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Morning, gentle readers,
Just a couple of things.
I've been pre-approved for a home loan and got all my financial ducks in a row, and I just started working with a realtor to find me a home to buy. Cross your fingers for me.
I gave a call to that agent, and was told to send in my headshot and resume, and to put on the outside envelope that Cal had referred me. I did that. Now, we play a bit of a waiting game. I'll probably wait for a week or two, and then give them another call.
Exciting New Year so far.
Travis
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Jan. 6th, 2009 @ 10:26 am
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Hiya, gentle readers,
So, a gentleman by the name of Cal has a granddaughter in my musical theater class, and he's studied with and taught in the same place as my acting teacher. He came to the first class of the year, in which we were doing what's called a "fantasy day." Basically, that means you do anything you've wanted to do, but didn't think you could do. I really wasn't prepared to do something, but after the first break, I decided to go through my music in my truck. I pulled out "Flagmaker 1775" by Jason Robert Brown, which is the song that inspired my written piece called "Flagmaker," and I sang the song with the music in my hand. Cal told me at the end of the class that he thought I had done a great job. Mind you, I didn't know who he was.
Wednesday, I go to my other acting class (it's taught by the same teacher), and I'm talking to Cal out in the parking lot. He asks me what I'm doing in the industry, and whether I have an agent. You know, actor talk. I tell him and we chat for a bit. The next thing I know, he's telling me that I'm talented, have a great voice and a great presence, and that I should be working in the industry regularly. So, he pulls out his telephone and gives me the name and telephone number of his AGENT, and tells me to call them and mention his name. Do you know how rare that is? That's putting your money where your mouth is.
Turns out last night, in the night class that I also take, he was substituting for my teacher, who is in New York at the moment. It was another fantasy day, and I had nothing prepared, so again, I racked my brain for something to do so I could participate. I pulled out my Blackberry and found Beatrice's "Oh were that I were a man" monologue from Much Ado About Nothing, as I've always wanted to play a female Shakespearean character. I read it cold. Later in the evening, I pull out some of my original poetry and read that. Cal tells me that I'm quite a piece of work.
These are the days when I remember that I am indeed, an actor and an artist. :)
Travis
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Heya, gentle readers,
This is a music video that my very funny friend, Phoebe Carter, did a couple of years ago.
See if you recognize anybody in the video. ;)
Travis
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Good morning, Gentle Readers,
Some really wonderful people came out to see my show this past Saturday, including the amazing ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) opal11, who came all the way from Orange County to see it. She's a wonderful person, really sweet and gives really great hugs. :) We got to hang out a bit after the show with my friends, Kyle and Amy, who also came to the show. Everybody seemed to really enjoy the show, and I was so happy that they were there.
My father also came to the show. He drove 5 hours from Nevada to see it, and then drove back after the show.
Although my father and I have had our differences, especially in my late-teens and early 20's, there is great love, affection and respect between us. Quite simply put, I just adore the man.
He spent the pre-show talking to lots of folks, including a good portion of the cast and crew. They all seemed to really be taken with him, too. :)
Some things he said about the show, (and he's not normally given to hyperbole):
"I was blown away by it."
"It was one of the best theatrical experiences of my life, up to and including The King and I with Yul Brynner."
"I've never had such an intimate theatrical experience."
"You were magnificent."
"I don't know where you got that great voice from, but it certainly wasn't me."
"Tell the cast that life is a journey, and I thank them for enriching mine."
You know when you feel so validated and supported that you kinda feel like your feet aren't touching the ground. That's me since Saturday evening. :)
Travis
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Heya, gentle readers,
The review of Grapes of Wrath is in from the Los Angeles Times.
The Grapes of Wrath
November 7, 2008
The unfortunate thing about revisiting "The Grapes of Wrath" is that John Steinbeck's Depression-era classic about a displaced Dust Bowl family does not merely conjure up the social ills of a distant historical chapter in a remote, informative way. Rather, it evokes a shadow side of the American Dream that isn't distant enough.
Timely urgency drives a committed Knightsbridge Theatre revival of Frank Galati's epic 1988 stage adaptation. Twenty-eight performers -- admittedly sporting fairly divergent levels of professional skill -- nevertheless bring unifying passion and clarity to the Joad family's odyssey from Oklahoma to the promised land of California. Beset by poverty, death, exploitation and the vagaries of nature, they endure out of the transcendent spirit of community that Steinbeck celebrated.
Against this sweeping cross-country tableau, characters are less defined as individuals than by the iconic roles they play in Steinbeck's overarching morality tale. Nevertheless, credit noteworthy portrayals of heroic personal redemption to David Stifel as the symbolically monikered Jim Casy, the ex-preacher turned labor leader, and Nikitas Menotiades as former convict and prodigal son Tom Joad. Both men find their true purpose in opposing the profiteering landowners and the quasi-militia enforcers who lure desperate Okies to do orchard work.
Marti Hale is a bedrock of stability as the Joad matriarch, and Virginia Newcomb closes the piece with an image of Madonna-like grace as she nurses a starving vagrant.
Carolee Shoemaker's staging makes efficient use of lighting effects, a spare stage and stacked crates to suggest the Joads' overloaded flatbed truck. The grim spectacle of jobless Americans played for suckers in a system fueled by unregulated greed is a cautionary reminder of the work the incoming administration has cut out for it.
-- Philip Brandes "The Grapes of Wrath,"Knightsbridge Theatre, 1944 Riverside Drive, Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Saturdays, 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Nov. 23. $20. (323) 667-0955. Running time: 3 hours, 10 minutes.
Yay us!
Travis
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| » Siamese |
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Good morning, gentle readers,
I got an e-mail from a classmate last night. The theater company by her is looking for somebody to play Krahlahome, who is the Prime Minister of Siam in a local production of "The King and I." At first I was very excited about it, since the woman playing Anna is very famous in pop music circles, and it would be nice to get involved with some musical theater. This particular theater company, although a bit of a schlep from where I live, is very busy, and puts on pretty high quality theater.
The problem is that this character is Asian. I, obviously, am not. While I could normally pull the racial "blind casting" argument, I think one of the themes in this play is specifically the racial and cultural heritage of both parties, and how they interact. I kind of wonder if me playing this part would be sort of like a white person putting on black face. I have far too much respect for the journey that ethnic minorities have travelled in this country not to at least worry about what that's doing and/or saying. I'd obviously have to put on "asian" makeup, unless the director is doing a radically different interpretation of the play.
I also have to wonder if perhaps they need to look just a bit harder to find an asian man to play the part.
The flip side of that is how far do I take this? I mean, let's face it, I'm ultimately just a middle class, white, gay american man. Does this mean I can only play middle class, white, gay american men in my career? I don't think so. I mean I just played a doomed, straight, scottish king. None of which I actually am, and there were no ethical problems with it whatsoever, and, admittedly, I did look great in a kilt. :) This is especially insulting due to the fact that my ancestry is *gasp* Irish!
So, dilemmas, dilemmas. I want to live my life and my career with a sense of ethics and respect, but sometimes I'm not entirely clear on what that entails.
Travis
Sep. 9th, 2008 @ 11:05 am
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| » Back to school and growing up as an actor |
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Afternoon, gentle readers,
After hemming and hawing for a couple of days, I have decided to enroll in a couple of courses at my local community college to learn about programs such as Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Elements, etc. Mostly so I can work on my own website, and perhaps bring in some extra money working on other people's websites. My bosses have already given me permission to come in late to work a couple of days a week so I can take one course in the early morning.
I also found a course in beginning film production, which is on a Monday evening right after work, which means I can take it! Unfortunately, I have to take some introductory courses to get to the computer software classes I want to take, but I am a firm believer in getting the foundation so that I adapt easier to newer programs. I just know so very little about graphic programs, web design programs and movie editing software. I'm also VERY excited about the film production class, as I really want to direct films in the future, but have absolutely NO idea how to do it. So, this will give me some basics to work with. The nice thing about community colleges is that they are pretty cheap. 40 years old and going back to school. Who would have thought. I honestly have NO idea where this will lead me beyond the next semester, but it might be VERY beneficial in the long run.
Last weekend was the second set of performances for Macbeth and Taming of the Shrew. I felt like I've finally grown up as a performer. I've proven that I have the training and the skills to be able to pull off a fairly complicated character, and go to places within myself that really develop a character. In short, I now know that I am a pretty accomplished actor. I no longer can say that I really haven't played any great roles, etc. Because, guess what? Macbeth. Great role! And I did not fall flat on my face. This last weekend, I found things in my character and the performance thereof that I never thought about before. It's great running on instinct and impulses and really fulfilling the story to the best of my ability. What I've also learned is that it's time to move up the ladder of opportunities. It's time to do some stuff in theater here in Los Angeles inside that can be seen by people who can help me go to the next level. It's time to begin to market myself to the film and theater community as a viable and talented artist. Kinda scary, but exciting all at the same time, isn't it? :)
It's been heavily on my mind that I need to leave my current day job and support myself as an artist in the not too distant future, but as we all know, that's difficult to do at best. So, some additional training in computer work could help to shore up the financial shortfall in the future is a good idea. Plus, it's creative, which will help me to not go crazy when I have to do it. :)
Who says life can't start at 40?
Travis
Jul. 17th, 2008 @ 12:45 pm
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| » Funny commercial |
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Heya, gentle readers,
This is a commercial that I was in at the end of 2005. Lots of fun.
Travis
Jul. 16th, 2008 @ 09:45 am
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| » The Last Meal |
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Heya, gentle readers,
Here's the student film that I did a while ago, in which I play a convict on death row. It's much less serious than it sounds. ;)
Travis
Jul. 14th, 2008 @ 06:35 pm
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