Archive for the 'Performances' Category
I sometimes consider myself to be lucky that I’m a working actor.And other times I’m reminded that I’m working so hard that I should not consider anything luck but the fruit of my sweat that I put into everything I do.Anything I touch from morning to night I do for the love of acting:
- I design websites not only to make a living, but so that I can apply that skill to promote myself and my projects
- I photograph productions, so that I can meet other people and get to know the different theatres
- I work with the SkyPilot Theatre not only because they are an amazing company but also so I can learn about the process of running a theatre
- I helped out on the Voices From Chornobyl film shoot, not only because I love my director, but also so I can learn about the process of making a film
- I teach at AFI through the SAG Conservatory, not only because I love to help actors, but also so that I can learn about myself and meet others in the industry
- I volunteer at Women In Theatre so that I can meet people and so that I can get them excited about Theatre in LA
- I go to plays and to see movies to learn and to support my friends
- I promote my friends who I work with so that I can promote my projects
- I blog to share my passion…
Everything I do has something to do with acting and the creative process.I find myself the most relaxed on set or in the theatre. That’s where I can finally breath, focus and be myself.That’s the only place, where I can feel my skin from the inside and where I can feel my heart beat. That’s where I really feel alive.I have been working monthly and weekly on one project or another and I love it. I always look forward to those few hours where I can be directed, where I can relax, where I can be amongst the creative people that feed me, encourage me and guide me.So am I lucky that I’m working? Am I lucky to know the people who cast me? Am I lucky to be cast?Maybe I’m lucky that I have the health and the energy. Maybe I’m lucky that I have a passion for something that most people are looking for their entire life. Maybe I’m lucky that I met the people who I love working with.But I don’t think I’m lucky to be working. I work very hard every day to keep in touch with the people. I work on staying in touch with my self. I work hard in promoting my shows and my projects. I work hard to support my fellow actors, directors, producers and writers. And I work hard on my craft every day!
Performances, work | 22.02.2008 1:09 | 1 Comment
Photography by Jean-Philippe DeFaut for The New York Times
Last Thursday I went to the screening of “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.” This screening was at the Samuel Goldwyn Theatre. Ronald Harwood adapted the book and since I’m in one of his plays (TAKING SIDES) I had to meet him and invite him to the play.
I almost didn’t see the invitation in my inbox but thanks to James Sharpe, the lead in the play, he sent out an email to ask us cast and crew to go. So I jumped on the opportunity and I rsvp’d and went to the screening.
I thought that there would be a q&a after the screening and I’ll get to see what he looks like and then approach him on stage. But there was no q&a and I had no idea how to find him.
After the screening there was mingling and desert in the lobby and the patio. There were so many people, how could I find him? Well, I walked up to a photographer and hoped that he would know. And indeed he was very helpful and he showed me Ronald Harwood’s photo on his camera screen. Then he introduced me to someone who showed me where Ronald was.
And so I met Mr. Harwood, shook his hand. I told him how great the play was coming along and how honored we would be if he could come out and watch it. Unfortunately he said he was busy but he would have loved to come, would we have invited him earlier. Bummer.
I still handed him the envelop I brought along with the invite in it and with my headshot and contact info. And the next morning he called me. That was a huge surprise! He called me twice. He didn’t want to leave a message, so he called me until he could get a hold of me.
When I picked up the phone, he thanked me for getting him the invitation, for coming out to the screening to meet him. Again, he said he’ll be flying to NY and he wont be able to come but he wishes our cast all the Best and much success for the rest of the run.
What a great man! And what a great experience. I am grateful for the man who writes things that matter and I was honored to have met him.
Goals, Performances, Taking Sides | 12.11.2007 16:22 | No Comments
Since I’m performing in TAKING SIDES, the play that is based on true events in the year 1946, I have been doing a lot of research about Germany, women growing up under the Nazi Regime, and I even tried to find some connection with me, my family and my past.
Well I found out earlier this year that I had a great-great aunt, who was a very famous Opera Singer, and a stage and film actress in Hungary. She lived from 1879 to 1955. Her name was Sari Fedak.
With some digging on some hungarian online groups and history websites, I found out that Sari was imprisoned after 1945 for one year. She was over 66 years old.
It turns out that she worked from 1919 on propagating the war and she ended up working for the Donausender Radio for the German Fascists.
Some searches later I also found out that at the age of 57 she adopted a jewish girl, who would have otherwise been deported to the camps.
This was not known until this girl, named Erzsebet Paksi Laszlone ( Elizabeth Paksi) went to see an exhibit about hungarian Divas in 2004 (68 years old at this time) and the exhibit inspired her to do some research in a local library.
Elizabeth found out by accident, that her father, Sandor Winter, was a jewish film maker, who married in 1935 a christian woman.
When Elizabeth was born, the family had to hide her and they took her to Sari to save her from the camp. Elizabeth’s mom never told her who her father was and Elizabeth never met her jewish dad. She only knew her mother and she was raised Catholic by Sari for 6 years and after that she was taken to a catholic convent.
I find this incredibly fascinating. What people did, what their motivation was, who they were, etc. How would I have reacted at that time? What side would I have chosen? Would I have died early or would I have survived? How do we choose between right and wrong, and how do we choose between survival or death?
I hope you will come out and see this show. I know it will inspire you in many ways.
Performances, Rehearsals, Taking Sides | 30.10.2007 16:19 | No Comments
I performed last Sunday in VOICES FROM CHORNOBYL and we had a full house. It was incredible!
My hubby and I had a few cyclists join us on our ride to the theatre and as promised, all cyclists got $5 off their tickets :-). We were three riders going over to the west side, and we met up with three others at the Theatre.
After the show a Russian woman went up to the director in tears. She loved it!
We had people linger a bit afterward but not much. This I think is a good sign. People had a lot to think about. Some of my friends looked like in a daze from all that information that was thrown at them. It was great but also strange.
In the past couple of years I worked on shows that were happy and cheery, and we talked and laughed afterwards. But this feels almost like after “A Bright Room Called Day.” People needed time to absorb and to speak about what they experienced. Some people came over crying, remembering wars that they lived through. The responses of “Voices” reminds me of that.
We have one more show on Sunday, October 14th at 7 pm and the seats are filling up fast. Please, RSVP now at 323.552.3333 or email bookshoptheatre@gmail.com to get your seats. Again, we offer $5 off for anyone arriving on a bike. More info is on the website www.voicesfromchornobyl.com
I hope to see you after the show!
Performances, Voices From Chornobyl | 5.10.2007 16:11 | No Comments
I’ve been rehearsing all week long for two plays that I’m involved in. “Taking Sides” and “Voices From Chornobyl” (I just built the website for it, check it out) two plays that are historical and that are heavy.
I have been rehearsing each day rotating the plays. One day I’m in Russia in 1986 and the next day I’m in Berlin, Germany in 1946.
My head is spinning and I just want to cry for all the people, for all those in the unknown, for all those who suffered. I want to scream, and wail after some of the rehearsals. And I want to shut everything out at times.
But I love what I’m working on! I love that I feel so alive that I can feel so much! I love the emotions that come up during rehearsal and during research.
Tomorrow I’m back in Russia and Sunday in Germany again. What a week! What an adventure! What a journey! I’m glad to be alive and healthy!
Performances, Taking Sides, Voices From Chornobyl | 14.09.2007 15:33 | No Comments
Today we had our first real rehearsal for “Taking Sides.” The cast came together at 12 noon at the little SkyPilot Theatre in Toluca Lake and after we signed away our life for the next 5 weeks of rehearsals ( 
) we got on our feet and on stage and worked Act I until almost 4 pm.
It was exhausting! Mentally! As we are getting to know each other as actors, we are also getting to know each others characters.
Michael Brainard, who is directing this play, directed me in two other plays at Stages Entertainment in Orange County. He was the first person to cast me on american stage
(Yes, Mike, if you are reading this, the truth is out. To be completely truthful, Mike, I am forever grateful for giving me your trust, the first time in “A Murder of Crows” and then a second time in “Frontier.” Working with you gave me a lot of confidence as a performer and as an artist. I thank you for that! And now you are giving me your trust for the third time. This is an actors dream come true!)
Rob Tepper, playing Lieutenant David Wills, I worked with before on “A Bright Room Called Day” by Tony Kushner and he is an amazing actor to work with!
James Sharpe is playing Major Steve Arnold, who blew me away at the table read and I’m looking forward to working with him for the next 10 weeks.
Katy Boyer, who has quite the acting experience on imdb, plays Tamara Sachs, and I’ll guarantee that her performance will blow your socks off. At todays rehearsal she didn’t hold back even though she had her hands full with the script and her pen.
Wilhelm Furtw??ngler is played by Benton Jennings whom you will probably recognize from many movies, tv show and/or his commercial appearances.
Helmut Rode is played by Eric Johnson, whom I can’t find anything about on line. Eric’s character is so amazing to me. It reveals so much about us human beings.
And lastly, I’m playing Emmi Straube, the secretary to Major Steve Arnold. I love me role for many, many reasons! I have so much going on internally. And I get to speak a few lines in German. I always wanted to speak German or Hungarian on stage and now I can (thank you, again, Mike!)
This is my short introduction to the cast. I’m still trying to absorb todays rehearsal and as I try to sort things out for me and for my character, I am feeling greatful for writers like Ronald Harwood who write meaningful plays with great characters that I can sink my soul into.
Performances, Rehearsals, Taking Sides | 5.09.2007 16:05 | No Comments
This past weekend I performed in Suzan-Lori Parks’ 365 Days/365 Plays that was produced by Smart Gals Productions.
There were a total of 5 of the plays performed and one of the Constants.
“Empty Bucket” was a one actor performance, where the actor carried water from one bucket to the other with a thimble. The actor could involve passerbys with an extra thimble or the actor could just focus on the task.
“All’s Not All Well” was not performed by actors but Smart Gals posted flyers of Dad’s in search of a home, with descriptions of each’s personality, strenghts, and a photo of themselves.
“Net” was performed with three actors. All three were playing a card or board game until an audience member showed up. At that point the actors worked their lines into the improvisational talk.
“David Hampton Daydreaming” was the fourth of the plays, and this was “performed” by a peddle boat peddaler who had a big sign on the back of the boat with two arrows pointing to opposite directions and the sign showing “Be Famous - 235 Miles”
The fifth performance was the Constant of the mourning woman.
Originally I was asked to perform in “Net” but at one of the rehearsal meetings I was asked if I could perform on one of the afternoons the “Empty Bucket” piece. I happily said yes. I put the entire weekend aside for this play, I attended 3 of their 5 free writing workshops and I was really committed.
The plays were mostly interactive with the audience and peoples reaction was always fantastic. When I did the “Empty Bucket” piece, I got kids to help me carry the water with the extra thimble. A hispanic couple who didn’t understand what I was doing helped me and so did many other passerbys.
The “Net” was fun, because I could interact with the other performers and the audience alike.
But the Constant was the most rewarding for me as a performer. Performing as the mourning woman was not of my interest, but when one of the performers couldn’t make it, for some reason I jumped on the opportunity.
I had no idea how I would mourn and cry for an hour in a public space. I had no idea if I was up for this challenge for this intimacy. But once I stepped into the role, holding the black umbrella, dressed in all black, there was no stepping back, no thinking about it, but I had to do it.
And, wow, was it a great exercise. I cried for an entire hour not realizing the passing of the time. I cried for the worlds poor, I cried about this worlds injustice, I cried because there was trash everywhere, I cried for my grandma, my sister and for the people who died in the war.
People came up to me, talked to me, took my picture and asked me questions about the play. And I didn’t stop my mourning, didn’t stop my crying. It was a fantastic experience.
I want to thank Christine Berry, the founder of Smart Gals, for trusting me, for believing in me and for giving me this gift of learning about myself. As an actor and as a person, I learned a lot this weekend.
(People, who wrote about this weeks 365:
Strange things spotted in MacArthur Park
All The Sweet, Green Icing
Smart Gals & Mamas Hot Tamales Present
365 Days/365 Plays, Performances | 16.08.2007 15:34 | No Comments
I’ve waited 9 months and I can finally put Suzan-Lori Parks 365 Days/365 Plays on my resume. Wohoo!
Four years ago the Pulitzer Prize-winning Suzan-Lori Parks sat down and committed to writing a play a day for the next 365 days. The world premiere of this play cycle is being performed as a yearlong national festival simultaneously in major cities and communities around the country.
I’m part of the Smart Gals Production of this weeks plays and I’m also every night at their free writing workshops. The writing workshop is part of the 365 Days/365 Plays in celebration of Suzan-Lori Parks commitment to write every day for an entire year.
If you want to join me tonight and tomorrow, come to Mama’s Hot Tamales on 2122 7th Street, 1/2 block west of Alvarado, across from MacArthur Park. Tonights subject is Nonfiction writing. Fridays is Songwriting. Come from 7 pm - 9 pm. It will be fun.
There are bike racks up front and the Metro Red Line Station is just around the corner (Westlake/MacArthur Park.) I can pick you up at the station if you let me know that you are taking it.
On Saturday and Sunday come out to MacArthur Park for the plays. The performances are at 10 am, 12 noon and 2 pm all over the park and “incognito,” so you will have to discover them. How to discover them and other info you can find on the Smart Gals Production website www.SmartGals.org.
See you there!
365 Days/365 Plays, Performances | 9.08.2007 16:17 | No Comments
It’s going to be a busy weekend with the EdgeFest and the The Bicycle Film Festival and the HelMel Block Party at the Bicycle Kitchen.
The Bicycle Film Festival is this week from June 28th through July 1st in Hollywood at the Vine Theatre.
The EdgeFest is on June 30th from 12 noon to 12 midnight in Downtown L.A. at the Regent Theatre.
The HelMel Block Party is on July 1st from 12 noon to 8 pm at Heliotrope Drive at Melrose Avenue in East Hollywood.
Join us for a ride on Saturday to both the EdgeFest and the Bicycle Film Festival.
We are riding to the EdgeFest on Saturday at 11:30 am from Hollywood to Downtown. We are meeting at the Hollywood and Western Red Line Station to see my play “Voices From Chornobyl” in the early afternoon.
Tickets are $12 for the entire day and they have an open bar.
At around 3 pm we will be heading back to Hollywood to the Bicycle Film Festival where we’ll stay until they kick us out.
Tickets are $8 per screening (and pst! You can bring your own bar )
Please, please, please, RSVP with me if you are joining me on any of the rides.
I haven’t heard back from many of you and since I will be making spoke cards, I’d like to get a head count.
Bike Ride, Performances, Voices From Chornobyl | 25.06.2007 16:23 | No Comments
I’m excited to be back in the Theatre, both as a PRODUCER AND as a PERFORMER. The Production is “Show-Biz, No-Biz,” two one-acts opening March 15th at the Next Stage Theatre on La Brea in Hollywood and running for 4 weeks. The two plays are “Backstage Grease” and “Hollywood Reigns” and I am performing in “Hollywood Reigns.”
Local Theatre is a labor of love and we need all the support we can get. (We also need your love but it’s money that pays the bills!) The fact that you have read this far tells me that you are truly a good friend and so I’m going ask you to help us out.
Please, visit www.ShowBizNoBiz.com and take a look at the “$upport” link. For the price of a couple of tickets to the Arclight you can support local theatre, get a couple of tickets to our show and play a huge role in the success of our production.
Goals, Hollywood Reigns, Performances, Support | 22.02.2007 16:30 | No Comments