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When In Doubt... Start A Podcast

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When In Doubt... Start A Podcast

When in doubt, start a podcast. Towards the start of all of this, I read an article that said, “Now is the time to finally do the things you have put on the back burner.” Now is the time to read the books you have set aside or learn a new baking technique. This moment that we have been sitting in since March 15 ,2020 has been uncomfortable to say the least. I am in the same situation as everyone else. This virus has decimated our entertainment industry. There has been great resilience and innovative thinking, but without being able to deliver a live performance, theatre artists everywhere are trying to figure out where they fit. I know for us in particular, we have just been floating along, hoping and reaching for an end to all of this. Spending your life training for something and then for that thing to just disappear with no end in sight, has made me a pretty fragile person… I used to think I was really good at accepting change and seeing the new path and running down it. This experience has shown me that I can't run alone.

A LOVE LETTER

A LOVE LETTER

A love letter to theatre

I love you arriving early to rehearsal to make sure everything is ready and in the right place.

I love you tiny moment before the first few people arrive while I sit sipping coffee imagining what the show will look like. I love you first three people to arrive as we have an unexpected chat about our day before the rest of the cast arrives. I love you scheduling …. I didn’t think I did… but I do. I love you silly questions about scheduling that are answered on the rehearsal schedule. I love you moment when an actor misses a line and has to restart. I love you missed music cue. I love you face of the confused actor once the music cue has been missed. I love you crazy costume lady… whomever you are. I love you knowing look at the stage manager when an actor blows you away with their talent. I love you accomplishing the impossible with those you love.

Its Been A While

Its Been A While

    Welcome back! It's been awhile. A lot has happened since the last time I had the opportunity to sit down and write. Our production of A Christmas Carol could not have turned out better. We are so blessed to have had the opportunity to perform our dear friend David Bell’s adaptation. One of the beautiful things about David’s script is how he was able to transfer his generosity of spirit and loving heart to every page. I owe a lot of my career, directing style, and approach to theatre from our years of working together (which deserves its very own post). I am beyond thankful to have been able to bring his adaptation to Central Louisiana.

Finding Balance

Finding Balance

What a whirlwind producing our company’s first show was! On opening night, when the lights came up to reveal everyone in the audience, I remember thinking “Hey, maybe we are going to be okay.” The journey was not easy by any means. Navigating starting a business within the first year of marriage was no easy task. I can’t imagine having a more gracious and giving partner. We are learning everyday how to best navigate running a business together. How do we maintain a successful business while still dedicating enough time to work on our relationship? I think it is only something that we will get better at but the learning curve is steep. Especially for me.

Greater Tuna / Better Friends

Greater Tuna / Better Friends

When I was the ripe ol’ age of 18, I met Richard Gwartney. He was a director in town that I had not had the pleasure of working with yet. He was in need of an actor to step in for a production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead at City Park Players. He had lost his Hamlet and asked if I would be interested in stepping into the role. After our first conversation I knew this was someone I needed to work with. So, I found a way to make the schedule work and joined the show. That singular chance meeting gave me one of my truest friends and mentors. It wasn’t long after that first show together, that Richard asked me about doing this funny two-man show with him as a fundraiser for Empty Space Players.

Our Community

Our Community

“How truly amazing is it that we find ourselves surrounded by friends that support not only the start of our theatre company, but our relationship in such a positive way?” Lexie and I have said the following phrase more times than I can count. There was a time that this wasn’t the case. Lately, I have been thinking of the shifts we go through in life. The people that we have to ask to “please exit stage left” so that we can create a more positive stage picture for ourselves and to make way for those waiting in the wings. Over the last couple of years, we have had to let certain people in our lives go. Not because we dislike these people. There are many people who I care about that (though I may not have realized it at the time) made me a more negative person.

In The Beginning

In The Beginning

In the beginning, all I wanted was to do good work- at least it's nice to think I did. Being so long ago, it is hard to look back and remember what my true motives were. However, if I had to venture a guess as to my truest motivations, it was most likely for recognition and fame. No one would want to admit that. “I wanted to be the best, and for people to tell me that I was the best.”