An Actors Life For Me

As the year dwindles to a close, most people (including actors) look back on the year and think "What have I accomplished?" "What do I want to achieve?"and "How many things can I write off on my taxes?" We create lists and either determine that we had a successful year or that we could have done better, and often it is a combination of both. But the difference for actors is that we look back in our audition books or excel files (If you are new to the acting/audition world, you need to have one of these) and we see "Wow, I went on 50 auditions and got 1". (And this is only a half a year estimate for me). For those of you who are math people (which is probably only a slight few) that is 2% of the auditions I went on, I booked. That means I was looking for work 98% of the time. Yes, that is the life style I chose as do many of the other actors in the city. In other words, we could probably qualify to sit on a street corner and beg for money. So why do we keep trucking at this career?

I found myself pondering this question before I went home to the south for Christmas. I was beginning to feel that every audition I went on I knew I lost right after walking through the door. Maybe it was time to start teaching or being a theatre critic (which I realized would end up taking more schooling and maybe be just as hard to get into?) But then I went home and got a healthy dose of why I love theatre. 1. I missed NY, I went a whole 10 days without seeing a show! 2. I was surrounded by family that knows that I love it and that it's too early to give up and 3. I watched a theatre documentary about breaking into the biz. In the movie, actors talk about their struggles, passions, successes, and odd jobs and all I could think when I watched it was "yes, this is more moving than a romantic comedy!" I'm IN love with this profession.

Also I was much more respected at home. For instance, we went to Sears and wanted a grill but we were going to be unable to fit it in the car with us. This is the scene that followed:
The Sears sale guy (jokingly) (said to my mom): Well maybe you could just leave one of your kids behind!
My mom: We just got this one home!
Sears guy (to Me): Oh yeah? Do you go to school elsewhere?
Me: Actually, I just graduated and moved to NYC.
Sears Guy: Wow, that's great! What do you do there?
Me: I'm an actor and a babysitter.
Sears Guy: Ah! Can I have your autograph?
Which, yes, I willingly gave. People in my hometown thought it was cool to come across an actor. If I were to tell someone in a store in nyc that I was an actor, I would likely get the "oh you poor thing" pat on the shoulder or just a roll of the eyes. Needless to say, I am back in the city and reinvigorated to get criticized, bashed, and disappointed and maybe, just maybe, have that 2% of sweet success!

So as you approach your new year and reflect back on everything that has happened to you remember: you've got to keep trying in order to get anything, you will fail more times than you will succeed, and the 10 extra pounds you added is really just baby fat catching up with you. 

It's A Small World After All!

Who knew a Disney theme park ride was actually teaching us all an important life lesson?

You never know who you are sitting with in the audition room, on the subway, in a starbucks (*cough* Sam Gold), or at a show. New York is bustling with famous actors, producers, designers, casting directors, agents, and artistic directors, and you just never know who you are around. Maybe that awkward person who sits in the non equity lounge day after day having just graduated with pigeon toes and wiry hair will turn out to be the next Sutton Foster.

I just found out that a guy who I worked with at Roswell Village Playhouse when I was 5 years old is taking over the starring role in War Horse on Broadway. Who knew when I was dressed up as a Dalmatian performing in my first ever play about eating too much popcorn, the guy I was seeing every day in the lobby was going to be a Broadway star! (Of course my fellow animal, popcorn eating cast mates are thinking, "why not me?!?!")

It's a small world after all! So you need to take some advice from Santa and be nice...to EVERYONE. You can't really afford to make any enemies, and you always need to be on your game (rehearsal, audition, interview, show). This also means when you are gossiping with your friend in the equity lounge people are listening and likely know who you are talking about! I also recently discovered the beauty of the conversations in the ladies dressing room. Gossip ain't just for middle schoolers any more, folks! But really, just don't talk so loud. It's rude. People are trying to practice their monologues, do zin tae kwan doe yoga, or finish The Help.

The hardest thing to remember is when seeing a show that is fabulously perfect (which, have you ever even encountered one of those? What's the beauty of theatre if you can't at least critique it or have differing opinions!)---Talk About It! BUT if you have any qualms at all, use the six block rule (which I learned from SpringboardNYC!) Before you start talking about the show, wait 6 blocks. Why you ask? You never know who is at the show. Example: back when I studied in London we saw a production of A Midsummer Nights Dream. The production was pretty good, but the Puck was kind of terrible. Now we were sitting in the very top balcony, why would anyone of importance be sitting in those crappy seats? Well, my friend went to the bathroom at intermission and was talking to another friend about the crappy acting Puck was doing. The lady behind her tapped her shoulder and said "that's my son". MAMA DRAMA!

Heard of the six degrees of separation? In NYC, as huge as it seems, it's more like one! Almost every theatre person I meet and facebook friend has at least two people in common. So if you see someone you hate at an audition, do what many actors do....act like you are best friends and are genuinely interested in what they are working on. Then, when you see them two days later, act like it's been ages since yall have talked (I can't tell you how much of this I see/do...)

So the life lesson is this: When you wake up early in the morning for an audition after a long exhausting weekend, make sure you drink some coffee. That way, you won't get to the audition and realize you forgot to put on deodorant!