Monologos de Vagina (Vagina Monologues in spanish)

I saw this performance in spanish at el Museo del Barrio New York and really enjoyed it. It was so different than American performances right now. There were definitely American influences but the acting style of hispanic actresses is different. They speak fast but are understandable. The actresses that night were very good at doing the funny scenes but did not do justice to the emotional ones.

Fashion's Night Out -unfinished

What an adventure. We, three 16 and 17 year old girls from Long Island, were incredibly tired and sweaty by the end of the night but it was so worth the experience. I can't wait to go back next year with more experience and perhaps connections. F.N.O is an event in New York City that has been going on in the city for a few years now. Fashion and clothes stores, top of the chain to the bottom participate in creating events consisting of free stuff, concerts, special guests, fall fashion sneak peaks and significant deals and discounts (on significantly expensive clothes and accessories) and don't forget super long lines.

How to Succeed

It was so much fun to be a part of even as audience member! When Daniel Radcliffe first spoke in an American accent I couldn't stop from laughing. Not because it was bad at all, but because it was so strange to see! I enjoyed watching him so much. It wasn't that he was an amazing actor but he was just so interesting to watch- every move, his face, his voice. I could see the fun the actors were having during the performance as their characters. Even though it was a serious historical topic it was a comedy. I loved that the play used this satire to prove the ridiculousness of the 1950s. The musical part was annoying sometimes because sometimes characters seemed different when singing than when acting but it's a musical. Also, the President Biggley played by John Larquette at some points seemed fake- he was sleeping with women cheating on his wife yet he slipped some flamboyant comments and actions. Doing this once or twice is hilarious but as the character developed it kept recurring in awkward moments and in general but the end made the performance seem unreal.

Overall, I definitely would see it again.

Playing

At work today (lifeguarding) I watched a day camp of young 5 year old kids playing with their adult counselors. It brought me back to my younger days when I used to play with my parents. My dad especially would play with my brother and I by scaring us (into laughter): the claw hand, the salami slam, and of course tickle fights. I used to be so genuinely scared but happy at the same time. My dad was not actually a scary person but he was definitely not being his 9-5 workday adult self. He was being a child self. Now watching these adult counselors playing similarly with these kids- acting crazy and like little kids themselves- I realized life can be so much more fun when you are a more "child-like" carefree person. I said childlike in quotes because we really aren't acting like children we are just being ourselves- a part of ourselves that we've forgotten about. When playing a character I have to be able to some of that playing self because no matter how serious the character is, they are still human and still at one point were children and allow their emotions out like children- happy and scared at the same time...

Also letting go and being my inner child is a lot easier and refreshing. Yesterday I ended up having a tickle fight with one of my friends and by the end of I was out of breathe, my heart was racing and I felt so happy to be alive. The laughter,  the screams, the running around the house was fantastic

Yankee Game

Yankee Game- at the new stadium in the Bronx. It was a slightly different subway ride than I am normally used to. It was easy but I felt much more comfortable with the map near me. Because I was with someone who knew how to travel on the subway much less than I do, I felt that I was leading him through and I didn't want to mess up. I realize though that I should always trust my instinct that if I sense something wrong to assume it is and look to double check it before I continue on. This can be applied to anything in life, I suppose.

At the Yankee Museum I saw (a small amount of) historical references. I was fascinated by the beginnings of it and more so by it's transformation. I would have loved to have seen how differently or similarly people acted at baseball games. I would want to see the business aspect of it a century ago to compare it with what it is now.

The Yankees vs. the Angels. Sitting in a close section I wasn't really able to experience the rowdy perhaps frightening attitudes of die hard fans. (However, this was quite preferred by my mother.) At once point, during the last inning two guys from up higher made their way to the lower seats. They proceeded to make vulgar but funny commentary in the ghetto accent I wish I could master. It was rewarding to be able to do a quick character study on them.

Later I went to midtown and sat on the touristy tckts booth steps and watched people and cars pass on times square. It was an experience like non other. Kind of like a sunset but the opposite as well. It was mostly relaxing to be watching all the commotion from above and not feeling the pressure of being inside of it. It was also nice to observe relationships with people- taking in everyone else.

Hunter College

Tango Class- Free Tango at the Argentine Consulate! It was a lot of fun and I think I definitely got better. I always hated dance classes but this one went at a slow pace and was very helpful.

Hunter College- It seems like a college that would give me a good amount of schooling for an economical price. In fact, if I got into the MaCaulay Honors College I would not have to pay for tuition. I would then be able to afford to rent an apartment in the city which is quite appealing. This Hunter package is an option.

The Help- fantastic movie; I was in love with the acting and the performance as a whole. I cried 3 times and teared up about every two seconds. Casting was well done- the old maid "Constantine" made me tear up every time I saw her. It was all so real! The racist characters were so believable that the audience members where booing the characters because of the racists actions.

NYU & RENT

I'm allergic to cherries. After walking from 14th St. and 6th Avenue to Union Square Park I was feeling in need of a snack. I walked past a fresh fruit stand and was immediately attracted. Finally some healthy and fresh food. I decided to try something new so I bought a pound of sweet white cherries. They tasted pretty good. I knew that cherries always made my lips feel tingly and even itchy but I didn't really accept that I could be allergic. Eating these fresher and juicier cherries made the sensation more intense. I actually felt my throat swelling and closing up. My lips were tingly and the back of my tongue was itchy. It was very strange. I am not allergic to anything else so it was a whole new experience. I am clearly not deathly allergic but I'm sure had I ate more, I would have only made things worse.

NYU and Washington Square Park- I then walked to West 4th and waited for my NYU information session and tour to begin in the park. I found myself by the fountain and the arch dipping my feet into the water. It was relaxing and rejuvenating. I really love this city campus. After the tour and info session, NYU seemed really appealing. I would like to know more about it's theatre program but, from what I already know and how they presented themselves it seemed to be quite good. The only real issue is its cost. 40,000 tuition without room and board. After thinking about it more, NYU is expensive because of all the benefits for students that the school has to pay for: cheap tickets for shows, games, you name it in the city; dorms with eat their own bathroom; LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION; well-known and well-spoken of academic program- in all sections; diversity- in some ways; excellent study abroad opportunities; there's so much more. All in all, this school in particular would be worth the money if I actually take advantage of what it has to offer for the four years. I'm sure I would enjoy myself here. They have the perfect balance in what I want to study. I want a prestigious and well- developed theatre program but not in a secluded conservatory setting. I want to learn and meet other (smart) people who care about what they do and about being in this world. I also want to be able to do something new every weekend or even everyday which is why this city is perfect; this school is definitely high on my list.

Rent at New Worlds Stages- Walking into the theatre, everyone who was there seemed to be really excited to see the show. This reminded me of what Peter Brooks was talking about in The Empty Space when comparing Deadly Theatre to Holy Theatre. The Deadly would have an unresponsive, non attentive and not cooperative audience while the Holy theatre had an audience that was part of the performance in that it made the show better.

New Converse sneakers!

New York City Day 1

Now that NYSSSA is over, I'm feeling incredibly deprived of my daily dosage of theatre: both as an actor and an audience. To fill this void I have devised a plan for the upcoming week of August 8th. My dad is going to Ecuador and my mom works everyday in midtown; so, I plan on venturing through the city, safely and frugally monday-friday next week. However, yesterday I experienced a preview day in the city and accomplished a lot.

Harry Potter Exhibit- Coming into it I really didn't know what I was going to see. That didn't really matter to me though. I just remembered about the exhibit and heard great reviews and of course it's Harry Potter. I grew up with the series. When I saw the Nimbus 2000 I realized how long it has been. The whole exhibit was a series of costumes and props from various characters, characters that I've forgotten about. It was basically a stroll down memory lane.

Drama Book Store- I could only buy 1 play so I chose Marisol by Jose Rivera. I rushed into the store, walked through with a purpose, found it and rushed out. I know that if I would have stayed longer to browse I would probably spend all my money and end up not being able to purchase tickets for other shows. Later in the day I sat in Bryant Park and after literally taking a nap in the chair and on the table, I read the play and fell in love. This was the perfect modern hispanic play that I could play a part in. Marisol is going to be really fun and challenging to figure out and characterize for myself. She'll definitely bring out some apocalyptic and depressing sides of me that I have buried back from 8-10th grade. It's exhilarating, however, to not really know what to expect.

Midtown Comics- Right next door to the Drama Book Store, Midtown Comics was my brothers haven for the day. I walked in knowing I would be out of place. There was a graphic novel section and a comics section. In the graphic novels there were more regular everyday people, kids, women. However, in the straight comics, were my brother rested, there were hardcore, typically satirized comic books "nerds." All different kinds too: tattooed biker men, glasses and funky ties (given into) business men, scrappy and obsessed looking young men... MEN! It was so typical it was scary. I guess the comedic satirization from TV is true! I loved standing on the side and taking in each of their characters also. I didn't love feeling like I was being watched for not fitting in and having people inspecting me. But, I totally tried to create a comic book girl character for myself: walked around the store like I knew what I was looking for and asked questions like I knew what I was talking about.

Bought tickets to How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying- Adding to my Harry Potter filled day, I purchased at the box office (with a discount) tickets to see the show for August 24 at 8pm. (Not during the week of adventure, giving me more to look forward to later.) I am so anxious to see Daniel Radcliffe perform onstage. I feel like I know him or at least I know him as Harry so, I really want too see him as a new character: test him as an actor, see it for myself.

Memphis- Chad Kimball is f'ing amazing. His Huey Long character and performance reminds me of Rooster from Jerusalem but Kimball gets to sing. Definitely and actor who can sing as opposed to a singer who can act, for example, Felicia in this performance (understudy). Overall, great music and dance numbers- totally feels like real rhythm and blues concerts, performances during the 50s and not like a musical. It reminded me of Hairspray because of the similar historical conflict. However, I sense that Memphis is more modernly made and written: partly because we are now allowed to show more truth in what actually went down (apartment scene of sneaking around to have sex) and language. There were also great, truthful, acting moments but I can not say it was always truthful for every character. The ensemble however did a great job of living in their moments. Perhaps it was only because I got really cheap tickets and sat in Row A Seat 8 which in the Shubert Theatre is practically looking straight up to see the actors (saw a lot of underwear...) but I saw the actors facial expressions clearly. I saw the spit, the sweat, the breathing, the little interactions of the ensemble. It was an experience I am very grateful to have had and was more rewarding than if I had seen it from the usual mezzanine or even from center orchestra.

Conversations on NYSSSA during NYSSSA

"I am falling in love with theatre right now. Everything is starting to make so much sense very quickly. We are just getting our first scenes this week- I'm doing a scene from The Rose Tattoo with Rosa and Jack. We're getting into the final stages of Meisner repetition- I wish we could have done more in class its so awesome! We've had playwriting, Chekov, directing, given circumstances and mask workshops with various guest teachers. One being John Astin. I wrote a 3 min scene- it turned out to be a comedy-I directed a reading of it to be performed tomorrow. It's gonna be really fun- I'm having so much fun here- everyone is great (great actors and people in general)! It's hard though. Definitely hard but I want to do it so its so different from classes in school- math and science and english are just things I'm forced to do basically. And then theres the concept that actors don't think when onstage and just act on the impulse so its so much less stressful than I had it thought to be... Overall, I feel lucky and grateful to have this experience- definitely life changing. 
One big thing I found that I bring to the table is my being hispanic. I feel like I'm representing a huge population of peoples. Sometimes its kind of overwhelming and exhilarating at the same time." 7/15 


"For this past month I have been attending a program called the New York State School of the Arts: School of Theatre. I have been studying how to act, which, as I have learned, is not really called acting but rather 'Living truthfully under imaginary circumstances.' I am staying at the Adelphi University dorms and attend classes and workshops everyday. Through these workshops I have met and experienced some really interesting people and skills: stage combat, Tango, Mask work, Playwriting, a workshop with John Astin (original Gomez in The Addams Family TV series) and seeing various professional performances and readings of plays.  Yesterday, I saw “Hard Traveling with Woody” written and performed by Randy Noojin. It will be showing at the Fringe Festival beginning later this month. It is about the hard travels of Woody Guthrie during the Great Depression and the Dust Bowl. Randy plays Woody speaking in a Union meeting; His performance is amazing. The character development is so real. I actually felt like I was a union member during this time listening to Woody speak and sing. This political theatre reminded of the purpose of theatre in our lives that I have always enjoyed and used as a driving force for my passion in acting.  Great theatre should bring out an internal conflict with each audience member where they, even if only for a split second, agree on a different point of view on issue: personal or well-known, very controversial or long gone that still applies to todays time. This reminds of what I loved about our class and our debates and what I love about dealing with present day conflicts. Overall, for my long time lifetime goals I know I want to attack the issues of the world but before this performance I wasn’t sure how I would go about doing this I’m still not completely certain but what I also know isthat I love acting and I’m on my way to being great. So, this little realization that two of my passions can totally work well together really gives a sigh of relief at least for now as I’m beginning to apply to colleges." 7/26

Zaz @ City Winery

I saw Zaz perform with the Hot Sardines at the City Winery in the city. She sings jazzy modern french music, but her catch is her amazing talent of producing sounds of saxophone noises using only her voice, mouth and hands. It is incredible and I'm so glad to have seen it in person and 3 feet away. She was so comfortable onstage even though she couldn't communicate with an English speaking audience. Although we could not sing along to all of her songs, we did scream out her most popular single -"Je veux". She is an excellent performer and I can see why she belongs in the music industry. 

Blog Post Right After NYSSSA Acceptance

Yesterday when I arrived home my mom yelled for me saying I think your SAT scores are back. Annoyed and tired, I slowly slugged downstairs knowing she was wrong because I know exactly when my SAT scores come. I see an uninformative sent address- New York State.. etc.. I open it up not knowing what to expect but not at all enthusiastic. As I quickly skim through the first labelings I see NYSSSA along with random words now all a blur in my memory. I got a bolt of adrenaline when I realized what this letter or package was. After screaming for this simple realization, I got around to reading the first line just to make sure it was good news. I screamed again. The smile burst through. It was an amazing feeling- the feeling of accomplishment.

Although I do have other options for summer programs, work, travel I will most likely be going. Every time, I think about the experience of being in the program I get more and more excited.

Ahhh! I'm smiling now again.

An Audition

So, I found out about the NYSSSA Audition  Monday of last week and the audition was Saturday which gave me exactly 5 days to prepare. 2 monologues: 1 contemporary, 1 classical. Luckily, in ninth grade I readily prepared one with Luke's help that was conveniently a great monologue: Lil Bit's monologue from How I Learned to Drive by Paula Vogel. Still, that was two years ago. The Shakespeare was the problem. I had chosen Hermia's monologue from a midsummer night's dream but, as I knew, it was just too overdone. Rob was here to help with that,. We read through a couple but the one for me was Phebe's monologue from As You Like It which contrasted greatly from my contemporary. The entire week was like a mini-hell week but only for me. This meant that it was stressful but really fun at the same time.

Anyway after many reads through the monologues and the greatly appreciated help from Luke and Rob and memorization.... the audition finally came. I was glad to have Kalli with me and especially to have her mom pick me up- Something about having my mom around before gives me anxiety. It's not that I don't appreciate her care and concern to help me but her advice is just annoying and as a natural instinct I am inclined to ignore whatever she says even if it is good advice. We also got there at around 11:10 which gave us plenty of time to find the place, get settled see who was there. Actually there was some sort of dance show going on right next to the audition room, so there were a lot more people there which eased the tension of being the only person there. The Audition room was called "Little Theater 2" which gave me the idea that it would be a smaller room than the big auditorium we anticipated during practice at the community center. It ended up being a hybrid of a classroom and a theatre. The Auditoner was sitting at floor level. I walked in and waited until she called me over. We did a brief introduction with a handshake and she immediately asked me if I wanted to just go out and do my monologue or chat first. I took a second to think but immediately felt an instinct to "chat" first. I thought first off it would help me feel more comfortable performing if the tension was eased and also giving me a moment to catch my breathe. Also being myself is always easier than being myself in another character. Anyway that went well enough. I watched my "likes" but also was very fluid in my speech- (I was probably going too fast but maybe she noticed my excitement?) I tried not to hold back. I said whatever I was thinking at the time to keep the conversation going and also give her a bit of myself. First she asked about me a bit and I told her the generic 16, 11th grade...etc. I don't remember that quite exactly. However I do remember her asking why I wanted to be in this program. At first I took a second- shit I didn't know much about it other than it was all of New York State, sleep away, acting and other arts but I'm doing acting... no worries.. I just said all this- "I love acting which is why I want to improve myself... this program has great prestige from what I hear... I will meet people from all around the state exposing me to the outside world..." She asked who am I hearing these great things from- so in came the discussion about STAC... From my description of my audition with acting she asked how much acting is done in a week. I told her about repeating and how everyone is scared of me- something I at first hesitated to say but let it out just to show her more of me.

After describing the program to me, the auditioner asked me to perform finally...
I walked to the stage and noticed the lights!- acknowledged their presence and fixed myself to be seen...
Made sure I was loud from the first word.

After performing the monologues she changed something to see how I react to change... Interestingly enough it was just an elaboration of what I had already worked on and just made more of a distinct adjustment to fit her requirements.

At the end I smiled (as if I wasn't smiling throughout the entire thing enough) told her it was great to meet her and walked out.