Open Mic Performance 8-27-08

Hello everyone. I played a open mic last night at Karma Cafe in Hollywood, a spot that I have seen tons of times but have never visited. The atmosphere was awesome; it has a real small town friendly feel. I performed two new songs Both of Us, which I hope to have copyrighted soon, and Tennessee Town (title still in the works). I am incredibly proud of these two songs, which is why I suspect their first performance wasn't as awe inspiring as I had hoped. Also, the style of both leans towards country/folk, which is not the vibe of this particular open mic, so I'm going to try to find a better spot to try them out.
I hope to work them both into a few other open mics in the upcoming weeks to iron out their performance kinks.

In the Studio

The past few days I've been working in the studio and can finally say that the upcoming weeks will see posting of some new songs and some remixes of older songs. I'm really excited to have you guys hear some of the latest stuff I've been working on.
Though I have various songs in various regions of work, I'm most excited about a yet to be declassified completed song. Though I tend to not have a specific genre to the music I write, this is defiantly something new. I'm looking into next week to post this particular piece; I'm just waiting on some feedback from someone in particular.
In the next few days I will hopefully be able to compile a reliable list of music that will be completed this round.

Casting: The Star Spangled Girl

I have been cast as either a second lead or understudy, depending on the time of day you ask the director, in Neil Simon's Star Spangled Girl for the part of Norman. As far as end result, the dates I will be performing are in flux, but the theatre is the Luna Playhouse in Glendale. I have been holding off on announcing this after the Ground Up Theatre debacle, but now I'm fairly certain this will stick. The play is a chronicle of love set in 1967 San Francisco, where two young upstarts running an American Protest magazine are intruded upon by a beautiful menace, depending on which character you ask. It's a three person play, so I am a lead, and will be getting paid!
So far, we've had a few readings and gotten lightly onto our feet, but there is plenty more to come. The cast is really diverse, and excited to work on this show, which is really all I can ever hope for!
I'll try and get some cast photos online after next week's set of rehearsals.

2008 Directing Reel

I know it's been awhile since Flix Friday, and this in no way is trying to restart that tradition, but since I posted it, maybe you want to watch it.

MY 2008 DIRECTING REEL

You can also follow this link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMyOw7MoueY

As for Flix Friday, it will return, probably in October; more later.

Re-Shoot Set for Devil Blues

The reshoot for Devil Blues has be scheduled !!! The reshoot will take place the first weekend of September 5-7. I haven't heard much more as far as carpooling, hotel rooms, etc. but I'm super excited that this project is back on track.

That's a wrap on Killer

I have performed, filmed, and will soon be getting paid for my part as a hired assassin looking for love in Killer. The scene went off well, and was really well received by both the director and the teacher. The best part was the teacher's reception, she really liked the work we performed. Hopefully this will lead to more jobs, either with the school or in the industry.
Let me explain how this process works a bit. The director/writer works with the actors for about a week; going over the beats of the scene, the intentions, building a set. Then at the end of the week, the camera(s) are set-up and the scene is shot. The teacher watches first few takes/rehearsals and then takes the director aside to recommend ways to enhance the scene. The process leading up to the teacher stepping in was a bit awkward, I'm not sure how much experience the director had before this scene but it took a bit to flush out exactly what he wanted in the scene. With the teacher's help, the whole mood relaxed and i felt pretty good about the finished performance.
Once again, I will try and post some footage if it become available to me.

Actually not in From the Ground Up Theatre Company

First of all I want to state how amazing the response was to my joining From the Ground Up. It seemed to me to be an interesting opportunity, but thank you to everyone who congratulated me and cheered me on.
That said. I'm actually not going to become a member of the group. Due to an oversight of my own, I glossed over the section that stated the company is actually a dues based company. As much as I appreciate the usefulness of a dues based company and congratulate those people who create them, I do not think it is the best situation for me.

New Casting

So I'm cast in a student production of a workshop scene, which means I'm getting paid to help a director learn how to direct a script he wrote, at Art Center College. The scene is set in a confession booth between an assassin and a janitor posing as a priest. We've done a read-thru as well as a cursory walk-through and things are going well. I'm really enjoying the opportunity to explore creating this character.
The scene goes up next Thursday. Hopefully I'll be able to post some clips from the shoot.