What's been going on?

I had a great conversation with a fellow blogger and friend, Andrea Bordeaux (a blogging veteran). She is so focused and knowledgeable about the business and really works on her craft. I realized after our conversation that I have been focusing a lot on the "business side" of acting (which is great, of course!) and forgetting about the creative side. I'm embarrassed to say how long it's been since I've been in a formal acting class and even the course I did take weren't adequate enough. What happens when my business savvy side get me in the room? Having teachers praise my talent recently has led me to see that it was never my talent I doubted, it's my skills. My biggest problem with acting has been not having the tools I need to channel my talent with. I'm hungry to do it, but lacking some of the technical skills.With that in mind, here is what has been happening:

• Today I took a big step in my acting career. I finally made a decision about which acting class to take. I auditioned with Anthony Abeson this afternoon to be a student in one of his classes and I made it in! It only took a year and a half for me to make the leap, lol. I'm looking forward to working with him. 
•  I went to TVI Studios for an introduction to the program after seeing a flyer promising a free casting workshop. The program seemed very interesting, but I just don't have that type of money now to part with for a membership and I'm also more interested in a solid acting class than workshops right now. Plus One on One is more affordable and a lot of my friends are apart of it and recommend their program. Nevertheless, I registered to audition for Lauren Port's casting workshop next month at no cost. Pretty sweet deal! 
• I'm going to voice lessons once a week (and practicing often on my own) as well as several dance classes weekly.  
• Roz Coleman's On-Camera Intensive workshop started last week and is wonderful! 
• Roz recommends reading Margie Haber's "How to Get The Part" and this book is amazing! As soon as I finish it I'm going to start reading Susan Batson's, "Truth". I'm definitely interested in reading more great material so if anyone has any recommendations feel free to let me know!
• Keeping with that, I'm going to start researching and building my knowledge of TV shows/movies that have roles for me and the casting directors who cast them. I plan on doing the same for theatre as well. Doctors read medical journals and know all of the new advancements withing their field. Lawyers, engineers, teachers, etc. There isn't any excuse for me not knowing the industry I claim to be apart of and love.

Whew! There's a lot going on for me right now and that doesn't even include my day job as a substitute teacher and just living. I'm very excited to see my progress over the next couple of months and throughout the summer.

Note: Still looking for a commercial agent (on camera and print). Send up a prayer!

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!