....in a rut?

It's 1:36 am and I am unable to sleep. I NEVER have a hard time falling asleep. What's going on with me?

I am set to leave for California on October 15th, to spend 3 months doing My Fair Lady at The Western Stage. I am looking forward to playing Freddy, as I feel it's a very fitting role for me, not to mention that I'll be singing one of the greatest musical theatre songs ever written! It will also be wonderful to be at home for the holidays this year since I haven't been for the past two. I do, however have my concerns. 

I don't want to get sucked back in to Salinas life. I came to New York for a reason and I'd hate for this adventure to make me want to move home. It's the whole little fish/big pond, big fish/little pond thing. I LOVE the attention of being the big fish in a little pond, but I don't think that it would satisfy me for very long. Also, it's the whole relationship situation. Being an actor can be very stressful for relationships and the being across the country for three months is going to be particularly stressful. Can we endure? I mean, it has been nearly two years that we've been together, but this will be the longest we've been apart in that time. Before that, it was only a month, and that was hard enough!

I'm watching a lot of people book tours and stuff around me. With Bridie and Erin embarking on the Grease tour, Bobby heading out on The Wizard of Oz, Tim currently in Altar Boyz, and maybe Chad getting Chicago. While it's very motivating, it also makes me feel like I'm  not accomplishing anything. I don't know if going to do My Fair Lady is being productive in the right way. I know I definitely need to be onstage, but am I taking a step back just to fulfill that necessity? I am very worried that I will be missing out on other opportunities here in NYC but I've already accepted and signed so I pretty much have no choice. I just need to think positively about it and try to get myself set up for afterward. I am so sick of waiting tables, it's not even funny. I would love to line something up so that once My Fair Lady is over, I can head out and do something else. This "In The Mood" tour seems to be very promising but I don't know if they'll take me for just the Spring leg of it. Here's hoping...

A new view!

Hi!

OK, it has been a little while since I last posted...but not a whole lot has happened. 

Here's the update:

I started serving at Ellen's Stardust Diner about a month ago. At this job, not only do I serve, but I also have the pleasure of being a professional karaoke singer, LOL. The money is much better than Bubba's and it is much less aggravating than working at Bubba's. I am still building my "setlist" but it's coming along slowly. Today, for instance, someone told me that I have been working there too long to still be singing "My Girl". but I don't really care cause the guests seem to really enjoy it! I am very close to putting in my notice at Bubba's. I just want to feel a little more certainty with the Stardust. As soon as that happens, you better believe I will be out of the "Shrimp Factory" for good. 

In the world of auditions....I haven't really been to many lately. However, I will be auditioning for a production of Godspell just outside of NYC. I had a coaching last weekend to prepare. i am most interested in playing Jesus, but anything would be wonderful as Godspell is one of my favorite shows ever. Stephen Schwartz is amazing. I am planning on singing "Lost In The Wilderness" for the audition. It may be overdone, but I feel that it's just so appropriate for this particular audition. i coached it with Phillip on Wednesday and I think I've found a good way to attack the piece. Phillip has advised me to let go of my inhibitions and i think it has really helped my performance value. Now, if only I could reflect that in auditions. We'll see how it goes. I have a couple more auditions on the horizon. nothin immediate so I'll update about those later. That's all for now. I hope all is well!

42nd Street Comes To An End

"Come on along and listen to the Lullaby of Broadway", but no longer at the Cohoes Music Hall. Today, we close 42nd Street, after 7 thrilling weeks in Cohoes. I'm honestly not entirely certain whether or not I am happy to be closing another show. Its always a bittersweet day for me. You would think that after 13 years of performing I would be able to close a show without being overly sentimental. My problem is that I find so much love and care within each cast that I become attached. Sure, some casts hold stronger places in my heart than others, but I care for each nonetheless. This experience was particularly wonderful for me, having performed with a portion of these people in White Christmas. I also had the pleasure of doing a show with Chad again, which I always appreciate. There's nothing more wonderful than sharing a moment onstage with someone whom you love and care for. 

On the flipside, this has been a rather tumultuous production. We had our fair share of drama, though I feel the relationships we built were able to overcome the drama. From the potential injury of our star to the disappearance of our set, we were faced with adversity every day of this process but were still able to create quite a production. We have been well-received by the press and the public, alike, and have been selling quite well this final weekend. Unfortunately, the producers are not quite as appreciative as you would expect. This is maybe why I leave Cohoes with a mildly bitter taste in  my  mouth. I hope that one day they can learn to treat their company with respect and understand that we ARE working very hard, and that we all have a common goal. I refuse to digress on that, however. I want to leave the Capital Region on a positive note, so I will leave it at this: I have made some friends for life I feel and I hope we can all keep in touch in the city. That's where I stand at this point. I'm leaving happy:)

eh....

So, I think it's pretty safe to say that most people in my field go through phases during which we lack self-confidence. I am in one of those phases right now. I think I can credit this to the fact that 42nd Street is closing and I don't have anything else lined up. Also, I just got back to the city last night from our second to last weekend of the show and have been in a funk ever since. I went to Bubba's to check my schedule...let me rephrase that....I battled my way through Easter Sunday gang warfare to go to Bubba's and check my schedule for the upcoming weeks. 4 out of the 5 shifts are during the day. This is exactly the rant I had with one of the managers several months ago. I was only getting day shifts. Am I not pulling my weight at night? What is the deal?! Everyone knows day shifts are crap. Granted, I'll be getting tipshare case they're bar shifts, but really? How am I supposed to audition if I am stuck in that bar from 9-5. The whole point of being an actor working in a restaurant is so I can work at night and have my days free to audition!!!!! 

OK..aside from restaurant life...let's see... I am hoping to work in Idaho this summer at Coeur d'Alene in their production of Les Mis. I have been dying to do this show and have just youtube an audition clip. I probably could have acted at least a little bit in this clip, but it was a very awkward situation so I just sang mostly. I hope they like it.

Here it is:

Aside from that, i will be posting some pics from the show very soon. I just want to take some more first....

I've joined the blogging nation...

so, it's 3:04 AM. I clearly need to be in bed now. But...after a glass of wine (or 2), I decided to create a blog. This may be like the 5th one I've tried to commence, but maybe I'll really get into this one. Whatever happens, I hope it's enjoyable and useful to anyone who may read it. I am, most likely, going to focus on the daily events in my pursuit of a career in theatre. Maybe it will chronicle my auditions or classes. Or maybe it'll detail the events of a production in which I am currently performing....Whatever the storyline, I will try to be faithful and consistent in my postings. Enjoy!