Friday, May 28, 2010

prep work

No more rehearsals till Monday...

And then the shows begin.

Monday: Tech

Tuesday: Dress

Wednesday: Preview

Thursday: Opening Show

Friday: Closing Show

So until Monday it's read, read, read, practice, practice, practice.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

SPOILER ALERT!


Just watched the ending to LOST again... and my head just exploded.

The wreckage at the end?

Just what wreckage is that really?

It didn't look like the Oceanic plane (to small, no Oceanic fuselage, etc.) ... meaning that the only other plane it could have been was the Guam plane that took off at the very end.

And thinking about it more, logically, how can a plane that crashed on an island be fixed in an hour, when it was said to take six, fly across the entire ocean. One of the only problems I had with this last season was them constantly relying on the plane to be their escape, it just didn't seem like it would work.

This also raises the whole question of whether or not you can actually leave the island. Maybe Desmond will never leave, and the way Jacob ran things was the only way to do them; after all Ben never really knew that much about the origins of the island.

AND...

If Frank, Miles, Richard, Claire, Sawyer, and Kate all died when the Guam plane crashed (the wreckage at the end) that would still make sense for what Christian Shepard said to Jack of "some died before you, and some died long after you." The "long after ones" would be Hurley, Ben, Desmond, and Penny.

I wish I didn't realize this, because I liked the "happy" ending but you have to think about it that this could be what happened, and if that's the case, was the ending of LOST really "happily ever after"?

late night library procrastination post


My contacts are drying out.

That means sleep will be setting in soon.



I sorry Mr. Kant, but I can't read you anymore. (haha, pun).

I still got it even at 1 in the a.m. (If by "got it" I mean an onset case of narcolepsy or insomnia. I'm not sure yet, but if I'm up much longer one is going to set in, I just know it).


Insomnia wouldn't be so bad if sleep wasn't... ya know... important. You would be able to get a lot of stuff done if you didn't have to sleep. I've always wanted to try what Kramer did once in an episode of Seinfeld; to take mini naps throughout the day and in the process sleep a lot less but from what I remember that didn't work out to wellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll


whoa sorry about, I guess it's not the insomnia but the narcolepsy that's setting innnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn

Monday, May 24, 2010

superstitious

I'm currently listen to Simon & Garfunkel's greatest hits as I study for my second philosophy midterm because that last time I did this I got a good grade.

That's how superstitious I am.

It's ridiculous I know.

Sunday, May 23, 2010

FOUND

Wow.

Just finished watching LOST for the final time.

That was amazing.

In all honesty, it was the best finale to a series I have ever seen. I cannot think of one better.

Purely Perfect.

Well done LOST and Co.

I want to say that I'd miss it but, the way they ended it was so perfect I don't need to see more.

In regards to the ending, I was kinda expecting that, but I was not expecting THAT. (that's two different thats; no spoilers here).

Going into tonight I had high expectations and I usually try for the opposite to not be let down, but LOST delivered. I told myself, that when it ends I want to be thinking about it for the rest of the night, and now I know I will be.

For the rest of tonight...

...which will carry into tomorrow...

and the next day...

and the day after that...

and much further...

beautiful day

To quote: Bono, "It's a beautiful day."

Just read an email from the sis, which makes this day that much better.

It's still early today but I've already had a good rehearsal for the tougher play (the Al Pacino in Dog Day one). I got my energy up like last time but it can still be better.

Got lots to get done today (get some laps in at the pool, finish the sculpture for script class, study for midterms, Access homework, Yanks game to watch, LOST finale to immerse myself into) but it's gonna be a good day.

The sis reminded me of something... of how I ended the post on May 10th.

It went something like "I'm happy, a little stressed, but happy."

Well now it's simply.

I'm happy.

Saturday, May 22, 2010

connecting the pieces

Currently making a sculpture for the play The Children's Hour for my script analysis class.

BUT in other news...

Had a good rehearsal today for the other play. We are switching some things around and adding some new blocking and even though it'll be a little challenge to incorporate all of it into what we already have, it should turn out good.

I like where it's going.

This play and the other one. That's something I couldn't have said a week ago.

Things are coming together, and it feels like it fits.

Friday, May 21, 2010

the method of a rebel


Had rehearsal today for the tougher play. (Tougher is an ironic word choice to describe it, but I'll stick with it).

I once heard Dennis Hopper say that on the set of Giant, James Dean would spin around in circles before going on screen when he would be playing drunk. Hopper did this too for the film Hoosiers. Pretty simple concept, and pretty effective too, but sometimes you just don't think of little things like that to take it to another level.

Well today, I did a little Deanian device before I went onstage.

My character (before he is seen) is looking for someone in a psychologist's office, so before my scene I paced back and forth for about about 20 minutes or so (because the rehearsal was stop-and-go) and when my cue line was delivered I burst into the office (well, walked out from behind the curtain and onto the stage with dramatic force).

And it worked.

I had the most energy of any rehearsal so far for myself and I really felt like I knew who I was out there.

Before rehearsal started, our director said that she was going to stop us when either she didn't believe what we were saying or wanted to know what we were doing (the technique of asking the question and then the actor responding with a certain verb). Going into it, I thought I would probably get stopped a few times here or there because before today for some of my lines I wasn't 100% sure on how to deliver them.

However, after the pacing (which definitely helped me get into character) I did not get stopped once during my lines, and thinking back on it now, I think I was the only one who didn't get stopped, so that's a good feeling. But there is still a lot of work to be done, and I have to keep the energy onstage up, so there's no time to get cocky. At least I now know how to reach that level of energy though.

Who would have thought that something so simple, like pacing or spinning in a circle, could make such a big difference.

Maybe that rebel was onto something with this whole method acting thing?

Thursday, May 20, 2010

new political party

I came up with this political party a little while back and am writing it on here just as a note to myself.

Undogmatic Pragmatism

open-minded real world decisions to solve the world's problems

No political parties. No left wing, right wing anything (now it's starting to sound like my McDonaugh monologue).

Anyway...

Just what is the problem?

What is the best solution?

Then simply do

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

it's the little things

Had our run-thru yesterday for the one act play. I thought it went well but...

It's the little things that make all the difference.

The feedback was mostly about those little things.

Each action must have a specific purpose.

Each look

Each movement

Each word

Each syllable

Each consonant

Each vowel

Every little thing must be perfect in order for me, as an actor, to be satisfied.

And I would not have it any other way.


We have two and a half weeks.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

let go

This was it.

Time to move on.

I should have listened to myself a long time ago.

It really sucks when life mimics art. I thought it was suppose to be the other way around.

It is one thing to think it, or even know it. But it's an entirely different thing to see it.

At least I have the perfect motivation for one of the plays now...

...but at what cost?

What is the price of losing everything that you l___?

I can't even say the word right now.


Welcome to the world of a wannabe theatre major.

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

The Cave

Today in philosophy I may have gotten...

correction

GOT the idea that ties everything together for my first script and gives it an extremely solid foundation based on one of the oldest stories ever told.

...

No spoilers here, so I will leave it at that and simply add...

Thank you Plato.

Monday, May 10, 2010

class, tests, rehearsals, and life

Leaving for class in a few so I thought I'd get a little post in before.

Things are getting pretty busy with rehearsals for the two plays. Only about 4 weeks until showtime. Wow, I just got a little nervous. That's interesting.

I've been practicing my lines and working on building character (the play characters that is, not myself personally cause that guy is long gone already). Time to be either Colin or Jackson for the next month.

Oddly enough, when casting was announced I did not understand why I was cast as Jackson instead of Mickey (which was the role I read for). All that was going through my head was "What did I do wrong?" I thought I could have pulled of Mickey just fine, but after sitting down with the director and listening to what he had to say I definitely agree that Jax is a good fit for me, although it would have been fun to play Mick too (he does get quite a few f-bombs to drop, that's the fun part).

I should get off book today for the other play, rehearsal at 6. It might happen, should be close.

Midterm tomorrow in my one business class for the quarter (yep, still a business major, weird I know). The test is for Information Systems: The Joyous and Wonderful World of Excel, Access, and Frontpage. (That's not the real name of the class).

Things are going good as of right now. I can't complain, but that may just be because I'm currently listening to the cheerfully jovial Simon & Garfunkel.

I'm happy, a little stressed, but happy.

Monday, May 3, 2010

200

Just got done with a rehearsal for the Student Stage play.

Let me sum my performance today in one word: terrible.

Maybe I am being a little too hard on myself but I dont' think so.

I know what I am capable of and that was not it. Nowhere close.

The reason I feel that I did so terrible could be due to the fact that I only got 2 hours of sleep last night, but that really should not matter.

I need to get off book, NOW.

Once I do that, it will make things a lot easier.

I know I just finished up with my toughest week of the quarter so far but I need to work harder on this now.

AND I'll be getting another script tomorrow, so let's see what that holds.


p.s. This was my 200th post on this site.

miles to go...



The library rows of shelves are lovely, dark, and deep,
But I have miles to go before I sleep.

Work on the presentation still remains, and it is closing in on 1 in the a.m.

Do people realize that I am doing all of this work for a class that I do not have to take? Cause I sure realize it. But I am not complaining, because this is still my favorite class, of the quarter.

What remains is:

Draw a design concept for the play

Make presentation notes for the Historical Context of the play that I will be talking about tomorrow

Finish presentation notes about the happy life of August Strindberg

Make a handout with a condensed version of Strindberg's main points

Construct a few PowerPoint slides

and...

do laundry

maybe...

sleep?


In other news I found out that I have gotten another role to play from the McDonaugh monologue and the callback.

All I know right now about the part is that he is a drunk-ish lawyer, who is the "good-guy" of the play.

I'm thinking Paul Newman in The Verdict. anyone? anyone?

Okay, now back to work --z--o-o-o--m-->

Sunday, May 2, 2010

a case of the sundays

Tomorrow needs to get here already and be over with.

This week as been crazy hectic. Feeling as if I need to be let up for air but can't quite reach the surface... yet.

The week in reference to consisted of:

2 midterms (People, Pest, & Plagues, and Philosophy)
2 quizzes (People, Pests & Plagues, and Script Analysis)
2 Microsoft Access assignments (Business 391: Information Systems)
1 audition (monologue reading of McDonaugh's The Pillowman)
1 callback audition for the Cal Poly One Act Festival
4 gym sessions
1 three mile run
1 rough draft paper (People, Pests, & Plagues)
1 play read (Henrik Ibsen's Ghosts)
1 massive presentation yet to be completed (a 3 hour group presentation on August Strindberg's play The Father)

After 4 pm, tomorrow, this crazy week is going to be over, and I can't wait.

But the scary thing is I know that I will have weeks busier than this before the year is over.