The "Glamorous" Life of Auditions - Day 24
I've been burrowed into my own home for the last 4 days getting over 7 scenes into my noggin. Trying not to feel overwhelmed but needing to push my memory sense to the brink because I had 2 other scenes to memorize for the last audition and now I've got the "chemistry" read to get back into, as well as keeping Shakespeare fresh on my mind. Times like these, you have to thank you body and mind for just keeping all of these words/scenes compartmentalized. Knowing I have to pull off 2 distinct characters this evening
with 17 pages of dialogue with monologues everywhere, it's hard not to stress but with stress comes easy mistakes...breathe, breathe through it all and keep pushing through. A few words at a time and it's yours, I'm one scene away on a piece that may not be used this evening but I should be comfortable with "just in case..." 4 days isn't enough but with my schedule it'll have to do. All day, every day with breaks in between, playing Pac Man on the Playstation just to jolt my mind out of the heaviness of the words as well as catching an episode here and there of shows I'm missing. These may seem like distractions, but if well paced, these slight distractions help my mind hone in more on my text...I can't just sit and memorize 17 pages, my brain needs breaks to ingest, process and solidify what I'm trying to get across and nothing does it like chomping down on some ghosts. I can't wait for this evening to be over, to only have the "chemistry" read (it's where you and a few others are in consideration of the role and they bring you in to see if you pair well with another particular individual playing another role) coming up in another day, a small piece that I memorized while driving about town for the next evening, with Shakespeare as well to perform, my mind can finally just relax - HA! TRAIN, TRAIN, TRAIN is all I can keep harping on...do not take it for granted that you're a natural, times like these will come up and only because you've trained meticulously in your craft will you be able to deal with this type of hecticness. Even with this training I've felt like my brain was just going to curplode, how much more can I put up there and then...voila, another scene. It's one thing to get a script, get it down and even that has it's own difficulties but to get pieces of a story here and there, to create each scene from your mind because it has to come from somewhere if you don't have the full story and to understand it as well as making sure it comes across, that my friends is art. I usually don't stress about the words being stamped in my brain but understand the more you have it in your being, the easier the words and the more you're able to play and that's the fun stuff. If you can't play, you're not enjoying the process so get it down as much as possible folks because writers wrote for you to help tell the story but if you understand the character, the words will make themselves known as well. After reading sides, I make a quick assessment as to who my character is and as I keep looking over my lines, I discover what makes my character tick. What does this person want, why do they need it, and how are they going to get it in this scene, I need...no I have to win, I have to get what I want...how do I do that? Training with get you through this gauntlet quickly and instead of taking extra time to break things down, you'll be able to process it while constantly re-reading the scene but I wouldn't be able to do that without spending most of my time in classes, getting critiqued, being pushed and trying to see the task at hand can have different perspectives. Every actor can look at a page and decide what's happening but it's up to an artist to discover how to get it in a unique way, your way that should be different from the hundreds of other actors walking into the room. Go out on the limb, discover the unknown, challenge yourself to find your unique imprint on the scene and "fail" - keep "failing" until one day it clicks...not for you, for them! Although I was called in for Libby and Shelita, my heart leaned towards Libby in this play - I just wanted her so bad because I knew it would be a challenge. I read the monologue and scene 1 of Libby and was asked to get prepared for Shelita, so I changed my clothing into business attire and started in on my Shelita scenes feeling I must've been too "exotic" for the look of Libby - feeling bummed. Get back in only to be asked to read the Libby monologue again and while doing so was getting yelled instructions by the incomparable Saundra McClain - be older, have fun now, louder etc. I stayed in and I'm now officially booked as LIBBY in Bee Luther Hatchee at the Sierra Madre Playhouse next! I didn't even have to touch Shelita which I would've given my all but my heart was true on Libby, so WAHOO to infinity, another dream role at another new theatre with my mentor Ms. McClain!
During these past few weeks, it was that time of year again to go on my hard core Master Cleanse which I've been in a love/hate relationship for over 15+ years. No eating, no drinking anything else but the lemon/green raw cane sugar/cayenne pepper and the teas, water and salt water flush for that movement necessary to scrub a dub-dub those insides! It's been a while since I've decided to do at least 12 days and so I made it all the way to 13 and would've done at least one more day had it not been for a friend's Born Day celebration I'd like to attend in a few days at one of my favorite Puerto Rican joints for mofongo deliciousness. I lost around 10lbs which 1/2 should be back in no time since it's mostly water but I feel fantastic, I made it surprisingly without any truly hard, crappy days that I usually experience and that's with working in the bakery at the same time. I did lose inches and that's my main focus plus I could see the toxins leaving my tongue. When you start, there's a white, yucky weird coat that comes over your mouth and as you get clean, your tongue turns bright pinkish/red. Even with 12 days you can still see the splatter of whiteness but by the 13th day, my tongue is free and clear. Coming out of this kind of detox is just as important so please do your research, but I started with the alkalizer in the morning, pineapple juice in the afternoon and since I've done this for many years, I now know I can do soup but mostly the broth as my first bowl. However, my 2nd bowl, I put a bit more veggies in to fill my very empty tum tums. Every body is different so take time to learn, I've gotten a bit sick before by rushing off my cleanse because of an event I had to be at with fantastic smelling goodies and the feeling after isn't worth it. Read everything you can and make a choice on a cleanse you can stick to and feel good on. The Master Cleanse is a hard one but I believe it's one of the most affordable and easiest to stomach because once those toxins leave, you do feel energized enough to keep working, working out lightly and just moving about. You do smell foods like a super power so I warn you on that ability you'll develop as the cleanse goes on! =) I believe a good cleanse can heal the body and also make it stronger for any other disease that's ready to attack. No, you won't die...I promise and doing it for just one day is better than never I say. With so many choices to clean, take a look and get into feeling just as great about your insides as you do your outsides, healthy inside and out is truth here! My first breakfast the day after was a 1 soy free-egg, veggie omelette with some organic potatoes which really just tasted like steak to me - yummers!!!
Got to witness some serious love the other day which made me so happy internally. We tend to focus so much on the negative, so much in only our points, we forget the beauty and simplicity of love. Let's keep pushing the love folks, there's enough hate to go around and I'm just tired of the fear-hatred that seems to be on loop for most folks. That's not life, it's not living and I don't want to spend one second allowing it a breath in my sphere. Being here is difficult enough, dealing with day to day is heavy enough, my soul isn't built to perpetuate hate and I refuse to be a part of it. Whatever you think is so important in your life that you must make others feel less than or preach to, isn't worth it. Live by example and you won't have to shout your message if someone is interested, just let be - unless you are promoting love truly with every fiber of your being, there is nothing else to do or say that is so important...life is short, choose love always and you will see yourself feeling happier now in you and your art! Go out there and change the world, one being at a time, one kind gesture at a time, one role at a time...
I've been burrowed into my own home for the last 4 days getting over 7 scenes into my noggin. Trying not to feel overwhelmed but needing to push my memory sense to the brink because I had 2 other scenes to memorize for the last audition and now I've got the "chemistry" read to get back into, as well as keeping Shakespeare fresh on my mind. Times like these, you have to thank you body and mind for just keeping all of these words/scenes compartmentalized. Knowing I have to pull off 2 distinct characters this evening
with 17 pages of dialogue with monologues everywhere, it's hard not to stress but with stress comes easy mistakes...breathe, breathe through it all and keep pushing through. A few words at a time and it's yours, I'm one scene away on a piece that may not be used this evening but I should be comfortable with "just in case..." 4 days isn't enough but with my schedule it'll have to do. All day, every day with breaks in between, playing Pac Man on the Playstation just to jolt my mind out of the heaviness of the words as well as catching an episode here and there of shows I'm missing. These may seem like distractions, but if well paced, these slight distractions help my mind hone in more on my text...I can't just sit and memorize 17 pages, my brain needs breaks to ingest, process and solidify what I'm trying to get across and nothing does it like chomping down on some ghosts. I can't wait for this evening to be over, to only have the "chemistry" read (it's where you and a few others are in consideration of the role and they bring you in to see if you pair well with another particular individual playing another role) coming up in another day, a small piece that I memorized while driving about town for the next evening, with Shakespeare as well to perform, my mind can finally just relax - HA! TRAIN, TRAIN, TRAIN is all I can keep harping on...do not take it for granted that you're a natural, times like these will come up and only because you've trained meticulously in your craft will you be able to deal with this type of hecticness. Even with this training I've felt like my brain was just going to curplode, how much more can I put up there and then...voila, another scene. It's one thing to get a script, get it down and even that has it's own difficulties but to get pieces of a story here and there, to create each scene from your mind because it has to come from somewhere if you don't have the full story and to understand it as well as making sure it comes across, that my friends is art. I usually don't stress about the words being stamped in my brain but understand the more you have it in your being, the easier the words and the more you're able to play and that's the fun stuff. If you can't play, you're not enjoying the process so get it down as much as possible folks because writers wrote for you to help tell the story but if you understand the character, the words will make themselves known as well. After reading sides, I make a quick assessment as to who my character is and as I keep looking over my lines, I discover what makes my character tick. What does this person want, why do they need it, and how are they going to get it in this scene, I need...no I have to win, I have to get what I want...how do I do that? Training with get you through this gauntlet quickly and instead of taking extra time to break things down, you'll be able to process it while constantly re-reading the scene but I wouldn't be able to do that without spending most of my time in classes, getting critiqued, being pushed and trying to see the task at hand can have different perspectives. Every actor can look at a page and decide what's happening but it's up to an artist to discover how to get it in a unique way, your way that should be different from the hundreds of other actors walking into the room. Go out on the limb, discover the unknown, challenge yourself to find your unique imprint on the scene and "fail" - keep "failing" until one day it clicks...not for you, for them! Although I was called in for Libby and Shelita, my heart leaned towards Libby in this play - I just wanted her so bad because I knew it would be a challenge. I read the monologue and scene 1 of Libby and was asked to get prepared for Shelita, so I changed my clothing into business attire and started in on my Shelita scenes feeling I must've been too "exotic" for the look of Libby - feeling bummed. Get back in only to be asked to read the Libby monologue again and while doing so was getting yelled instructions by the incomparable Saundra McClain - be older, have fun now, louder etc. I stayed in and I'm now officially booked as LIBBY in Bee Luther Hatchee at the Sierra Madre Playhouse next! I didn't even have to touch Shelita which I would've given my all but my heart was true on Libby, so WAHOO to infinity, another dream role at another new theatre with my mentor Ms. McClain!
During these past few weeks, it was that time of year again to go on my hard core Master Cleanse which I've been in a love/hate relationship for over 15+ years. No eating, no drinking anything else but the lemon/green raw cane sugar/cayenne pepper and the teas, water and salt water flush for that movement necessary to scrub a dub-dub those insides! It's been a while since I've decided to do at least 12 days and so I made it all the way to 13 and would've done at least one more day had it not been for a friend's Born Day celebration I'd like to attend in a few days at one of my favorite Puerto Rican joints for mofongo deliciousness. I lost around 10lbs which 1/2 should be back in no time since it's mostly water but I feel fantastic, I made it surprisingly without any truly hard, crappy days that I usually experience and that's with working in the bakery at the same time. I did lose inches and that's my main focus plus I could see the toxins leaving my tongue. When you start, there's a white, yucky weird coat that comes over your mouth and as you get clean, your tongue turns bright pinkish/red. Even with 12 days you can still see the splatter of whiteness but by the 13th day, my tongue is free and clear. Coming out of this kind of detox is just as important so please do your research, but I started with the alkalizer in the morning, pineapple juice in the afternoon and since I've done this for many years, I now know I can do soup but mostly the broth as my first bowl. However, my 2nd bowl, I put a bit more veggies in to fill my very empty tum tums. Every body is different so take time to learn, I've gotten a bit sick before by rushing off my cleanse because of an event I had to be at with fantastic smelling goodies and the feeling after isn't worth it. Read everything you can and make a choice on a cleanse you can stick to and feel good on. The Master Cleanse is a hard one but I believe it's one of the most affordable and easiest to stomach because once those toxins leave, you do feel energized enough to keep working, working out lightly and just moving about. You do smell foods like a super power so I warn you on that ability you'll develop as the cleanse goes on! =) I believe a good cleanse can heal the body and also make it stronger for any other disease that's ready to attack. No, you won't die...I promise and doing it for just one day is better than never I say. With so many choices to clean, take a look and get into feeling just as great about your insides as you do your outsides, healthy inside and out is truth here! My first breakfast the day after was a 1 soy free-egg, veggie omelette with some organic potatoes which really just tasted like steak to me - yummers!!!
Got to witness some serious love the other day which made me so happy internally. We tend to focus so much on the negative, so much in only our points, we forget the beauty and simplicity of love. Let's keep pushing the love folks, there's enough hate to go around and I'm just tired of the fear-hatred that seems to be on loop for most folks. That's not life, it's not living and I don't want to spend one second allowing it a breath in my sphere. Being here is difficult enough, dealing with day to day is heavy enough, my soul isn't built to perpetuate hate and I refuse to be a part of it. Whatever you think is so important in your life that you must make others feel less than or preach to, isn't worth it. Live by example and you won't have to shout your message if someone is interested, just let be - unless you are promoting love truly with every fiber of your being, there is nothing else to do or say that is so important...life is short, choose love always and you will see yourself feeling happier now in you and your art! Go out there and change the world, one being at a time, one kind gesture at a time, one role at a time...
I absolutely love this blog!!!!!!! Thank you beautiful, intelligent being!!!!!��
ReplyDeleteMuch love always Jamie...you're in the next one my dear! Loved reconnecting with you once again...see you soon beautiful!
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