go into a musical audition with 2 songs. One prepared (obviously) that you'll need to sing 16 bars from, and another, just in case they want to hear another song, song. Until this audition, I've never been asked to sing 2 songs. Having them ask me to sing another song, that I hadn't really prepared (I had never heard the song played on the piano-my vocal coach and I were using the CD to work on the song), was a wonderful sign! I sang the song through to the end, not missing a beat, and if I do say so myself, completely blew the song out of the water (I could play Wednesday Addams!). When I was done, both of them looked at me with these huge smiles. The woman running the audition then goes to me: "Okay. The program runs Aug 8th-13th, 10am-6pm everyday and from 5-6 you have a master class with someone working on Broadway right now" Now when she says 'someone working on Broadway right now', she means Gavin Creel, Aaron Tveiet, Stephanie Block, and Cheyenne Jackson (to name a few people who will be teaching that week). I'm sorry...did she just say I got into the program?! That I have one of the 40 spots?!!! She then told me that they do have a payment plan in case I need one, and that she would e-mail me all of the information that night. Today is Monday, and I have yet to get that e-mail. I think if I don't hear from her by Wednesday, I will e-mail her and ask her when I might get that information if I did in fact make it into the program. Onto "The Heiress"! Rehearsals are going well, and we expect to have the set up by the time we come in for rehearsals tomorrow! I have half of a costume (need a long sleeved black shirt), and need to learn my lines for Act II (much harder than Act I). We open in 3 weeks and I need to have everything memorized by Saturday!!! Yikes! Time to kick my own ass into overdrive and get to these lines! My major challange is going to be learning my cue lines. Now, this has never been a problem for me, but with this show, I'm on and off the stage so often, that I need to know what lines bring me onstage, so that if one of my fellow actors misses a line (it happens ;) ), or if a sound effect doesn't work or something, I know where I am. Looking forward to opening night, and getting this thing going!!! Hopefully for the next blog update, I'll be able to post a picture of myself in costume or a picture of the set or something. If you're interested in coming to the show, and you're local (NY/NJ), let me know and I'll get you all the details! Until next time....... :D