I Could Tell You But Then I'd Have To . . .

Mon., Sept. 17 was a long day. Good, though, in that I was being an actor the whole time. I was exhausted at the end of it, partly because I hadn't had much sleep the two nights before.

7 am -- Video shoot for the Secret Service. Guess what? I can't tell you about the content of the script! Really! Can't you just hear the James Bond theme in your head right now? It wasn't all that exciting though, I mean, nothing you haven't already seen in Men In Black (I or II).

4pm -- rehearsal for the staged reading of Screen Play @ Rep.

7pm -- reading of Screen Play @ Rep. Went well, and fairly well received. Screen Play is pretty strongly political (A.R. Gurney is definitely no fan of GWB or neo-conservatives). In the post-show discussion with the audience, one thing we talked about was how different folks react to plays with political p.o.v.'s. One woman said that, while a person might not like a play like this, you don't learn anything if you don't keep an open mind. That's true, but . . . well, I didn't say it at the time (because usually it's the audience that asks and theatre reps and cast answering), but I wondered if the woman would have felt the same way if she disagreed with the play's p.o.v.

Would you? Easier said than done. I vaguely remember something from Frederick Douglass, I believe it was. He said that one should be able argue for the opposing point better than the opposition. Imagine that. If you can do that, not only can you understand their p.o.v., you'd be more able to counter it. Your own opinion would be strengthened or changed. That would require a lot of thought and a lot of listening, not strong points for a lot of people, it seems.

Let It Rain

Okay, positive news --

1) Sept. 17: I'll appear in a staged reading of Screen Play by A.R. Gurney at Rep Stage.

2) October 17 - 28: I'll play Dr. Armstrong in Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians at Cumberland Theatre (Rehearsals start Oct. 8 -- yes, it's a crazy-fast rehearsal period).

3) April 9 - May 4, 2008 (with possible extension - May 25): 1776 at Olney Theatre. I'll portray Lyman Hall, a delegate from Georgia, and I will understudy John Hancock and John Adams. I'm as excited by the understudy roles as I am about my regular role, in large part because of the challenge. And I'm quite happy to have this new door open. I have to say, I do think being a reader helped in this matter. Rehearsals start March 18.

It's a start. I still have a long way to go. But I'm much closer to heaven now that I have scripts on my table.

Reading Is Fundamental

I have some positive news, but I'll announce that in another day or two.

Last week, Wed. - Fri., I was a reader for the 1776 auditions at Olney Theatre (I auditioned as well). If you don't know: when an actor auditions for a play, if they read from a side (a scene selected from the show), the theatre may provide a reader to read the other part(s). Readers can range from someone sitting a chair literally reading the lines without any value whatsoever -- which is agonizing for the auditioner -- to someone who gets up and performs with them, hopefully while also letting the auditioner be the main focus. Most actors, myself included, like this sort of reader, and that's what I tried to be. One auditioner even exclaimed, "Oh, thank God!" the moment I stepped up to read the scene with her. Here's the thing: a lot of acting is giving to and reacting off of someone, and it is hard to give and react to nothing.

Being a reader was also very worthwhile to me, and I strongly recommend it for other actors. First, the theatre powers-that-be can get more of an impression of you as a person than a 5-minute time slot can ever provide. Also, you can watch other actors audition and see what you think they do right and wrong. And so here's some unsolicited audition advice, for myself particularly and for my fellow actors as well.

1) Be Confident, Be Natural, Be Yourself, Have Fun and Play. Easier said than done, I know. I had the chance to see a lot of actors put on their "game face," that mask that attempts to hide the nervousness. So how to do you be confident / natural, etc.? I'm still working on that, but I think the idea is to think of the audition as part of a bigger picture -- read the last paragraph for more on this.

2) Don't Look For Subtleties From The Powers-That-Be To Inform You On How Well You Did. There's just too much going on in the audition room to read what looks and gestures may or may not apply to you. The director stopping you halfway into the scene is common, and doesn't necessarily imply lack of interest -- I now know for a fact that's often not the case. Also, if they don't call you back, it doesn't mean you did badly. I saw some great auditioners that didn't get called back, and a few lousy auditioners that did. It has to do with how they see you fitting into their production.

3) Be Decisive. Hoo boy -- some auditioners would bring a music selection, but wouldn't give the accompanist a specific start or stop point. Some, when given a choice of scenes, would say, "What would you prefer?" Some would give vague answers when asked about scheduling availability for further callbacks or rehearsals. It's tedious. If you can't provide a specific answer to a scheduling question, say, "I don't know, but I can call later and let you know."

4) Be Aware That Every Interaction Is Part Of The Audition. Not just when you "enter the room," but also when you arrive, you sign in, when you talk with a theatre rep over the phone or via e-mail, etc.

Here's the thing: the official "audition" is just one part of joining a theatre community. It is not the be-all-end-all, God-I-hope-I-get-it, that it seems to be. Sure, do your best at the audition. Realize that you might not "fit" this particular production for whatever reason -- but if you do a solid audition, maybe they'll remember and say, "You know, I think he/she'd be good for this production we have coming up later." The more in-the-community you are, the more indistinct the line is between the job and the rest of your life. The people I audition for and with are people I hope to spend a fair amount of my future with, as coworkers and friends, and I want them to feel the same toward me. This extends even to the audience -- I want their reactions and their applause, and I also want them to see my name attached to a show and say, Oh, Peter's in that, Let's go see it. They may also see me in public, at the bookstore, the park. So, in a way, I am auditioning at any (every?) given moment in time, which means I need to be the best "me" I can be as much as possible.

Try The Coffee

I'd been avoiding writing about auditions, because the lack of positive results lately has been a real downer. But this blog originally was intended for life-as-an-actor-et-al. commentary. And sometimes the auditions, or the journey to-and-from auditions, are too interesting -- such as a recent audition at Theatre of the First Amendment for Mariela in the Desert, by Karen Zacarias, to be directed by Nick Olcott. For this I ended up researching the Mexican artists like Frieda Kahlo and Diego Rivera, a fascinating, fiery pair. And at the audition Nick and I both gave each other that squinted eyes look that caused me to say, "Yes, you look familiar to me, too, and no, I don't know why, either." He checked my resume and thought we might have met in Montana when I worked at Missoula Children's Theatre and he was there for some NEA thing. This is certainly possible, but I recently realized we had met (again?) only a few months ago, at an audition at Imagination Stage. Karen Zacarias has a play being produced at Imagination Stage in the spring, and she saw me in Sleeping Beauty last fall. And so the world gets smaller.

(By the way, the audition was enjoyable, even though I haven't heard anything since.)

Yesterday I had an audition at Cumberland Theatre for Ten Little Indians. The audition itself wasn't anything spectacular: a cold reading, which Gary, the director, said was mostly for hearing dialects. Normally I'm quite good at dialects, but yesterday, not so much. The journey home included a stop at a Waffle House in Hagerstown. Waffle House is a guilty pleasure, and I'd been jonesing for weeks. One of the waitresses was named Shanice, though her tag said Shaynana. She said her manager likes giving employees nicknames (something he has in common with GWB), ergo the nametag -- she pronounced it "Sha-nay-nay," which make me wonder about her manager's gift for spelling. The tag also said "Salesperson." Later the jukebox revealed its own personality by abruptly dropping, then slowly raising, the volume as it played. I had a cheese omelet with grits, cinnamon-raisin toast, and coffee -- "Waffle House coffee . . . fresh ground . . . the best coffee for your meal." I always get the coffee, and it's always very strong and tastes lousy, requiring cream and sugar to make it palatable. It fascinates me.

This particular Waffle House is not far from Antietam, the location of the bloodiest one-day battle of the civil war.

I have more interesting stories regarding Waffle House -- including "ribbets," a car on fire, and a lousy day for all -- maybe, more on that later.

Wrong, Wrong, Wrong

Cute picture, yeah? That's Ndeze, an orphaned mountain gorilla, drinking from a bottle being held by park ranger Andres Bauma.

However, the picture would be more adorable if it were of Ndeze being held by her own mother: "Four or more gorillas had been shot in the DRC [Democratic Republic of Congo], inside the Parc Nationaux de Virungas, and there was at least one new orphan clinging to a young male gorilla. The baby's mother and the group's silverback had been killed, along with several others. Equally disturbing, these deaths were the result of an ongoing feud between a number of individuals vying for control of the resources around the park, like charcoal production and mining." Click on the quote, you'll see some rough stuff, including a pic of some gorillas that had been shot.

By the way, this comes from Dr. Lucy Spelman's excellent blog. It'll make you smile and cry and stomp your feet in anger. She works with the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project.

Cave Squirrelum

Nuts. Yesterday, August 13th, was National Left-handers Day, and I missed it. I hope I'm the only one. I think we'd be recognized as an oppressed minority (via scissors, notebooks, 3-ring binders, chainsaws, school desks, pens, erasable pens, some spatulas and butter knives, writing in general, always stuck at the end of the table, shorter life spans, the occasional schoolmarm with ruler though not so much anymore, analog watches) if we could just take ourselves seriously. Belatedly, here's to us.

Actor News: The dreadfully long list of unrequited auditions continues to grow. Sometimes I'm surprised. Sometimes not (a big theatre with the moolah to get pretty much whatever they want recently called me in to audition to understudy Gremio and Vincentio in Taming of the Shrew. I'm not remotely the right age. There were 4 of us auditioning at the time, 2 who were the right age, plus me, plus a guy who is close in age to me. He said, "Yeah, I don't know why they called me in, either."). Today I had an audition for a PSA. It went well, I thought, but, who knows?

Cool Stuff In Art: I recently happened upon this sculptor, Beth Cavener Stichter. You must check her out! Her mission statement is rather heavy, but where it takes her -- well, the quality of her work is stellar. A lot of it is like a bad trip through Wonderland. I'm also amazed at her patience -- because her work is large clay pieces, she spends the bulk of her time hollowing them out before firing them. I just missed seeing her stuff at the Smithsonian, but I noted that she seems to come through Baltimore on occasion. Hmm. Anyhoo, wander around her site, won't you?

Cool Stuff In Nature: Squirrels heat up their tails for defense. True! It'll make sense if you read the article.

Sadie: Is 8 months old and over 60 lbs. And she's not fat. Woof.

Stuff

Just wanted to post an entry so the blog's not lonely. Later, maybe I'll say more about these things: 1) "Stuff" is happening soon, that might turn into "more stuff." 2) I need to make a phone call. It'll certainly be interesting. Hopefully it'll be good, too.

Perhaps you'll wait with bated breath. But not baited breath. Much, much different.

Meanwhile, check this out, just because: Evelyn Rodriguez's blog "Crossroads Dispatches". Check out her "About" page, too. Just cuz they're interesting. (Found via -- which I found via.)

So . . . Do You Floss?

Yesterday I managed to work myself into an existential crisis, during which I accomplished nothing as I sat wondering, "What is the point of all this?" Eventually I felt better when I thought that maybe my purpose in life is to try to figure that out. This may seem silly -- the point of all of this is to figure out what the point of all this is. See?

Meanwhile, I found a marvelous site -- "American Science & Surplus" -- where you can buy all sorts of surplus stuff, science-related et al., at low prices -- art supplies, military bags, solar panels, robot parts . . . even a
dinosaur skull (okay it's a high quality casting, and it's one of the few non-cheap items). If you have any geeky friends or relatives (like me!), this is a good place to do some Christmas shopping. Most product descriptions come with a sense of humor, too, so the site's worth checking out, even just to read.

I'm Back

Apologies for the hiatus. My acting career is currently like the weather here: dry, dry, dry, dry, dry. Lots of auditions with very little success. This may be my worst spell ever, and my ego has taken a severe beating in the process. But I'm feeling better lately, even energized -- hopefully that'll last. It helps that I have a great woman and a good dog.


Otherwise: the world continues to be surreal, as (British) squirrel spies are caught in Iran (via) and some folks gleefully do what they can to cause the Apocalypse (via). Might as well be pro-active with your prophecies. Also necrophilia's okey-dokey in Wisconsin (via).

Stay tuned: in the interest of self-promotion, I'm hoping to get a website started very soon.

Death to Cereal

That's it. Norman Conquests: Table Manners has closed. Not including rehearsals, that's 44 large bowls of Corn Flakes. Nada mas, gracias. A good finish, though -- pretty full house on a Saturday night, lots of laughter. And everyone in the cast got along the entire time. So, okey-dokey.

Future projects: uh, TBA.