Making the Rounds

It's still a couple more weeks before I return to the safety of the Deep South, that is, North Carolina, land of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the gourmet cooking of my stepmother. In the meantime, I continue to live the glamorous life of the unemployed actor looking for employment.

It was such fun to attend the annual Helen Hayes Awards last week (I've already droned on and on about them), but there are usually a few uncomfortable moments during such events. Two actors approach each other after a long absence, and hugs ensue. Inevitably, talk turns to current projects, which, if one is unemployed, leaves one feeling a bit inadequate.

But it ain't for lack of trying on this actor's part. The local DC audition cycle continues, and I've joined in. A week or so ago, I attended the EPA (that's a general audition required by the actors' union) at Studio Theatre for their production of The Solid Gold Cadillac, to be presented next season. It's a George S. Kaufman comedy about corporate America, and has wicked relevance to today. I haven't auditioned at Studio in a while, but the caster there, Serge Seiden, who is also directing this particular piece, is a gentle gent with a nice attitude toward actors. We had a nice time catching up a bit, and the encounter reminded me that most of the casting folks in this city actually like actors. (That is not always the case in NY or LA.) The caster at Round House Theatre, my next stop, is also an old acquaintance, and I enjoyed our chat immensely. At both these auditions, I presented a brief comic moment from Steve Martin's play, Picasso at the Lapin Agile. It's a piece that's been in my repertoire a while, all about paintings of Jesus and naked messengers. Leave it to Steve...

In addition to the above general auditions, I was called in to the local children's theatre troop for a new adaptation of Peter and the Wolf. Remember that? I had an old 78 recording that I played incessantly as a kid. The director for this show happened to be a guy who choreographed the fighting in the production of Henry V at The Shakespeare Theatre Company in which I appeared a long while ago. We fought our battles with staffs, perched on 6 inch high boots which allowed us to tower over our opponents (we still lost the battles. We were French, after all...) Anyway, this audition went splendidly, and I received a callback for four roles in the show. Unfortunately, the date set for these additional auditions is after my return to North Carolina, so, after some uncomfortable soul-searching, I had to decline them. I have some hopes that additional callbacks will be scheduled, and I will do my best to attend those. It is never easy to turn down a callback, particularly with so little on my horizon, theatrically, but the audition sits squarely during my first weekend back in NC, during which I will be seeing the newest show at NC Stage, and the newest show at Flat Rock Playhouse, and attending a mini-family reunion.

I need the work, but an actor has to have a Life as well...

But there is still some hunting to be done. I'm heading to Manhattan for an audition tomorrow for a small theatre near Syracuse. It's a glamorous life...