I love the Theatre. It's my church. It's my joy. I have been performing in plays and musicals for over half of my life, and I would be lost without it. Now more than ever, people are cutting back on everything that is too expensive or unimportant to their lives.
As an actor, heck as a person, I don't know of anything that is more important than the arts.
Art reflects history. It shows humanity at its worst but also its best.
Every day some artistic program is getting cut from a school or a great show goes unseen. Maybe a talented singer isn't able to audition for American Idol.
There are a ton of people who live in the South Bay Area of California, who go unseen or unheard. There are many production companies that are just bursting with talent, but people don't see the shows.
I will do my best to bring you interviews with local artists of every kind, send out the call for local companies looking to cast people in productions, and much more.
Stay tuned because this is only the beginning.
Last year on March 11, we all remember seeing and hearing the horrible tragedy of the tsunami that struck Japan. While things are moving into place to bring the country back to it’s former state rather quickly, there is still a ton to do.
The video is a beautiful reminder that we all have the ability within us to lend a hand and work together. In some small ways it reaffirms my belief that if we let the best of ourselves shine, world peace can be accomplished.
However, greed and politics and power always seem to rear their ugly heads when there’s nothing dangerous and bigger than humanity to bind us together.
I just wish it didn’t always take a tragedy to bring us together.
What I thought I was going to see when I walked into the theatre at Monroe Middle School was a fun show with kids who were just having fun. They would be hams on stage, but not honestly playing the part.
“When you think about Seuss..”
What I got was a treat. I was a little apprehensive as I waited for the show to start because the tech desk was in the middle of the auditorium. There were so many people walking by that I worried about the wires since I knew that everything from sound to lights to music were all sitting on top of that table. So when the lights when down, I drew a deep breath and hoped for the best.
After the required “No photography” and “Turn off your phones” speeches by Director Paul Sawyer, the focus shifted to the trademark red and white striped hat that was downstage center. From there, the show took off with Jojo and The Cat who lead into the story of “Horton Hears A Who.” Ryan Mohs as Horton may not have been the size of an elephant, but he truly had the heart of that lovable character. I loved that the ears he wore were wickedly floppy, but I don’t think they were big enough.
Gertrude McFuzz the bird that had the sad single feather tail was played by Gwyneth Forrester. Just so y’all knows, this girl is FIERCE!!! I love that she delved into her role and was in character every single moment she was on stage. Not only was her character well done, she could sing. She projected well and the mic issues that affected some of the other people were no problem for her. She’s gonna go far if she pursues a career in The Arts.
Not to be outdone by her sister, Audrey Forrester who played little Jojo, likewise added depth of character, vocal ability, and stage presence to the show. She was adorably vulnerable yet hopeful that they would be saved by Horton.
The Wickershams (Chris Clausen, Austin Nedved, Bailey Nedved, Siena Trent, Skylin Wellbrock, and Wilson Skjerven) had some great choreography with TONS of personality.
Other notable mentions: Katie Bieber as Yertle The Turtle had some pipes! Sadly, part of her scene had some mic problems. Mayzie LaBird, once her mic was fixed, was able to be the diva that she is! The 3 bird girls were so sassy!!! As was the Sour Kangaroo, Elise Bankosh.
The whole show moved at a quick clip and it only felt like the first act only seemed to last a half hour. Aside from the few mic issues, the spot op needs to have a steadier grip on the light.
There are so many wonderful moments in this show that most people walked out with huge smiles on their faces, as did I.
These young performers are the future of the theatre scene and it’s pretty cool to see what the future holds.
Seussical Jr. plays for 3 more shows. Friday and Saturday night 3/9-10/12 at 7PM and Saturday 3/10/12 at 1PM
You can find more info at the end of THIS blog post! Go see this show. It’s a lot of fun, some great harmonies, and a ton of happy kids.
I don’t know where I would be if I didn’t have the Arts. I don’t know if I would have turned out as fabulous as I am without the power of creativity and the joy that I got from making the things that I imagined as a kid. Yes, they were mostly decorative or used for toys, but the knowledge that came with this was life changing. I could dream up things like stories. I could make them come to life by being a character. I could make someone smile when they were feeling down with one of those characters. I could entertain other people and not just my family.
As I got a little older, I realized that I don’t think like most people because of how I used my imagination in the past. I thought outside the box. A habit that still helps me.
The Arts taught me how focus and to use imagination to solve problems in the “real” world, and not to just stand around and think up the same old conventional way that I was taught in school.
The Arts taught me that there was more inside of me than I ever believed. But there was only one Problem…
I wish it taught all this to me while I was still a youngster.
This is why, when I got an invite from my buddy Paul telling me about this show and the kids involved in it, I knew we could make a difference. So I am reaching out to you, you fabulous and wonderful bunch of people, to join me in “Pack The House” for Monroe Middle School. This weekend, the aim for the show, Seussical Jr., is to encourage the young performers to continue their pursuit of the Arts.
Do me a favor, close your eyes. Think back to when you were in middle school. Imagine how those children would feel performing on stage, some of them for the first time. The hesitation, nerves and fear that are screaming in their bodies to not make a fool of themselves, because it would be uncool to the other kids. Because when you are in school, it’s always about what the other kids think. Now imagine that because you are there encouraging, laughing and cheering on those nervous youngsters how different the outcome could be.
Not only will the Arts benefit from a new generation of performers getting experience on stage, but the performers will benefit because of the Arts that have brought them to the stage. And you get to be part of that magic. Please, please join me at Monroe Middle School for Seussical Jr. and “Pack The House!!!”
There are 4 shows. Thursday 3/8, Friday 3/9, Saturday 3/10 starting at 7PM and Saturday 3/10 staring at 1PM.
I am thinking I might go opening night and if that doesn’t pan out, closing night would be my other choice.
I will be posting on twitter and Facebook which day I get my tickets for. Like I said, please come and be a part of this magical moment for these young performers.
Over the past few months I have cut back on my television watching habits. I’ve picked up more books and magazines and even my knitting with my new free time.
But it just hit me while commenting on a friends Facebook post regarding the television show, Supernatural. My idea of TV is a little silly.
My realization was this: While I think that a lot of shows aren’t my cup of tea, it could be an opportunity to not only watch and but to analyze the acting, the writing, the casting, the costume design and the direction of any show. Whether or not it’s good, could be irrelevant. I could figure out why it is or isn’t my cup of tea. (Usually, it’s only tiny moments that I happen to catch while walking in and out of the room.) As someone who would love to pay my rent and my bills with the paychecks I would earn from gigs, why would I not utilize the free time I have while watching TV for something a little more productive rather than just a passive voyeur of what’s on the screen?
This then brings me to other contradictory quirks I have.
Let’s take pictures.
As someone who loves to be on stage and in doing so, have people watch, why can’t I get past my aversion to having my picture taken? There are special times when I power through my issue, such as for the Fatty Affair event. I think it’s because feel like moments are meant to be fleeting. And the moments that people do want to capture are what have passed and so they try to recreate them and thus making it less true. I don’t mind the candid shots. Of course, I always have the most horrid looks on my face when these happen.
Speaking of horrid.
I enjoy going to the theatre and going to the movies as well as watching movies at home. The thing that these activities share is that the lights get turned down so the focus goes to the stage or screen. The original storytellers were cavemen. They told recreated the events of the day’s hunt and relayed it to the clan crowded around the fire. There’s something in our ancient self that still enjoys the shared experience of listening to a story together. I love it. When it comes to scary movies, they are totally my faves! Hands down, no doubt. When the lights come back up, I can logically sort out in my melon all the things about the film or show that make it impossible to be true. But at night when it comes time to go to bed and be alone with my thoughts, my imagination, the thing that helps to transport me to different places and times on stage, begins it’s process of putting me in a new place with influences of what was recently watched. Because I refuse to try and control my imagination, I do believe that there are things that go bump in the night.
There are times when I feel like my imagination is my biggest asset. It helps me to create or recreate worlds and people. Conversely, it sometimes feels like my imagination is my biggest fault. Sometimes, I feel like I can’t leave those worlds, or when ideas arise, they are overwhelming when I know that they can be pared down and streamlined.
There’s a quote that comes to mind. It’s from Clive Barker’s “Nightbreed” that says, “Everything is true. God’s an astronaut. Oz is over the rainbow. And Midian is where the monsters live.”
Have you ever noticed contradictory things about yourself? Please feel free to share your contradictions or not.
Not as much as I love the Tonys! But I do love the Oscars.
I have watched the telecast every single year since I’ve been in the double digit age range. Now as to whether or not I can remember any of it, HA!
There have been years where the show was so boring and I just wished that they would just drop event time to a single hour. But, there have also been years when I didn’t want the Best Picture category to come up. A lot of it had to do with the host. Last year, I think was the James Franco and Anne Hathaway co-host nightmare. It felt awkward and kinda messy. But Hugh Jackman or Jon Stewart did really respectable jobs. But the king will probably always be Billy Crystal.
While I was at the gym, Piers Morgan was on one of the tv’s and he was interviewing a columnist for EW magazine and the interviewee said that there were some doubts as to whether Billy C would be able to do it. Wait…WHAT? He went on to say it would be the equivalent of putting Willy Mayes (or some baseball player that I am just naming at random) back in the game after 20 years of not playing. I call shenanigans!! Of course BC is gonna be fab, he will always be fab! He’s Billy Frakin’ Crystal.
This year, I don’t have any real preference as to who wins with one exception. Octavia Spencer. I’d always seen her in tiny bit parts and loved her. Now that she’s had the opportunity to shine, I hope she is rewarded for all the little nuances that are in her performance in “The Help.”
If you haven’t seen it, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
My friends and I used to have games and stuff for awards shows. Sadly now that I work on Sundays, I don’t have time to come up with stuff. I know the logical answer to that is plan ahead and do it early. I know and I hear you, but I just space out and forget that it is even happening.
So as I watch the show this year, I will probably harbor a tiny chip on my shoulder with the knowledge that just to get nominations, the studios spend approximately $100 million in media blitzes. With numerous studios spending that much on this little award, I just wonder how much good that would do if they invest even half of that into public education or building homeless shelters that are open all year round and not just in the winter. I understand that it’s just Hollywood. But that’s the point
It’s JUST Hollywood. It’s great that they make a film about bullying and try to raise awareness like that. But it’s a business strategy as well. Make a movie about a problem that’s plaguing youth or society and millions of people around the world will pay money to see it and a big portion of that money will go into the producer’s pocket. Yeah, s/he might be philanthropic and donate to charities or whatnot. But there’s also, maybe not.
So Billy, even before you are on that stage, I shall raise a glass to you after a long day’s work and have every confidence that this year’s Oscar show will be golden.
The Actorvist 