I know that the last few posts have barely scratched the surface of the busy days I have been having but let me slowly begin to fill you in on everything fantastic this month has brought my way.
Trip to Greensboro!!!!
As summer began to wind down for me, (whatever that means for an actor in New York, haha) I knew that I would soon be reuniting with my brother and his family in North Carolina, to meet my precious, brand-new nephew, Jaxen!!! Not only was looking forward to seeing Jaxen, Ava, and Langston, but of course I was ecstatic to see my brother and sister-in-law, whom I haven’t seen in almost a year. (talk about a loooonnnnggg time). And even while I was going all the way to Mississippi for this trip, whenever I am able to leave the concrete grid that is New York City, for green treetops and more land than development it gives me an immediate calm and resolution the city could never give.
While I won’t go into the intimate details of my visit, I will say that left that comfy and loving house, realizing how much I love and respect my sister-in-law and how she, along with my brother, are able to seamlessly run their home, making time not only for each of their children (one-on-one, as well as, all together) but for each other, with their shared devotional time and spur of the moment breakfasts which I got to join after we dropped Ava and Langston off at preschool.
Even in the busy times, my brother and his wife were able to find moments of stillness, (even that happened to be a catnap at the table while the kids had breakfast, Frank…) Spending time with family, getting to know my niece and nephews, and having them remember who I am when I come from the airport give me a tremendous amount of joy and I CANNOT WAIT to see all of their faces again!!!
Acting…Oh Yeah That’s What I Do
Not only was the trip to Greensboro a great respite from city life, but it also happened to fall in between performances of the show I was in, Biting Tongues at The Secret Theatre in Long Island City, NY. My friend, Bloo, texted out of the blue (haha couldn’t resist) one day at the beginning of the month asking me if I wanted to be in a ten-minute play he was directing. Of course, I said yes and took on the role of Tania and eventually, Jade in the show. Not only was acting in this production another notch on my resume and booked job list, but it allowed me to receive affirmation from both audience members and friends alike that I am doing exactly what I was put on this earth to do.
If you’re not an actor, you must understand that even with the strongest self-confidence there are days when the constant rejections can take their toll, and force you to retreat within yourself. Which only ends up hurting you more than any other person in the industry. So to receive high-fives from perfect strangers after a performance was a great pat on the back for me to continue the fight to follow my dreams and realign my goals to this purpose. My castmate, Daniel, was great to work with and an awesome guy who had an elaborate football viewing headquarters set up backstage. I couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to jump back in for the fall.
Wrap Up
Finally, I was able to reunite with Bloo, Jassmine and a few of my other Obama: At the Table cast members for a short reprise of the show for the FABfest Arts Festival which was held this past weekend. Under the banner of WOW Cafe, where we last performed the show, we, along with other arts organizations and performers housed on the East Fourth Street city block between Bowery and 2nd Avenue, had a blast Saturday afternoon listening to live music, watching a variety of dance troupes show their stuff, and theater collectives performing their original works.
Getting the opportunity to reunite with friends to put this show on, as well as getting to see Mindy the show’s creator and producer once again was the cherry on top of an incredibly busy month, which is still especially busy.
Super excited to say that there won’t be a long gap between performance opportunities for me since I’ve been cast as Babakina in an upcoming production of Ivanov at Columbia University!
Hopefully, I will be able to have a better grasp on the blogosphere when October begins tomorrow. But make no mistake fall for me is definitely off to a rollicking and fulfilling start 🙂
Ciao
And how could I forget? Remember, my Diary of a Background Actor post? Well guess who spotted themselves last night at 33:27 on Boardwalk Empire? (on the left in the hat and cloak haha)
NYDreaming 