Third audition 2003: Winter, Manhattan

Auditon: La Mama E.T.C., The Annex. Cold reading of the script
Director: Unknown.
Location: 74 A East 4th Street, New York City, NY 10003 (Lower East Side near the Bowery)

Positives

Took direction when they were ‘physical’ directions (i.e., “now try to get past her and get to the window”).

Asides

   – Interesting. There seems to be two types of direction:

   1) physical/activity, e.g., “now try to get past her and get to the window,”

   2) “be like this” direction, e.g., “a lover, a Don Juan”

   #1 is easy(er) because it is immediately a clear and specific goal – something that easily recruits, organizes, and coordinates attention and cognitive/emotion resources.

   #2 is hard(er) precisely because it sometimes does not immediately crystallize into a clear, specific, simple goal or idea. I need to have a clear “action,” i.e., a very clear and simple idea of what “be like this” means. Without a clear idea, I’m unfocused, vague, indicating, awkwardly pretending to “be” something.

    How do I, in a few seconds, come up with a clear ‘actable’ choice?

   This is a bit worrisome – it all seems to be in the hands of luck and intuition. However, this very well may be a skill, i.e., practice doing things that initially seem bizarre or potentially embarrassing (as was the case with Don Juan) . . . as I write, I don’t think I so much lack imagination as I do courage -- that’s hopeful: I can ‘act’ more courageously by simply being willing to fail, to embarrass myself.

Negatives

1.Didn’t adequately read through the sides – I waited for the SM to give them to me once she finished helping someone else, and when I got them, I didn’t have as much time as I otherwise would have. Solution – too shy again: be proactive!!! Interrupt, apologize, and simply ask for the sides.

2.Lots of stage directions in the sides – as I was going over them, I skipped over the stage directions because I didn’t think I’d actually be asked to do them . . . I won’t make that mistake again.