Mars Attacks!

This Halloween night, I'll be on hand to narrate the invasion. This dramatic reading draws from the H.G. Wells classic, incorporating scenes and characters absent from the well-known film, TV or radio adaptations but essential to the author's vision.

Making Christmas

"Time to give them something fun they'll talk about for years to come. Let's have a cheer from everyone. It's time to party. Making Christmas...." So, now I'm a carpenter! Well, not really, but I have been helping to build the set for A Christmas Carol. We built a massive platform that elevates the actors to increase our visibility (not to mention making us look taller and more important). We're thinking of calling this revolutionary structure a "stage". But that's just the beginning. If you saw a Black Box Theatre production earlier this year and come back for this one, you'll be amazed at the transformation. I'm just amazed that I'm doing construction work. It's the first time I've done anything like this since flunking wood shop in the seventh grade. But I'm doing so well they've given me the all-important job of sorting screws!

The Hollywood Zone

On Thursday I got a frantic call. The actor who plays Robert in the Hollywood cast of Tales From the Shadow Zone couldn't make the Friday night performance. Could I please, please, please step in? Well, in the proud tradition of Underdog and Mighty Mouse, I answered the cry for help. Actually, I just seized an opportunity for a few extra minutes in the spotlight, but I can pretend like I'm some sort of hero. So tonight I found myself playing a familiar role with an unfamiliar cast in an unfamiliar venue. It was very interesting to experience how their personalities and choices affected the onstage dynamics and caused me to make different choices in reaction to them. Okay, it was still about four people in a cabin surrounded by monsters, but it had a whole different energy—not better or worse, just different. It was a clear demonstration of the living, organic nature of theater.

Inside the CD Club

Hey, I'm a casting director! Well, maybe not, but in the past few days I've been helping a technophobic director complete the cast of a play by posting notices online, screening applicants and scheduling auditions. So, like everyone else who has been involved in that side of the casting process for more than a minute, I now have advice to offer actors. How much is that worth to you? Nothing? Well, that's what I'm charging. These tips pertain particularly to actors using online casting services. Tip No. 1: Smile! I want to work with happy people. Besides, if I don't see your teeth in at least one of your photos, I'm going to wonder if they're little, brown, crooked and pointy. If you have little, brown, crooked, pointy teeth, you might as well let me see them now. They may actually be what I'm looking for. Tip No. 2: Provide an e-mail address. You're online. I'm online. Wouldn't it be great if I could reach you right now -- online? Oh, wait, there's another actor with comparable looks and experience and an e-mail address. I wonder which one I'll contact first. Okay, so two tips is all you get. It's free, and I told you I haven't been doing this long.

Brush With a Brush With Fame

So I'm at the Westwood Brewing Company (which isn't a brewing company at all) with an actress you've never heard of when she says, "I'm going to talk to Marisa Tomei" and leaves the table. A few minutes later she comes back and announces, "I just hugged Marisa Tomei," as indeed she had. Kind of makes me wonder how many other Oscar-winning actors I've been within hugging distance of without realizing it during all my years in and around L.A. Even when I've been on sets with famous people, I'm slow to recognize them. Well, there you have it: my first celebrity name-dropping. Pretty soon I'll resort to pictures of cute, furry animals.

The Girlz and I

Hey, that was all right! We had 18 people in the audience, which may not sound like a lot but for a show that got very little promotion opening in a 49-seat theater in the back of an office building in a nondescript area of Anaheim, ain't too shabby. After a brief introductory scene came the first of four self-contained episodes, "The Girlz," in which I play a nerdy scientist with a couple of dedicated personal assistants. The girlz and I have really hit it off. In fact, they demanded I step into the role after the original lead left the cast, and now they say I'm perfect for the part, which is kind of flattering and insulting at the same time. The second sketch, "The Virus," I'm not in, so it can go to hell. Then, after intermission, comes "A Date in Time." I can't say too much about my role in that, but it involves holding still for what seems like a very long time. My last appearance was in "The Woods Beast," which I was worried we hadn't rehearsed enough, but other than lights going up and down at random, one character having to exit through a window because the door was stuck shut, sound cues that consisted of silence or white noise, and my own Wizard of Oz moment (Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. Thanks a lot, Toto!), it went great! We just stuck with the characters and and did our best to keep the energy up and move the scene forward, and the audience seemed to enjoy it on one level or another!

The Curse of the Woods Beast

Wanna hear something really scary? One of the vignettes mentioned a post or two below this one hasn't had a full cast rehearsal for three weeks. Perhaps I shouldn't broadcast the fact on a public blog, but since judging by the lack of comments no one but me actually reads the damn thing, what the hell. Anyhoo, I was on my way to a rehearsal tonight when one of the other cast members calls to tell me she was having car trouble. Aiieee! Then, while I'm sitting alone in the dark parking lot, the director -- who has the keys to the building -- calls to tell me his car broke down. Aiieee! Eventually, another cast member shows up and says he only came to audition for another play. Aiieee! We open Saturday. Aiieee! Will the cast show up? Will we have rehearsed first? There's only one way to find out! Tales From the Shadow Zone, Second Stage Theatre, El Rancho Plaza Suite 140, Saturdays through Oct.29th at 8 p.m., 714-502-2249.

Here We Come a-Caroling

I just got back from the first read-through for A Christmas  Carol and I am definitely feeling the spirit. It's a very faithful adaptation, meaning all of the great lines are intact and undiluted. After seeing so many modern retellings I'd almost forgot how powerful the original is and filled with cheer, pathos, and wit, often in a single paragraph. And although the world has changed much since Dickens' time, the issues he addressed are just as relevant today. I'm going to enjoy immersing myself in this for the next several weeks.

Holiday Spirits

'Tis the season for struggling actors to find work in holiday-themed productions. Leading up to Halloween is the previously mentioned Tales From the Shadow Zone, in which I now find myself playing three parts. I swear I'm not bumping people off in order to take over their roles! On All Hallow's Eve itself it looks like I'll be taking part in a dramatic reading of War of the Worlds with my old friends the Long Beach Shakespeare Company, and soon I'll be in rehearsals for A Christmas Carol, details TBD. (What happened to Thanksgiving? Maybe I can find a production of The Crucible or something.)

Are You Frightened?

How do you suppose I feel?

Recast

Today I was upgraded from two walk-ons to a lead and a walk-on! Tales From the Shadow Zone is four sketches and a wrap-around, so there are actually quite a few "lead" roles, but now I've got some material I can sink my.... whoops, don't want to give anything away.

Rezoned

Last weekend I saw Moliere's The Miser at the theater where I appeared for several weeks this summer. Très amusant, but also a strangely melancholy experience, seeing our squalid cabin transformed into a bourgeouis drawing room, French dandies mincing and scheming where gods and nymphs had fought and frolicked. At moments I felt like jumping out of my seat to join them, but I knew that would be most unwelcome. There comes a time to let go, move on and make way, and that was, what, two and a half weeks on closing night? In that same spirit, I am no longer a Second City student. I was not, am not and never will be interested in short-form ensemble improv. Not that there's anything wrong with it, it's just not where my passion lies. I took the immersion workshop to broaden my skills as an actor and I succeeded, but I also got caught up in the excitement and camaraderie. I surprised myself by passing the audition for the conservatory program, but almost immediately began to suspect that my time and resources could be better spent elsewhere. Yes, it was fun, and yes, I made progress, but it was time to move on and rededicate myself to my own path, which does not lead to eventually becoming the oldest member of the Mad TV cast. So I've been working and auditioning, and today I find myself cast in a stage project called Tales From the Shadow Zone. Scary, huh? We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Might As Well Jump

It's a pogo stick! It's a motorcycle! No, it's definitely a pogo stick. Whatever it is, I created the Web site, and you definitely need one. Ladies and gentleman, I give you the eighth wonder of the world... Motostik!

Dejesification

Saturday night, after six exciting weeks of performances (and seemingly as many months of rehearsal), the cast of Pan took their final bows before an appreciative standing-room-only audience. Much revelry followed, during which a couple of newly retired nymphs compelled me to dance to Shake Your Booty, a fate which I had somehow managed to avoid until now. It was slightly less embarrassing than my karaoke rendition of Rocket Man the previous night. I'll miss seeing the other cast members regularly, but I won't miss the beard, which fell in bits into my bathroom sink before the sun came up the next day. I didn't really have a choice, as I had to audition for a part as a nerdy accountant (as opposed to the stereotypical action-hero accountant you see in so many movies) and then go play a doctor in a commercial -- except they had changed up the shooting schedule and when I got there they turned me into a patient. No big thing, as in this case they paid the same. I was a little disturbed that they were taking pains not to show my newly shaven face, until they explained I was too young and healthy looking. I could accept that. I still get paid, right? Monday and today were largely devoted to copyediting and site-building. Still found time to apply for more of those doctor and lawyer-type roles though. I may not be a highly paid professional, but I can play one on TV.

Father & Son

Almost as soon as I was cast in Pan, I decided not to invite my born-again Christian father. Although I've tried to approach the character of Jesus respectfully, the content and overall themes of the play mean it's not likely to become a favorite among Sunday-school teachers any time soon. But when one of the cast members said there was an older gentleman downstairs who looked a lot like me, I got a sinking feeling. When the stage manager asked me if I knew who the man in the cowboy hat was, my fears were confirmed. Well, family issues or not, the show must go on. If anything, my performance was edgier than usual. When I went downstairs after the play to face the music, my father surprised me by telling me how much he liked the show. And I'm pretty sure he meant it because he didn't use words like "interesting" or "different." He seemed to enjoy it more than my secular-humanist mother, in fact. Afterward we hung out with the cast, and he shared a story of seeing an out-of-town tryout of "Oklahoma." It turns out my father is a theater buff from way back!

Beverage Service

It's been a long day. I had an early call time out in Agoura Hills, where I worked on a public service announcement about stopping financial abuse of seniors. In this case, work consisted largely of lying on my back drinking beer, as I was playing a ne'er-do-well son stealing from his elderly father. I felt good about the work and it was for a good cause, but I may not let my parents see this one. I don't want them to get the wrong idea about me. Tonight was another performance of Pan. The audience tonight was very enthusiastic and receptive, and several of the performers seemed to find something new. It amazes me that after so many nights of rehearsal and performance, there are still discoveries to be made.

Oh, Henry

Last night some of the cast of Pan saw a rousing Henry V, presented as part of the 7th annual Long Beach Shakespeare Festival. Ron Elwell in the title role delivered the trademark speeches ("Once more into the breach..." and "We few, we happy few...") stirringly, Laura Kaplan was enchanting as Katherine of France despite speaking only a few words of English, and Stephen Wood as the Chorus and Exeter spoke with authority and clarity. I put together a photo album (pictures by Kristin Autry) at lbshakespeare.com/gallery. It plays one more weekend at the Long Beach Aquarium. Call 562-997-1494 for more info.

Back for Seconds

After weeks of internalizing and projecting someone else's words and ideas, it was both challenging and refreshing to be asked to write my own lines on the fly again. This week I returned to Second City LA, now a student in the conservatory program. Out of the 13 Immersion Workshop students with whom I auditioned, three are in the class with me. I had naively expected just to pick up where I left off six weeks ago, but now in place of all that existing trust and camaraderie I have new classmates and a new teacher, and it's been a while since I stretched those improv muscles. I think I laid an egg in the chicken sketch (ouch). But a few things seemed to click, and I'm confident by the end of session I'll have picked up a few new skills and hopefully some new friends as well.

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

One more three-nights-one-matinee weekend behind us. Today I projected less wrath, more compassion. Evan (young Pan) complimented me on the choice. I had to smile at getting praised for my Jesus by a sincere young man wearing horns and goat legs. You just can't judge by appearances. Afterward I went out with another actor and ended up at the marina listening to an impromptu drum solo. When I got up this morning I had no idea I'd find myself outdoors at the water's edge on a beautiful summer night, intoxicated with the rhythms of a topless beauty at one with her djembe. What would Pan do?

Shameless Exhibitionism

Over at MySpace I've posted some snaps from projects in which I've appeared this year. If you're not registered (free) you won't be able to view the index, but you can still flip through the pix using the "previous" and "next" links at the bottom of the page. Seeing all these pictures together, it occurs to me that I may be a bit odd. Posting them for the world to see confirms it.