It’s the end of winter. You can’t think of anything more satisfying than sitting at home in your pajamas with the fire on and a steaming mug of chocolate in hand. But...you’ve got a rehearsal. You dread leaving the house and braving the storm, de-icing the car and attempting to carry all of your props and costumes without risking injury. Then you arrive at the venue, begin your craft and forget all about the world outside.
Read MoreI am the type of actor who brings everything they could possibly need during the run of a show all on that first day. My dance bag is overflowing with extra tights, therabands, clear nail polish, baby powder, everything I need and possibly things I don’t need. But my philosophy has always been: “I’d rather have it than need it.”
But not all actors are like me. If they were, the dressing rooms would be too cluttered to function and no work would get done. As long as one cast member or a group of people provide for their dressing room, things generally turn out just fine.
So for those of you getting ready to “move-in”, here are 5 Dressing Room Essentials you’ll be glad you brought.
Read MoreA couple weeks ago I ended my run in Mary Poppins. It was my bucket list show and a bucket list role; y’all, I was a tap-dancing chimney sweep! Sold out shows, adoring family and friends coming to watch, and I only dropped a line once. Pretty good run.
So it stands to reason the post-show blues would hit and hit hard. Here’s how I decided to combat them.
Read MoreFrom my ten years of hindsight, and not quite ten years of toiling in the difficult world of professional theatre, all the wisdom I am fit to impart on my younger counterparts this week is: Enjoy it.
Read MoreI remember a moment when I was a freshman in college, and I had my first one-on-one meeting with the technical director of the Theatre Department. Near the beginning of the meeting, I remember him asking me a simple question: “What are your ambitions?”
Read MoreThe beauty of community theatre is that you don’t have to have any experience or training: you can come as you are, show what you can do, and hopefully leave on a positive note. However, that means that all walks of life are mingled together on stage. From the woman who’s just there to pass the time after a long day at work, to the boy who’s fresh out of theatre school with dreams of Broadway, everyone can share the space.
Read MoreAs one of a plethora of 30ish mezzo-sopranos with a decent voice and the ability to move with some semblance of grace, I know at any given audition there’s 10 of me for every 1 spot they’ve reserved in the show for my type and vocal ability. There’s a decent amount of “stuff” on my resume but the stuff doesn’t begin to come close to highlighting my abilities. As much as I dislike the corporate job-interview process, I do wish the community theater audition process borrowed some from the corporate world. Because 16-32 bars isn’t enough time to learn I’m more than my resume.
Read MoreSpeaking from personal experience, I know that drama gives kids much more than just confidence. Growing up I was never athletic, so I was never part of any organized sports team.
Sure I took Physical Education, it was required, but being painfully shy, and having no natural athletic ability left me standing waiting to be picked when team captains began choosing their teams.
Read MoreWhether you’re preparing to chase that Broadway spotlight or planning on operating it, most of us who choose to pursue a theatre degree in college have been pestered with that one dreaded query: “Are you sure you want to do that?!”
Read MoreActing is tough. The hardest part of it is the fact that you’re not going to get every role you want, no matter how badly you want it or how perfect you think you are for it. They say you’ve got to have a thick skin in this business- you have to be prepared to be rejected.
But instead of telling you how to deal with rejection, all everyone keeps saying is “something better is coming”, “one door closes, another one opens”, “it’s their loss”, “everything happens for a reason” etc. Those sentiments are all well and good, but none of them have ever actually made me feel better when I wasn’t cast in a show I had my heart set on.
Read More
