Unscripted - A Blog for Actors - Backstage

Coffee Coffee Everywhere & Not A Drop To Drink

Well, I'm here and it's lovely.  Beautiful area.  Sweet, sweet small town.  Great cast and director and crew, etc.  Rehearsals are chugging along and we're almost fully blocked.  We even had a little party last night at the home of one of the townspeople who boards actors every year.  This woman is ridiculously awesome.  Things are great.  Of course, it can't always be a bed of roses...

Watching Your Teacher Drive

One recent Saturday night, I attended the closing night of a play here in North Hollywood co-starring one of my classmates in my 'Ocean's Twelve' acting class.

I went with two other classmates and our acting teacher. We sat in the audience front and center. We might as well have all had matching pom poms.

The play was flawless. Yes, a play, that I saw in LA, in a black box, was flawless; flawless acting, direction, costumes, etc. The only thing missing was a Broadway house. Ah, inspiration.

The lead actor came out afterwards wearing an I Heart NY t-shirt. I silent chuckled.

But that's not even the best part, the best part was afterwards; when I went back to Coach Act's gorgeous apartment in Hollywood and checked out his scrapbook.

where's my contract!?!?

 I got an official offer from the Casting Director a MONTH ago. I talked to my agents about negotiating the contract. I have turned down any audition that conflicted with the run. In my head, I am officially doing the show--- so WHERES MY CONTRACT??
It is very frustrating sometimes to deal with theatres. (Beware: gross generalization ahead) In general, theatres are disorganized. I say that because the majority of the theatres I have worked with have been disorganized. And even the larger theatres, with all their money and glitz-- STILL are a mess!

Why Did I Even Audition?

I gave one of the "worst" auditions in recent history last week.  As promised, here is my blog:  Why Did I Even Audition?

Because I almost didn't audition at all.  I simply ran out of time to prepare.  On Thursday morning, I looked at my friend and told her that I was thinking about cancelling—and I never ever cancel.  I told her the play and role and she said, "Ooooh!  You've gotta go."  But I didn't want to go because I felt horribly unready.  I had read through the 20(!) pages of sides. I had highlighted my lines and I had researched the play, but honestly, that was about it.  Wasn't it better to graciously bow out than risk public embarrassment?  I had a 12 1/2 hour work day ahead of me before the audition and it all felt like too much. 

I remember my casting director acting teacher talking about pilot season (when it was still the traditional pilot season) for actors who are in a more advanced place than moi.  She talked about how actors would come into the room and they'd be carrying five, six, seven pilot scripts and they'd have just as many auditions that day and they'd fly by the seat of their pants in most of those auditions and really concentrate on the one or two scripts that they cared about the most.  I think I now understand that story.  I was definitely flying by the seat of my pants.  And guess what?  As soon as I started to write this blog:  callback.  Really?

Is there a me in team?

The best part of working with an agent is having someone else on your team. It enourages the feeling that your career doesn't exist only in your mind, that it is a real, tangible thing that you couldn't walk away from without someone yelling 'Hey! Where do you think you're going?'
    All that being said, commercial agents tend to be the most hands off as representation goes in my experience. That's why it's so refreshing working with my current agent. She responds to my emails, gets me general meetings, and generally treats me with respect. That's why I shared with her that I decided this is the year I book my first national spot. All the pieces are in place- I know all the casting offices, I have a firm grasp on the type of spots I tend to book, so there's no reason for it not to happen.
    So- we are making it a poject together- which is soooooo refreshing. We've even targeted specific offices that I think i'm most likely to book through. While I may not be on top of my mailings and other marketing bits- know that we are working on this together does make me feel a lot more confident about my chances.
   

The first read through

So I have begun thinking of myself as a sort of young, female Dennis Leary. We both self produce, we both try and maintain active creative control of our projects, we both curse a lot. While my project is  a small scale stage production and not an FX series about drunken firefighters, I still feel a bit of a kinship with Mr. Leary.

Anyhow, I have to think that I crossed a major milestone that Dennis had to have gone through. There's this weird self-awareness when you are self-producing. Kind of a question, like, why is it that you have to produce yourself? If you were good enough, wouldn't someone else be producing projects for you?

And as much as you maintain your professionalism and competence with your team, is there a doubt in people's minds about how well you can carry the thing artistically? Did the lighting designer on Rescue Me, for instance, ever stop and think to himself, "That guy is just some stand up comedian from Boston, he can't carry a series."

Freedom, Monks, and Dr. Sun Yat-Sen

 The quarantine is now officially over! After a weeks worth of rehearsal, sickness, and questionable food, I ventured out into Nanjing for the first time.

Following another amazing meal at the nearby Japanese hibachi (yes, I found some food I genuinely like. It just isn't Chinese cuisine), me and three others took a cab to Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's Mausoleum Scenic Spot and Linggu Temple.

The Bane of My Existence.

Mr. Owl, how many licks does it take to get to the center of Ashley's slightly warped, post-night-at-a-rockclub noggin?  Mushroom fettucini, a Trader Joe's super-soy Chorizo, and sixteen popsicles.  Paired with a Canon GL2, and a Sunday morning hangover.

Enjoy the madness.

Just When I Thought I'd Get Everything Done

I was already seriously struggling to get everything done this week when I received a call for a next day audition for Entourage!  I had four little roles to prepare (and when I say little, I mean teeny tiny roles) and thankfully none of them required me to act like a bimbo girl or consent to nudity.  So, yea!  I love the show and watch it like a fiend so I already knew the tone and what I needed to do to nail my audition.  It was my first appointment with that casting office and the roles were perfect me, so everything else I needed to do in the one hour of time I had allotted that evening (including preparation for other auditions) got pushed.  Be sure to look for my next blog:  Didn't Get Everything Done.  Or, alternate title:  Why Did I Even Audition?

If you've been following my tales on this blog, you know that I don't get these kinds of auditions very often.  In the past, I've talked about the pressure I feel to make something happen for myself and for my reps when I have these rare opportunities.  It's a lot to carry into the audition room.  I don't know if I was too busy this week to expend extra energy on the "what ifs" or if my weekly on-camera class is working its magic, but I was as calm as a cucumber for this audition and I rocked it.  

How to Scare Off a Facebook Stalker

I'm sick.  Can you believe it?  I can.  Mostly because I spent last night not sleeping, but sitting on the bathroom floor.  Maybe that's too much information for you BackStage readers, but actually vomiting is a lot worse than reading about somebody else vomiting, so look on the bright side.  (Who’s hungry?!? hehehe)