HELOOOOOOOOO!

Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to what happens when someone goes to Studio 58. I'm finally fed up with not sharing stuff that's happened, that I am making time to make this post. I really should be working on my acting project due tomorrow, or on my next two play projects due in 2 weeks, or on the english essay due on monday... but that's stuff is obsolete compared to the way I feel about this school. I want to hug it, and love it, and make it hot chocolate and sit with it by the fire. I'm actually excited every morning to go to school, I learn so much every day. Let's take a couple weeks back. The standard day starts at 5:30am. I wake up. At 6:45 I'm at the bus stop, and at 8:30 I start english. At 9:30, more likely than not, is acting class, then we have physical theatre, movement, voice and on wednesdays, Choir. We had crew calls, which are basically calls to help out with the play. I'm on costume crew, and we're responisble for making sure the actors aren't naked. I had to sew and stuff. On those days, I'd be at school till 9, 9:30. Here are some pics of my crew.
Today it took me two hours to get home. So even though i ended at 3:15, I got home at 6. But I am not complaining at ALL. I love this school. Okay, last week, I was really feeling pressure. The teachers are so direct with their criticism, and it is for my own benefit, and I can deal with it, but after I haven't gotten a single positive response for a while, I got kinda desparate. I finally said, whatevs', let's kick it into high gear. See, I didnt even feel like I had a chance to show my true abilities and talents in class, so I was feeling down, because I didn't feel my potential was being realised, blah blah blag. So. this week, has been amazing. I'm finally showing my true colors, and making people laugh again. I even got my teacher to say "good". I KNOW! :D But more than that was the fact that I felt satisfied with something that I did, and fear wasn't ruling me in class. Tomorrow, we've got a presentation of a precious character. And I'm presenting Darek, who, some of you may remember, is my boss. I'm completely excited about this, and can't wait to call myself dum-dum. Things are going great. Movement class requires a quite elaborate getup, but the reward is stretches that are making me a foot taller and amazing yoga for an hour and a half a day. In voice, we all trip out at these amazing things we're learning, like this video.



So, although I miss getting to see everyone, and I'm missing a special person who lives kinda far away who's hungry for gelato right now and who's name MIGHT be Christine. Throughout those things, I am having the time of my life. I honestly see myself getting through this school, although times are tough. And I realised a week ago that I'm going to do whatever it takes for this dream to be a reality. I love you all, and just to prove it, you guys are lucky enough for me to post a gorgeous picture of what I wear to movement every day.
UMOTD:
everything.

A lady bug on my shifter

As some of you may know, I've been accepted into a school where actors go. An acting school, so to speak. Well, I start in January, and I've been hearing grumblings about it, about the insane schedule, the crazy hours you have to put in, and the crazy awesome actor you become at the end of it. I have been thinking of moving out for a while, so I wanted to see if it's absolutely necessary. For me, I just become lazy if I have too much work, but this is something I want to try my best at, so I want to make it easiest for me. I want to move out to be closer to school, so I needed to see if it was absolutely necessary.

I left for Langara at around 11:00. It's a beautiful day, and I actually really liked the commute. I have to try it a couple more times to see exactly how long it takes in the peak hours, but that's if i don't move out. I got there and talked with a nice lady who is involved in the school and I got a lot of info. She told me instantly that I should move out. However, she also said that it's possible to live at home for the first semester. I still don't know what I'm going to do. The schedule has something on it every day, even weekends.

9:00 - 9:00 pm Monday to Friday,
10:30 - 6:00 pm on Saturday and Sunday.

However, Saturday or Sunday will sometimes be off. Sometimes. Joy.

I also grabbed a pamflet that said more about the school. This is what it said.

more than 90 percent of Studio 58 students find professional theatre work within six months of graduating.

I am loving this school.

Went to pick up Adrienn from her class, and we had a nice long commute back home. We bought some penguin stickers and had dinner at her place! I love her mom's cooking. It's like living in a marshmallow castle. With Marshmallow furniture. Mmm... edible.

UMOTD:
Going to the Studio 58 class and sitting in on some students practicing... I really hope my auditioner didnt' make a mistake. These guys are good.

Intense Gruelling Script - time

Film meeting time! What did I do today? Let's recap!

• I went to the film meeting.

Well, that was fun!

I showed up at the Treehouse after I ate dinner with my mother and sister. My dad's Up until then I had just been lounging about. I was all over the place. Gaming, reading, going out to the park to chill, and eating. The meeting went great! It was all real professional, and I really felt like it was the start of something big! I can't wait till we're in full swing and we start actually filming! We read through the script, and it was awesome to finally get to work with this guy named Mike, who I've wanted to work with for a while. Then, we went and ate burgers at Dewys and I slept.









As an afterthought... I've noticed that PAUL is posting more pictures than I am... SO as a personal pact to both of us... I am now going to make sure I have more pictures posted than he does. I always take tons of pics, but never post all of them. Well, Paul.. we'll see how you handle all these pictures!!! MUAHAH!

UMOTD:
Mike, Kris and I discussing the de-evolution of communication.
"Dude, the carrier pigeon got shot down!"
"That's just called hacking"

I'm so stoked. Like stoking a fire.

Super stoked for school. I cannot wait to start my course at Langara, starting at Studio 58. I can't wait to see what this prestigeous school has to offer, and how I'm going to stack up against the others in the course. I know that I'm going to give it my all, though. I know that I'm going to make the most of it, and try my hardest. I've found out a while ago that I want to do any kind of acting. Be it on stage, or TV, or Movies. As long as I'm acting, I'm going to be really happy. One thing I'm most excited about is that Bard on the Beach intakes from Studio 58. Which means advanced students often get to take part in the professional shows on kits beach, and get a lot of exposure. I remember telling myself half a year ago that my goal was to one day be on Bard on the beach. I plan to make that dream a reality.

I also plan to travel to Greece next summer. I would love to work there for a while, maybe as a waiter or something, so that I'd make a bit of money in a short while, and which would allow me to travel around the country. I especially want to go to Crete. I don't speak Greek?.. oh... well, uh.. hmm... that's a problem. um... I'm Polish?

UMOTD:
Driving home tonight, and pulling up beside Kim Bunka's car! I saw Kim and her mom, "Bunky" driving along! It was SO good to see them again! It made me miss them so much! I was in Lindgberg Academy with them for 3 years, and I remember all the great times we've had together! I found out that Kim went to Edmonton to study theatre! It's great to see that she's pursuing it! She's got great talent.

No Crap.

Phew.

It was a typo.

Crap.

I'm much scared today. I just got a letter in the mail from Langara. And, considering I haven't yet sent in... y'know what? Let's just hear the whole story, shall we?

So when I first got accepted, I hastened to get my transcripts in on time. The man I was corresponding with, Daniel, told me not to worry, it was important that they had my confirmation on time. So, I put it off for a while. I was going to mail them tomorrow, just in case they said something, like revoked my acceptance or something like that.

Today, I get a letter in the mail, from a Mrs. Cheng, and she informs me that I've "Been accepted". Well, that's great, I've already gotten an email and a letter telling me this. I read on and the letter says, "To the Acting Program (Production Option - Two years)" So, as of now, I'm terrified, but acting not terrified. Get it? 'Cause I'm an actor! Eh!? See, 'cause its... nevermind. So I sent an email to Daniel, and asked him what happened. I really do hope that my acceptance to the acting option wasn't revoked or anything, and am hoping that this was just a mistake. I'm keeping my mind off it for now, and it'll all clear up soon enough. As of now, I'm going to sleep.

UMOTD:
Eating the new "LEONITAS" Pizza while talking with Darek and sitting in the front seat of his car. There's a Polish song playing on his radio, singing "I will endure" and he says that when he's listening to it, he adds "working with Greg" to the end of it.

Fraser Valley Zone Festival '07

I got an award! More on that in a minute!!! ...But I got an award!!

I am currently concluding an awesome day. I had an amazing time today. We arrived at our adjudication, and the judge, Stephen Drover, was an amazing person. All of his comments were really sincere and each one meant something. Behind each word he spoke was all his experience that he wanted to share with everyone, and I could tell he really loves theatre. It was great to work with someone who shares the same passion as you. He held a lot of the same values, and had the same mindset that my mentor and former teacher, Charles Harris, had. I could see them having many similarities, in that they're respectful, caring and sincere, while at the same time being insanely knowledgeable and approachable. So, now that I've done enough PR to last both those men a long time, back to my story.

He gave us many good tips. "Drove", as he liked to be called, mentioned it would've been a little more believable to have the blocking less towards the audience, and be more natural. He also suggested that we start and end the play in a different way, which was MUCH better than what we did. He commented that my age was good, but it wasn't quite 33, which was the age my character, Joe, was supposed to be. He said I pulled off a 25 easily, but had to work on being more serious, and more subtle to gain a better performance. Smaller, more discreet gestures and facial expressions would have left the audience more to work with, rather than telling them, "This is what you should feel. This is when you cry, because we are crying." Now that he says it, it's completely true. We should "play the action, not the emotion." The emotion will come if we do the action with full commitment. And, as always, I look back at the performance I've just done, and immediately start thinking of things I could've done much better. His most profound piece of advice was telling us that he always has to ask the actor three questions at all times.

What are you doing?
Why are you doing it?
I don't believe you.

Okay, so the last one isn't a question, but it's an important statement that rings very true, and lends itself to provoke thought. I also got some tips on how to keep my hands more natural, as I've been on the quest for steady hands for a while now.

So, at the awards gala, Stephen gave out a number of awards, and even made up a few himself. Millennium players got "Best Backstage Co-Operation" thanks to all the "heart" that our group had, the stage manager said. Aisha got an honorable mention, as she should have. She did fantastically well and I am glad she got recognition for it. She really deserved it.
Myself, I got one of the awards that Drove made up himself. He believed that the awards needed to be given, but, until this point, hadn't existed. He starts saying that this award was for an actor who he believes will progress beyond what they are doing, and will one day be getting paid for it. And with that, he presented me with the award for "Most Promising Newcomer". We erupted! I couldn't believe it! I was so happy! I hugged a bunch of us, and ran up onto the stage to accept the award. After everyone had emptied the theatre, and there were a few stragglers conversing, I broke down in tears, sitting on the edge of the stage. I couldn't believe this. It was like people were seeing my talent, and actually believed in me, supporting my dream. I feel so lucky. I was also sad that our production run was over. No more drinking alone. We will have a final party to tie up loose ends. I will miss that group. It really was an honor to perform with them, and I really think we've grown as a family. I admire Chris Foster, my director, and I thank him for all his wisdom and for putting up with me. This was a great cast, and I feel so fortunate for being involved with them.
UMOTD:
Sitting around in the green room in the time between the adjudication and the gala, and singing along casually with everyone as Bev played the piano. A great way to spend a couple hours.

I can't wait to be on stage again.

I'M IN!!!

I GOT INTO LANGARA! I feel like this guy right now, 'cause I'll be attending studio 58 in January!! It's so exciting! I want to thank all my friends, Chris, Christine, Paul, of course Steph, Brian, Jason, Jason, and everyone, really, for their support! I'm so stoked! I can't wait to start! It's sooo exciting!

I feel like I can do anything, now

Smallville - Audition completed.

So I returned from North Van today with Brian, Steph and Larry, after a great audition. We got there nice and early, and Heather, the nice lady at the front, greeted us. I would be lying if I said that I wasn't nervous. I mean, this could be the start of something big! I couldn't wait to get in there. And once I did, I had a great time. It just came to me. They said I made some good choices in what I did, and I liked what I did also. They asked me to do three scenes instead of one, and that could potentially be very good. I hate to make it seem like this, but Brian was actually my competition today. He said that last night, while we partied, He wanted me to be out of my game today, which was .. kind of malicious, but I understand where he was coming from, but I don't want my dream to come between my friends. Today, however, I saw that it isn't. I completely forgot to give them my headshot and resume, but it might not be that bad. Now I cannot wait to hear back from them. One week, and then I find out if I got it or not. Supposedly there was just me and Brian auditioning for now, and if they didn't like what they saw, then they'll search elsewhere. Hopefully I showed them what they wanted to see.

Studio 58 Audition - ness

Alright, so yesterday I went in for my audition for the Studio 58 Theatre program up at Langara College. I felt really relaxed, and just told myself that I was going to do my best and that would be that. When the group started doing group auditions, like group improv stuff, then I started to get worried. However, I still kept my cool and just enjoyed myself to the fullest. The Directors said that they were looking for people who enjoy acting, and I'm pretty sure I enjoy myself to the max when I'm acting. It's only my passion. So a lot of the group were doing really well, and I saw their skills and talents, and a lot of them were really great. But then, we went in individually in front of the judges, and performed our monologues. Mine went spectacular! It was one of the best auditions I had done in a while, and I could say that I was really in my element. I think the judges could really see my passion for the art and were happy with what I did. Or so I think. I'm pretty confident that I made an impression on them that is of the awesomeness. FOR SPARTA!

Smallville and The Birdcage

Yesterday I'm sitting around relaxing after my bike ride, and I get a call from Mr. Kingsland, my old Info Tech Teacher. He calls me to inform me that I have an audition for Smallville! A year ago, we entered a film into the 48 hour quick flick film challenge, with Brian Romein, Brian Tansley, Ali, Steph, Spencer, Adam, and me. We won "Best acting Ensemble" and as a prize we got auditions for smallville.. a year ago. So now, after a year, we finally hear from them, and we're in! On March 3rd I'm going in with the gang to audition! :D Steph, Brian, Brian, Ali and I are going to head down to Vancouver for our auditions, and what's cool is that we got a part of the script to read and prepare! I've been practicing my monologue for Langara and memorized it today. Now all I gotta do is practice. I'm really excited for the audition, and am just imagining what it'd be like to be on smallville! :D

As for the Birdcage, it's a movie I just watched with Robin Williams and Gene Hackman. It's absolutely hillarious, and it's about a gay dance club, and a whole "Meet the Fockers" storyline. Robin shines as he does in any movie, but I was also impressed by Hank Azaria, just because of his hillarious character. He's a gay Guatemalen man, and he just plays a wonderful accent and great mannerisms. They all do a great job.