SpringboardNYC 2012

Hello there!

Thanks for reading. This blog is obviously still under construction but I really wanted to get this post out there, as I promised I would write it! This is a long post. Just a warning. I could make a small book about all the things I saw/heard/did while in New York with Springboard, but I'm trying really hard to boil it down to what the overall experience was about, with a few details and ancedotes thrown into the mix! So...here it goes...

When people ask me how I liked this program, SpringboardNYC, the first thing I tell them is it literally changed my life. I know that sounds somewhat cheesy and vague but it's the most honest thing I could say. I feel like I've not only gained an incredible amount of knowledge about the theatre industry, but I've also gained incredible new friends, connections, andI was reminded of  why I want to do this crazy thing called acting for a living. I also feel that I rediscovered some parts of myself that maybe had been buried under four years in college doing work as a history major, a small school setting, and maybe a little bit of negativity I'd put over myself.

BUT those are all giant things to talk about. Each one could be a separate post. So let's back up a little bit and talk about what the heck I was actually doing in New York for two weeks besides making life discoveries. Actually, I'll back up even a little further and talk about how I got to SpringboardNYC.

Michael Thomas, the amazing artistic director of The Renaissance Theatre in Mansfield, OH sent me an e-mail one day about Springboard. He thought it may be something I was interested in doing. This was last summer, I do believe. I thought it sounded pretty cool but I didn't really know exactly what I'd be doing or what it was all about teaching me. The most appealing thing was the prospect of being in New York, learning about the craft I love. So months later, I got ahold of Michael and told him I was going to apply. He generously helped me get on top of the auditioning process. I decided to apply to the general performance program because, while I LOVE musical theatre (and later would learn that's probably what I should be doing), I felt I'd have better odds in the general performance catergory. I always get very nervous when I have to sing in an audition scenario. So after lots of searching around, Michael decided he would put together a monologue for me from bits and pieces of a show he wrote and produced at The Ren. a couple years ago called REMEMBER ME ALWAYS. I was thrilled that he was so graciously putting so much time and effort into helping me get into the program. How fun to have a monologue thatt would be all mine, one no one else would be performing! So, I did that piece and the classic "Ring Soliloquy" from Shakespeare's TWELFTH NIGHT. The later being something totally foreign to me. I was sure that piece alone would knock me out of it. I've never done any Shakespeare and the thought of it (which has since changed) made me queasy. But, I did the two pieces on camera, I posted them to YouTube and waited. After lots more paperwork for the application process, and lots of wishful thinking and hoping, Randy Lutterman (the director of the program) called me and notified me that I was accepted into the program in mid-April. After that phone call I most certainly did a happy dance and may or may not have squealed a little bit (no one else was home). I also went and gave my neighbors hugs because of course that's what one does when one has found out they are going to New York to pursue their dreams for two weeks with 36 other amazingly talented young performers who were chosen out of 500 that auditioned for the program.

Fast forward to June 4th and I'm on a plane headed to the City. My dear friend Stephen J. Thompson let me take over his adorable studio in Long Island City for the full two weeks (THANK YOU STEPHEN!) which was such a perfect location. The subway entrance to the 7 train is literally right outside the apartment, making it a ten-minute commute to the Theatre District in Manhattan. Oh, by the way, the program took place mainly at Manhattan Theatre Club on W. 43rd street just a couple minutes walk away from Times Square. MTC produces a lot of amazing work on Broadway. For example the recently closed VENUS IN FUR (for which Nina Arianda won the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play - And totally deserved it) was produced by Manhattan Theatre Club. Working in this space was amazing. Some days we'd just be hanging out in the salon eating lunch and OH, hey, there's Judith Light talking to Randy. Or there'd be readings for some new play going on in the next studio over. It was a neat and important place.

A typical day in the program consisted of going to MTC at 9am and then going through a little session with Randy or Joanna Sheehan, or Jeremy Desmon (who are equally awesome in their own right). Then from 9:30 am until (most days) 11pm we were booked. The groups took part in sessions ranging from Master Classes with the likes of Kathleen Marshall and David Caparelliotis to Q&A with Artists like Tony Award winning Nina Arianda, Tony Award winner Christian Borle, actress Amy Ryan, and even the creative team of Peter and the Starcatcher.

As if these amazing sessions were not enough, Randy and the team behind SBNYC got us tickets to Broadway shows, and man, do they know how to pick 'em. We saw Peter and the Starcatcher, Clybourne Park, Newsies, Once, Porgy and Bess, Soho Rep's BEAUTIFUL production of Uncle Vanya, and I saw Venus in Fur on my own time. On top of seeing the shows, we got to actually stay after the house cleared out and talk with the casts and creative teams of some of the shows including Peter and the Starcatcher (met with most of the cast and  the author of the play actually was there that night, HOW COOL!?), Clybourne Park (most of the cast), Uncle Vanya (we spoke with director Sam Gold), Porgy and Bess (almost all of the cast which was incredible...Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis!!), and Newsies! It was magical to hear these performers discuss their work with us.

When we weren't absolutely exhausted from the day's work, or we were given free time to explore the city, I got to hang out with some of the most amazing people. All of the other students in the program were just gems. It may be hard to believe that 37 theatre people spending two weeks together in close proximity would work (due to egos and God knows what else) but it totally worked. It was INCREDIBLE. We spent time going to other shows, exploring the shopping Manhattan has to offer, going to Willamsburg and the flea markets, indulging our eyeballs at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, relaxing in Central Park, and belting out some tunes at a karaoke bar. I really truly believe these lovely people are some of my dearest friends now and I can't wait to be in the city with them again. We have constantly kept in touch since the program ended via Facebook and Google Chat. We even have some online play readings planned for the upcoming weeks!

SO, what did I learn at Springboard? Here is a little list of some of the things that "magically" seemed to be reiterated from several mentors.

1. BE YOU. People on the other side of that audition table want what you've got. Not how you think they want you to be...but YOU. As Dave Cap said, come into the audition room with your "comet-tail" of personality- don't leave it outside that room.

2. New York is not so scary. Okay, I knew this going into the program, as I'd been there a few times before. But never had I spent that much time on my own in NYC. I felt so at home and people were lovely. Also, beacuse of the amazing series that Springboard gave me on how to live in New York (everything from how to do taxes to how to get an apartment to the best walks in the City) I feel like I can actually make the City my home and it's financially do-able.

3. I learned a lot about how to pick audition material. The process is always so daunting to me because it is a little overwhelming. But hearing several mentors talk about what they look for in a piece and hearing others do their pieces, it gave me a more suitable starting place to start looking. I've read 3 plays in the past week and am currently surrounded by books full of plays. SO EXCTING!

4. The job of acting is AUDITIONING. Not being in shows. So you've got to treat that as your job.

5. Actors do not get ahead by being pompus and full of themselves- even in the big city. You've got to be a genuinely nice person and pay your respects to those around you.

6. The 6 block rule. Don't talk about anything related to that show you just saw because the producer...or his girlfriend...or that actor who might-have-flubbed-a-little-bit's mom is probably right behind  you walking out of the theatre.

7. Be open to doing LOTS of things! Try saying YES! (this was big for me because I used to be this way about stuff in high school and I feel like I lost a little bit of that spark- got it back, baby!) BUT at the same time. You can say NO. You have that right. Know what you can and can't do.

Those are just some of the over-arching themes of the two weeks. But I learned an incredible amount. SO MUCH.

I feel like I'll probably end up posting more about certain things/shows/people as I think of them. But that's the scoop on the experience that is SpringboardNYC. If you're reading this and you're about to graduate or you're a recent college grad who wants to live as an actor in NYC- let's talk about this program. You NEED it.