Positivity

Well, it's be a weird 24 hours. I think I am extra stessed because my Mom and family friend, Susie Salerno, are coming to town to see "Big River" today at noon. They are literally coming for the day. They are going to eat, see the show and jump back on a plane at noon tomorrow. Nuts! Anyway. My Mom hasn't seen me perform on stage in maybe 7 years I want to say. It's crazy how retired people are. She didn't want to come back to LA ever, but now that she s retired, this is the second time in a year she has flown out. I realize in all this craziness that I am super excited for people to see the show, but when they actually commit I freak out. When someone sees a movie or something on film that I have done...it's over. There is nothing I can do to change it. On stage, it's LIVE! Love live theatre, but so many things come into play. It's been windy in LA, the H1V1 is going around like the plague, my vacuum just blew up in my apartment and I am trying to get the fumes outside, etc. All these things are usually just annoyances, but when I am in a musical and on stage the whole show singing and talking, I freak out a touch. I become a hermit. I don't want to go outside and have an allergy attack, or catch the swine flu, but yet indoors I am breathing in fumes from a burnt out vaccum cleaner and Ajax bathroom scrub. AH! What is the lesser of two evils? On top of that, I am uncomfortable in my own skin because I am in the waiting game with auditions, callbacks and bookings. I just found out that my dear friend Katy just booked a gig that I was hoping both of us would have booked, but they took her and not me. It was expected because while we were both perfect for the roles, one thing was holding me back -- playing the guitar. I knew it's a big thing, but I was hoping they would over look it. They couldn't and while I was "the best actor" for the job, I didn't have the whole package, so alas I wait. 2009 is the year of patience, gathering experience, living on EDD, and waiting some more....at least up til this point. I know it's all stuff I need to learn and deal with and the EDD part is allowing me to sit here and type without bustling off to a "day job", but I want more. Am I allowed to ask for more?

Actor's Day in LA interview!

The Actors Reporter came and interviewed BIG RIVER. They choose me for part of the interview. WATCH IT HERE!

And the critics say....

The first round of reviews have hit LA and the results are great. We are "critic's pick" with Backstage! We also received a "WOW!" rating (the highest) from Stage Scene LA, even though I had one of those mind is faster than mouth performances (said the S-word instead of SIT...no good), that made from fun laughter offstage. You know me...I have to please the cast as much as the audience. HAHA! Enjoy the reviews and BUY TICKETS to see it live.

Here are the links to the full reviews:

BACKSTAGE REVIEW

STAGE SCENE LA REVIEW

Come see BIG RIVER

I am in the musical BIG RIVER playing Huck Finn. Here is the info. Come and see the show!

BIG RIVER: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

lyrics & music by Roger Miller, book by William Hauptman

Based on Mark Twain’s novel, this Tony Award-winning musical follows one of America’s best-loved literary figures on his adventures along the mighty Mississippi. It’s directed by Richard Israel - he’s won a bunch of awards - and there is a great cast, design team and crew involved.

BIG RIVER opens FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2009.

Performances are Fridays & Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 2:30 PM. Saturday Matinees are 10/3, 10/10, 10/31 at 2:30 PM. There is no evening performance 10/31/09. BIG RIVER closes November 1, 2009.

Tickets can be purchased on-line at www.ActorsCo-op.org OR you can call the box office at (323) 462-8460. If you want to save a little money, come with a group and the box office will cut you a special deal! Plus, the theatre is really easy to find and it's not in a scary part of town. And get this - the parking is FREE!

Actors Co-op’s Crossley Theatre is located at 1760 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, CA 90028, on the campus of Hollywood Presbyterian Church, one block north of Hollywood Boulevard, just off the Gower Street exit of the 101 Hollywood Freeway. Free, well-lit parking is available on Carlos Street (1/2 block east of Gower).

You can check out more information about the show and Actors Co-op at www.ActorsCo-op.org

Hope to see you at the theatre!

BIG RIVER

Well, good news! I was cast as Huck Finn in Big River at the Actors Co-op Theatre. The Actors Co-op has a great reputation and I am having a blast with this cast. Of course, at the end of every rehearsal I think, "how am I going to do this dance/sing this music/remember these lines?" BUT it's a challenge and I am up for it. We don't open until September 25th, but it still feels like next week. Anyway, that is the light in the tunnel right now. Had a very productive day, worked out, got headshots printed up, and got my first audition through my NYC agent....oh, wait. I just signed with Headline Talent Agency in New York City. Good times. That's it for now. Peace.

The Trash!

So, I have decided that my blog is no longer just going to be about my professional work. I mean I have so much to share everyday, why not blog. I don't know who is going to read it, but who cares! I was just about to snuggle up in my bed with the cooling sheets (yes, cooling. It's hot in LA), when I went to the bathroom and noticed my trash can. I never understood why they made really tiny bathroom trash cans. Obviously, when I went to purchase one myself, I bought a normal size one. Well, as I looked out, I started to notice that since it's not tiny, I don't empty it. It just gathers months of old floss, and random box and containers of products I have used over the last couple of months. It's like a vault of my bathroom live filled with random treasures (like the KY box, and my old deodorant container). My mind starts racing about human wise and the human stamp. It kills me! I mean, where is my super duper plastic bottle for deodorant going to go? How long is it going to take to decompose? It kills me. Living in an apartment, they don't really have a recycle bin expect for what gets you 10 cents for returning. My trash company claims that it sorts all the trash from recyclables, but I don't know. On Oprah they did a special on a section of ocean between California and Japan that is all trash and get this...it is twice the size of Texas and growing. It's unbelievable. It just made me think, so that is my blog for tonight.

VOTE VOTE VOTE VOTE

So, a friend's video for CareerBuilder.com made it into the top ten finalist for a $5K prize.  I am in the video.  Check it out and VOTE!

West Side Story....wait. West GUILD Story. Yes.

Last spring, a couple of my friends were involved in a short film in support of the resolving the WGA Strike. It is a musical parody on West Side Story. Well, at the last minute one of there dancers dropped out, and they called me to fill in at the last minute. The danced the part of the "Alphabet" (aka ABC) Network. We filmed on CBS Radford's NYC street one freakishly cold day last year. We had a really fun time goofing around and dancing in the streets (cue the music). Unfortunately, I am not on the vocal track, because that was done before the drop out dropped. We ended up being 1st runner up on the WGA Strike Video Competition. I don't know why it took so long to put it on the internet. Check it out at www.strike.tv or:

Sick of it.

Well, I am on the road to recovery from getting the random sickness that has hit almost everyone is LA. It was a sore throat that turned into a full blown sickness. I never get sick and I know everyone says that, but I really don't. I can't remember the last time I was full blown sick, but in a nutshell it SUCKS! Nothing brings to light the bad parts of being single like being sick - no one to take care of you. Whatever, we are suppose to be awesomely independent and be able to conquer anything alone, but f that. Being sick and single with a Mom who is in another state doesn't feel good. All and all, I sleep for all of Sunday and drink like 88 ounces of Sprite, two bowl of Chicken Soup and 4 Emergen'C packets, and I am way better. I feel good, and I even went hiking today, but I do have one lingering sympton that takes the cake...head congestion. I am not just taking about sinuses, I am talking about ears. I took a Sudafed (which is no longer available over the counter...thank you Meth heads), and that was suppose to relieve the pressure, but no. I am sitting here with clogged ears and it's killing me.
On another note, I have been catching up on Grey's Anatomy. The storyline with the ghost Denny and Izzy, is dumb dumb dumb. It actually makes me frustrated how dumb it is. Oh, well, it's 2am and I'm unemployed so what else is there to watch seeing that Friday Night Lights is basically reruns. I think my attitude is shitty because my ears hurt. Signing off.

3 steps back?

So, I decided that I am going to blog more. I will make it not just about business, but also some personal stuff too. The title of this blog is titled "3 steps back?", because I did extra work for the first time in 5 years (not including Sada's movie and helping out on Reuben's short). Well, it's quite the experience. First off, set the scene. I signed up for extra work, because I need to officially be let go from a job (if you have questions, email: sean@aboutsean.com). So, I went and signed up at Central Casting. After like 2 solid days and two emails to casting director contacts trying to secure an AFTRA day, I decided to call my good friend Nicole Markel (Super on Sam Who?), she hooked me up with a day. Best part of the day: Working 3 hours and getting rescued by Nicole and released early (woohoo!). Weird part of the day: Extra work is funny. I just feel like cattle. No one really cares about you. You are breathing scenery. Sam Who? people were nice, but it just reminded me of the past shoots. All and all, I felt very humbled today. This will serve as a great reminder to be super thankful when I am on set and to be enormously grateful to the breathing scenery.
On another note, my episode of Creature, now LOST TAPES, aired on Animal Planet last night. Good stuff. I had had some great improv lines that made it in the cut like, "throw that big scary box maze", etc. Check out AnimalPlanet.com to find the next time it airs. WOoohoo.

A Megaconda is loose....my porn?

"Lost Tapes" (formerly Creature) is premiering on Animal Planet, February 3rd at 10pm. My episode titled, "Megaconda" is summed up - "In a warehouse known for illegal animal trafficking, something enormous has just slithered out of a crate clearly marked "dangerous"." Did it grab you? Oh....yeah. I don't have much face time in this one, because it was shot like Cloverfield. I was basically the DP for two days of shooting. But just because you can't see my face, doesn't mean you can't enjoy my screaming off camera. Be like Nike, and "Just Do It".

Blog introduced!

It has been a crazy holiday season. I went to New Mexico to visit part of my family, then to Vegas, and now I am back in Los Angeles. It looks like there are some great things coming up in the next couple of months, and seeing that my blog is fed into my website, I think it should be easier to keep everyone informed. First and foremost: I have made my literary debut! In the 3rd edition of Self-Management for Actors by LA casting director, Bonnie Gillespie, I have been featured on pages 328-329. Bonnie, the queen of indy casting in LA, has not only been gracious enough to pull me in for some auditions, but also is a internet TV watcher. Having watched Prom Queen, she thought it would be nice to hear from a series regular in that area of the industry. I was honored to be included in this huge actor resource. BUY THE BOOK!