Blog Stage - Acting in Film, TV, Theatre - Backstage

New On DVD This Week: 'Vacancy'

A young, good-looking couple decides to take a shortcut off the main interstate in the middle of the night. When their car breaks down, it forces them to stay the night in a creepy motel and end up fighting to save their lives. This tiring plot is something we’ve seen a hundred times before, but Vacancy, which hit shelves on DVD yesterday, is anything but tiring.

After David (Luke Wilson) and Amy (Kate Beckinsale) Fox’s car breaks down, they decide to abandon the vehicle and walk to a motel they passed earlier to seek help. They are greeted by Mason (Frank Whaley) the night manager at the motel, who tells them that the local mechanic is gone for the night and that they can stay in one of his rooms (the honeymoon room to be exact). The couple who has been bickering the entire time decides to stay and that’s when the fun begins. Tired and frustrated with his wife, David decides to watch a little TV to unwind. When he realizes that there is no cable, he pops in one of the many tapes that have been left on the stand. What he sees on the screen is a poorly shot slasher movie, but after examining the snuff film more closely he realizes that it was shot in the very room he is in. Realizing that they are trapped with cameras pointing at them at every direction, the couple finds themselves caught in an ugly cat and mouse game, and struggle to find their way out of the room.

Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale deliver heart-pumping suspense throughout the film as they crawl  through underground passages below the hotel and hide from their deranged attackers. The intensity between the two actors is so realistic that you feel as if you are there beside them as they try to figure a way out of the room. Frank Whaley gives a powerful performance as the manager turned snuff director. His character, which never borderlines typical horror movie villain, literally disgusts and disturbs you. But what really makes the movie work is the element of  lighting. Shot mostly in a dim setting, the lighting used brings the art of suspense to life. What music did for Halloween, carefully placed lighting does for this film.

Refreshingly fun and suspenseful, Vacancy is a must rent thrill ride you are sure to enjoy!

--Diana DiSilvestro

Back Stage Creating Media Buzz

From the multiplying mentions in recent media, it would seem that Back Stage is carving a place not only in the acting world, but also in the annals of pop culture.

Back Stage has always been known for its reliable and multiple casting notices; now Time Out New York is recognizing this resource. In its article about burgeoning casting opportunities in the city, the magazine praised the "4,000 [NY] jobs listed per year" listed on Backstage.com.

But Back Stage is also quick becoming a pop culture buzzword. The famed, if perhaps notorious, gossip columnists for New York Post's "Page Six," are readers, as evidenced by their August 9th issue that mentions their perusal of the publication.

And, in an example of art imitating life, HBO's hit series Entourage, which follows actors navigating the LA scene, emphasizes Back Stage's place in the business. In the August 4th episode, "Gary's Desk," Johnny "Drama" Chase, played by Kevin Dillon, fondly remembers the first time he received coverage in the press—in a feature in Back Stage West. 

Even business legend Woody Allen is contributing to the buzz in a piece in his recent collection of humorous stories, Mere Anarchy.  On location in India, a stand-in for a famous actor is mistaken for the star and kidnapped by terrorists. The producers are so concerned for the kidnapped actor's welfare and safety that they rush to do something—so they quickly post an ad in Back Stage to find a replacement.  (Gotta love producers...) (photo courtesy of HBO.com) 

— Nicole Villeneuve

Getting in Touch With Mother Earth

In an effort to balance out my summer TV diet of Sex and the City reruns, I've slowly been making my way through the breathtaking BBC documentary series Planet Earth.

Narrated by Sir David Attenborough, the 11-part nature collection explores some of the planet's harshest habitats and the creatures that inhabit them. From the Arctic tundra to the Gobi desert to the Amazon jungles, Planet Earth covers some 62 countries and 204 distinct locations. Shot over four years, the award-winning production cost somewhere around $25 million.

It's worth every cent.

Some highlights:

-- In  Borneo's Deer Cave, five million bats dwell alongside white crabs, glowworms, and  an unfathomable number of cockroaches that thrive solely on bat guano. Be sure to watch the "Diaries" section where the strong-willed film crew explains the thrill of having roaches scamper up and down your legs for 12 hours straight.

-- In the Arctic iceland, a hungry polar bear takes on a hundred-strong walrus colony. Unfortunately for him, the walruses, which weigh roughly one ton apiece, refuse to be made into a quick dinner.

-- In New Guinea, strange and wonderful birds of paradise turn themselves upside down and inside out, engaging in complex mating rituals that expose human dating behaviors as embarrassingly unsophisticated.

It's easy to sit spellbound for each hour-long segment and had I seen Planet Earth earlier in my life, I  probably would be scaling some dark cave in Inner Mongolia right now, chasing after bats and adventure.

Or maybe not. Too many roaches.

-- Brooke O'Neill

Key to Survival

Presented as well-meaning advice from Amy Harrell, aka the Resource Girl, “I’m Here, Now What?!” is both helpful and frustrating. Though stuffed with practical information, the book’s organization is a general mishmash: You’d be hard-pressed to flip through it and find something specific you’re looking for. But if you’re patient and don’t mind the sometimes too-conversational tone, you may be rewarded. Harrell has clearly spent a lot of time in New York and done her homework.

Her survival instincts seem to have been honed after making some awful blunders, such as when she took in a homeless con artist for several days—though the reader may be tempted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her for thinking that was a good idea in the first place. While longtime New York City residents may find much of the content obvious, for the newly arrived artist or those considering relocating, the book can be highly useful. Comprehensive lists abound on topics ranging from finding a place to live to obtaining a survival job to spending while remaining frugal.

If only she had used a copyeditor: The large “fun” font screams “amateur.” Missing text results in sentences that just stop, with a new subject starting on the next page. Missing words and grammatical mistakes jump out at you, and at least once the font switches to Times New Roman, and not on purpose. Harrell can also contradict herself—writing, for example, “Storage units are a waste of money” on one page and “choose one or two projects and send the others to a ‘vacation spot’ (storage) for a while” several pages later. Certain pieces of information are also outdated.

An extended “Economic Travel for Artists” chapter was evidently inspired by Harrell’s love of travel, but it seems out of place in a guide devoted to survival in Gotham. Similarly unusual is the preponderance of references to God or a higher power; you’re never quite hit over the head with it, but it’s still somewhat off-putting.

But despite all the technical goofs, Harrell’s down-home gumption and optimism grow on you, and you find yourself rooting for her. The fact that she wrote and self-published this book (and maintains a frequently updated website promoting it) should give all struggling actors inspiration.

"I'm Here, Now What?!": An Artist's Survival Guide For NYC!, by Amy Harrell, BookSurge Publishing, 2006, paperback, 200 pages, $18.99.

-- Scott Matthew Harris

Fi-Core Fracas

In response to Edmund Gaynes’ letter in your July 5, 2007, issue regarding SAG’s new reinstatement policy for resigned members: Mr. Gaynes stated, “Once someone has declared financial-core membership, they can work under union jurisdiction or not, at their pleasure. The unions like to call this ‘resigning’ to scare people away from this option.”

I would like to set the record straight on what financial core really means. First and foremost: There is no such thing as “fi-core membership” of SAG. Choosing to go fi-core means a member is quitting the union—plain and simple. SAG refers to an individual who chooses fi-core status as a “fee-paying nonmember.” This is because, while federal labor law allows individuals to choose this status by paying fees (not dues) to the union, that person is no longer a union member.

Mr. Gaynes wrote that he is not “arguing the merits of financial core pro or con.” However, he stated that “all that one loses by opting for financial-core membership is mainly the right to hold union office or vote in union elections.” He leaves out some important information that members need to know about financial-core status. So, as Mr. Gaynes wrote, “it is important that the facts be stated clearly.” And here they are.

In addition to losing the right to call yourself a SAG member and missing out on SAG’s many other member benefits, under the new reinstatement policy the presumption of SAG is that a member’s decision to resign is permanent. Meaning they may never rejoin the guild—the union they worked so hard to get into.

I encourage any actor considering financial core to contact Screen Actors Guild to get the facts.

Going financial core is your legal right, but is it the right thing to do?

—Todd Amorde
National Director, Organizing
Screen Actors Guild
Los Angeles

Agents, SAG, and the GSA

In response to the Welcome to L.A. spotlight, July 19, 2007:

I always enjoy reading this section. The current one was good and concise. I was curious, however, about the mention of advance-fee talent services in the article “In the Right Hands.” I didn’t believe anything like this was legal, but I did a search and found it is. Your article made it sound like an acceptable way of looking for work. There should have been a few more caveats.

I am also curious why the article didn’t mention that SAG puts out a complete list of franchised agents, in addition to the search one could do for an ATA agent. And it might have been nice to mention current discussions about GSA agreements used by ATA agents. I assume that AEA and AFTRA also have such lists.

—Nancy Anderson
Los Angeles

Back Stage responds:

Dear Nancy:

Thanks for your letter. Because advance-fee talent agencies are legal in California, it is up to the individual actor to decide whether to frequent such agencies. However, we stated in the article that actors in California have the right to a refund under the Labor Code. Also, the Association of Talent Agents and the Talent Managers Association prohibit their members from charging advance fees.
You are correct that the Screen Actors Guild, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, and Actors’ Equity Association provide a list of franchised agents on their websites. SAG includes this advice on its site: “If you are signed as a client by a legitimate talent agency, you will pay that agency nothing until you work, and then 10 percent of your earnings as a performer—but nothing in advance.”

Agents in California and New York need to have their contracts approved pursuant to applicable state laws. As for GSAs (general service agreements), agents can use those ATA-approved contracts, stick with SAG’s original contract for its franchised agents, or draw up contracts of their own. SAG’s Rule 16(g) states an agent cannot charge a SAG member more than 10 percent in commission, but agents do not have to adhere to SAG’s rules because there currently is no contract between SAG and the ATA. However, the ATA has an agreement with AFTRA, and most if not all covered SAG and AFTRA work is at 10 percent.

SAG and ATA reps have recently shown interest in possibly negotiating a contract. Last month, top executives of both groups met to discuss a new agreement, but both sides classified the talk as “informal” and a “first-step meeting.”

A Buck Too Far

On a bleary Sunday morning in February, I made an espresso and logged on to see what my email account had coughed up. The Yahoo "Plays and Playwrights" group had a note from the Tyler Civic Theatre Center calling for scripts to be performed at a public reading. Tyler, Texas? The call seemed modest—a small community theatre’s concert reading with actors behind music stands. Unfortunately, they asked for a reading fee of $30. Come again?

I’m not one of those playwrights apoplectic over paying a fee to have my plays considered for contests or festivals. In cases where the reward seems critically or financially worthwhile, I’ll grudgingly write a small check. But $30? We’re talking the kinds of fees charged by the O’Neill Playwrights Conference or the Sundance Theatre Laboratory. If I pay $30, I want New York critics or Robert Redford to be involved.

I wrote a brief letter to the Tyler folks expressing my displeasure with their policy. Because the original announcement appeared on the Plays and Playwrights group, I copied the letter to the listserv.

Almost instantly—like the electronic equivalent of televisions flying from windows in the film Network—the listserv and my mailbox filled with messages from playwrights also furious over reading fees. Since I’d apparently ripped loose a long-festering scab, I posted my letter to the Tyler Civic to Paul Thain’s Playwrights’ Forum, and the response was almost as ferocious. Ralph Sevush, executive director of the Dramatists Guild, posted a note saying they were working on the issue. Since then, my letter has been reprinted several times, including in the guild’s magazine The Dramatist, and I continue to receive “falling televisions.”

I’d like to think my brave and handsome letter prompted this outrage, but I think it was timing. In my 15 years as a professional playwright, I’ve seen reading fees rise at rates outstripping inflation, and I think playwrights increasingly feel like piggybanks shaken for new-play-development money—a mission component some theatres use to leverage other grants. It’s a matter of parity: The same contests don’t charge directors to submit résumés or actors to submit headshots.
Some playwrights fatalistically consider reading fees a business cost to be written off on their taxes, but I feel one of the most egregious features of these fees is that they pose barriers to low-income writers at a time when theatres seek to diversify their artists and audiences. Ten dollars might not seem like much but, for a writer living on Social Security or disability, it might mean the difference between eating or going hungry.

Experienced playwrights understand that producing theatre costs money. In addition to venue and staff costs, script readers should be paid and winning playwrights deserve compensation, but when fees become nearly inescapable and rise above $30 for full-lengths or $10 for 10-minute plays (an unnerving dollar per minute), writers begin to suspect “mission creep”—that theatres are mining playwrights’ aspirations rather than pursuing grants or corporate underwriting.

Fortunately, it looks as if playwrights are pushing back. Shortly after my “Howard Beale moment,” the Dramatists Guild announced it would no longer accept announcements for fee-charging contests unless the theatre clearly stipulates what the money would be spent on. However, for the situation to truly change, script readers, contest judges, directors, and all our other colleagues on stage and off will have to say, “No, I will not be party to this practice.”

Steve Patterson has written more than 30 plays, which have been produced in Portland, Ore; Chicago; Tampa, Fla.; Austin, Texas; and Los Angeles, as well as in Canada and New Zealand. His plays Bombardment and Altered States of America have been finalists for the Oregon Book Award, and he was the inaugural recipient of the Portland Civic Theatre Guild Fellowship for Turquoise and Obsidian.

'The Bourne Ultimatum'

With a summer filled with trilogies, this is by far the best one. I know that I recently said Die Hard was the best, but after seeing Bourne back on the big screen, I stand corrected.

In this final chapter, Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) is back, still carrying the weight of not knowing who he is and still having secretive CIA operatives track his every move. In real life, a man on the run would have been caught, surrendered, or killed by now, but not Bourne. Diversions are thrown at him, assassins are sent after him, but nothing stops Jason Bourne from coming back to the United States to face off with the people who made him into a human killing machine-and all done without getting the slightest scratch on his body.

After discovering that a British news reporter has been covering his on-going story, Bourne goes after him to unearth any information the reporter may have of his identity,  but the CIA exterminates this hope quickly and Bourne changes route to explore new opportunities in discovering his past. Country hopping as only Bourne can do, lands him to encounter Nicky Parsons, (Julia Stiles) the former operative working on Treadstone and semi-unexpectedly decides to help him, leading to the film’s most awesome fight scene!

Paul Greengrass, who directed Supremacy and United 93 knows how to get an audience going by delivering heart-pumping, action-packed, grab-on-to-the-end-of –your-seat-or-you-might-fall-off fight scenes. There is one scene in particular, when Parsons and Bourne are being hunted by a CIA assassin in Morocco, that is probably one of the best fight sequences I have ever scene. Not giving too much away, let’s just say the scene is a 20-minute cat and mouse chase with Bourne leaping from rooftops, flying through windows and culminating with a fight sequence that had everyone in the theater holding their breaths as we watched Bourne and the assassin tango in a bloody, adrenaline-rushing fight sequence that felt so unrehearsed that it could easily triumph the title of “Best Choreography” at any awards  ceremony.

Filled with satisfying suspense, this is hands down the best film in the trilogy. It had the best plot, the best action, and Matt Damon really proved himself to be a true action-hero. The only disgruntlement I had with it was the ending. It wasn’t a bad ending, just an ending… but I guess you’ll have to go see it to find out what I mean.

--Diana DiSilvestro

Ryan's Hope

The welcome upswing in cabaret activity in Tinseltown is continuing. In addition to such relatively new efforts as the fabulous Upright Cabaret at La Boeheme Restaurant (on hiatus during remodeling, but soon returning), there's yet another impressive effort from yet another young entrepreneur offering star-studded lineups. The upbeat and charming Ryan Black, an accomplished actor-singer, produces, directs, and hosts the new 88's Cabaret, which debuted a few months back and this week presented Changed For Good, a spectular salute to renowned tunesmith Stephen Schwartz at Eleven Restaurant & Club in West Hollywood.  On the third Monday evening of each month, the upstairs area of Eleven turns into a swanky supper club, featuring Black's revues.

Besides the joy of seeing Mr. Schwartz, who sat at a table close to the stage and received a thunderous ovation at the show's conclusion when he went up to the piano to play and perform one of his songs, this was an exuberant show, filled with showstopping moments and star performances. Among the most rapturously received was lovely Eden Espinosa (currently starring in the sit-down production of Wicked at the Pantages). who was transcedent singing "Meadowlark" (from the underappreciated Baker's Wife). She also teamed with her fabulous Wicked costar Megan Hilly in a great rendition of "For Good" from their show. There were many more great performances--golden-voiced Kevin Earley's "Out There," radiant Kim Huber's "Colors of the Wind," the dynamic Bets Malone's "Spark of Creation," the wonderful Misty Cotton's "Defying Gravity," Jai Rodgriguez' hilariously campy take on "Popular" and the prodigiously talented Jeffery Landman's rendition of "Lion Tamer" from the little-known tuner Magic Show.

Black had his turn at the mic, sharing a spectacular duet, "In Whatever Time We Have," with Brooke Wilkes. The charismatic and versatile Danny Calvert, seen locally in two hilarious and finely nuanced lead roles--in Musical Theatre West's Altar Boyz and in the current Zanna, Don't! from West Coast Ensemble--showed his prowess with a melancholy ballad, "Lost in the Wilderness."  Uproarious Bruce Vilanch started out with his usual choice quips, then led the crowd through a roof-raising rendition of that Pippin crowd-pleaser "No Time at All."  The list goes on: Melony Collins, Ava Gaudel, Erika Amato, Shelley Goldstein, William Katt, Chad Dorek, Wilson Cruz, Levi Kreis, and Deborah Gibson.  Brent Crayon, leading a crackerjack five-person combo, is musical director.

MGM once used the slogan "more stars than in the heavens." The cabaret scene in L.A. lately seems to be trying hard to usurp that distiction.  The results are joyous.  For info on Black's smashing new venture, visit http://myspace.com/eightyeightscabaret.

--Les Spindle

Talking 'Bout Your Reputation

Though collective wisdom suggests there's no such thing as bad publicity, Lindsay Lohan is the most recent actor to prove otherwise. Lohan's run-ins with the law are starting to rival those of other notorious celebrities such as Robert Downey Jr., Nick Nolte, and Courtney Love. We know, we know -- Lohan claims the cocaine in her pocket wasn't hers. But possession is nine-tenths of the law, and doesn't accountability count for anything in this latest generation of DUI-toting starlets?

Apparently not -- or at least not until it hits big-name actors in their pocketbooks and starts to ruin their careers. Stints in rehab or jail damage performers' reputations and thus their insurability. Insurance companies often refuse to cover films that feature troubled actors who could endanger the production by showing up late, holding up filming, or dropping out of the production. Industry pundits have forecast that insurers' issues with Lohan will lead to fewer roles for her -- a shame, because Lohan has shown great promise as an actor in films such as The Parent Trap, Mean Girls, and A Prairie Home Companion.

Edward J. Epstein, the Hollywood Economist for Slate.com, told National Public Radio that "in the old days it was mainly about movies, and insurance was a byproduct you had to take. Now Hollywood is mainly about reducing risk, and that's why insurance has grown so important." Epstein said completion bonds exist on any film that has independent financing, to guarantee that the film will be completed with all its essential elements intact -- including the stars who have signed on. If the film is not completed, the financier gets all of its money back. Most completion bonds cost up to 3 percent of a production's budget. Another insurance company is enlisted to cover cast insurance, which guarantees that every cast member will be on set and make the movie -- a problem if you're Lohan, who was publicly chastised by Morgan Creek Productions' CEO, James Robinson, for her frequent absences from and late arrivals to the set of Georgia Rule.

Because of her most recent arrest, on felony drug charges, it's possible she'll be dropped from the cast of her upcoming film Poor Things, for which she rehearsed with Shirley MacLaine while in rehab. Losing Lohan could cost the production millions. When Nicole Kidman dropped out of Panic Room due to a bad knee, for example, the insurance company covering the film had to pay between $7 million and $8 million to investors because the cast had changed -- even though Jodie Foster was a more-than-adequate replacement. Because of Kidman's knee injury and her having also delayed production on Moulin Rouge, the Aussie actor was temporarily considered uninsurable by Hollywood-- and she didn't even have a drug problem or DUI charges.

It's perhaps more important for working and aspiring actors not yet on Lohan's or Kidman's level to be careful about how they conduct themselves on and off the set. Well-known actors usually get second, third, and even fourth chances to redeem themselves and eventually work again. But if an unknown actor is perceived to cause problems or delay production in any way, the producer can find a replacement within hours. Word also travels fast in show business. If casting directors and producers hear of an actor's bad reputation, it's unlikely that actor will get called in for many auditions -- no matter how talented he or she may be. The same goes for Broadway and other stage actors: If producers cannot rely on an actor to show up on time and in good condition for every performance, that actor won't be seeing many other opportunities.

So exercise common sense. Don't post a blog entry about getting wasted at a nightclub -- a casting director might be reading. Photographs and video are forever, so don't pose or appear in anything you wouldn't want a CD or agent to see. Show up for work on time, or directors might not want to work with you. And keep your private life private, because if you don't, you might not be considered insurable for that major role that could launch your career.