My apologies to my boss, as I should be working right now, but I had to stop and write this. I've had several blog ideas bouncing around in my head since my last post (it's really been almost two months?!?!?) but other things (like work & travel & vacation) kept taking priority over sitting down to type.
But this morning... It started like most mornings recently. The alarm went off. I hit snooze. I rolled over and went back to sleep. The back up alarm went off and I turned it off. The snoozed alarm struck again and I laid in bed listening to NPR and scrolling my Facebook feed on my phone before finally getting up to make breakfast and a cup of tea. I turned on the computer and opened all the 'work' windows - posted the Babes new header image to Facebook, posted about how sore I am from yesterday's workout and started to sort the emails. Then, I saw the SCOTUS decision. It FILLED my Facebook feed. It filled my eyes with tears. My mouth instantly rose into a smile. It's not often one can recognize the impact of the times as we're living in those times. But this IS history. This is a moment of definition - I see it. I love it. And I'm weeping. (I honestly didn't expect this to have such an impact on me, but there you go. Feeling all the Feels!) Maybe it's the fact that just this past weekend I was at the wedding celebration of two of the loveliest women I know. (or maybe it's because I think consenting adults should really be able to do pretty much anything they damn well please so long as no one is being physically hurt or mentally/emotionally manipulated) Love each other, folks. #LoveWins It's Shakespeare's birthday and I'm performing in a Shakespeare play that opens tonight. Coincidence? Maybe. Clever marketing plan? Possible. A jaw-droppingly good time? Definitely! And here's some pics to prove it - that Johnny Knight is an amazingly talented fella. That's me as Widow, or as I've dubbed her on various days: Mrs. Roper/Dorofia Blanrose (a compilation of all 4 Golden Girls). (Costume Design: Theresa Ham) And here I am with the other 'rejected Lords' - I've dubbed my character Jimmy Mack (though the King calls me Lenny - must be the blank stare look!), then there's Bucky who is too young. Not sure what Helena's problem is with Madison and Rinska, but alas, they didn't make the cut either! Poor Parolles didn't even get a chance.
I'm a big fan of books. I used to love summer vacation because it meant I could start a book during the day, and then stay up as long as I wanted that night so I could finish it because I didn't have to wake up early for school the next day. (Yes, I was a nerd. Shocking, isn't it?) I still love reading and miss that simple joy of picking up a book and not really moving until I've finished the story. Oddly, I don't feel the same way about plays. I'm a horrible play-reader. I find it difficult to imagine the whole world with just the characters' dialogue (and no, stage directions don't help!). I think that's why I love rehearsal - using the script, the actors, designers, and directors get to create the world that the dialogue lives in. They get to make it all up and I find that to be a much more fun & rewarding experience in the company of other creative folks, rather than sitting by myself with some pieces of paper (or a Kindle). With books, the author has an amazing ability to place you in a world that is already complete. Every detail has been fleshed out - the sounds, the scents, the attitudes of each character. The surprises...I love it all! I also firmly believe in the power of education to shape the world. I have a little tea tag from some Good Earth tea. I don't know how long ago I consumed the tea, but the tag is still on my bulletin board of 'important' things* and it has on it a Socrates quote: "The only good is knowledge and the only evil is ignorance." Books are an EXCELLENT source of knowledge - a great way to learn about and experience parts of the world you've never been to or thought about...an exploration of ideas and relationships and feelings and metaphors. Sigh. I really like books. Lately, because adulthood, I don't get to read as much as I'd like. Just last month, a friend bought me a book for my birthday and I inhaled it in a 3-day period (just after one show closed, when I had an unexpected night off rehearsal from the next). It was bliss. Despite not being able to curl up with a cup of tea & a good book quite as often as I'd like, I do still get my 'read' on, with my current obsession with audio books. I download and listen to several books every month (having a day-job isn't always bad). And because the Chicago Public Library is amazing, I am able to do so for FREE. (Audible is great and all, but $15/month? Why?) Plus, what amazingly talented voice over artists. Mad props to folks who can create that entire world of the book just by the power of their voice. So, today, I'm giving back. As a bonus, I found out that this is the middle of National Library Week! (Who knew this was a thing?!?!). In honor of all these things, I've made a donation to my beloved CPL for $100 (Actually to the Chicago Public Library Foundation) so they can continue to provide books (in all formats) to people (of all ages) for free! *Bulletin Board of Important Things
(For more info about National Library Week, you should check out ilovelibraries.org) In true Shakespearean fashion, random phrases that are not typically used anymore are part of everyday speech for the characters of All's Well That Ends Well. One phrase used several times is "steal away" and every. single. time. I hear it, this song runs through my brain. Tech begins tonight and I have my stash of almonds and Arbonne fizzy drinks to get me through. See you at the show!
or...Buying Something I Never Knew I Wanted
I'm buying a seat. Not just any seat. A seat in a theater. A theater that is being built to house a theatre company that I've had the pleasure of working with.
Just this past year, I had the pleasure & joy of working with The Factory Theater for the first time on their World Premiere production of Hotel Aphrodite. After being in the audience for their productions of Jenny and Jenni, 'Namosaur, and Street Justice Condition Red, I was finally getting to join in the fun. And that is exactly what it was - FUN. The script was irreverent, the cast was insane, and our director guided us to find & share the human moments in a farce of orgasmic size. It was also a really good learning experience for me personally - my comfort zone is classical text. I enjoy the heightened language of Shakespeare and figuring out ways to make the most poetic lines sound like everyday speech (it's hard, but fun - yes, I'm weird). With my work with Babes With Blades Theatre Company, I've been doing a lot of new script development. I'm learning to be more comfortable with the 'creation' of a character, but it's still very much a learning process for me. Being able to play with a different group of people helped me see how their process worked - the bravery required (especially with a broad comedy) to just go for it; try something; go BIG; take risks. All those cliches came alive. And it was amazing! So my second donation is to The Factory Theatre's capital campaign via IndieGoGo. Not only is it supporting a great artistic endeavor - a theatre company with a proven history of producing original works - but it's creating a space that will help reinvigorate the local economy of the Howard Street corridor in the Roger's Park neighborhood of Chicago. Countless studies show that the arts and economy are closely related - here's hoping that The Factory Theater's return to Roger's Park will be just the beginning of the creation of a safer, more welcoming neighborhood.
On the selfish side - I went with the $250 level because that means I get a seat in the new space with my name on it. How. Cool. Is. That???? I never knew I wanted this type of legacy...but I guess I do.
(Plus - maybe the folks at The Factory Theater will let BWBTC rent the space at a special 'friends' rate once they get up and running! <wink-wink; nudge-nudge>)
For some background on my tax-return-spending venture, check out the first post where I detail my personal freak-out to being debt-free for the first time EVER. (Told you I was weird.)
This has been rattling around in my head for about a week now. Part of being an artist and pursuing your art as a career is self-motivation. There's no boss to hand out assignments, no manager to ensure quality, no direct client to hold you accountable for completing the project. It's all you - you are your own boss, your own manager, your own product. A piece of advice I've seen often is that you do something for your career everyday - it doesn't have to be huge, but it should be meaningful - it should be intentional toward your artistic aspiration.
Lately I've been thinking a lot about an upcoming break. Since rehearsals for The Lark started in November of 2013, I've been going pretty non-stop from one project to the next (often overlapping projects) and I'm feeling the tug of burnout. I see it in my approach to rehearsals for All's Well That Ends Well and in my energy levels at the end of a weekend of performances of Titus Andronicus (another example of overlap!). As I'm thinking about my upcoming break, I'm trying to plan what it will look like - first, the fun stuff: seeing shows, going to the beach, hanging out with friends, visiting my nieces, maybe a trip to Colorado. Then, it'll be time to reinvest in the career, without jumping back in to overload - reading plays, working monologues, doing my vocal work, setting up a system of tracking for my taxes (something I 'plan' to do EVERY year at this time!). Of course, I'll still be working the money job, but working one job instead of 2 will seem like quite the relief, I'm sure. So what have I been doing 'for my career' lately? Monday was an evening off (the first in a while) and I read through about 5 scripts for the Babes' Joining Sword & Pen playwriting competition. Tuesday was another night off and I planned to do my taxes...instead I was offered a comp to see Strawdog's 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea and had dinner before hand with the lovely Morgan Manasa & Mr. Beckman. Wednesday was rehearsal for All's Well (but I was called later in the evening, so I ripped through another script for JS&P!). Tonight, we're back in Rome for a Pay What You Can Thursday performance of Titus Andronicus. All in all, pretty intentional and on point, right? Honestly, though, I think what I really did 'for my career' this week was to go grocery shopping. I hadn't done that since before tech week of Titus (I'm talking February 23rd here!) and it was becoming an issue. Sure I was eating - the wonderful cafe near the theatre, Zanzibar, is a favorite of mine & has received much of my business over the last few weeks! I stopped at Little Caesar's after a voice lesson for their deep dish lunch special. Chipotle after a work meeting became lunch & dinner. And then the random, improvised home meals: pasta/olive oil/garlic salt & English muffin garlic bread...apples & peanut butter...A grapefruit & handful of Cheez-Its...Just enough sustenance to maintain energy. But I didn't cook anything, really. Yesterday, I got out a couple of recipe books, picked an old favorite and a 'something new' to try, then headed to the grocery store. Sloppy Joes are in the crock pot and I have everything I need for Spinach Artichoke Pasta Salad (probably a project for tomorrow). It literally took less than 5 minutes to put everything in the crock pot for Sloppy Joes tonight, but I already feel better about being able to eat something I made - knowing that I took some time to prepare it and take care of myself. So what I did for my career was take care of 'me'. Without my sanity, my energy, my physical health, my ability to focus... there's not much use in doing all the other millions of things that seem to be required to sustain a career in the arts. So do something for your career today. See a show. Read a play. Write a blog. Listen to a new band or artist. Take a class. Hit the gym. Record an audition. Or... just go outside in the sun and take a walk. Spend a little extra time in the shower letting the day's tension melt away. Explore a part of your neighborhood you've never been to. Go window shopping. People Watch at the local cafe. Make yourself dinner... When you are your own business, everything gift you give yourself in becoming a better, healthier, happier, more well-rounded person, is also something that will help move you along your chosen career path. (And if someone could remind me of this in about 4 months when I'm going stir-crazy because I'm not working on 4 projects simultaneously, I'd be most appreciative!) |
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September 2018
Kimberly Logan
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