Week 2

Well, week two is wrapping up and I must say time is flying down here in Cape May.  I’ve found my go-to coffee shop, a place with vegan ice cream, the local organic market, and great sunset watching spots.  I also tried out the local yoga studio and done a bit of exploring on bike. Even though I’m down here to do a show, being that it’s Cape May, I’m also allowing myself to have a bit of a vacation and enjoy the peaceful atmosphere. And even though we’re in the middle of a heat wave currently, I’m grateful to not have to be standing on a hot subway platform or bumping into sweaty Times Square tourists.  The evening breezes off the ocean have been a refreshing change from city life.  

Rehearsals are going well and tomorrow (Sunday) is our day off before the big week of tech and opening weekend begins.  I’m excited to start performing this show for an audience!  The show is running about 85 minutes and with six actors playing a whole town of characters, we’re all running around the entire show with entrances, exits, and quick costume changes.  It’s so much fun and I love that I get to do a little bit of everything including acting, singing, comedy, suspense, and heart break.

Here are some more pictures from the past week.  Thanks for reading! xo

Sneak peek backstage with the Headless Horseman!

Sunset Beach

Seen while riding my bike at sunset out to the Cape May Lighthouse

Sunset Beach

Cape May Lighthouse at sunset

Week One

Phew! What a whirlwind the first week was. Last Monday morning I dragged my 60+ pound suitcase, duffel bag, and giant purse from Brooklyn over to Hoboken, where I caught a ride with the playwright and another actor down to Cape May. We arrived in Cape May and I was shown to the home of Buddy Wood, where I will be staying for the length of show, dropped my bags, and then was off to rehearsal. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is comprised of a cast of six, with myself and one other actor the only newbies to the theatre. From the moment I walked in, it was clear that once you are here, you are family. Rehearsals began with a bang and each night I found myself mentally and physically exhausted, but quite euphoric to be here working on this show. 

 Monday and Tuesdays are our long rehearsal days, so when Wednesday rolled around and I was done by 5pm, I was excited to start exploring the town. My first stop was to visit my Abuelos previous home. They sold it back in 1990, and I haven’t been back to Cape May since. When I was four, they had built an outdoor shower on the side of the house and my cousins, my brother, and I all put our footprints in the new cement. My mom had recently found a photo of the fresh imprints, and I was eager to go back and see if they were still there 25 years later. (Yes, you can do the math to figure out my age...) I found the home and walked back to where the shower was on the side of the house. Sure enough, when I felt the cement, I could tell there were little footprints made long ago. The pictures I took don’t show the indentations well, but between my fingers is where my name is written. While crouched down taking photos of the ground, the woman in the home came out and asked what I was up to. I apologized for intruding and told her that my grandparents used to own the home, and my footprints were in the cement. Turns out, she and her husband are the same couple that bought the house from my grandparents! She invited me in and showed me around the home and all the different changes and construction projects they’ve done over the years. They were so sweet and it was really neat to be able to see the home and know my footprints are still there. 

 The week progressed and I began to settle into life here for the next six weeks. Each day I’ve been trying to explore a new food place, beach, or local Cape May hang out. It has really been a fun mesh of work with play, I even feel like I’m on vacation at times. 

 More to come shortly, I'm off to watch the sunset! Thanks for reading! Before I go, I will share some of the photos I've been taking to document all the great sites.

The outdoor shower with my footprints.

Sunset from my bedroom window.

Morning bike ride to the beach.

Looking at the footprints.  Bottom left is my name and bottom right is Daniel's.

Sunset on the beach.

Downtown Cape May

Loving all the Victorian homes!

Out in the garden of Congress Hall

Flooding on the street after a big rain storm.

I Belong Here

I just got home from a 13-hour rehearsal for my current show opening on Wednesday this week. I finally feel refreshed after a long shower to wash off the layers of sweat and dirt accumulated over those 13 hours. As this is a fringe show and low-budget everyone has to pitch in a hand in all departments, you can't be JUST an actor. So this morning I cut out light gels and inserted them in the stage lights, painted a railing, and other various tasks. Then we got into the dress rehearsal and I realized how physically demanding this show is. I'm never off stage for more than 3 minutes and when I'm on stage I'm either singing, puppeteering, being a piece of furniture(all the furniture is actor's bodies), dancing, or some combination of the like. We all sweat A LOT and I have a collection of different bruises from rehearsals.

However, every time I took a minute to think about that fact that I was in New York City creating and performing in an original musical, surrounded by talented artists of all forms, I was in awe and made sure to soak in the moment. I realized there was nothing in the world I'd rather be doing at the moment and I will always feel at home in the theatre. I guess this truly is what I'm meant to do with my life, no doubt about it.

Hot and Sticky

Well it is officially summer in NYC which means I am officially a sweaty mess everyday. Humidity and I do not seem to get along and I seem to be on the losing side of the battle. Not only does Seattle not get as hot as New York, but it has absolutely zero humidity. On top of that, in Seattle I didn’t have to walk around carrying a giant bag of stuff with me everywhere I went!

Summer has only just begun and I’m already melting into a puddle. Even if I’m wearing a skirt and tank top (least amount of clothing possible), I feel as if the moment I step outside I am a dripping sweaty mess! So on days when I am running to the subway, which is most days, I look as if I just did an hour of jumping jacks in a sauna. At last, I step into an air conditioned subway car only to look around and see people wearing more clothing than me and not a single drop of sweat in sight. I just don’t understand what I’m doing wrong, how do I get myself an inner-cooling device to permanently implant during the summer months? Ideas are welcome!

"I am 25 Going on 15"

If you are reading this … Thank you! I apologize that I have lost track of my blog writing and have taken much too long to write since my last entry. This blog idea has been formulated in my head for some time now as it correlates with the show I just closed two weekends ago, The Children’s Hour because I was playing a 12-14 year old girl (as described in the character description). I wanted to use this blog entry to talk about how its so interesting to be a 25 year old, college degree recipient, married woman and playing a young teenager. Last week, I had an audition experience that solidified for me the fact that I truly am seen on stage as 10 years younger than my actual age.

I was submitted by a casting director for a role of a 15 year old girl. The director emailed me back saying he thought I may read too old for the role but he would still like me to audition and also read for the part of the young mom! Eek! Have a rapidly aged in the past few weeks?!?! I show up for the audition with my minimal make-up to emphasize my youthfulness and the director has me read the 15 year old’s scene. I finish and he says he should learn to trust casting directors because I definitely type as advertised (as a teenager). Phew!
Being myself in the “real world” I always run into the same pattern of conversation as people find out my age. Usually someone notices my ring and/or I mention “my husband” in conversation. This is followed by the following exchange:

Stranger: You’re married?
Me: Yes.
Stranger: How long have you been married?
Me: Three years.
Stranger: How old are you?!?
Me: 25.
Stranger: (some disbelief response ending in mentioning how young I look).

Give or take a few words, this is the exact conversation I have whenever I meet someone new and the topic of marriage/age/etc. arises. It used to bother me at first but now I just think its funny and I’ve come to expect it. Of course, Mike thinks its funny to tell his friends his wife can play a fourteen year old on stage …

I hope to start writing shorter, more frequent updates to this blog so please fill out the survey on the right side to help me know how frequently people will read it. Thanks!

"Wonderland" Accepted to the 2009 Ice Factory Festival!

The new musical "Wonderland" I work-shopped last month with Anonymous Ensemble has just been accepted to perform in the Ice Factory Festival this summer at the Ohio Theatre in SoHo. I am very excited to continue to be a part of creating and developing this great piece of work! We will be performing the first weekend of the festival July 8-12.

More details to come soon! In the meantime check out this great article about the Ice Factory Festival from last summer: Variety Article

Help Me Pick New Headshots!

Hey Everyone,

I'd love to get your feedback on my new headshots. Unless Mike shows me how to put them on the blog, the easiest way to see them is to sign in to Facebook and view my headshot album there: HEADSHOTS

These are completely raw, un-retouched shot so please forgive minor imperfections, they will be photoshopped out. My allergies were having issue that week so my eyes are extra squinty in some of the shots. I find it helps to gently squint when looking at the photos to see how it will look once fixed up. Ultimately I will be choosing one smiling with teeth showing, one with mouth closed, and one that shows more of my body.

Thanks for any input you have!!!

PS I had my first rehearsal for The Children's Hour tonight and I have to say, it was AMAZING! I haven't felt this professional in a production in a very long time and I am beyond excited to be in this cast! More to come soon ... I promise!