Life Is A Cabaret, Ol' Chum!
Okay, so I am waxing the musical theater cliches right now.
But I am feeling pretty blessed as well. We had our final performance on Wednesday night at the M Bar in Hollywood for our 10-week second session of the ANMT Performer's workshop, Cabaret and specialty performance. It was a great night. I had a terrific time both performing and being an audience member.
Going into this class I thought "Well, this is where I come from. This is where most of my experience is...in cabaret. It is the place that allows you to be totally exposed and vulnerable. You are not primarily playing a character. You are yourself. Or at least, GREAT cabaret, in my mind, is that which allows your audience in on a very personal, intimate sharing of yourself. It allows them to see who you are and it's a bridge to common ground of who they are. It is definitely all about sharing, giving and receiving on both sides of the stage.
The title of the evening was "Dare to Be Truthful". Each of our 12 acts were about being truthful. Very appropriate title for the show.
We each had an 8-minute show to construct and perform for that night. After going through a number of exercises in class, we were to choose a theme upon which to create a journey. Alas, my first attempts were not satisfactory, especially to me.
I kept coming up with a stale "the story of my life" without the very specific and tight focus it would need to be "magical" and natural and spontaneous in the telling.
At some point I had hit a wall in transforming my show into that. Then in comes Madley, the writer of my "power" group. I am speaking of the special group of people I have known for 30+ years now that I feel very blessed to count as my friends. We are the fearless foursome, Madley, Jeffrey, Diane and myself.
Rather than trying to "fix" the show, she did a very special thing. Something that only a good writer would know how to do. She gave me the tools for creating my own unique and very specific story AND more importantly, she allowed me to learn some tools for writing that I can take with me into future show writing.
She had me write about physical objects that I was in awe of or had some fascination about. I was sitting at my computer at that moment and, low and behold, the items that came to mind immediately were the things right there in reach...my planner, my 3-hole punch, my stapler, my ergonomic pen and my furry slippers on my feet.
I wrote pages about each as well as other things.
Then we looked at the things I wrote about and what themes came up with them - what they had in common.
The office supplies were a natural. Everything else was put by the wayside for this purpose.
Then, with Madley's guidance, I reached back at important events that had come up in the near past.
Office supplies...looking for work on a daily basis...I was fired six months ago.
[I am looking now for work part time rather than full time because of my commitment to my ANMT class (I attend it on Wednesdays each week in LA). And I made a decision that life is too short to be thinking I can focus on what I love somewhere down the road. So NOW is the time to be pursuing my dreams and passions AND work everything else around that. DUH.
And as hard as that has been and continues to be, it is so right and feels a lot easier than sticking with the status quo of a 9-5 job that really leads to nowhere I want to be.]
So I found the catalyst of my story...the firing!
I have the before and after...the journey.
Hot dog! I have a story I can work with that is specific and engaging and compelling...and as I found out on Wednesday night...one that others have experienced as well.
THANK YOU MADLEY! for taking me on that journey and guiding me to ME.
What a gift that was! I love to learn and your skill in teaching me got me excited in the process and with the outcome.
Two of the three songs I had pretty much decided on and the third, Madley had suggested to me. I loved it! "My Friends" from Sweeney Todd. (How appropriate. Besides it being a perfect twist in the patter, I had just gotten done with a new musical take off of Sweeney Todd, "Sweetie Tanya- the demon barista of Valencia Street!" which will be remounting in May - you don't want to miss it. I have a small part but it is truly an enjoyable show.)
Of course, for my 8-minute show I chose two Sondheim songs and one Jason Robert Brown. Nothing EASY about these songs. :-)[The New World and Putting It Together.]
The biggest gift for me was having my 3 friends there cheering me on and supporting me through the process. Diane had come down from Sacramento, Jeffrey has put me up during this year of commuting to LA overnights and Madley, who goes to ANMT has trucked me from place to place each week. She has made it her mission to keep me coming to ANMT and seeing it through. For all of this and more, I can't thank them enough for doing this for me.
Last year, Heidi Rose Robbins, my astrologer in LA told me that I would be "supported" in this journey in many ways. This was my time to do this. I had no idea how it would show up. I just trusted it would. I committed to the class and it showed up at the most meaningful level I could imagine- in my friends.
I am blessed.
Life is like a banquet - and most people are starving at the table!
But not me...
not me.
But I am feeling pretty blessed as well. We had our final performance on Wednesday night at the M Bar in Hollywood for our 10-week second session of the ANMT Performer's workshop, Cabaret and specialty performance. It was a great night. I had a terrific time both performing and being an audience member.
Going into this class I thought "Well, this is where I come from. This is where most of my experience is...in cabaret. It is the place that allows you to be totally exposed and vulnerable. You are not primarily playing a character. You are yourself. Or at least, GREAT cabaret, in my mind, is that which allows your audience in on a very personal, intimate sharing of yourself. It allows them to see who you are and it's a bridge to common ground of who they are. It is definitely all about sharing, giving and receiving on both sides of the stage.
The title of the evening was "Dare to Be Truthful". Each of our 12 acts were about being truthful. Very appropriate title for the show.
We each had an 8-minute show to construct and perform for that night. After going through a number of exercises in class, we were to choose a theme upon which to create a journey. Alas, my first attempts were not satisfactory, especially to me.
I kept coming up with a stale "the story of my life" without the very specific and tight focus it would need to be "magical" and natural and spontaneous in the telling.
At some point I had hit a wall in transforming my show into that. Then in comes Madley, the writer of my "power" group. I am speaking of the special group of people I have known for 30+ years now that I feel very blessed to count as my friends. We are the fearless foursome, Madley, Jeffrey, Diane and myself.
Rather than trying to "fix" the show, she did a very special thing. Something that only a good writer would know how to do. She gave me the tools for creating my own unique and very specific story AND more importantly, she allowed me to learn some tools for writing that I can take with me into future show writing.
She had me write about physical objects that I was in awe of or had some fascination about. I was sitting at my computer at that moment and, low and behold, the items that came to mind immediately were the things right there in reach...my planner, my 3-hole punch, my stapler, my ergonomic pen and my furry slippers on my feet.
I wrote pages about each as well as other things.
Then we looked at the things I wrote about and what themes came up with them - what they had in common.
The office supplies were a natural. Everything else was put by the wayside for this purpose.
Then, with Madley's guidance, I reached back at important events that had come up in the near past.
Office supplies...looking for work on a daily basis...I was fired six months ago.
[I am looking now for work part time rather than full time because of my commitment to my ANMT class (I attend it on Wednesdays each week in LA). And I made a decision that life is too short to be thinking I can focus on what I love somewhere down the road. So NOW is the time to be pursuing my dreams and passions AND work everything else around that. DUH.
And as hard as that has been and continues to be, it is so right and feels a lot easier than sticking with the status quo of a 9-5 job that really leads to nowhere I want to be.]
So I found the catalyst of my story...the firing!
I have the before and after...the journey.
Hot dog! I have a story I can work with that is specific and engaging and compelling...and as I found out on Wednesday night...one that others have experienced as well.
THANK YOU MADLEY! for taking me on that journey and guiding me to ME.
What a gift that was! I love to learn and your skill in teaching me got me excited in the process and with the outcome.
Two of the three songs I had pretty much decided on and the third, Madley had suggested to me. I loved it! "My Friends" from Sweeney Todd. (How appropriate. Besides it being a perfect twist in the patter, I had just gotten done with a new musical take off of Sweeney Todd, "Sweetie Tanya- the demon barista of Valencia Street!" which will be remounting in May - you don't want to miss it. I have a small part but it is truly an enjoyable show.)
Of course, for my 8-minute show I chose two Sondheim songs and one Jason Robert Brown. Nothing EASY about these songs. :-)[The New World and Putting It Together.]
The biggest gift for me was having my 3 friends there cheering me on and supporting me through the process. Diane had come down from Sacramento, Jeffrey has put me up during this year of commuting to LA overnights and Madley, who goes to ANMT has trucked me from place to place each week. She has made it her mission to keep me coming to ANMT and seeing it through. For all of this and more, I can't thank them enough for doing this for me.
Last year, Heidi Rose Robbins, my astrologer in LA told me that I would be "supported" in this journey in many ways. This was my time to do this. I had no idea how it would show up. I just trusted it would. I committed to the class and it showed up at the most meaningful level I could imagine- in my friends.
I am blessed.
Life is like a banquet - and most people are starving at the table!
But not me...
not me.
posted by Rick at 12:13 PM
2 Comments:
No, not you, my friend... you're blessed with the most voracious appetite I know -- because the way you do anything is the way you do EVERYTHING!!!
You're welcome, you're welcome, YOU'RE WELCOME -- and right back at ya! And thanks for calling me a writer... hehehe :)
Loved Wednesday and YOU IN IT. As I said before, I can't imagine you anywhere else.
OXOX always!
Oh my gosh! You were great Rick, and it makes me so proud to see you in action - forging through with your commitment to yourself and pursuing your dream... what an inspiration to me. Congratulations on the success of your show. I look forward to the next...and next...and next... and remember - the way you do anything is the way you do everything!
Love ya - :-D
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