Topsy Turvy Children's Show

I was so excited to be a part of Creating Arts Company's 'Topsy Turvy' Mini-Musical a few weeks ago!  Basically, things got turned upside down and all the characters were singing different songs while telling a story; so there were Princesses, Superhero's and Villains and it was a blast of a show!

I was playing Belle from 'Beauty and the Beast,' (this was my first time playing her character) and singing "Somewhere Over the Rainbow."  There were songs from 'Wicked,' The Black-Eyed Peas, 'The Brady Bunch' and more.  I even got serenaded by The Beast as he sang 'Your Song' and whisked me around on the dance floor.  I knew the songs from 'Wicked' but I guess I hadn't listened to them all that closely because as we were singing and harmonizing, I got chills.  All of our voices blended so well together, it was really beautiful.  This cast was stellar!

Right before Show-Time with some of the Princesses, Superhero's and Villains!

After both of our shows that weekend we got to take pictures, give autographs, get hugs and hang out with the kids which is one of my favorite parts.  That's what I missed about doing Children's Shows the most.  The kids are so innocent, smart and the way they look up to us is inspiring to each of us.  I had done our Adult Theater for the past year so this was getting me back in the swing of things with the kids.  It's basically play-time for us!  I was so in love with that dress, I felt like a Princess the instant I put it on.  Although, I may not go the ball-gown route when I'm picking out Wedding dresses in the future ;)

'Beauty & The Beast''

I always look forward to the Children's Shows because it's such a different environment and vibe! Unfortunately, I caught that Summer cold so I wasn't able to do a Princess Party the following weekend but there's always more and I can't wait to do another one soon!

Recapping...A Hooter's Reunion, Maleficent, and more!

I love that for the past three months I've been busy with performances and rehearsal for Creating Arts; it was awesome to get back into theater and be on-stage once again.  Plus, I loved meeting the kids after the show and hearing their stories.  But every once in a while, a little break is necessary, and last weekend was my first weekend off in months!

Kristina & I in matching blue :)

I had Hosted Karaoke on Friday night which was a lot of fun since my Wednesday's are usually pretty laid back, so this brought new life into Gabe's, and was a pleasant surprise.  On Saturday night, Kristina and I had planned a little catch-up since she had just gotten back from Mexico, so we made Dinner together, and then made impromptu plans to check out Ocean Bar on a Saturday night.  It was a spontaneous and fun night and great to spend a little girl time together :)

Then on Sunday I was going to our Santa Monica Hooter's Reunion.  I haven't worked there in over 8 years and people have come and gone, so it was nice that Angel had organized a get-together for all of us who had worked there to meet each other and enjoy some beers and wings as well.  We ended up at the Hooter's in Hollywood where about 10 girls and some of our regulars joined us for reminiscing and fun.  Jen (whom I had worked with, Angel too, all of us were bartenders as well) had a Wing Party from nearly 20 years ago that we were able to use.  A Wing Party lets you order as many wings as you want for an hour, so needless to say, we showed the Hooter's patrons how Hooter Girls eat!  I can't even tell you how many wings we ordered but I can tell you I saw lots of empty plates by the time I was leaving!  I'm really not a huge wing person but for some reason, I love my Hooter's wings!  I wish we could have gotten more girls together, especially for the time that I was working there but everyone is so spread out nowadays and have babies so it was more difficult than expected.  Still it was awesome to see everyone after eight years!  That was my first job here in Los Angeles and I'll never forget it.

Angel & I at the Santa Monica Hooter Girl Reunion!

This last Saturday I tried another new restaurant, my first for the month of June.  It was Magnolia Cafe, in North Hollywood, just a nice little cafe where I had some chocolate chip pancakes and Parmesan chips made from scratch.  A new restaurant but typical for breakfast.  I'm sure I'll be back there again!

That Saturday night, I wanted to take Katy out to see a movie for her Birthday, so she and her friend, Keeley, met me at the Century City AMC and we saw Maleficent.  I've been so excited to see this movie since Sleeping Beauty is my absolute favorite Disney movie.  I've never been a huge Angelina Jolie fan, I've always been team Jennifer Aniston, but I do enjoy her movies and think she's a good actress.  In Maleficent she actually blew me away!  I was so impressed by her transformation into the character, and how I felt for her the ENTIRE movie, even when she was being evil.  She looked so beautiful and after seeing the movie, there is no one else I can think of who would have played the part even half as good as she did.  She completely encompassed her role as Maleficent and brought tears to my eyes at certain points.  Not to mention, the visuals and scenery were just gorgeous.  They created a world unlike any other and told the story of Sleeping Beauty from her perspective and it gave new light to one of my favorite movies.  The only thing I didn't like was that it was so perfect, the viewer knew it wasn't real, and I would rather see some gorgeous Mother Earth created beauty than CGI.  And I wasn't really into the actor who was playing King Stephen, he did a good job, just didn't wow me.  Needless to say, I honestly can't wait to go and see the movie again.  I've been waiting for a movie like this to come along and break into my Top 5 favorite movies, and it did just that!  Incredible :)

How Hooter Girls do Wings...and that wasn't even half!

And I'll leave you with that :)

Playing Abu in 'Aladdin'

Last weekend 'Aladdin' opened at The Promenade Playhouse for two encore performances by our Creating Arts Company members.  I joined the cast that week as Abu, Aladdin's best friend and monkey.  I was excited for another different role in just three weeks and to challenge myself in a more active way with a lot of non-verbal action.

Our 'Aladdin' Cast and one of our biggest fans!

I went to my first rehearsal on Thursday and we did a sing-through of all the songs.  On Friday we ran through the show and got our costumes in order.  Then, on Saturday morning we had our tech rehearsal with full run-through, and then quickly ran over the music and a few scenes one last time before our 3 pm show!  As Abu I didn't have that many lines but I am with Aladdin in most of his scenes and do a lot of physical activity as well.  Most of my communication is non-verbal so I figured out a voice that would fit a monkey for my monkey chatter and got my hop on.

The show was an absolute blast!  We were so over-sold on Saturday that we couldn't even use the audience to stage entrances and exits because people were seated in them.  In fact, the kids were so far onto the stage at one point when I was exiting a little boy grabbed a hold of me and wouldn't let go.  On Sunday I felt even more into the character, bouncing around the stage even though my legs were so sore from doing that all day on Saturday.  It was really physical and the kids as well as the parents seemed to be enjoying my humor and fun with the character.  I would definitely play that role all over again!

We get the kids involved throughout the show but at the end of the show after we did curtain call we got the kids back on-stage to dance with us to 'Jai Ho' a traditional Indian song.  I was dancing with this little girl and she was just laughing the entire time so after the show she came and gave me the biggest hug.  Then her Dad thanked me because he got a beautiful picture of us dancing and wanted me to know how special it was to his family that I had danced with his daughter to such an important song in their culture.  It made my day.

Iago & Abu...we just get each other ;)

I honestly felt like I was playing the entire time.  It was just fun and easy.  This was totally different than anything I've played in the last few weeks with this theater company.  I don't think I've formulated that type of character in a long time and I felt like I brought it to life and made magic.  What we get to do is so important as we impact so many children's lives.  It's never work; it's just what I love to do :)

The Princess Extravaganza :)

Right after we finished up Wizard of Oz for Creating Arts we were already prepping for The Princess Extravaganza the following weekend at The Promenade Playhouse.  I had no idea how inspiring it would be seeing all the Princesses in one place at one time and I can't even imagine how the children felt when all the ladies were on-stage together!

Pocahontas Make-Up & Costume :)

I was playing Pocahontas that weekend and we had a total of four shows, two per day, and each show was packed with parents and children, friends and family.  I was greeting and ushering guests into the theater.  It was so much fun to have kids run up to me, excited to talk about their favorite princesses, and of course, the best part were the hugs!  I don't think there is anything better than a hug from a little girl or boy.  I loved that they recognized me right away and would just chatter away about the princesses or that they come to all the Creating Arts shows.  One little girl even recognized me from when I played the Wicked Witch.  I was amazed because I even changed my voice for this too!  I can't believe how smart these kids are :)

After the show started I was able to watch and to see all the Princesses on the stage together.  It blew me away.  Even when you're in Disneyland you may run into a Princess or two but it's very rare to have a few you see throughout the day, let alone 14 all in one place at one time.  If I was excited, I can't imagine the kids not being in total complete awe.  I did get to sing the last number with them and then I gave an announcement at the end for the raffle winners who would win a Princess Party.  Once we were outside we were swarmed by children and people on the Promenade asking for pictures, hugs, autographs, and stories.  Thankfully, I remembered enough about Pocahontas that I was able to talk about Flit and Meeko, and who could forget, John Smith.  It was a total blast!

Our Princess Extravaganza Cast!

We do these Princess Shows every few months and right now the favorites are Elsa and Anna from Frozen.  I'm looking forward to playing another Princess and getting to entertain these incredible kids again soon!

A Day in the Life of a Stand In

So yesterday I was doing my typical submissions on LA Casting & Actors Access throughout my day, in between my work-outs, and finishing up of my taxes (I finished my State Taxes yesterday, and am all done), when I got a phone call from a Production Company.  She asked if I was available on Thursday for the Stand-In job, remembering that I'd just submitted for that no more than a half hour ago, and they were looking for someone Hispanic, or at the very least mixed.  So I can play Hispanic, let's add that to the resume!  I was supposed to work at Irish Times, and I had already told the girl I was working for, two weeks ago, that I would cover for her.  I told the Production Company to give me 10 minutes and I would see what I could do.  After calling 5 people, I got a response from the lovely, Christa, that she would cover for me...thank goodness!!  So I called the PC back and told them I would be available and she said she would send the information right over. 

From the information, I knew I was working as a Stand-In, had a decent rate, it was for Disney, and I needed to be in Hollywood, hair and make-up ready at 8 am.  I had Karaoke that night so I knew it was going to be a long day on set today!

My alarm woke me up at 6:30 am and I got ready for my day.  Grabbing my sweater before I headed out the door and arrived in Hollywood, at Hollywood Center Studios 15 minutes early!  As soon as I got on set one of the Production Assistant's asked if I had eaten breakfast, and told me to grab something to eat.  The day was starting off with a bang!  I grabbed some eggs, turkey and vegetarian sausage, lots of fruit, and a croissant.   I met the other stand-in for the day, and sat down to eat my amazing breakfast, and then waited, and waited, and waited.  Over 2 hours later, and we finally got called to set!  It was freezing in the building and I was hoping under the lights it would feel better, but they were really challenging us, or trying to keep us awake.  The cold was actually my saving grace, since I was going on just about 4 hours of sleep, and I was so glad I had grabbed my sweater!

So what does a Stand In do?  Well, when they're setting the lighting, getting the set just right, putting all the props in, and figuring out all the details, the Stand In's, stand in, for the actors while they are getting their hair and make-up done, going to wardrobe, eating, or rehearsing their lines.  I actually was really glad to be doing it, because it got me on a set, I was able to talk to a bunch of the Crew and learn some things, plus, it's experience!  So once the set is all ready, then the actors come in and do their thing while the camera's are rolling...and that's when the magic happens.

I was standing in for Valery Ortiz, a latina girl with green eyes, and we actually do look a little bit alike, so I see why I was called to work.  She's one of ABC Family's Hosts, and the shoot was for the new Spring Promo's for ABC Family which is owned by Disney.  They were also shooting some shots for Acuvue as well.  The really cool thing about being her Stand In, was that when we were hitting our marks, I was able to do her lines, while reading from the teleprompter, thus, giving me an opportunity to work on my Prompter & Cold Reading Skills in front of a huge crew!  Basically, I took Hosting Classes today!  Valery was incredible, she was very professional, made very few mistakes for a long day, and was really fun to watch.  

Throughout the day, we were on set, and then off, while the actors were in, or while the crew was changing the set around for different shots.  While Daniel (the other stand in) and I, waited, we ate.  Craft Service was spectacular...dried fruit, strawberries, banana's, crackers and different kinds of cheeses, little snacks and munchies, desserts, tea, and more!  It was actually overwhelming, and kind of sad, because I couldn't eat any of the candy.  Lent is almost over and I can't wait to eat some Sour Patch Kids and drink a Root Beer!!  Around 1 pm we broke for an awesome Catered Lunch.  I chatted with some of the crew, they were all free-lanced, but this particular crew works together at least once a month, and they shoot these promo's on a regular basis.  One of the crew guys was even trying to buy an airplane, and made an offer to someone in Wisconsin!

After Lunch we went back to work, and finally at 6:30 pm they cut Daniel and I for the day.  I was literally so exhausted, even though I didn't really do anything.  Grazing on food all day long, getting practically no sleep, and being on my feet on and off for 10 hours really took it out of me, and I was so excited to come home and just hang on the couch.

So here I sit...writing my blog, drinking a cup of hot tea, certainly not eating anything anytime soon and catching up on some American Idol.  It's almost 9:30, and that might be my bedtime tonight!

3D Mermaids in Bathtubs

Wow...the end of last week and weekend just flew by, so much in fact I'm going to post multiple blogs today because not only was it a busy weekend but a very creative one at that!

Thursday night I was pleasantly surprised with tickets to see 'Beauty and the Beast' in 3D.  I have never seen a 3D movie so it was something new and exciting for me to experience.  I haven't seen this Disney movie in years, but still remembered most of the lines and all of the songs throughout the show.  It's interesting to think how the designers work on a movie that's been on DVD for almost 20 years and how they make it 3D.  Clearly, it's the new 'it' thing as 'Titanic' will be done later this year, (I'm definitely seeing that) as well as 'Star Wars' being worked on as well.  I think the most obvious 3D effects were the weather conditions as there's a ton of rain throughout the movie, which was really neat to see, and of course I loved the snow.  I didn't feel like it was overly done but had some great touches that enhanced an already great Disney movie!  The only negative aspect of the 3D experience was the 3D butter and white cheddar topping I put on my popcorn...I over-did it, and that's hard for me to say!

Friday was an incredibly busy day because I had 2 auditions, errands, and Karaoke later at night.  My first audition was in Sherman Oaks and was for a bank.  Auditioning for the role of a know-it-all wife, I had to sit in a bathtub while blow-drying my hair, and then was allowed to improv on my last line.  I read 3 times and had a great one-liner, where even the Casting Director said, 'Wisconsin, you're funny.'  Even if I don't get the role, that's compliment enough for me!

Then I was off to Santa Monica for my "Little Mermaid" callback.  I got there early and was able to sing two songs, my original audition song, 'Baby Love' was first.  Then I did a scene from the Disney Movie and felt like I was able to show my range because it was a longer scene so I could show different emotions.  When my audition was done, I asked if there was anything else they wanted to see, and could I sing a different song, perhaps one from "Little Mermaid" and they said yes, so I sang 'Part of Your World.'  I felt my call-back was stronger than my audition!

I ran a couple errands and then met up with my friend Khad for a late lunch/early dinner.  He's Vegan, and always introduces me to new places to check out.  I've become a huge fan of Green Peas thanks to him, and haven't been there in months so I was looking forward to it.  Unfortunately, it was closed for renovations, bummer at the time, but exciting for future visits, so we decided on Vegan LA, for which I had never been.  I had an amazing Thai Curry with Vegetables and Grilled Tofu, which was huge and awesome; I was able to take half of it home with me.  I finished my dinner off with Vegan Carrot Cake.  It was a little dense and not as flavorful as I was hoping, but was still good.

After an incredibly busy day I made my way to Gabe's to Host Karaoke.  At Karaoke, Marcus and I decided to play a little game in which we use a word from our previous song to direct us to our next song.  He chose the word 'Dust' so all his songs had 'Dust' in the title.  My original song was 'Don't Stop' by Fleetwood Mac, so I sang 'Nothing's Gonna Stop us Now' by Jefferson Starship which also kept up with my New Year's Resolution, and then chose 'Never Gonna Give You Up,' by Rick Astley, which is one of my favorite 80's songs, and another new song for me.  Overall, it was a busy and very fun night with visits from good friends!

Even after a long day, I missed one of my favorite girls and talked to her till almost 5 am and headed to bed shortly after.  Good thing her boyfriend lives in my building, and it's just a walk down the hallway to bed for me!

I wouldn't change a day like this for the world.  This is what I am in LA for, to pursue my career in Acting and I couldn't be happier.