So on Friday, Heidi and I got an e-mail from the folks at the cruise line (let's call them "HAL") about getting the paperwork done and sent back (Heidi's is in, mine is somewhere in the mail) and how our passports are coming along (Heidi's was sent in about a week ago and mine went in earlier this afternoon) and stuff. We also got a tentative, slightly-incomplete schedule of where we'll be for our time on the road. So...here goes...
7/20 - Fly from Chicago to Seattle
7/22 - Fly to Vancouver and Alaska
7/30 - In Fairbanks
7/31 & 8/1 - In Denali
8/2 - In Anchorage
8/3 - Back to Seattle
8/4 - Day off
8/10 - Day off
8/16 - 8/23 - Days off/travel
8/24 - Minneapolis, MN
8/25 - Eau Claire, WI
8/26 - La Crosse, WI
8/27 - Madison, WI
8/28 - Day off
8/29 - Travel day
8/30 - Thunder Bay, ON
8/31 - Travel day
9/1 - Bismarck, ND
9/2 - Travel day
9/3 - Fargo, ND
9/4 - 9/7 - Days off/travel
9/8 - Springfield, PA
9/9 - Trevose, PA
9/10 - Glen Mills, PA
9/11 - Day off
9/12 - Easton, PA
9/13 - Lock Haven, PA
9/14 - Carlisle, PA
9/15 - Camp Hill, PA
9/16 - Day off
9/17 - Lancaster, PA
9/18 - Grantville, PA
9/19 - Hummelstown, PA
9/20 - Travel day
9/21 - Charlotte or Winston-Salem, NC
9/22 -
9/23 - Day off
9/24 -
9/25 -
9/26 - Greensboro, NC
9/27 - Rocky Mount, NC
9/28 - Fayetteville, NC
And then it's on to Massachusetts for Walt's wedding. And after that, I'll come back to Chicago to look for a job, an acting job, and a place to live. Definitely, an exciting couple of months for your humble narrator.
Otherwise, things continue to plod along steadily here in the Windy City. So not too much else to report, sadly.
But I have a schedule (more or less) so another step is taken towards this adventure!!!
Monday, May 18, 2009
Monday, May 11, 2009
Monthly update
There's not too much going on, really. But let's see what I can come up with...
I've been slowly moving forward towards this Holland America job. We (Heidi and I) got some stuff e-mailed to us to sign and fill out and send back. It's a TON of stuff. Lots of policies and procedures and tax forms and applications and junk. A lot of reading. It's getting done, but it's mostly on the back burner because I've been studying lines like crazy for this understudy gig I've got going on.
I've all but absolutely decided that I'm gonna give up the apartment in July before I head out to Seattle and Alaska and all points after that. All that means is that I'm gonna have less overhead to deal with when I'm out and about but it leaves me with quite a bit to do before July. Along with finishing this understudy thing (on anywhere between June 7th and June 21st), I have to...
...go to Biff's wedding
...go on a weekend-ish trip to Indiana to see Heidi's play in late June
...sift through and pack up the entire apartment
...cancel things like cable and stuff
...get a post office box
...get my mail switched over to that p.o. box
...get a passport (after I finally get my birth certificate somehow)
...do what I have to do regarding box office staffing for the Factory's next show
...finish the Holland America paperwork and send it back to them
...figure out a way to get my apartment stuff out to a storage unit
...secure that storage unit and
...come up with a FULL list of things to do including whatever I haven't come up with on the fly here.
ARGH!!!!
But I have to keep my thoughts on the "prize" at the end of all this craziness...almost three months with Heidi and a trip to Alaska and around the country a bit. That is going to be awesome!!!
I've been slowly moving forward towards this Holland America job. We (Heidi and I) got some stuff e-mailed to us to sign and fill out and send back. It's a TON of stuff. Lots of policies and procedures and tax forms and applications and junk. A lot of reading. It's getting done, but it's mostly on the back burner because I've been studying lines like crazy for this understudy gig I've got going on.
I've all but absolutely decided that I'm gonna give up the apartment in July before I head out to Seattle and Alaska and all points after that. All that means is that I'm gonna have less overhead to deal with when I'm out and about but it leaves me with quite a bit to do before July. Along with finishing this understudy thing (on anywhere between June 7th and June 21st), I have to...
...go to Biff's wedding
...go on a weekend-ish trip to Indiana to see Heidi's play in late June
...sift through and pack up the entire apartment
...cancel things like cable and stuff
...get a post office box
...get my mail switched over to that p.o. box
...get a passport (after I finally get my birth certificate somehow)
...do what I have to do regarding box office staffing for the Factory's next show
...finish the Holland America paperwork and send it back to them
...figure out a way to get my apartment stuff out to a storage unit
...secure that storage unit and
...come up with a FULL list of things to do including whatever I haven't come up with on the fly here.
ARGH!!!!
But I have to keep my thoughts on the "prize" at the end of all this craziness...almost three months with Heidi and a trip to Alaska and around the country a bit. That is going to be awesome!!!
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
A Year In The Making
I couldn't let today go by without acknowledging that it has been a year since leaving Chicago for Battle Creek, the Delta House, Turkeyville, and (two months down the line) the girl of my dreams. In some ways, my life hasn't changed a whole lot but in other ways it has changed a lot. I've had a lot of opportunities this past year. A lot of traveling (even if it was just to Michigan or Indiana for the most part). I've met a lot of new and interesting and cool people and managed (I think) to stay close to most of the cool and interesting people I've known here. My outlook on things have changed, I think, more than anything else. My idea of what kind of career path I want to try to follow has gone through a lot of changes.
I dunno.
Things are still up in the air quite a bit. But I like where I am, for the most part, and I like what's going on in my life these days.
Life is good. I refuse to complain about things today. The sun is out and things are in motion and I'm feeling pretty good.
A year. Wow! I can't believe it's been a year...
I dunno.
Things are still up in the air quite a bit. But I like where I am, for the most part, and I like what's going on in my life these days.
Life is good. I refuse to complain about things today. The sun is out and things are in motion and I'm feeling pretty good.
A year. Wow! I can't believe it's been a year...
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Tuesday morning round-up
So the past four days have been a whirlwind of activity. I'm only now really able to sit down and take it all in and process what's been going on. So let's see...
Friday afternoon I was going to look at my e-mail and discovered one from Marie, the casting director-type woman from the job that Heidi and I have been trying to get. (Loyal readers will remember that I spent most of the previous Saturday finding, converting, and sending video of myself acting.) It was a simple e-mail requesting that we call her as soon as we could. Well, I knew that Heidi was crazy busy on Friday and so I called in the hopes of scheduling some kind of call. Marie said that wasn't a problem as long as I passed on all the information that she had. And then she proceeded to hire us! She threw a ton of dates and information at me, all of which I wrote down, and then called Heidi and left an excited message telling her about it.
In short, we go to Seattle on July 20th for a couple of days of rehearsal and then we all go on a two-week tour of Alaska!! We do all the touristy-type stuff (hike a glacier? river raft? hunt moose? who knows...), then go back to Seattle for another week or so of training and then, basically, Heidi and I are off on a trip around the country (or...most of it) saying what a great time these Alaskan trips/cruises are! We do that until the very end of September, paid rather well to do so! HOORAY!!! Heidi and I are stoopid excited about this opportunity and can't wait to get started.
Friday night I had a show and my friend Burnie came to see it! Well, the Tucker Guarantee states that we have some drinks afterward so she stuck around the theater and had some drinks with us. Heidi came into town (she was planning on doing so even before the job offer) and cabbed it over to the theater for wine and pizza for a little while. Fun stuff, despite the fact that I was having stomach issues most of the night (Heidi and I decided that it was the sudden release of stress from getting the good job that effected my stomach...I guess that's where I hold my stress?).
Saturday, Heidi and I watched some "Lost", had a great breakfast, walked around (the weather was pretty nice), went to find books about Alaska at Borders, then we had to get her downtown to the train so she could get home. In and out of town in less than 24 hours. While I hated that she couldn't stay longer, I was so glad that she took the time to come and see me. She's really the best.
Saturday night...show.
Sunday I took a day-long workshop downtown about film and commercial auditioning. It was helpful and rather fun but mostly just solidified things about the business that I already knew. And, it a nutshell...the business sucks. Though, at this point, what else am I supposed to do?
Sunday night...show.
Yesterday I woke up early and headed off to the first rehearsal for "The Lieutenant of Inishmore" at Northlight Theater in Skokie, where I am understudying. I did a lot of sitting around but I think it's gonna be a good show. And, for what it's worth, I actually plan on seeing this understudy gig through until the end...even though it scares me to death. It's a little pay and I'm told some Equity points, which is good, and it's a theater I've wanted to work with for a while. We shall see. I haven't gotten a true offer or a contract just yet so I am skeptical. But I was there all day.
Then, last night, we had Actor's Night for the big show where I'm pretty sure I stunk the place up and didn't at all defend the reviewer's assertion that I am "a funny man". Ah, well.
So there's my weekend in as few words as I can muster. Aaaaaaaaand now I'm tired again. I'm off to shower and get some stuff together in case I get called into an audition today (it's a long story for another time).
Back to always moving around...
Friday afternoon I was going to look at my e-mail and discovered one from Marie, the casting director-type woman from the job that Heidi and I have been trying to get. (Loyal readers will remember that I spent most of the previous Saturday finding, converting, and sending video of myself acting.) It was a simple e-mail requesting that we call her as soon as we could. Well, I knew that Heidi was crazy busy on Friday and so I called in the hopes of scheduling some kind of call. Marie said that wasn't a problem as long as I passed on all the information that she had. And then she proceeded to hire us! She threw a ton of dates and information at me, all of which I wrote down, and then called Heidi and left an excited message telling her about it.
In short, we go to Seattle on July 20th for a couple of days of rehearsal and then we all go on a two-week tour of Alaska!! We do all the touristy-type stuff (hike a glacier? river raft? hunt moose? who knows...), then go back to Seattle for another week or so of training and then, basically, Heidi and I are off on a trip around the country (or...most of it) saying what a great time these Alaskan trips/cruises are! We do that until the very end of September, paid rather well to do so! HOORAY!!! Heidi and I are stoopid excited about this opportunity and can't wait to get started.
Friday night I had a show and my friend Burnie came to see it! Well, the Tucker Guarantee states that we have some drinks afterward so she stuck around the theater and had some drinks with us. Heidi came into town (she was planning on doing so even before the job offer) and cabbed it over to the theater for wine and pizza for a little while. Fun stuff, despite the fact that I was having stomach issues most of the night (Heidi and I decided that it was the sudden release of stress from getting the good job that effected my stomach...I guess that's where I hold my stress?).
Saturday, Heidi and I watched some "Lost", had a great breakfast, walked around (the weather was pretty nice), went to find books about Alaska at Borders, then we had to get her downtown to the train so she could get home. In and out of town in less than 24 hours. While I hated that she couldn't stay longer, I was so glad that she took the time to come and see me. She's really the best.
Saturday night...show.
Sunday I took a day-long workshop downtown about film and commercial auditioning. It was helpful and rather fun but mostly just solidified things about the business that I already knew. And, it a nutshell...the business sucks. Though, at this point, what else am I supposed to do?
Sunday night...show.
Yesterday I woke up early and headed off to the first rehearsal for "The Lieutenant of Inishmore" at Northlight Theater in Skokie, where I am understudying. I did a lot of sitting around but I think it's gonna be a good show. And, for what it's worth, I actually plan on seeing this understudy gig through until the end...even though it scares me to death. It's a little pay and I'm told some Equity points, which is good, and it's a theater I've wanted to work with for a while. We shall see. I haven't gotten a true offer or a contract just yet so I am skeptical. But I was there all day.
Then, last night, we had Actor's Night for the big show where I'm pretty sure I stunk the place up and didn't at all defend the reviewer's assertion that I am "a funny man". Ah, well.
So there's my weekend in as few words as I can muster. Aaaaaaaaand now I'm tired again. I'm off to shower and get some stuff together in case I get called into an audition today (it's a long story for another time).
Back to always moving around...
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Higher Forces At Work, Perhaps?
After all the debate of the past week (Should he go? Shouldn't he go? Oh, the cliffhanger ending left me wondering!) about the audition in New York and all of my attemps at figuring out the best way to get out there, do the audition, and come back in time for last night's curtain at 8PM, I opted to not go to New York for the day. It all seemed like too much of a hassle. And, as I think I said in the previous post, quite seriously everything in the world was going to have to fall my way in order for me make it back in time. It all felt a bit too risky.
So yesterday (the day of the audition), I stayed inside all day working on some computer stuff...more on that later...and when I finally left the building to head to the theater, Chicago was in the midst of a fairly impressive early-Spring cold weather storm. Not snow, exactly (that came later and continues on as I type this), but heavy sleet and temperatures hovering around freezing and a wind like you wouldn't believe. Essentially, weather bad enough to more than likely cause heavy delays in air travel. So had I gone to New York there was practically no chance that I would have made it back to the city on time for the show.
So I guess I made the right decision. This time...
So that left me to fool with the computer all day yesterday. What did I do on the computer? I tried to upload video of myself acting, of course! (Why, what do YOU do on your computer?) Friday early afternoon Heidi and I had a very nice, very long (nearly an hour and a half) phone interview/conference call with a woman in Seattle who is looking for couples to travel around portions of the country to various travel agencies and essentially sell, through a show-type atmosphere, various cruises to and tours around Alaska. It would mean about a two-month stretch of traveling around with Heidi, seeing some of the country, getting nicely paid, and finally going to visit Alaska! So at the end of the interview, this woman asked us to e-mail her some video of both of us acting, singing, performing, etc.... I don't know many people who actually have video of themselves acting so yesterday I spent the day trying to find video (like student films) and then copy it to my laptop so that could upload it or put it in an e-mail to this woman. And all I really got done was figure out that I don't know much of anything about technology.
Monkey Boy was of a lot of help. As was R-Son (tee hee!!). And I was finally able to find a student film online to link to and I'm trying to find a way to get some more somehow. I am determined to get this to work. Heidi, of course, managed to find some video (and audio...!!!!) of her and send it off already. Yikes! So now it's all on me to get this done. Because I feel like we're soooooo close to actually getting this job and...well...daddy needs hisself a job!
Meanwhile, the other day I got an e-mail out of nowhere asking me about my interest in understudying at a theater in a north suburb that I've come very close to working with a few times in the past several years. I hate the thought of understudying but I like the though of finally working at this theater. Nothing is done as of yet but it's nice to occassionally be thought of for roles...even if it is in a "back-up" kind of way. So we'll see.
Irons always in the fire. Maybe THAT should be the title of my autobiography...
So yesterday (the day of the audition), I stayed inside all day working on some computer stuff...more on that later...and when I finally left the building to head to the theater, Chicago was in the midst of a fairly impressive early-Spring cold weather storm. Not snow, exactly (that came later and continues on as I type this), but heavy sleet and temperatures hovering around freezing and a wind like you wouldn't believe. Essentially, weather bad enough to more than likely cause heavy delays in air travel. So had I gone to New York there was practically no chance that I would have made it back to the city on time for the show.
So I guess I made the right decision. This time...
So that left me to fool with the computer all day yesterday. What did I do on the computer? I tried to upload video of myself acting, of course! (Why, what do YOU do on your computer?) Friday early afternoon Heidi and I had a very nice, very long (nearly an hour and a half) phone interview/conference call with a woman in Seattle who is looking for couples to travel around portions of the country to various travel agencies and essentially sell, through a show-type atmosphere, various cruises to and tours around Alaska. It would mean about a two-month stretch of traveling around with Heidi, seeing some of the country, getting nicely paid, and finally going to visit Alaska! So at the end of the interview, this woman asked us to e-mail her some video of both of us acting, singing, performing, etc.... I don't know many people who actually have video of themselves acting so yesterday I spent the day trying to find video (like student films) and then copy it to my laptop so that could upload it or put it in an e-mail to this woman. And all I really got done was figure out that I don't know much of anything about technology.
Monkey Boy was of a lot of help. As was R-Son (tee hee!!). And I was finally able to find a student film online to link to and I'm trying to find a way to get some more somehow. I am determined to get this to work. Heidi, of course, managed to find some video (and audio...!!!!) of her and send it off already. Yikes! So now it's all on me to get this done. Because I feel like we're soooooo close to actually getting this job and...well...daddy needs hisself a job!
Meanwhile, the other day I got an e-mail out of nowhere asking me about my interest in understudying at a theater in a north suburb that I've come very close to working with a few times in the past several years. I hate the thought of understudying but I like the though of finally working at this theater. Nothing is done as of yet but it's nice to occassionally be thought of for roles...even if it is in a "back-up" kind of way. So we'll see.
Irons always in the fire. Maybe THAT should be the title of my autobiography...
Monday, March 23, 2009
The hits just keep on comin'...
What a month.
I know I need to be writing more but I hate being nothing but negative when I post. And since that's the sort of general mood I've been in for the past few weeks...I've been trying not to let it all out in this blog thing. But I realized today that there has been a lot going on these past couple of weeks and it HAS been a while so...here I am. So let's see...
After the bullshit of the Round Barn experience, I was sort of down. Luckily, Heidi was in that following weekend and that's when SHE had to turn down the offer she was given from Round Barn. Also insulting. So here we sit. We both continued our pursuit of a job that maybe we can get together, which would be awesome, and that is still up in the air as of now.
Blah blah blah...meanwhile I rehearsed the show I am doing here (and it's going pretty well). Heidi came up for an audition in the city (but for a theater in Indiana) around St. Patty's Day...even getting into town in time to share an annual Sweet VO Manhattan in honor of my grandfather)...and as soon as she left to head back home, I got a call from a casting agency in New York City. The guy was calling to invite me to an audition for a national non-equity tour of "The Wizard Of Oz", called in for the Cowardly Lion. This agency saw me at the UPTAs last month and had called me back that weekend. So this, essentially, is a third audition for this place. Pretty great, right?
Nope. The audition is scheduled for 2PM (Eastern) on Saturday, March 28th. And I am in a show the night before and the night of the audition...here in Chicago. I went to the director of the show I'm in right now and told him that I had to ask because this was a huge opportunity and a wonderful chance to do something good not only for my career but my life. Without much thought at all, he said he couldn't get somebody to fill in at the last minute and said he was sorry but that he couldn't allow me to go. The next day, I spent all afternoon...several long hours...trying to figure out a way that I could go to New York on Saturday morning, get there in time to make my audition, and get back to the airport in time to make a flight that would get me to Chicago and grab a cab to the theater for curtain. I got the advice of several people that I know who are very familiar with the City and worked my ass off trying to figure it all out. And finally...I couldn't work it out. After tons of looking around and checking timetables and stuff, I finally came to the conclusion that, literally, everything in the world would have to fall in my favor in order for it to work. And since no contingency plan was in place here at home (specifically for the show that night), that sort of doomed this day-trip to failure. It's Murphy's (and Tucker's) Law.
So I'm turning down an opportunity to be a part of a national tour that would pay me no less than $850 a week because I can't get out of a performance that pays me nothing at all. How does that sound right?
So...for the past week I've been trying to figure out what my next step is in this stupid career. And I think I may have come to a very difficult decision. I think that maybe my time in off-Loop Chicago theater is about done. I've missed to much over the past 8 years or so: friends weddings, family functions, and now...a real opportunity to make a living doing this. I may forgive this director for not allowing me to go but I can't forget. So I will complete both of the shows I've committed to (the one I just opened and another show that I'm stepping in for the weekend of Memorial Day) and then maybe step back quietly for a little while.
I'm still thinking about it and considering what my next moves are, but I have to think that maybe this is the right thing for me to do for a little while. Because I refuse to miss another prime opportunity like the one I'm not going to be able to take this Saturday. I can't let that happen again.
So...once again, I'm sad. And discouraged. And wondering what the hell I'm doing.
I know I need to be writing more but I hate being nothing but negative when I post. And since that's the sort of general mood I've been in for the past few weeks...I've been trying not to let it all out in this blog thing. But I realized today that there has been a lot going on these past couple of weeks and it HAS been a while so...here I am. So let's see...
After the bullshit of the Round Barn experience, I was sort of down. Luckily, Heidi was in that following weekend and that's when SHE had to turn down the offer she was given from Round Barn. Also insulting. So here we sit. We both continued our pursuit of a job that maybe we can get together, which would be awesome, and that is still up in the air as of now.
Blah blah blah...meanwhile I rehearsed the show I am doing here (and it's going pretty well). Heidi came up for an audition in the city (but for a theater in Indiana) around St. Patty's Day...even getting into town in time to share an annual Sweet VO Manhattan in honor of my grandfather)...and as soon as she left to head back home, I got a call from a casting agency in New York City. The guy was calling to invite me to an audition for a national non-equity tour of "The Wizard Of Oz", called in for the Cowardly Lion. This agency saw me at the UPTAs last month and had called me back that weekend. So this, essentially, is a third audition for this place. Pretty great, right?
Nope. The audition is scheduled for 2PM (Eastern) on Saturday, March 28th. And I am in a show the night before and the night of the audition...here in Chicago. I went to the director of the show I'm in right now and told him that I had to ask because this was a huge opportunity and a wonderful chance to do something good not only for my career but my life. Without much thought at all, he said he couldn't get somebody to fill in at the last minute and said he was sorry but that he couldn't allow me to go. The next day, I spent all afternoon...several long hours...trying to figure out a way that I could go to New York on Saturday morning, get there in time to make my audition, and get back to the airport in time to make a flight that would get me to Chicago and grab a cab to the theater for curtain. I got the advice of several people that I know who are very familiar with the City and worked my ass off trying to figure it all out. And finally...I couldn't work it out. After tons of looking around and checking timetables and stuff, I finally came to the conclusion that, literally, everything in the world would have to fall in my favor in order for it to work. And since no contingency plan was in place here at home (specifically for the show that night), that sort of doomed this day-trip to failure. It's Murphy's (and Tucker's) Law.
So I'm turning down an opportunity to be a part of a national tour that would pay me no less than $850 a week because I can't get out of a performance that pays me nothing at all. How does that sound right?
So...for the past week I've been trying to figure out what my next step is in this stupid career. And I think I may have come to a very difficult decision. I think that maybe my time in off-Loop Chicago theater is about done. I've missed to much over the past 8 years or so: friends weddings, family functions, and now...a real opportunity to make a living doing this. I may forgive this director for not allowing me to go but I can't forget. So I will complete both of the shows I've committed to (the one I just opened and another show that I'm stepping in for the weekend of Memorial Day) and then maybe step back quietly for a little while.
I'm still thinking about it and considering what my next moves are, but I have to think that maybe this is the right thing for me to do for a little while. Because I refuse to miss another prime opportunity like the one I'm not going to be able to take this Saturday. I can't let that happen again.
So...once again, I'm sad. And discouraged. And wondering what the hell I'm doing.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
A Life In Limbo
OK...so that happened.
A little over two weeks ago, I went to UPTAs. That's not news, at this point. I got some good, promising callbacks (or so I can hope) and knew I had interest from the place that Heidi has been working at for the better part of this millennium, the Round Barn Theater. The Artistic Director, Jeremy, had talked to me about casting me in several shows and even had me come in to sing for him between Christmas and New Years. He kept ensuring me that an offer would be coming soon and when I didn't get one before UPTAs, I just figured it was because he needed an excuse to go down to Memphis for a long weekend. Whatever.
About a week ago (or so), I finally got an offer from the Round Barn. Not Jeremy, but the new Managing Director, Laurie (who sometimes will spell her own name wrong in business e-mails), who has all but usurped whatever power Jeremy used to have. She offered me 4 shows in a six-month contract from May to November at an insultingly low weekly pay rate. In an attempt to drag out the negotiating process, I asked questions and began pleading my case for a little more money in the hopes that another offer would come in and I could decide that way.
But within the process, I tried to clarify some scheduling conflicts I have in the upcoming year. Two weddings of some of the closest friends that I have. And she wrote back that not only was the pay offer fixed and non-negotiable, but if the contract is signed there are no exceptions to the "no extra days off" policy.
So what she wanted, in a nutshell, was to work me to death doing several shows in the middle of nowhere Indiana for six months at little pay with housing that didn't include television or internet access without two or three additional days off so that I could attend (and, for what it's worth, be a part of) the weddings of two of my dearest friends. I was offended. And insulted. I wanted to write back to her and tell her that she is dooming this theater to failure and all she's going to get to be in her shows are kids just out of college (or, as is the case sometimes, high school) who are going to treat the experience as an extended summer camp instead of a professional job. I wanted to tell her that she's nothing more than a stupid heartless bitch. I wanted to ask her how in the world somebody who hated the arts and artists and seemed to have nothing but utter contempt for all things artistic could work for so long and acheive such a lofty position in arts management. But I didn't. Because she knows Heidi and I are dating and Heidi still hasn't started her negotiations yet and it wouldn't be fair for me to stain that process essentially before it has started.
But this woman has made me so mad. What I've learned is that if I hated the arts, I could easily make a career in it. If I held complete disdain for artists and all things creative, I would be able to live fairly well and happily.
(---sigh---)
I wrote back to her and told her that I wouldn't be joining the Round Barn for the 2009 season and that asking me to not attend these two weddings was the ultimate offense. It's tame and it lacks, for want of a better term, balls...but it's all I had at the time. I'm still pretty upset about it. And maybe I'll post the whole e-mail string on this blog just for kicks. Get some feedback from you lovely people about what, if anything, I could have done differently.
And now all I can do is sit back and wonder what the hell I do next. I have two theaters that I'm desperately hoping will come through with an offer. But if that doesn't happen...I think I have to seriously reconsider what the hell I've done with my life for all these years. And then...I dunno...start another path?
This does NOT make me happy at all...
A little over two weeks ago, I went to UPTAs. That's not news, at this point. I got some good, promising callbacks (or so I can hope) and knew I had interest from the place that Heidi has been working at for the better part of this millennium, the Round Barn Theater. The Artistic Director, Jeremy, had talked to me about casting me in several shows and even had me come in to sing for him between Christmas and New Years. He kept ensuring me that an offer would be coming soon and when I didn't get one before UPTAs, I just figured it was because he needed an excuse to go down to Memphis for a long weekend. Whatever.
About a week ago (or so), I finally got an offer from the Round Barn. Not Jeremy, but the new Managing Director, Laurie (who sometimes will spell her own name wrong in business e-mails), who has all but usurped whatever power Jeremy used to have. She offered me 4 shows in a six-month contract from May to November at an insultingly low weekly pay rate. In an attempt to drag out the negotiating process, I asked questions and began pleading my case for a little more money in the hopes that another offer would come in and I could decide that way.
But within the process, I tried to clarify some scheduling conflicts I have in the upcoming year. Two weddings of some of the closest friends that I have. And she wrote back that not only was the pay offer fixed and non-negotiable, but if the contract is signed there are no exceptions to the "no extra days off" policy.
So what she wanted, in a nutshell, was to work me to death doing several shows in the middle of nowhere Indiana for six months at little pay with housing that didn't include television or internet access without two or three additional days off so that I could attend (and, for what it's worth, be a part of) the weddings of two of my dearest friends. I was offended. And insulted. I wanted to write back to her and tell her that she is dooming this theater to failure and all she's going to get to be in her shows are kids just out of college (or, as is the case sometimes, high school) who are going to treat the experience as an extended summer camp instead of a professional job. I wanted to tell her that she's nothing more than a stupid heartless bitch. I wanted to ask her how in the world somebody who hated the arts and artists and seemed to have nothing but utter contempt for all things artistic could work for so long and acheive such a lofty position in arts management. But I didn't. Because she knows Heidi and I are dating and Heidi still hasn't started her negotiations yet and it wouldn't be fair for me to stain that process essentially before it has started.
But this woman has made me so mad. What I've learned is that if I hated the arts, I could easily make a career in it. If I held complete disdain for artists and all things creative, I would be able to live fairly well and happily.
(---sigh---)
I wrote back to her and told her that I wouldn't be joining the Round Barn for the 2009 season and that asking me to not attend these two weddings was the ultimate offense. It's tame and it lacks, for want of a better term, balls...but it's all I had at the time. I'm still pretty upset about it. And maybe I'll post the whole e-mail string on this blog just for kicks. Get some feedback from you lovely people about what, if anything, I could have done differently.
And now all I can do is sit back and wonder what the hell I do next. I have two theaters that I'm desperately hoping will come through with an offer. But if that doesn't happen...I think I have to seriously reconsider what the hell I've done with my life for all these years. And then...I dunno...start another path?
This does NOT make me happy at all...
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