An Open Farewell Letter: Thank You Green Room Bloggers!
“I’ve heard it said
That people come into our lives for a reason
Bringing something we must learn
And we are led
To those who help us most to grow
If we let them
And we help them in return” ~ Wicked The Musical
Wow- it’s amazing how quickly time flies. I feel like it was only yesterday that I was accepted as a member of the awesome Green Room Blog Ensemble. I remember feeling so incredibly excited and drafting my first post that same night! It has been a whirlwind of wonderful experiences since. Now, a year later I have chosen to retire from the blog, as I’m sure there is another wonderful blogger out there just waiting to tell their story.
I have learned so much being a member of this blog. My blogger name, The Growing Artist, has definitely held true during my time writing for this blog. I have grown a lot- thanks to all the wonderful entries written by the other ensemble members. They have all been so inspiring, and I do hope I, in turn, was able to inspire some with my words as well. It has been a pleasure being a part of this wonderful community.
Some of the big lessons I have learned since joining this blog include:
- The acting community is awesome! We are all in this journey together. Just as there are no small parts in acting, there are no small parts in this community. Your words can inspire others more than you think. I felt inspired many-a-day by the wonderful words of my fellow actors. Read more…
After the great response to my blog post featuring Joy Dewing, I thought I would follow it up with an interview with fellow mom/casting director Barbara Barna Abel. Months ago, Barbara gave me wonderful parenting advice and recommended the book Raising Cain to me. (She is also a 80s Britpop fan so we are clearly kindred spirits!) In a perfect example of parental multitasking, Barbara wrote her post while at the Hockey Ring for her son’s game. The interview is fantastic – chocked full of great advice, practical tools (which I implemented immediately) and humor (some of her responses made me laugh out loud.) Connect with Barbara on twitter and sign up for her monthly newsletter to find out more about castings and classes.
How do you juggle being a busy casting director and being a mom?
Like every working mom I just do. My daughter was born in 1997 and my phone then was a jumbo gray thing with an external battery the same size as the phone. The development of the SMART PHONE has been a game changer and I am eternally grateful (see sitting in hockey rink above). I am no longer chained to my desk, can attend school events and doctor’s appointments and integrate a lot more work/life. It’s obviously a great organizer and now I can’t imagine life without DROPBOX – I have every file I could ever need wherever I go. With that said…we have a good old fashioned CALENDAR on the fridge which is easy and helpful to everyone in my house. Like everyone I make LISTS and yes, keep them in the NOTES section of my phone.
Not tech driven but no less key:
CROCKPOT – I plan meals in advance and 30 mins of prep in the morning pays huge dividends in the evening.
Always have CAKE MIX, CONFECTIONERS SUGAR and MUFFIN CUPS in the cupboard so you are never caught out on a classroom celebration. It is homemade frosting which wins raves (I use Martha Stewart’s recipe which reminds me always have BUTTER too, even if you don’t eat it, it keeps for ages and freezes as well).
CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES – this is hard, but take the long view and decide what really matters to you and your family. Rudeness is not okay but weird outfits and not-my-idea-of-breakfast sometimes get out the door.
And most importantly, I am lucky to be able to INTEGRATE MY KIDS INTO MY WORK. These apples didn’t fall far from the tree and are voracious consumers of media and act as a focus group and street team who keep me up on trends, people to watch, viral videos, new social media platforms, bloggers, music, etc. it gives us lots to talk about and they are a tremendous help.
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year to my dear Green Room Blog readers. I hope that 2014 is all that you wish for and more.
I sat down and wrote out my 2014 goals, as I have done every year for the past five years. I break them down into category — acting, home, family/friends, personal, etc. We’re also deep cleaning our apartment today, and I’m thinking about getting a fresh, new haircut. 2013 was a year of accomplishment for me, but it was also a very challenging one in many ways. I’m really looking forward to writing on the first page of 2014 🙂
What do you do to firmly close the door on 2013 and prepare for 2014 with a blank slate and a great frame of mind?
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.
Green Room Bloggers Ornament Exchange 2013
Hard to believe it’s Christmas week already, right? Every year, the Green Room Bloggers do a holiday ornament exchange where we make or buy ornaments that represent our favorite project to work on from that year.
Previous year exchanges can be seen here and here.
Check out the lovely creativity displayed by our bloggers this year!
The Growing Artist —> The California Triple-Threat
“Hairspray”
The Redheaded Actress —> The Enterprising Actor
“Views from the Pews” about women’s issues.
The Passionate Performer —> The Granted Actor
The Mothering Actor —> The Redheaded Actress
“The King’s Whore,” a play about Queen Anne Boleyn.
The Chicago Actor —> The Growing Artist
Vocalist Gigs
The Granted Actor —> The Chicago Actor
“El Stories” about things that happen on Chicago’s metro system.
The Enterprising Actor —> The Mothering Actor
—————————————–
We hope you enjoyed seeing everyone’s ornaments, and that you all have a Christmas that’s merry and bright. Thanks for reading! 🙂
Feeling Unfocused?
Recently, I was having a very difficult time focusing on one thing. Every time I tried to focus all my attention on one task, I almost felt guilty that I chose that particular task to focus on. As soon as I would sit down to work on that task, I would think of a thousand other things I “should” have been doing. Between juggling two day jobs, my jazz band, and auditions- my head can become swamped very quickly.
- Give Yourself Permission:
A friend of mine told me I need to simply give myself the permission to work on whatever task I want to tackle at that time. I have tried giving myself the permission, however it still doesn’t clear my head. - Mind Mapping:
This is the tactic I usually use when my head is clouded. I get out a sheet of paper and write down the first thing that comes to mind. One by one, I link together all the different things that are swirling around in my head. Soon, I have a “map” of tasks, concerns, ideas, etc. all laid out on a sheet of paper. It’s much easier to take all of the clutter out of my head and put it on paper. - Run:
I have never been very athletic, but recently I found when I feel frustrated and unfocused- running seems to be the best medicine. Any problem I may have been stressing over before seems to melt away when I run. It releases all the endorphins, and by the time I’m done- my head feels much clearer. I’m by no means a professional runner- I don’t have specific clothes that I wear, and I don’t keep track of how far I run. I just run up and down the streets, wherever there are less people. Read more…
Being Sick is NOT an Excuse!
So here is one of the “things” I learned. Back in September we had a week of what felt like freezing cold. It rain ALL day for a week straight and I got sick. Now when I get sick, 9 out of 10 times I end up with either a sinus infection or bronchitis instead of just a normal cold. Usually that’s no problem, but unfortunately, September 1st was they day that began my period of being uninsured.* So that sucked. Here’s how I kicked my symptoms without a prescription!
Liquids:
Orange Juice (force fed)
TheraFlu (or liquefied cough drop, ick)
Decaffinated Herbal Green Tea with Lemon (sometimes honey too, yum!)
ThroatCoat (so gross)
Drinking 50-64oz of plain old water (sometimes with EmergenC…also gross)
Things That Get Better/Things That Don’t.
Things that get better: Not waiting for hours at open calls because your agent books you appointments
Things that don’t get better: Not getting a callback
Things that get better: Your music book is fine-tuned and you like all your options
Things that don’t get better: Your panic when the casting assistant announces that the music director is requesting something different than what was on the audition breakdown.
Things that get better: Feeling like the new kid on the block and everyone knows everyone else except you.
Things that don’t get better: Auditions always feel clique-y and it’s hard to focus between the two people you wish you could talk to and that guy you are trying to ignore.
The Green Room 