First couple of days at TUTS

So I have officially started rehearsals for "Guys & Dolls" at Theatre Under The Stars. I can already tell that this will be a great experience for me. As an aspiring broadway dancer/actress, I need experience to up my skill set and performance experience. One thing I feel that a lot of dancers and actors fail to realize is how important experience in actual shows is. You can take class everyday but it in no way form or fashion able to replace BEING in a show. As I sat in my vocal rehearsal, I saw that even though I've improved in singing, I have much more work to do. In dance, I feel a lot more confident, but I know that I have a lot of work and progress to make there as well if I want to be a fierce competitor in NYC. As soon as I return home to NYC, I'm going straight back into Vic Dimonda's theatre dance class at Ailey. I will have at least one 30 minute session a week with my vocal teacher and make sure I practice on my own (which I haven't been doing). I really need to step it up several notches as far as training goes. I haven't really been pushing myself hard at all This show is definitely going to push and stretch me in many areas before it closes. Am I disappointed? Heck no! I'm very excited to have this opportunity and equally excited to get back to working hard and improving.

So I really want to stress how important it is to keep going. Even in times when it seems like nothing is happening, always strive to do 1-3 things that can help your career. I think that's what a lot of actors, dancers, etc. don't get. Even if I watch a movie, stretch for 15 minutes and do a facial while watching a movie (a good one, lol) I've hit all three areas of dancing, acting and modeling and they were so simple. For instance, tomorrow I'm seriously thinking of researching casting directors in the Texas - Central region to mail my headshot and resume. I have all these headshots and I don't want these to go to waste once I get new ones in about 6 months or so like the last ones. When I take the time to consciously do things to further my career everyday, no matter how small it may seem, I feel fulfilled and like I accomplished something...because I did.

Ron Warner Shoot

Here are some of the photos from my shoot with Ron Warner in NYC. I LOVE them!

Thanks for viewing!

Houston Vacay....well, not so much....

Finally made it back home! I'm enjoying my vacation. I've eaten at all of my favorite spots, driven quite a bit and of course I love seeing my family and friends. However, this trip is different from other times that I have come home. As I begin to gather momentum in my career and make strides I no longer want to be able to have strictly vacation time. I need to be working at all times and have opportunities to offset the cost of me returning home or going anywhere else. So my goals this trip were:

1) Set up photo shoots to build portfolio
2) Get a local agent to send me out on casting when I'm in town
3)Audition for Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS)

Before leaving NYC I looked up TUTS audition schedule to see when they were holding NYC auditions. I contacted the artistic director and told him my situation, which is that I am a native Houstonian that always just misses the local auditions and I would like the opportunity to audition. We emailed back and forth and he actually set me up with the choreographer for the upcoming show, "Guys and Dolls" Paula Sloan. The plan was for us to meet up in between her rehearsal for a project she was working on in NYC for her to audition me. That actually didn't happen. Instead of giving up, I prepared. I set up a voice lesson my last couple of days in NYC to work on which piece I would sing just in case I got an audition. I packed a couple of dance outfits and I always take headshots, resumes' and business cards anyway. I contacted both of them upon reaching Houston. There was actually an opening in the cast and I secured an audition. I felt very prepared and confident. I aced my audition easily. The director even told me unofficially before I left that I had gotten the part! This experience taught me to never give up and always be prepared for anything.
Also before leaving New York, I contacted agencies I wanted to meet with and told them my situation. There are only two SAG franchised agencies in Houston (A+ Actors and Bosby-Pastorini) and I knew I wanted to go with one of the two. I sent my headshot and resume to both and once I booked the show I sent out postcards letting them know. I hadn't heard anything and a few days later I did a follow up call to the agency I really wanted, A+ Actors, since I know agents can get really busy. Good thing I did because they really wanted to bring me in. I met with the agents this past Monday and I felt really comfortable with them and I sensed that they were were very aggressive in submitting their talent. They also had opportunities in Louisiana, Texas and even NYC. I feel very good about signing with them.
Rehearsals for the show start next week and it's a grueling schedule. I rehearse 6 days a week, for 7 hours a day. This is going to be a great experience for me and I know this will help me greatly on my road to being on Broadway.

End of Summer Update

So I've been pretty busy. I got a part-time job as a dance instructor at a summer camp for several weeks. I still went on auditions. I had a couple of photo shoots and another commercial print agency, Silver Models, wants to work with me. I just need to get more photos, especially commercial and fitness shots versus editorial. I took Angela Mickey's (Liz Lewis Casting) intro commercial class. I learned a lot of valuable information and received some good practice and feedback. I feel the class was a good investment since I have no experience whatsoever.Although I was satisfied with the experience I don't want to blow money needed for living expenses on CD workshops AND acting classes, so I'll give myself some time to digest what I learned and think about another one a few months down the line.
I also audited another class, this time at the Susan Batson Studio called "Ex-er Actor". I LOVED the class! It reminded me of my undergrad days at Prairie View. I was fortunate to be able to take class with Susan Batson herself. The best thing about the class is that Susan gets to everybody and everyone gets ample feedback and time to do their monologue twice. That's no small feat for a class of over 20 students. The class started at 6:30pm. It ended at 2:00am. Wow! That format worked for me though since I'm used to long classes and 2AM rehearsals from college. I had such a catharsis in that class and the work was exhausting, yet fulfilling. Susan tells each new student what class(es) they should take at her studio and she recommended me to the highest levels. I was very excited. I'm leaning more towards this class than Anthony Abeson's class.
Lastly I ordered new business cards (Spotlight Printing) and postcards (Vistaprint) I'm very pleased with them both. Once I get to a scanner I'll upload images of them.

My Morning Glory Catharsis

So I had an easy day today of sorts. I slept in, made a nice breakfast and picked up my new glasses (which I spent WAYYYYY too much money on). Once home I warmed up some leftovers from Whole Foods and watched "Morning Glory" starring Rachel McAdams, Diane Keaton and Harrison Ford. The movie is about Becky, a hardworking TV producer (McAdams) who has a no-existent social life and gets fired from her job. She gets hired at a failing show and turns it around for the better. Really nice, light movie. What really stuck out to me though was the miniscule sub story with her mother. Her mother has a monologue in the movie where she tells Becky that her dreams were cute as a child, inspiring at 18, but sad at 28 and she needs to give up. That struck something in me. Now my family isn't at all like that. They are in fact, very supportive. It's me who's the hard one. I'm 27 years old and I had doubts about my future as an artist. I used to think that I was too old to keep dreaming and pursue a career in the business and I needed to move on to something more stable. I know there are a lot of "seasoned" actors out there who are shocked and tickled by this revelation; nevertheless it's true. But the past couple of weeks have been a blur. I'm doing and achieving things I thought would take awhile to obtain. I have representation, I have auditions coming in, people are commenting on my talent and my look favorably and things are really coming together. As I was watching the movie, two castings I wanted sent me emails inviting me to audition or interview. I was just thinking about how out of all the submissions I replied to on Actor's Access and NYCastings, I wasn't hearing much back. And now look at what happened. I'm still facing rejection the way all actors,dancers and models do but I also feel a confidence and inner strength in my abilities to succeed that wasn't quite there before. Sure I was confident before, but hard work, specific goals and results have bred a new confidence in me as well as a hunger to do more and achieve more. It amazes me how I can take anything in life and learn a lesson or receive inspiration from it. I guess the romantic in me will not let the realistic side of me keep it down for too long. I'm enjoying my journey, my personal rollercoaster of life and experiencing the ups, the downs as well as the topsy turvies. Those are what make life one hell of ride! So far it's been pretty awesome and I'm looking forward to the rest.

Classes, Commercial Rep Update

This past week has been crazy busy. First off, I sent my materials to several commercial agencies in New York. I'm targeting the smaller boutique agencies because although I have a lot offer, I don't have many credits on my resume. I believe working with a boutique agency will aid me better than getting lost in the fray with a larger company, especially with minimal experience. Well this Monday I received two emails. One turned me down because they didn't have a need for someone with my stats and to apply in 6 months. The second.......DRUUUUMMMMMMSS PLEASE........picked me up! I am now officially apart of Flaunt Model Management! I am so excited! I didn't expect it to happen so fast, but it did. I went in this Tuesday and met with the president of the company and got everything I need to get started. I can't wait to start going out on auditions for them. Now I have pictures, but I'm in dire need of a better, diversified portfolio. I'm in the process of setting up several test shoots to increase my book. That means money I didn't intend to spend anytime soon. I have a few TFP shoots coming up, so I'm not going to break the bank just yet. I'm going to keep being smart about my business and not go crazy with the spending. I still have to get comp, post and business cards made too. This is all out of my pocket. Many people believe that models get all of that stuff for free. WRONG. Most of the time these costs are passed on to the model. I've reached out to several models I know for referrals and Gene gave me a list of photographers that I can choose from, so I'll start there. I'm still waiting to hear back from the rest of the agencies as NYC is mostly non-exclusive when it comes to representation.


After I went into the agency Tuesday, I went to audit and watch Anthony Abeson's acting class. I spoke with him the day before and he invited me to sit it for free and observe. I loved the class. At first I was a bit put off because of the size (20+ actors), but Anthony handled the size well and it seemed everyone was benefiting. The format was nice and I heard from a student who had just booked a really big role in an extraordinary way. I even got to participate a little because they were short on girls. I will definitely be back as an official student. I also took a free Intro to Improv class at the Magnet Theater. I did really well in class and it reminded me that even though sometime I get a little intimidated, I did learn in college and I do have the talent and know how. I just need to tighten up my skills. I start my on camera class with Angela Mickey this upcoming Monday and I'm about to register for an 8 week improv class. I'm so happy my career is on the fast track now. All I have to do is keep up!

P.S. - I have an audition tomorrow for a once act play festival. Wish me luck!

Positioning Week

The past week I have been deciding which area of the market I want to focus the majority of my energy on. If I know where I'm going, I can determine the best route to get there. What I came up with is to focus on getting commercial representation and challenging roles in student films and non-union theatre. I need the commercial rep in order to gain access to print and commercial jobs that can provide substantial income, networking/relationships with CDs and improve my resume for future representation by agents and managers. The non-union roles will give me more experience and credits besides the meager ones that I had in college. They will also further my growth as an actress. Each performance gives an agent a chance to see me and/or material for a reel.
While auditioning is great, I need to workout my acting muscles and grow as an artist. I'm also making acting classes/workshops a priority in my budget. I am currently searching for an intense, intimate class that's going to whip me into shape. So no more excuses about not having the money. I will cut out shopping, eating out, trips, etc. to be able to afford them.
Those are my plans for the time being. Of course they're flexible (have to be in this business!) but I plan to stick with it. Stay tuned for my 12 month plan and more updates!

New Headshots!

Sooooooo, I've been needing new headshots like, AGES ago. I got my first headshots done in Houston May 2007 and they were pretty decent. I think a lightbulb went off in my head when at my last go-see for a modeling job, I noticed that the casting directors had reached my picture and were starring, puzzled, at all the girls in the lineup. I had to then speak up and say, "Oh that's mine, sir!" OUCH. Luckily I still booked the job, but that's a definite no-no in this business.My hair and overall look has changed so much since those shots were taken. Needless to say, as I endeavor to jump back into this rat race, I knew my first order of business was to get new headshots.

I started researching and asking around, as well as checking out blogs and any source I could to get the scoop in NYC. It's a pretty daunting task, especially if you want quality at the most affordable price. I came across a photographer named Taylor Hooper. I was skeptical because he pops up first in a search and I tend to steer away from those. I looked at his work and I really like it. He responded to my questions in a timely manner and he even had a spring sale going on at the time. After debating between another photographer I decided to go with Taylor. The deal breaker was he was more affordable. I decided on the cheapest package because just getting back in, I knew I didn't need all of those looks and I knew what I wanted. I completed the headshot homework he gave and at the shoot we talked about what look I was going for. I wanted the "sexy, outspoken, mean, bestfriend" channeling Samantha from "Sex in the City" with equal amounts of Maya and Toni from 'Girlfriends". The shoot was so much fun and he really kept me in character. Sara Ugino, the makeup artist was awesome too! I had some misgiving about her working on African American skin, but her work was flawless, and she was so sweet.
After the shoot, I had so many shots to choose from! Everyone had about 20-30 shots out of 92 that they loved that showed different sides of me. I finally decided on these two to start out with....

This one is the favorite. I love this color on me and I look so commercial here.

This one has a little sassiness to it and it shows off my body great.

Just for a reference, here is my old headshot:













I'm really looking forward to how these new shots are going to do as I start auditioning again. Fell free to leave feedback I hope this post helps anyone who is looking into getting new headshots done!

Phoenix Rising....

So it's been almost A YEAR since I've updated this blog. I intend to turn a new leaf and keep it up this time around....

For the past 10 months (with one more to go : / ) I've been utilizing my college degree and did what I did not want to do...teach. But, circumstances demanded it. I did not and could not find a job, my mother was pretty much supporting me and my options were slim. I was blessed to be able to find a position in the climate we're in as teachers. The downside is that ALL of my free time aka training time was taken up. I have done nothing career wise as an artist this year. The upside is much better though. I was able to pay my mom back, gain excellent insurance, save money again and learn the lay of the land. I no longer feel like a fish out of water here. I was able to prepare myself to come out this time around on top. I feel that I needed to go through those awesome 1st 4 1/2 months to see that I wanted to do this and the last month and half to go through the hardships. I have a better idea of what to expect and how to go about getting it. I am much better at prioritizing money (although I am still a bit of a shopaholic) and I know now that a survival job is just that, and I should be open to a broader range of work if I want to pay the bills and do what I love.
As the school year is ending and I'm about to actively pursue my dreams again, I've come to realize that it's not enough to WANT it. I've got to FIGHT harder, WORK harder, and PUSH harder than I ever have in my life. To be away from Cameron, my family, friends, and the lifestyle that I utterly love in Texas, I have no other choice but to succeed to warrant it. I look forward to the next chapter in my life as I rise like the phoenix , brush off the ashes and fly to my goals, my dreams and my destiny!