My deepest apologies for keeping you waiting nearly two months for a new post. So much has happened this summer and I can barely comprehend that it’s nearly August.
After my first showcase in June, my acting troupe took a bit of a summer break and I was doing a bit of background work here and there. Mostly on Boardwalk Empire. A birthday came and went and was surrounded by lovely friends and fireworks. More background work. Family came into town and I got to show them around my wonderful city.
Another season has started up with The Actor’s Project NYC and we move forward to our next showcase. More info to come.
In the meantime, I will be updating my blog with pictures and videos.
Back to watching the Olympic Opening Ceremonies! Team USA!!
I can’t believe May is almost gone and it already feels like the middle of summer in the city. It was already 90 degrees by 11am today. Yikes!
My first NYC showcase is less than a week away. I’m incredibly excited to get to perform with The Actor’s Project NYC. We had our first dress rehearsal last night and I am truly honored to have the opportunity to share the stage with such a talented and funny group of actors. We will be performing for friends, family, and industry professionals (agents, managers, casting directors). Hopefully an agent or manager will call me into their office after the showcase for a meeting and we can begin working together. *fingers crossed*
I love the monologue that I am performing. Anyone who has every worked in food service or hospitality will be able to relate. It is about a waitress dealing with bouts of insomnia and suicidal tendencies. I promise it’s really funny. Promise.
If you are in the NYC area and are interested in attending, I suggest you get your tickets now. Tickets can be purchased on The Actor’s Project website. My showcase will be Monday, June 4th at 7:20pm. The show will last until 9pm, and there is an after party at Bourbon Street Bar & Grill.
It’s been a while since I have given you a real post, so here goes.
The past few weeks have been busy and it’s time to catch up. I worked on The Big C, Gossip Girl and Law & Order over the past weeks. Super fun! I was accepted into an acting troupe, The Actor’s Project. They present showcases throughout the year and work towards getting their members representation with agencies. I found a dance facility, Liberated Movement, that offers donation based dance classes. Lot’s of fun and getting me back to dancing. I have work coming up this coming Tuesday for Boardwalk Empire. Kinda excited about it.
If you are a regular watcher of CBS Sunday Morning you probably saw this segment about what it take to be a background actor. It’s not glamorous at all. Nothing about it is glamorous. Maybe getting your makeup and hair checked by the hair and makeup folks is a tiny bit glamorous. Other than that, you cart around your entire wardrobe in a suitcase on the subway in order to get to set on time, sometimes 6am. You hope that you have brought an outfit that the wardrobe people approve for you, usually it is the outfit you wore to set and you didn’t need to bring all of your other stuff. Then you sit in a large room, if you are lucky, all day and wait to be called to set and then arranged like strategic chess pieces, or houseplants, and told when to move or cross and what you should be pretending to do. It’s a lot of waiting around for very little screen time. Most people bring books, computers, knitting or work on other projects. Or you can usually take a nap if you can find a quiet corner. Sometimes you get to see the stars of the show. Most of the time they are far away and you could never get a chance to lock eyes with them. Other times you run right into them like I did. I was making a cross that I was directed to do and ran right into Danny Pino from Law & Order. He was very nice and asked if I was ok. That is the closest I’ve gotten to talking to a star on set. I’m there to do a job and so are they. Not take pictures and hang out in front of their dressing room. Those people don’t book work after that. I know I’ve broken the illusion of this side of the business for many of you. Sorry. It’s all very fascinating and tedious when you are a part of it. I love it.
I also wanted to give you a listing of when I was on TV and what’s coming up so you can set your DVRs. I’ve also given links to any shows you may have missed. Some shows haven’t aired yet. I promise I will let you know when they are coming up.
Law & Order: SVU “Father’s Shadow” Air Date: 2/8/12 Look for me at the barricade in the background and again as the police car pulls thru the barricade. Black coat & green scarf.
“Hunting Grounds” Air Date: 2/22/12 Look for me on the beach digging. I’m on the left side of your screen for a split second.
“Valentine’s Day” Air Date: 4/11/12 Look for me at the airport as they chase down a suspect.
Blue Bloods “The Life We Chose” Air Date: 2/24/12 Look for me in the background in the squad room.
“Reagan V. Reagan” Air Date: 3/9/12 Look for me at the bar when Danny comes in.
Gossip Girl “Despicable B” Air Date: Unknown Look for me at the restaurant in the back and waiting outside.
The Big C Unknown Episode Title and Air Date Look for me in the hotel lobby. Susan Sarandon and Oliver Platt at the bar Gabourey Sidibe in the lobby.
Boardwalk Empire Unknown Episode Title and Air Date
I have also booked an audition with Sleep No More. You can find reviews for the show here and here. They do a much better job at describing the show than I could ever do. Basically, it is the story of Macbeth set in a 1930’s hotel. The audience can follow the actors around they hotel as they perform/dance. The audience is masked and is given free range to go into the different hotel rooms and follow the actors around. Super fun and super creepy. I have no idea what to expect from this audition. All I know is that it will be a movement audition. That’s all. I talked to friends who have seen the show and they say it is weird and creepy. So I guess I will be weird and creepy for the audition. I want to book this show so badly. I know it’s my first dance audition in NYC and I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up. I hope to go in and do my best and hope they see something in me that they like and can use. Fingers crossed.
My usual part time retail job is cutting back hours and hasn’t scheduled me at all for the past two weeks. It’s nice to have the time off and schedule background work when I can, but the background work is not steady work yet. I have applied for many, many administrative-like positions and retail positions, but haven’t heard back from any of them. So. Here I am doing what I’m really not good at, asking for help. I’m applying for every job I can, but if anyone has any contacts up here in NYC or knows of any job openings, please let me know. I’m also taking donations. Anything at all. In exchange for your donations you will receive my undying love and appreciation and the knowledge that you are letting me pursue my life long dream. I can also repay you in handmade jewelry, original paintings and tasty treats. You pick. I will put a PayPal donation button on the side bar and leave the rest up to you. Thank you.
I will keep you updated of my adventures on Boardwalk Empire and my upcoming audition. Until then, goodnight.
Time to set our DVRs! You’ve got three chances to see me on tv this week!! Law & Order: SVU
Wednesday, Feb. 22nd – ‘Hunting Grounds’ – Look for me on the beach as a CSU tech. A Gifted Man
Friday, Feb. 24th – ‘In Case of Letting Go’ – Look for me drinking coffee as Kate talks to Anton in the cafe/cafeteria. Also, you may be able to see me as Rita runs after the husband in the lobby and as Michael talks to Anton in the lobby. Blue Bloods
Friday, Feb. 24th – ‘The Life We Choose’ – Look for me in the squad room at a desk in the back handing out papers.
It’s been a month. Ok, a little more than one month since I have moved to NYC. Many of you know that I have been finding work as a background actor as well as working a retail job a few days a week. I am finding my way around my little neighborhood and making friends with some of my neighbors. I helps that I already had 2 good friends in the building before I moved in. I don’t have many nights to go out and see a show since I am busy working, but I have made a goal to see one show a month. I’ll start saving my pennies now.
I have been taking a few pictures during my time as a background actor. Nothing too fancy. No pictures of me with the cast of Law & Order. I’m there to be professional and do my job and so are they.
Here are some of my pictures during my first month in New York.
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Not a bad month. I went for a wardrobe fitting today to possibly do some background work on ‘Boardwalk Empire’. Not too shabby.
I have also made myself a page on Facebook that I will update with info about what shows I will be in and their air dates. Here is what I have so far:
Law & Order: SVU – Wednesday, Feb. 8th – ‘Father’s Shadow’ – Look for me in the crowd scene near the end, near the barricade. Also, Wednesday, Feb. 22nd – ‘Hunting Grounds’ – Look for me on the beach as a CSU tech. A Gifted Man – Friday, Feb. 10th – ‘In Case of Complications’ – Look for me in the gallery of the courtroom and in the hallway of the courthouse. Blue Bloods – Unknown air date – Possibly in March The Revolution – Daytime talk show – Feb. 13th – I’m in the audience in a green shirt. You can see me when an audience member asks a question about linen closets and baking biscuits.
I know I haven’t posted in a few days. Not every day is cocktails and carriage rides as some tv shows and movies would lead you to believe. Some days are just about pjs, cereal and reruns. And that’s a pretty good day.
Anyways, nothing exciting has happened over the past week. Sunday we all went down to the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church to see a friend sing in a church vespers service. The church is very ornate and beautiful.
The rest of the week was pretty uninteresting. I applied for a few jobs and I hope to hear back from them soon. I think I will have to wait until the holidays and seasonal positions are done before I can look for regular positions. I’m still going to keep applying, just staying patient.
I may also have an apartment lined up. A neighbor in the building I am staying in is looking for a roommate. I am going to be talking to her on Sunday and possibly finalizing some details.
Yesterday I got up bright and early and got myself all pretty and made my way downtown to register with Central Casting. They are an agency that provides background actors for tv and movies. I filled out all my paperwork, got my picture taken, listened to their orientation, gave them my availability and was on my merry way. An hour later I checked my phone and I had a call from them asking if I was free for work the next day. Yes!!!! Of course I’m free. They said they would call me back to confirm and give me directions. I waited and waited. In the meantime, I went all over town in search of some business casual separates. I didn’t bring any nice black pants or skirt with me. I found my separates and made my way home. I called the back to see if I could get conformation and I did. I would be an extra on ‘A Gifted Man’ in Brooklyn. I was to arrive at noon and await further instructions. Woohoo! I had booked a job.
I got a good nights sleep and woke up and made myself all pretty and made my way down to the set. I can’t give out any details of what happened. I’m not sure of the whole plot myself. I also don’t know when the episode will air. Don’t worry, I will let everyone know about it. We were schedule to be filming until midnight or later, but were all dismissed around 10pm.
A very interesting day. I hope there are more to come.
I hope you all had a fantastic night. I spent much of yesterday meeting with apartment brokers and trying to find a home in this wonderful city. They brokers were lovely and very willing to help….if I only had a job. So that is what I will focus on today.
I meet up with Christie yesterday afternoon at her work and went home with her as she was not feeling well. We had a Harry Potter movie marathon, thanks to ABCFamily. I left her with her cough drops and hot tea and I went down to the Village to see a show. I scored some free tickets to ‘Standing on Ceremony‘ and am so glad I was able to see it before it closes in 2 weeks. The format is similar to ‘The Vagina Monologues’ or ‘Love, Loss, and What I Wore’. A series of monologues and scenes on the subject of gay marriage. Monologues and scenes written by Mo Gaffney, Neil LaBute, Moises Kaufman, Wendy MacLeod and many other, all performed by Beth Leavel, Polly Draper, Craig Bierko, Mark Consuelos, Harriet Harris and Richard Thomas. I laughed, I cried. I hope everyone gets a chance to see it.
Sometimes a little prayer can work. As I was making plans for the day this morning, I received a call from an apartment broker that had some apartments for me too view. I made plans to see the apartments tomorrow. *fingers crossed* I also made a call about a Craigslist apartment I found and have an appointment to view it tomorrow. Hopefully I can win them over with my charm and wit and they won’t notice that I do not have a job yet. I can provide them with first and last months rent and a security deposit. Cross your fingers, say a prayer, light a candle that these meetings can lead to an eventual home for me and my stuff.
A friend was having a small get together downtown to celebrate her birthday. We both went to undergrad together at UofA and hadn’t seen each other in years. Except on Facebook. We caught up and made plans to see each other later in the week.
As I left the get together, I walked up to Rockefeller Center to see a very lit up tree and up to Columbus Circle to see some more lights. I took pictures.
Today didn’t bring about anything super exciting. Lots of apartment searching online and emailing brokers.
Christie and I went out to meet a friend for dinner for tapas and sangria. Yum.
Tomorrow will bring more apartment hunting and new adventures.
As I lay my little head down for the night I am sending out the following prayer to the universe.
Dear Apartment Gods,
It’s me, Dianna. You have been wonderful to me in the past. Found me the perfect apartment in the past. Apartments that were original, charming, cozy, affordable, and..well, you get the idea. They were great. I’m asking for your help again, this time in NYC. I know it will be a little bit tougher than before to find the right place, and I am willing to wait for the right place to come along. All I ask is that the apartment be big enough for my furniture, be affordable, pet friendly, have sane neighbors, landlords who are not skeezy or boneheads, located in a safe neighborhood and be a place I can be proud to invite friends and family over. See. That’s not much to ask. Oh, and enough with all of the scams posted on Craigslist. Everything I’ve been finding is usually too good to be true or out of my price range. I am willing to do the searching and the calling and the emailing and all the looking.
So I’ve made it to NYC. I arrived on 11/29 and today was my first full day in town. I had a super long day when I arrived, 6am flights can take a toll on a person. I slept in this morning and mad a plan for the day. Call on a few apartments and go downtown and see the tree lighting. That was the plan. I like plans. I even had a helper.
I called on an apartment in the building I am currently staying at and also looked meet with a girl who is looking for a roommate. If nothing else pans out, I can move in with the roommate for a few months until I can find something else. I made my way down to Union Square to take a look at their holiday market. Adorable. Neatly laid out booths, well-lit and decorated. With the smell of apple cider, coffee, bagels and chocolate in the air. Perfect evening. I went over to Brooklyn Industries and purchased a new purse. Perfect to carry keys, MetroCard, wallet, phone, scarf and a book. And it’s pretty darn cute too.
Since I was already downtown, I wandered up to Rockefeller Center to see if I could get a glimpse of the tree lightning. Well, I walked up to Herald Square to Macy’s to see the Christmas windows, around Times Square and up to Radio City and close to Rockefeller Center. I couldn’t get all the way there. The streets surrounding the tree were blocked off and it was crazy crowded. I decided to save the tree for another night and headed back up to the apartment for some tv with friends and make it an early night.
And Now Ladies And Gentlemen 