Welcome to Mayberry

I had a meeting last night with a director who is going to take the helm of a short play I wrote. It will be produced as part of the Network One-Act Festival in January. She’s a great person and a visionary theatre-maker. I’m thrilled to be working with her again.

Later that night, when writing my daily gratitude list –thank you Oprah for instilling that habit in an entire generation of females–I gave thanks for knowing so many talented people. And as I reminisced on how I first met this director, I realized it all came back to The Green Room Blog.

Last year, one of our bloggers put out a call for writers and actors to take part in a 24-hour play festival that her theatre company was producing. I submitted myself as a writer and made it through the process. I was randomly paired with a director who turned out to be awesome and we are a year later, working together again.

Would I have known about the 24-hour festival that brought this talented individual into my realm without The Green Room Blog? Possibly, but probably not. This was a direct call out from one theatre blogger to the others in her sphere of influence. I got it because I’m in this community.

Realizing this, while casually writing my gratitude list, really struck me like a ton of bricks. For years I have read all kinds of actors’ advice columns and books, suggesting over and over that we must get into a community to survive this journey. And how right they were.

But this director-friend is not the only community relationship I can attribute to The Green Room Blog—one blogger has twice been a guest on my BBC Radio program. Another is my go-to person for Kate Middleton news and comic commentary.

And then it all hit me—the Green Room Blog is just one of the communities I’m part of in this competitive city. For example, I have a filmmaker community– several DPs, directors and film editors whom I can call in an instant to collaborate. Also, there are dozens of actors I know are perfect to star in my short play. I see the same gang over and over at commercial auditions and we are a friendly group. And there’s a whole group of actors whom I haven’t worked with yet, but know through classes and workshops and we cheer each other on whenever we meet.

I will never know all the ripples that have started in these communities which will lead to more projects, more collaborations and more creating. But I know I’m not alone. No wonder this “competitive” city has always felt comforting to me. I’m in the community. Heck, it’s practically Mayberry.

So anyway… here’s the part I have to admit, I have been LACKADAISICAL about my blogging lately—feeling like between projects, bills, freelancing and having a social life, I can’t be arsed to blog. But I realized in my Oprah-esque ah-hah moment, that neglecting my blogging was neglecting my community and I want all these cool neighbors to stay on my block.

Are you in a bunch of communities that you haven’t even realized yet? Take a moment and think about it –especially if you’re feeling down or alone. When you realize how connected you really are–you don’t have to make a big deal of it, but I hope that if your communities continue to inspire and support you, you’ll at least write about them in your gratitude journal!