Another huge help to an actor is belonging to Bobby Holder's "Actor's Project-NYC." I was smart enough to get a lifetime membership for a lifetime of acting/monologue help and that is just the tip of the iceberg!
Bobby is always looking for ways of getting industry people in to see showcases or to get them to come to other evenings and that's how I finally met Mariusz of Metropolis Artists Agency! He was at an evening event, spoke to most of the actors from the "Project" and took their headshots. I sent him a postcard with my recent successes and Mariusz called me in after a couple of weeks.
Actors fear meeting with agents but Bobby helps with this, too! On top of that, Jagger Kaye and his events also make an actor at ease with industry people. If you could only work with two people in all of New York, Bobby and Jagger would be the two to meet. Don't ask me to only name one. That's like asking a father which of his sons he loves more. ;)
What I can say, though, is Bobby is really geared toward using original comedy monologues to reach industry people...and they know they are going to laugh their butts off. Jagger uses actual advertising copy, teaches you how to analyze it and present it in a "real" fashion, no "acting" allowed. They are two, incredibly unique approaches to have in your acting "tool box."
On top of that, you can tell they do this because they love it! Some people teach for the money but not these guys.
I never would have imagined that I would have three agents in just three months, all due to wonderful instruction!
.
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
BOSTON BOUND! Feb. 1, 2011
This Friday, I will be heading to Boston to film a commercial there! I will be administering a lie detector test to a man, asking him embarrassing questions like, "Is your Twitter name 'I heart unicorns?'" The filming is on Saturday and I will be back in time for the Super Bowl...ummm, if the snowstorm cooperates!
Commercial acting technique is different and I have to thank Jagger Kaye the most for teaching me what I need to know! I have him listed on my resume for just that! It's one way I can say "thanks!" to him. Following Jagger's approach, I won a commercial class in an acting competition to an acting school/casting office/and more place called Weist-Barron Studios, run by a very nice group of people. So far, I have had a class with Batt Jonson and one with Tod Engle. An excellent casting director, named James Calleri, also taught me some useful stuff, crucial for me to get this commercial, too. This commercial director wanted everything "under acted," just like James likes. This is a continuation of what Jagger teaches, and his motto, which I will paraphrase, "No acting allowed, only 'real' moments." Sorry if I messed that up, Jagger.
Tomorrow, I also have another meeting with an agent, a former bass player from Europe who now works in NYC. I must admit, I feel we've gotta hit it off! Several people I take classes from like this guy, too, so I already feel good about hopefully working together. We've chatted briefly once before and he seems super nice and very competent!
Here, an actor "freelances" with agents, sometimes called "dating," until one signs him/her. I hope to sign at some stage, too, but it'll be a tough choice. I'm currently dating two, excellent agencies that also happen to be downright nice people. This part of the business is still a mystery to me. Simply put, I'd like to make them ALL a lot of money!
This is similar to the system in Holland and I worked with about ten agencies/talent bureaus at my busiest in the 1990s. I once signed with one, who promised a Far East tour, and that was a huge mistake that lasted three years and killed my music career. The economy in the East went south, pun intended, and the tour couldn't happen, the agency split in half and I ended up in the wrong half.
I'm much more optimistic about my current situation!
Commercial acting technique is different and I have to thank Jagger Kaye the most for teaching me what I need to know! I have him listed on my resume for just that! It's one way I can say "thanks!" to him. Following Jagger's approach, I won a commercial class in an acting competition to an acting school/casting office/and more place called Weist-Barron Studios, run by a very nice group of people. So far, I have had a class with Batt Jonson and one with Tod Engle. An excellent casting director, named James Calleri, also taught me some useful stuff, crucial for me to get this commercial, too. This commercial director wanted everything "under acted," just like James likes. This is a continuation of what Jagger teaches, and his motto, which I will paraphrase, "No acting allowed, only 'real' moments." Sorry if I messed that up, Jagger.
Tomorrow, I also have another meeting with an agent, a former bass player from Europe who now works in NYC. I must admit, I feel we've gotta hit it off! Several people I take classes from like this guy, too, so I already feel good about hopefully working together. We've chatted briefly once before and he seems super nice and very competent!
Here, an actor "freelances" with agents, sometimes called "dating," until one signs him/her. I hope to sign at some stage, too, but it'll be a tough choice. I'm currently dating two, excellent agencies that also happen to be downright nice people. This part of the business is still a mystery to me. Simply put, I'd like to make them ALL a lot of money!
This is similar to the system in Holland and I worked with about ten agencies/talent bureaus at my busiest in the 1990s. I once signed with one, who promised a Far East tour, and that was a huge mistake that lasted three years and killed my music career. The economy in the East went south, pun intended, and the tour couldn't happen, the agency split in half and I ended up in the wrong half.
I'm much more optimistic about my current situation!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
JAGGER'S SESSIONS ARE THE BEST! Jan. 13
Why? That's because he coaches you before you take your turn before the industry person...A LOT! I have taken similar events at other places and all you do is go in there and maybe blow your chance...because you don't really know what to do, etc.
I put quotation marks around "class" in my last post because it isn't a class like at your university, more of an event. The coaching you receive is actually better than a college class. Some may call it a practice audition.
Then there's the imitators. Others that I've read online even call such things a rip off but NOT Jagger's. Don't mistake those for what Jagger does! That's because Jagger TEACHES and it brings results!
Jagger's events are very worthwhile and I'm glad I came upon his CnC site, truly my best break so far in NYC. I don't recall how I first found him when I was living in Holland but I feel very lucky to have done so.
On top of that, as I wrote before, Jagger tells you straight. I can't tell you how many NYC directors over-use the word, "Great!" Because of that, they give you nothing to learn from. I think "class" is not enough of a superlative for Jagger's sessions.
I put quotation marks around "class" in my last post because it isn't a class like at your university, more of an event. The coaching you receive is actually better than a college class. Some may call it a practice audition.
Then there's the imitators. Others that I've read online even call such things a rip off but NOT Jagger's. Don't mistake those for what Jagger does! That's because Jagger TEACHES and it brings results!
Jagger's events are very worthwhile and I'm glad I came upon his CnC site, truly my best break so far in NYC. I don't recall how I first found him when I was living in Holland but I feel very lucky to have done so.
On top of that, as I wrote before, Jagger tells you straight. I can't tell you how many NYC directors over-use the word, "Great!" Because of that, they give you nothing to learn from. I think "class" is not enough of a superlative for Jagger's sessions.
RECORD WEEK! January 13
The good news is over the top! First, I got another commercial agent! I met this one through a "class" at one of the drama schools. This school is run by Jagger Kaye, the "King of Tough Love," meaning he really tells you straight what you've gotta do to succeed.
However, I also really need an agent for theater!! I went to a "class" last night and he wants to see/hear me sing at some kind of a show. Yesterday, I auditiond and got selected by Bobby Holder to also sing at two of the four showcases coming in February. I will invite the agent to this. Bobby's "school" is called "The Actor's Project-NYC." I will also be competing in their monologue competition on Jan. 17.
I won a prize at another competition staged by Weist-Barron Studios and will receive a free, $300 class. I'll start that one later this month. I had to do scenes and commercial copy for that one and it was fun!
Next, today, I have a callback for the national tour of "Beauty and the Beast" for two roles, Cogsworth the butler, and Belle's father, Maurice! Over 170 men showed up for the audition and VERY few got a callback so I feel very, VERY lucky! I read where some people have to audition for months before they finally join the tour. I hope that isn't the case for me but I will assume it is so I don't get too worked up.
The HUGE news is that I got the part for the new sitcom, "Beat Cafe!" I will be playing Larry, the owner of the cafe. Now, keep in mind that new TV shows are a total shot in the dark. First, as this is NOT with a major network, they will need to arrange financing. Then some network somewhere will have to also get sold on the idea. Then, millions of people need to watch it. After all that, I will finally allow myself to celebrate.
I need to go do my "homework" for the audition this afternoon...in four hours. The nice thing is that I really DO enjoy auditioning and my nervousness is easy to manage. In fact, I hardly notice it during the fun and excitement of taking a shot! This one should be just reading the many scenes they gave me to prepare...in just two days. I'll do my best!
However, I also really need an agent for theater!! I went to a "class" last night and he wants to see/hear me sing at some kind of a show. Yesterday, I auditiond and got selected by Bobby Holder to also sing at two of the four showcases coming in February. I will invite the agent to this. Bobby's "school" is called "The Actor's Project-NYC." I will also be competing in their monologue competition on Jan. 17.
I won a prize at another competition staged by Weist-Barron Studios and will receive a free, $300 class. I'll start that one later this month. I had to do scenes and commercial copy for that one and it was fun!
Next, today, I have a callback for the national tour of "Beauty and the Beast" for two roles, Cogsworth the butler, and Belle's father, Maurice! Over 170 men showed up for the audition and VERY few got a callback so I feel very, VERY lucky! I read where some people have to audition for months before they finally join the tour. I hope that isn't the case for me but I will assume it is so I don't get too worked up.
The HUGE news is that I got the part for the new sitcom, "Beat Cafe!" I will be playing Larry, the owner of the cafe. Now, keep in mind that new TV shows are a total shot in the dark. First, as this is NOT with a major network, they will need to arrange financing. Then some network somewhere will have to also get sold on the idea. Then, millions of people need to watch it. After all that, I will finally allow myself to celebrate.
I need to go do my "homework" for the audition this afternoon...in four hours. The nice thing is that I really DO enjoy auditioning and my nervousness is easy to manage. In fact, I hardly notice it during the fun and excitement of taking a shot! This one should be just reading the many scenes they gave me to prepare...in just two days. I'll do my best!
Saturday, December 18, 2010
GOT AN AGENT! -Dec. 18
I last mentioned getting two call backs. Well, change that to four in ONE WEEK! Two were for musicals, "Cabaret" and "Anne of Green Gables," one for a film, "Patriotic Retribution" and one for a TV series pilot, "Beat Cafe!" With the Holiday break, I'll probably be waiting for a while until something happens in January.
In the meantime, I have a little film project for "Alcoholics Anonymous" that will be Sunday. It'll have a "vintage" footage look from the 1950's.
However, the BIG news is that I have an agent to freelance with that handles commercials and TV. Some people end up with several to freelance with, working unsigned. However, I'd prefer to be signed with someone at some point.
I went to their office, did a monologue, read a commercial and they suggested I start doing voice overs here, as well, something I've been wanting to do, as I had done them in Europe, so why not?
Today, with a very nice lady, we sang Christmas carols at a soup kitchen on the lower east side of NY. It was an extremely moving experience that is difficult to describe. It was a very special morning, to say the least. I got there about 15 minutes early and the line had already covered one side of the block and much of the other side, as well. It all opened 75 minutes later and as soon as they got in the door, the frustration of waiting out in the freezing cold was forgotten and a party began!
Last weekend, I joined a LARGE crew in doing a make-over for a MS teen who only had the use of her head. My job was detail painting, something I've done before for theater work. You should have seen Keosha's smile at the end! There must have been at least 50 relatives and friends that came to the "reveal!"
Between these two experiences, I can again see how we are all one family on this little planet. God is so good.
In the meantime, I have a little film project for "Alcoholics Anonymous" that will be Sunday. It'll have a "vintage" footage look from the 1950's.
However, the BIG news is that I have an agent to freelance with that handles commercials and TV. Some people end up with several to freelance with, working unsigned. However, I'd prefer to be signed with someone at some point.
I went to their office, did a monologue, read a commercial and they suggested I start doing voice overs here, as well, something I've been wanting to do, as I had done them in Europe, so why not?
Today, with a very nice lady, we sang Christmas carols at a soup kitchen on the lower east side of NY. It was an extremely moving experience that is difficult to describe. It was a very special morning, to say the least. I got there about 15 minutes early and the line had already covered one side of the block and much of the other side, as well. It all opened 75 minutes later and as soon as they got in the door, the frustration of waiting out in the freezing cold was forgotten and a party began!
Last weekend, I joined a LARGE crew in doing a make-over for a MS teen who only had the use of her head. My job was detail painting, something I've done before for theater work. You should have seen Keosha's smile at the end! There must have been at least 50 relatives and friends that came to the "reveal!"
Between these two experiences, I can again see how we are all one family on this little planet. God is so good.
Friday, December 3, 2010
"PERPS" ARRESTS AUDIENCE!
Tonight was THE night! Our audience crowded into the Loewe Reading Room at the Dramatist's Guild for six of our songs and to hear from Laura's hilarious script! Laughs abounded and now we'll see what happens next. The site for the show will hopefully have photos from the show and maybe some clips... Who knows? Look at http://perp-o-rama.com/ for the bios for now!
It's a majorly busy weekend that will include TWO call backs and an audition that I was selected for, after sending in my resume and photo. That really contrasts with the rejection that has been such a challenge so far. It's especially nice since they're PAID projects!
It's a majorly busy weekend that will include TWO call backs and an audition that I was selected for, after sending in my resume and photo. That really contrasts with the rejection that has been such a challenge so far. It's especially nice since they're PAID projects!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Happy Birthday to Me! Nov. 16
I check my email about three times a day, each time hoping to see something from my last auditions on November 5, for example. I asked an actor friend about the timeline they've experienced in the past, you know, how long it takes to hear if you got something. You never hear if you don't. I knew it could be up to a month or even longer and she confirmed it. That means I'm still hoping about those auditions.
Since then, I've done another spot for PMSports. I don't have to audition with them. These last two times, I just get a call, see if I'm available and off we go. This last time, I played a friend of the NFL Commissioner. As we talk about possible safety changes, he's waving a loaded gun carelessly around, often in my direction. It's a pretty funny bit and should be online very soon, like in a week.
I'm also in a play with my roommate as they needed someone for about 10 (comic) lines. The play is called "Memory" at the "Jewel Box Theater" and is about a mobster who loses chunks of his memory after being shot in the head. He's asked to write a book about his life but can't fill in all the blanks and needs his ex-girlfriend's help. They didn't part on the best of circumstances and they meet in tense situation in a bar where my character is a waiter. Just taking their order is a drama. It's a small part but very fun!
I've also auditioned for two shows at the same time...again, but both are with the same theater company that is from Florida. Those productions begin in February of 2011. They are "Plaza Suite," a comedy and "Light From the Piazza," a musical.
I sent the company my photo and CV rather late, Friday night, and the auditions were for Saturday and Sunday. (I thought I had already sent it but hadn't...dummy!) They would then say an appointment time...IF they wanted me. I decided that by Sunday, if I hadn't heard anything, I would go to the auditions anyway and see if they'd like me to audition. After all, maybe they hadn't even seen my email. As I was sitting in the waiting room, I got a call from them, asking me to come down. "I'm in the holding room" I replied. At least at that point, I felt less like an intruder.
I had an audition and a call back that afternoon and it seemed to go well...not great, but hopefully, well enough. I read with two different actresses and sang twice. I wasn't thinking of singing, thinking that "Piazza" was supposed to be classical but it isn't/wasn't and only had "New York, New York" with me. We'll see if that song is lucky for me...again! That was the one I ended up singing three times (each time, raising it up higher and higher) for someone in the back of a dark theater that later turned out to be who most people say is the world's most famous producer, Cameron Mackintosh. Now it's time to keep checking the email accounts....again and again. One of these days...
Oh, yes, it's my birthday today! I don't have anything special planned as in 30 minutes, I need to head to an indoctrination workshop so I can tutor in the New York Schools. I enjoy teaching and will always do some of that, no matter if I'm in a show or not. Then I'll be off to an acting workshop at Actor's Project-NYC and then to a church study group, made up of people in the arts. Finally, I'll meet my roomie and friends, one of whom is also a birthday boy, at Bryant Park, where there is a skating rink. I'm not much on skating but hanging out sounds good enough!
Thank you all for your support! Please sign up so Hanne doesn't look quite so lonely there! ;)
Since then, I've done another spot for PMSports. I don't have to audition with them. These last two times, I just get a call, see if I'm available and off we go. This last time, I played a friend of the NFL Commissioner. As we talk about possible safety changes, he's waving a loaded gun carelessly around, often in my direction. It's a pretty funny bit and should be online very soon, like in a week.
I'm also in a play with my roommate as they needed someone for about 10 (comic) lines. The play is called "Memory" at the "Jewel Box Theater" and is about a mobster who loses chunks of his memory after being shot in the head. He's asked to write a book about his life but can't fill in all the blanks and needs his ex-girlfriend's help. They didn't part on the best of circumstances and they meet in tense situation in a bar where my character is a waiter. Just taking their order is a drama. It's a small part but very fun!
I've also auditioned for two shows at the same time...again, but both are with the same theater company that is from Florida. Those productions begin in February of 2011. They are "Plaza Suite," a comedy and "Light From the Piazza," a musical.
I sent the company my photo and CV rather late, Friday night, and the auditions were for Saturday and Sunday. (I thought I had already sent it but hadn't...dummy!) They would then say an appointment time...IF they wanted me. I decided that by Sunday, if I hadn't heard anything, I would go to the auditions anyway and see if they'd like me to audition. After all, maybe they hadn't even seen my email. As I was sitting in the waiting room, I got a call from them, asking me to come down. "I'm in the holding room" I replied. At least at that point, I felt less like an intruder.
I had an audition and a call back that afternoon and it seemed to go well...not great, but hopefully, well enough. I read with two different actresses and sang twice. I wasn't thinking of singing, thinking that "Piazza" was supposed to be classical but it isn't/wasn't and only had "New York, New York" with me. We'll see if that song is lucky for me...again! That was the one I ended up singing three times (each time, raising it up higher and higher) for someone in the back of a dark theater that later turned out to be who most people say is the world's most famous producer, Cameron Mackintosh. Now it's time to keep checking the email accounts....again and again. One of these days...
Oh, yes, it's my birthday today! I don't have anything special planned as in 30 minutes, I need to head to an indoctrination workshop so I can tutor in the New York Schools. I enjoy teaching and will always do some of that, no matter if I'm in a show or not. Then I'll be off to an acting workshop at Actor's Project-NYC and then to a church study group, made up of people in the arts. Finally, I'll meet my roomie and friends, one of whom is also a birthday boy, at Bryant Park, where there is a skating rink. I'm not much on skating but hanging out sounds good enough!
Thank you all for your support! Please sign up so Hanne doesn't look quite so lonely there! ;)
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