Fierce Friday!

Friday was a great last day filled with lots of variety.  Group meeting in the lobby at 8:00 a.m. to discuss Thursday's events and discoveries, and then headed out to our session with Logan Tracey on "The Hustle."  Now before you get any wrong ideas, hustle refers to the business side of being a performer.  Logan brought home the fact that you really MUST operate as the CEO of your own company.  She discussed audition materials (resume, postcards, headshot), effective use of social media (I'm STILL resisting being on Facebook), and taxes, and she then looked at the resumes and headshots that the students had brought along.  She was very fast-paced, "real," concise, funny, and we felt like we were getting inside information on structuring a career.  I think Logan was an invaluable addition to the itinerary, and she offered to help us individually in any way she could.  I took lots of notes, especially about specific trade magazines and websites that are essential for the actor.  Her focus was on acting, but she was also knowledgeable about music theatre, voice over, and had some advice for classical performance as well.  It was also cool to hear her story and see yet another path to a life in the arts.  She works at a small theatre company and has lots and lots of performing experience in different genres.  We were with her from 9-12 and covered a lot of material.  While I was there, I also picked up a copy of "Backstage" which is the essential publication for theatre auditions.  I will definitely stay in touch with Logan!  Thanks to Britney whose network was the connection to Logan (through cousin Ingrid).

Britney and Logan

The studio, at The Network (242 West 36th St), was in the Fashion District, where I had not yet been and it was fascinating to see all the wholesale clothing stores and to be reminded of the huge markup of retail.  It is a good studio to keep in mind, as it is one that is regularly used by casting agents for theatre, tv, and commercial work.

We all went our separate ways (in groups of 2) to spend our last bit of unscheduled time finishing up whatever we still wished to get done.  I headed back to the hotel to catch up on blogging and to change clothes--it is almost hot today!  The weather is incredibly warm and kind of humid so a bit of rest was much appreciated.  At 3:15ish I met some students downstairs (by the way, my room is on the 7th floor and the elevator is hand operated by either an elevator guy or the front desk person.  Certainly very old school) and we made our way to Lincoln Center to the Starbucks on Columbus and 67th where we met my friend from college Rob Kleinendorst.  Rob is the dancer on the Paul Taylor poster!  We talked with him from 4:00 until his call at 5:30.  He had a concert that evening at the David Koch Theatre in Lincoln Center.  This is the first run the company has had in that theatre.

Rob has danced with the Paul Taylor Company since 2000.  He moved to New York with the goal to dance with the company and worked his way up through dance classes at the Taylor School starting in 1996, then into Taylor 2 in 1998.  His story of hard work and determination makes me proud to be his friend, and I know it was inspiring for the students.

Rob talked about touring, taking care of your body/instrument, knowing what your talent is, gave advice for moving to NYC, and urged the students to have perseverance.  In his experience, many of his colleagues that moved to NYC at the same time had stopped pursuing the career by the end of the first year.  Rob also talked about his passion for teaching, which is a big part of the Paul Taylor tours.  Lastly, he shared with us that the company will be traveling to Paris this summer, and that he likes cats. :)

Rob, it was great to see you!  Thanks for sharing your time during your busy performance schedule.  http://www.ptdc.org/node/333

               

Leisa, Ken and I then headed to the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts for a recital by tenor Paul Appleby.

Paul is a 3rd year member of the Met Lindemann Young Artist Development Program--I have heard him in recital one other time and he was truly an outstanding recitalist.  He did not disappoint on this evening!  He sang Schubert, Faure (the entire "La bonne chanson"), Wolf, and a cycle composed for him by Harold Meltzer.  He was accompanied beautifully by Natalia Katyukova.  I have rarely heard a singer perform which such nuance on each word--he truly seems to taste and feel the words as he sings them, and I do not tire of hearing him!  Tomas and Steph joined us there, and then we all booked it to the Stephen Sondheim Theatre for "Anything Goes."  There were some very loud, very annoying high school students behind us (which I am determined to forget) but despite them it was a very exciting performance and of course an AWESOME score (love ya Cole Porter!).  Tari Kelly was a wonderful Reno Sweeney, and it was incredible to see Joel Grey and John McMartin perform live--they and the entire cast were great.  The tap number at the end of Act 1 was breathtaking!

We had great seats (except for the high schoolers) in the middle of the 5th or so row of the mezzanine, and after the show we got to stay in the mezzanine for a talkback with some of the actors!

Andrew Cao is a cousin of a friend of a... you know, six degrees of separation.  BUT, he agreed to meet with us, and he announced it to the cast and four others showed up too!  They answered questions about staying healthy, auditioning, and gave advice to young actors for survival/success in this competitive business.

Michelle Loucadoux (Swing)

Tari Kelly (Reno Sweeney)

Bill English (Billy Crocker)

Tari Kelly (Madison native and excellent belter--which she believes is grounded in classical technique)

Bill English (learned the role in two weeks, and his first night with the cast was his opening night!)

Raymond J. Lee (John)

Andrew Cao (Luke, and the reason we got this talk back- thank you Andrew!) (Also from Wisconsin!)

http://www.anythinggoesonbroadway.com/

This show is a great example of grand old Broadway and was a perfect way to wrap up our immersion.  Our last group meeting took place at 12:05 a.m. in the lobby.  The reflections shared by the group were very moving--I'm sure some people will be sharing those thoughts here so I will not, except for my own.  On my previous trips to NYC, I was concerned solely with the performances and the art and not really the people creating them.  Because I am quite a private person, I do tend to separate the people and the art.  This trip was equally about the people who bring the art to life, and I absolutely loved experiencing the music in this new way.

No sleep tonight, as we meet in the lobby at 5:10 a.m.  Zzzzzzzzzzz
Mitra