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All Her World's The Stage with Carolyn Anne Miller
71 Plays2 months ago
Yasi and Steven talk with actress Carolyn Ann Miller about life on and off the stage. She shares about her ups and downs as a NYC actress, her performances in South Pacific and Titanic, and her creation of Safe Space for actors.
Instagram: @carolynannemilleractor
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/carolyn.a.miller.54/
Bio: Carolyn Anne Miller is a born and raised Chicago native. She moved from Chicago to New York City immediately after graduating college in 2015 and would dare to say that after almost 10 years she is now a proud New Yorker.
However, Chicago hotdogs will always be better than NYC's attempt. Sorry!
Offstage, she's constantly creating, whether it's workshopping her cabaret, interior design, writing in her free time, planning her new musical, free drawing or illustrating her mom's new children's book, or crying and laughing so hard at her favorite place on earth, **SAFE SPACE (IG: @safespacemanhattan). She is also a massive lover of the earth and spends as much time as she can outside!
Carolyn has worked in and out of NYC since moving here. She performed in the 10-person ensemble supporting TITUSS BURGESS in his Carnegie Hall production of Take Me to the World: A Stephen Sondheim Tribute. She's created a home regionally with the Fulton Theatre and Maine State Music Theatre starring in many of their shows including; South Pacific, Nellie Forbush; 9TO5, Doralee Rhodes; Something Rotten, Portia; Spelling Bee, Olive Ostrovsky; Titanic, Kate McGowan, and several more.
**Carolyn and her friend Jenn Smith created Safe Space, a judgement-free, supportive, and encouraging performance event during the pandemic. Their goal was to provide space to those who lost their space, had no space, or wanted to try out space just for fun. We welcome folks from all across the spectrum of artists, ranging from Broadway artists to artists who are singing in front of folks for their very first time! We occasionally offer professional video and we ALWAYS offer a supportive community, fabulous vibes, and an unforgettable night! We exist purely to raise up and encourage all artists!โโโ
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Transcript
Introduction and Podcast Promotion
00:00:06
Speaker
Welcome to the Athletes in the Arts podcast, hosted by Stephen Karaginas and Yasi Ansari.
00:00:19
Speaker
Hello, everyone, and welcome to another Athletes and the Arts podcast, along with my co-host, Jossi Ansari. I'm Stephen Karaginas, and we thank you for listening in today. If you'd like to show, please feel free to tell us by leaving a review. If you want to get more information on performing arts medicine, please go to www.athletesandthearts.com.
00:00:41
Speaker
So today we wanted to learn more about the life of a professional stage actor, their ups and downs, the stress and the joy, the tension and the thrills, all the things that make the immediacy of theater so exciting to watch and perilous to perform.
Guest Introduction: Carolyn Ann Miller
00:00:55
Speaker
So with us today is Carolyn Ann Miller, a New York actress and co-founder of Safe Space. He plays for all artists in New York to hone their craft amongst their community. Also with us today is our athletes in the arts co-founder, Randy Dick.
00:01:11
Speaker
Hi, Carolyn. We are so excited to have you here with us today. Hey, y'all. I'm happy to be here. Amazing. So tell us a little bit about what you're doing right now.
Carolyn's Journey in Theater
00:01:23
Speaker
I know it's a loaded question, but just tell us a little bit more about yourself and some of the passions that you currently have. Yeah, that is a loaded question for an actor. Yes. Well, I just finished a show called South Pacific. That was a co-pro between the Fulton Theater, which is in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
00:01:40
Speaker
and Main State Music Theater, which is up in Brunswick, Maine. I closed that about two months ago and then went on a little vacation with my husband, which is very rare to be able to find that time. But now I'm just back in New York City, which is home for me, and grinding, as they say in our industry, which basically just means going out to auditions and trying to get my hands on any sort of creative project I can find, whether that means
00:02:08
Speaker
somebody who has new music or a new show or a new workshop or anything like that. So as far as something coming up, there's nothing really in the mix right now creatively like that.
00:02:20
Speaker
Actually, there's something to be said for the grind. There's a lot of creativity within that with auditioning and trying to localize for myself what my current passion is as far as storytelling and things like that. But the short answer is I'm back home in New York. Awesome. So tell us about your journey to acting. Have you acted since you were five? Just give us a little bit more information around that.
00:02:46
Speaker
Pretty close, yeah. So I, my grandmother was an actor, actually, professional, but she sort of stayed local to Chicago, which is where I grew up. So when I was three, my mom and grandma put me into dance class. And then shortly after I started taking voice lessons, and I think my first show I ever did was a small, small
00:03:10
Speaker
you know, summer camp where we put on the sound of music and I played Gretel, the youngest on trap. And my sister actually was in that. She was Mother Havas. She's not in the arts anymore. But that was just a fun little story that my first show was with my sister. She's kind of fun. So I started pretty young and then never really stopped. Once I did that, I started doing summer camps every summer where we'd have a show.
00:03:34
Speaker
And then throughout the year, we had a community theater very, very close to my house, which I feel very lucky to have had that because I actually found.
00:03:41
Speaker
some of my lifelong best friends there and sort of created my own community through that. And without going into too much detail, I grew up in a sort of very difficult situation. I just had a hard upbringing, hard childhood, and I really, really did find solace and home and community through the theater. And in some cases, I would say that it saved my life, again, without going into too much detail, but I find
00:04:09
Speaker
a lot of home within theater. And so when I started and sort of felt that, felt that it could be that for me, I never really stopped. And I did shows my entire life growing up again through that community theater and up until high school when I was performing in their main stage shows and then I went to college for it in
Theater as a Profession and Community
00:04:29
Speaker
Chicago.
00:04:29
Speaker
And then right after I graduated college in Chicago, I was like, okay, I got to leave the city. I've been here for too long and moved to New York City, which now was just about 10 years ago. And yeah, I mean, that's sort of the cliff notes of my growing up in theater. I find that a lot of people find a lot of comfort
00:04:52
Speaker
in theater compared to other professions within music and dance and performing arts. Theater is the one activity that I've actually noticed a lot of people finding more comfort in growing up and I'm not exactly sure why. So would you be able to speak a little bit more on is it like the dynamic nature of theater, the culture within theater?
00:05:15
Speaker
Yeah, I, well, I want to start by saying I can obviously only speak on my own experience, but I would venture to say a big reason why it is comforting for a lot of people or necessary for people in some cases.
00:05:32
Speaker
is truly I think through the storytelling because you sort of get to put yourself right, you get to put yourself into somebody who you're not, which can be good in some cases, can not be so good in some cases, but I think being able to escape in that way and look at the world through somebody else's eyes
00:05:50
Speaker
can be really, really powerful, whether you need it or not. Some people don't need it that deeply, and some people do need it that deeply, and it can be really impactful on somebody's upbringing specifically, but then also through the rest of their lives. Yeah, I think it can be really impactful in that way. It's like putting yourself in somebody else's shoes, that sort of thing. And then I really also think you find
00:06:16
Speaker
because more often than not, people find themselves in theater because they need it, whether they know it at that young age or not, but they cultivate community through that too. And if you want to call it differences, if you want to call it tragic, like whatever the specific person's situation is, you cultivate this really special community of people from different experiences all the time who are often
00:06:42
Speaker
who are often not afraid to talk about it or show emotion, which I think maybe that separates it from other industries. I think this industry can be really good for allowing you to have your differences and allowing you to have your trauma and allowing you to have your, you know, whatever it may be. And sometimes not, but you know, everything's a work in progress, but that might be another reason it separates it from perhaps another industry.
00:07:08
Speaker
Now is your husband involved in theater acting or anything like
Balancing Personal and Professional Life
00:07:13
Speaker
that? He's also an actor. So how does it work in your dynamics with your husband? Like when you go work all day, you come home and then he's also involved in that same kind of field. Um, do you find that sometimes it's very helpful to have someone else to understand you or is it sometimes difficult because like, I got my own problems. I don't need to hear about your problems. Same thing. I mean, how's, how do you thread that needle there?
00:07:35
Speaker
I think you sort of hit the nail on the head. It's literally both of what you said, probably 50, 50, 50 amount of the time. 51, 49, right? Yes. And I'm supposed, um, yeah, he, um,
00:07:49
Speaker
I think sometimes it's very helpful that we're both in the industry because especially nowadays that we have to do self tapes since the pandemic. Self tapes have become a really big medium of auditioning where it used to be like 99% of the time always in person and very rarely would they even want to see a self tape. But now it's sort of become more of the norm since the pandemic for obvious reasons. And so but for that reason, if I have to do a self tape at home, I have my husband to help me and read with me and
00:08:18
Speaker
you know, coach me through and then vice versa. If he has a self-tape, we really help each other in that way. Um, you know, but then because we're in the same industry and, and we're both again, grinding to get where we want to be in our careers, sometimes we, we butt heads because we don't agree on how, how, how was the right way to get there or, or did you do that best the best you could? I mean, like silly little things like that, that might come up in all industries, but aren't
00:08:48
Speaker
because our industry is so personal, you know, we're selling ourselves, basically. So it becomes that personal. So then you butt heads because of that. But I'd say ultimately, I mean, we've got each other's backs pretty well. And we've, we were friends first for several years from meeting through a show and through a theater. So we cultivated a really solid relationship before that. So I think that was helpful. And then also when we first started dating about four months,
00:09:17
Speaker
after we started dating, he left for a tour. And then when he got back from that tour, I left for another tour and then I left for a cruise ship. And then it just kept happening that way. So we were very, very used to not seeing each other a lot.
00:09:34
Speaker
But it works for us. And, you know, he's he's he's not home this moment, but he's home now from tour. And we've spent the last like two months together, which has been glorious. So we just take what we can get and everybody's lives are different. And as long as you're both in it 100 percent rate, I think that's when things are successful. Absolutely.
Performing Through Challenges
00:09:53
Speaker
So, Carolyn, I saw you when you were performing up in Brunswick in South Pacific as Nellie for Bush and you were fantastic.
00:10:03
Speaker
Thank you. But it's my understanding that on the first day of dress rehearsal, there was a little bit of an incident. Your gig, I believe, was something like 18 shows in three weeks. And this happened on the day before the first show. You want to go into that a little bit? Yeah, sure. So we were doing South Pacific, and it was a co-pro. So we had already had, gosh, I think it was about a month run.
00:10:31
Speaker
in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. And then, you know, we transfer the whole show. So we already kind of knew what we were doing. We will. We really knew what we were doing. But then when you transfer a show to different theater and with different crew and different, I mean, X, Y and Z, different things, things, things happen and things can be a little different. And the tech process in Maine as well is pretty fast because we've already run it. So really all they're using tech for is to legitimately put the set down and throw the actors on stage and
00:11:00
Speaker
It's dealt with much more safely than that. But it's a pretty quick process. And so we had, I think, one day of rehearsal, one day of tech, and two previews in one day. And so the last preview of that day, the night before opening, I
00:11:20
Speaker
We had the song is wash that man right out of my hair, which involves real running water on stage, which was fabulous. And I mean, the set designers and the crew, I mean, everyone was wonderful in it. It went so well always. And we were even choreographed to wipe up the water and the soap on stage. So, you know, seemingly foolproof. There was one day the night before opening where there were some suds mixed in with the water, maybe more suds than usual.
00:11:50
Speaker
and I slipped and my left foot slammed into the shower set piece which is made of solid wood and I mean it hurt like you don't even know it and honestly because of the adrenaline I was like wow I probably just stubbed my toe really badly and whatever and and I kept going and
00:12:15
Speaker
You know, I don't, especially in act one, I didn't really have too much downtime. I had more downtime in act two, but it wasn't until intermission that I got downstairs and actually like took my shoe off and looked at my foot. And I was like, oh, and I started
Healthcare in the Arts
00:12:26
Speaker
to cry. And I don't cry like at work, right? Like, I was like, oh no, what's happening? And I actually finished the show. And then it wasn't until that night that my like whole foot, basically, it was my big toe that broke.
00:12:43
Speaker
Um, it cracked from left to right, um, across the top of it. And, um, it didn't feel like a big deal, but, um, sorry, I'm trying to remember this as I'm saying it just, it didn't seem like a big deal, but, um, it was so bruised that night. And then I still that night thought it was just stubbed really badly. So the next morning my husband was there, luckily.
00:13:09
Speaker
and just visiting and he was like, let's go to the doctor. And I was like, yeah, sure, why not? So I contacted the theater and they set up an appointment for me. It was great. And it turns out that it was broken. And what was interesting was going into that doctor's office and them treating me and being like, okay, we have a broken toe. Here's a boot, wear this for four weeks and then you'll be good. To which I said, well, I actually can't do that. I have to go back to work. And they were like, well, where are the boot at work?
00:13:34
Speaker
And I was like, well, I'm an actor, I can't actually do that. Or I can't be in the show. So it was sort of gambling those two thoughts. And for me, again, theater is like my safe space. It is the whole entire world to me. That being said, people should take breaks when they want to or need to. But it was only a three week run. And then the show was over. If it had been running for maybe a few months, I would have taken some time off to see if I could
00:14:04
Speaker
But it was only three weeks, so I decided to keep going and the doctors didn't really understand what or why.
00:14:13
Speaker
what that meant, but they told me I could wear the boot off stage and then I talked to the show and the costume designer and we decided I wore all keds for the show, took out all the heels. But basically the day after I broke my toe, I never stopped and I adjusted some choreography, but I kept going and I'm actually still in PT today because I sort of,
00:14:41
Speaker
strained my my calf and and my knee a little and nothing is horrible, but it is just because I never stopped the overcompensation, you know, I was walking on the outside of my foot and And here we are and luckily I actually just had a an appointment with My god is a no podiatrist I was gonna have to read the name of the foot doctor the podiatrist I had a meeting with a
00:15:07
Speaker
a podiatrist last week who actually primarily works with people in the arts. And that was a really interesting appointment to have versus the appointment I had in Maine, which by the way, those doctors were lovely. They just didn't fully understand the art. So it was really interesting actually having that meeting with the doctor last week and how he was talking to me because he deals with dancers all the time. And it just was very different verbiage and conversation. So that was great. What was that like? What kind of verbiage? I'm just curious.
00:15:37
Speaker
Just even the fact that he could talk to me about like a relevรฉ or talk to me about like the kind of shoes we wear. We have these shoes called Ladookas that a lot of the Broadway community and I mean theater and just theater community in general wear, which I think if I said Ladooka to the people in Maine, they'd look at me like I had three heads.
00:16:01
Speaker
but that's a very general language in our industry. And so he was like, come in next week, bring your Ladukas and we'll walk around in them. I was like, okay. So nothing groundbreaking terminology necessarily. And also if he had said groundbreaking terminology, I might've not even clocked it anyway, because that would mean nothing to me. But just things like that and giving me specific stretches to do was very helpful.
00:16:30
Speaker
talking about like leaning towards the wall with my feet parallel and then leaning to stretch my calf and then that versus turning out and then leaning. It just seemed very, very localized to dancer language, I guess.
00:16:47
Speaker
Carolyn, when in the sports world these days, when somebody gets hurt, the injury gets, everybody seems to know about it.
Actors' Physical Demands and Preparation
00:16:56
Speaker
In your case, nobody knew about it. I mean, you told me or somebody told me, but nobody watching that show would have known that. Is that sort of a badge of courage? Or do you think it's, you know, is your mindset, nobody needs to know about this, I'm just going to do this? Or do you want to say, well, I want people to understand I'm really,
00:17:16
Speaker
working through this to entertain you? I would always rather them not know. Because especially in this instance, I think we did a good job of changing things enough to where it still made sense. It wasn't like we changed something that felt embarrassing. And I was like, oh, I wish they knew I was doing this. You know, there was nothing like that.
00:17:41
Speaker
And also the point is to tell the story and I'm not Carolyn on stage with a broken toe. I was Nellie Corbusch on stage and that to me was more important. And also whether this is the right thing to say or not, I didn't break my leg. I only broke my toe and I know it hurt and it did a lot. But I think there's a difference in severity for that. So there was a sense of, well, the show really can go on.
00:18:10
Speaker
because it's not that bad. But you know, there were people who commented to me after the shows because I wore, they had me wrap it every night in a certain way, KT tape. They had me buddy tape, my big toe and the toe next to it with medical tape. And then I would KT tape around like the base of my foot up to my ankle for stability.
00:18:34
Speaker
Um, which was actually very helpful, but I was barefoot for several scenes in the show, like during Washington man right out of my hair and the scene surrounding that song. Um, and there were people who would come up to me after the show and be like, what was on your foot? I even had one woman who came up to me and I accidentally, I think it was opening night actually. So the first day I had to do this, um,
00:18:55
Speaker
you know, the little logo, KT, that's on the tape, there's the black, KT. I had it where you could see that, because I hadn't really thought about that. I was just like, okay, I'm gonna wrap it and then go do the show. I hadn't detailed enough yet, I guess. And she came up to me after the show and she was like, you know, you really could hide the KT. I was like, okay, noted ma'am, thank you.
00:19:17
Speaker
So people definitely noticed, but it was all in fun. I don't know. For me, the situation was never that detrimental or serious. And the fact that the theater worked so well with me, I think that made a big difference.
00:19:34
Speaker
I think that it's important then for our listeners, especially in the medical profession, to understand that in the same way as you might want to try to find a way to splint up an athlete because they have some issue and keep them in the game, the medical professionals need to be creative about keeping you in the game. And it sounds like you had some good help there, but I assume what happened to you in this case is not an anomaly. It does happen out there. And if we have more people that's aware of
00:20:02
Speaker
of how to take care of you in these sort of emergency situations that would be better for everybody. Yeah, I think so. I think there's a lot of
00:20:13
Speaker
A lot of people don't really understand what our job entails most of the time because we put on shows and we're having fun. And our job truly is to make it look easy. We want you to sit there and enjoy the show, even the dancers. They work very hard. And there's a lot of rehearsal that goes into it and a lot of strength training and mind training for choreography, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera.
00:20:43
Speaker
People don't really understand how difficult it can be and how much our bodies are involved. I'm actually not a dancer. I am an actor-singer. And because of the nature of my characters, I usually am jumping around because those are the parts I play. And I put a lot of stress on my body in that way. But even for me, who's not actually dancing, I'm using my body
00:21:05
Speaker
The entire time and my that's and people don't always understand that and that's that's okay because it's not their job to but if I think I think you're right in the Medical profession there are lots of times or if I have to go in for something even even for like a throat doctor like an ENT I have to find a very specific person who works in the arts because they might not always understand how I'm using that part of my body differently than just anybody who who
00:21:35
Speaker
who it might not matter for if something really bad happened or is going on in their throat. Or even the devices they use, if they have to, I can't think of the terminology, but when they put the little cameras down your throat, you have to know that this is my money maker. Literally, this is how we survive and have a job. And a lot of times they don't know how to talk to you or... Connect with you, relate to you, and really understand what you're going through.
00:22:04
Speaker
So how do you work with your voice as far as protecting it? Because you do a lot of shows that require singing and some of these shows are night after night after night sometimes. So what kind of work are you better with your voice now than you were when you started? I mean, what kind of things are you doing to help protect yourself?
00:22:21
Speaker
Yeah, it's just all about the warmup. It's like if you were to physically warm up your body, which I also do, even though I'm not a dancer. It's all about the warmup, doing certain scales, doing certain vowels, doing certain registers of your voice. And I spend probably before every show, even if it's a two-show day, it's not per day, it's per show.
00:22:50
Speaker
doing like a 15 minute vocal warm up just to make sure everything's in check. And then, you know, maybe singing some parts of the show before actually going to the theater just to make sure like your voice is where you want it to be. It's pretty much exactly the same as warming up your body. It's just localized to, to your vocal cords and to your I don't want to say throat, it's not your throat, you don't sing from your throat, but you know, that whole area.
00:23:16
Speaker
And then I do all before every single show, I always do 10 push ups. And I always do the amount of my age jumping jacks. Huh? Just just to also physically warm up your body. And that also helps your voice because because breathing is like 90
00:23:34
Speaker
if not 99% of singing, you know, your breath support behind your voice is what counts the most as far as I'm concerned. And there's so much movement. There's so much movement on stage, so you have to be able to perform at peak performance, right, with all the different types of moves you're doing. Yeah, a lot. I mean, stamina is huge.
00:23:56
Speaker
What does training look like for you each day? Like during these high performance seasons and the tours or just when you're doing these back-to-back shows for three to four weeks, what do rehearsals look like? Is that every day? Like before the show?
00:24:16
Speaker
Um, it can vary, um, for, I do mostly regional gigs and for those gigs, um, typically it's like two weeks of rehearsal and that often includes tech week. Um, or maybe it'll be like two and a half weeks, which includes tech week and tech week. It's usually like three or four days. Um, it's not a whole week. Um, and then the show runs for usually like a month or two. Um, and so once the show opens, rehearsal is done.
00:24:45
Speaker
unless you are a swing or an understudy, then they'll have rehearsals a couple of times a week, maybe just once a week, especially for regional
Memorization and Performance Techniques
00:24:55
Speaker
gigs. If it's like a tour or Broadway, they'll usually rehearse.
00:25:00
Speaker
a few times a week for understudies and swings. But as far as setting the show, once it opens, there's quote unquote no more rehearsal as far as like setting in and changing it or having any, you know, different beats or different, you know, cuts or whatever that is throughout the show. So usually it's about roughly two weeks of rehearsal, usually like a nine to five. When you have a bunch of lines in the show,
00:25:25
Speaker
Do you like when you're off stage for your next appearance? Do you review those or are they cemented in your head and you've got them all in? I just am amazed how you remember the words of the songs and the words of the dialogue. What's your secret there? Well, songs for me, and I want to say generally, songs are easier to memorize lyrics to, I think because our brains naturally pair things to music.
00:25:55
Speaker
Um, you know, like that's why teaching kids growing up, like a lot of, a lot of education for younger kids comes through music because it's easier to remember things musically. Um, I don't actually know the science behind that, but I do know that to be true for myself at least. Um, and, uh, I, I, yeah, I memorize.
00:26:19
Speaker
before in rehearsals and I just I will read it over and over again and then oftentimes I'll write it down and then that'll help me remember the lines just once I sort of have a general sense I'm not completely memorized but I've read it enough and I've gone over it enough that I think I have a general sense then I'll test myself and start writing it
00:26:37
Speaker
And then once I'm past that point, I'll have my husband or a friend or whoever's around to start running the lines with me. But then actually what helps the most is actually pairing the lines with the blocking we have in rehearsals. The blocking is like the staging.
00:26:52
Speaker
So once I take the memorization wherever I am in that process to rehearsal, that's usually what clicks for me is once I compare the lines with the staging and the movement and the intention too, right? You know, that makes a lot of difference.
00:27:09
Speaker
But then once the show opens, knock on wood, I don't have to look at it again because the idea is that it's it's pretty much cemented in your brain. We can always keep our scripts, right? So I'll have it backstage superstitiously. I would never throw it away or give it back to the to the stage manager, just because like, what if you need it? But typically, no, I won't look at it again.
00:27:33
Speaker
Um, once we open, we also, you know, a stage manager is helpful in so, so, so, so, so many ways. They are like the MVP of shows in general, but they will always throughout the run of your show. If you, if you are saying a line wrong or, or missed a line or, you know, whatever the case may be involving lines, they'll write you a little note, basically, and be like, here's the line you messed up or here's, here's what you need to work on. Um, and hopefully it's just like one or two sometimes, but
00:28:01
Speaker
So they'll be helpful in that process too. I think like would you ever have a situation where the stage manager would have like a sign that would have the first line of your scene? I always wonder because I go to a lot of shows here in Los Angeles. There are so many lines to memorize. I am just amazed by how talented every performer is.
00:28:27
Speaker
And then in the middle of all this, you have the music and then someone has their solo for like five to 10 minutes. It's insane. It looks extremely challenging, but this is why you do the pros. I've never seen someone do that, but it would it would be pretty hilarious and awesome if that happened. And again, I've never seen it happen. But if there was somebody to help out in that way, it probably would be the stage manager being like, this is what you're supposed to say. Yeah.
00:28:57
Speaker
Yeah, no. There have you ever seen? There's a movie about time, which is actually one of my favorite movies at all time. And that exact situation happens in the movie. It's very funny.
Experiences on Disney Cruise Ships
00:29:08
Speaker
So I saw before that you've done work with Disney cruise ships. Yeah. Yeah. So and that's a very popular now. A lot of dancers I take care of and performers I take care of that graduate from college, one of the big
00:29:21
Speaker
targets for them is to try to get a gig on a cruise ship. Obviously, that's a little bit of an interesting experience because it's theater on the water and lots of different aspects are a little bit different than a regional theater. For you, what was the experience like?
00:29:36
Speaker
I had an absolute blast. I had moved to New York in 2015 and hadn't booked anything. I was, again, grinding and auditioning all the time, but hadn't booked anything. And then that, after two years of living in New York, that was the first thing I'd booked in two years. And so that felt really, really good. And I had never been on a cruise ship. I had never
00:29:58
Speaker
Worked, sailed for fun, nothing. I had never experienced that experience. And I had an absolute blast. I mean, when I say that was probably the best year of my life, I really, truly mean that. Because, you know, tours are wonderful work and oftentimes incredible experiences. But tours on land, like first national tours,
00:30:22
Speaker
you're packing up every month, sometimes every two weeks, sometimes every week. And you're the one who's sort of moving around all the time. And yes, you're traveling and seeing a lot, which is amazing, but you're the one who's taking on the taxing activity of having to travel. When you're working on a cruise ship, you're seeing more of the world and you go to sleep at night and then you wake up in a totally new place and that's it. And now all of a sudden you're in Alaska and last night you were in,
00:30:52
Speaker
Washington or Vancouver or wherever it sales from. So that was one of the coolest things to me is that, yes, I'm traveling and I'm working, but I'm not really doing the work to take myself all these places. So that, number one, was very cool. Number two, on the cruise ships, at least Disney specifically, when I was there, I think things might be a little different now because this was back in 2017.
00:31:19
Speaker
We had three shows. One of them was a quote unquote book show, which just means like a through line story plot A to B, which was Frozen based on the movie. And so that was our, again, quote unquote book show. And then we had two like review shows. One was called Dreams and one's called Golden Mickeys, which basically is like a review of all your favorite Disney songs. And you get to see all your favorite Disney characters. It's sort of just like vignettes of
00:31:47
Speaker
all your favorite movies. But it was cool because now not only are we doing one show, we're doing three shows, which was, yes, a lot of work, but so much fun. I mean, we were having a blast. And also in that specific realm of the world, you have kids primarily as your audience. And I mean, they are your biggest fans in those situations, right? And I mean, we're truly, truly changing lives, which is our whole intention anyway, as performers and actors. So that that was very, very special.
00:32:17
Speaker
But I mean, yeah, we just had a ton of fun. There were silly things like every show had contingencies because we're on a ship. So if there was a really bad sea day or something, very rarely would a show be canceled. And I mean that very rarely.
00:32:35
Speaker
But if there was like a rocky day, the contingency would be to, you know, you know, we're not using this lift today, or this set piece isn't coming in. And sometimes, if it was that rocky, you could look up because they had a fly system on the ship where lots of the set pieces were hanging above stage, which is very common in most theaters, you know, with your fly system, and they fly in walls and set pieces and
00:32:57
Speaker
you know, whatever, whatever it is. But you'd look up and if it was really rocky, you'd see these heavy set pieces swinging back and forth. And you're like, okay, we're going to perform. Oh, no.
00:33:09
Speaker
They had, I mean, it's Disney. They have so many safety procedures in place, and you never felt safe by any means, but it would just be silly to be like, okay, that's a good reminder that we're performing on a ship.
Actors' Equity and Professional Support
00:33:23
Speaker
So you are a member of Actors' Equity, and can you talk a little bit about what that is? I believe it's a union
00:33:30
Speaker
And what it does in terms of health and safety, some things that may be positive and maybe some other needs that you're needing that maybe still need to be addressed outside of actors' equity.
00:33:44
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, personally, I've always felt very protected by Actors' Equity. I joined my... Right after I graduated college, I worked at Music Theatre Wichita and they gave me my card, which is another great theater, Music Theatre Wichita. And then I moved to the city. So one of the things that Actors' Equity does for you is sort of...
00:34:08
Speaker
for lack of a better term, let's say boosts your possibility of being seen at an audition. So if you're equity, it is the actor's union. And if you're equity, you get to go on the website and you can basically just make an appointment for yourself versus
00:34:26
Speaker
I'm sure you've heard of the nightmarish open calls where everybody and their cat shows up and there can be lines outside the building at like 5 a.m. and people waiting to be seen who oftentimes aren't seen because they're not union, but they still go and show up. And it's not that they're never seen, but it is just a lot more difficult to be seen in some cases, not all cases, of course. So that's a really nice
00:34:56
Speaker
boost again is probably the wrong word to use, but just to be seen and then to have to make, to be able to make that opportunity for yourself, I think is very helpful. Um, another thing that they do is offer health weeks, which is great. So you need like 16 weeks of work at an equity theater to get six months of healthcare, which has changed a little bit since the pandemic, but a lot has changed since the pandemic. Um,
00:35:25
Speaker
And yeah, in every show, there's a deputy for the chorus and there's a deputy for the principles. So it's basically in place to always have somebody to refer back to. I mean, the point of the union is there to protect you, right? And we hope that they always will. And so if something happens in a show where you don't feel safe, and this is regional Broadway tour, wherever it is, this is always the case if it's an equity house,
00:35:54
Speaker
there's always somebody, you as the union members appoint them within your cast. So I would appoint the deputy for the principals and people in the chorus would appoint their deputy. And it's just nice to have two people to always circle back to. And they will always be in touch with the union if something feels unsafe or if something feels wrong or, you know, I mean, whatever the situation is. So you just, in that way, I think the idea is to always feel protected and taken care of.
00:36:23
Speaker
So you were doing non equity shows first and then when you get your card, then you have to stay within equity shows or what's the, uh, that's correct. Yeah. So technically non union can work union, but union can not work non union. Um, so before I got my card, I was still in college. Um, and I was working at equity house, but I was, I worked at a non equity house and I worked at an equity house. Um,
00:36:51
Speaker
And when working at the Equity House while non-union, you rack up EMC points. And once you get to a certain amount of EMC points, then you can get your card. You can also be offered your card. And you know what, as I'm saying this, I'm pretty sure the procedures are different now since the pandemic, but I don't even know what those are, to be honest, because I'm almost 10 years equity. I don't know what the process of becoming an equity member is anymore, but when I was
00:37:19
Speaker
like 10 years ago when I was in the process of becoming equity, that was the case. You had to rack up, I think it was 50 EMC points and you get one point per week of working at an equity house. And then once you get it, your equity, or they can offer, I think I just said this, they can offer you your card, which is actually what happened to me and I felt very lucky for that. But then once you do become union, you cannot work non-union. You're within the union and their rights and protections.
00:37:49
Speaker
But it seems like there's still a lot of shows now there being like, for instance, we saw SpongeBob the musical on Broadway, my family and I. And then when it came to Detroit, it turned out that the Detroit show was a non-equity tour. And so we're trying to see as a trend to have, Nickelodeon has lots of money. They can easily afford to pay for that. I mean, that's why it was so shocking to find out
00:38:16
Speaker
A large organization putting a show on was doing that. And so it seemed like there's been a push and pull for a long time between equity and not equity. I know folks are trying to save money, but the reason why equity exists in the first place is to protect the performers. And I think we saw that with Rent a few years ago on NBC when they did not equity and the person broke his leg day before the televised performance.
00:38:36
Speaker
They didn't have an understudy because there's just one night. They didn't need one, I thought. Is there a push and pull that's going on right now with equity versus not equity shows as far as shows being put under equity or what seems to be going on? I think there's always a push and pull that's been a conversation for years. I do think it ultimately comes down to saving money, which is unfortunate, like you said, for something like Nickelodeon.
00:39:06
Speaker
who can potentially afford to give that little extra bit of money that might be needed to make it union or to make it whatever. Because when it goes non-union, A, people aren't being paid as much across the board. That's not just the actors. That's everyone involved. And B,
00:39:27
Speaker
A lot of times those are like one one night sit downs. So imagine going out on tour and stopping in, you know, Detroit, sitting there for one night and then everyone having to pick up at probably like seven a.m. six, six to nine somewhere within that a.m. the next day and have a whole bus day to, you know, Chicago or wherever, maybe somewhere even further than that. So they they can do that. Whereas equity
00:39:57
Speaker
Um, there's more restrictions on how much you can work somebody in those, in those regards. Like, like, I think on non-union tours also, you could have one whole bus day where you drive in to do a show. So you've now been sitting on the bus all day long, and then that night you have to go do a show where in equity, they're not allowed to, they can't require you to do that. So there, there's certain things like that. And it's, it's just a, it's a very sticky, sticky subject, sticky business between the two.
00:40:28
Speaker
So what, I mean, you've been in this business for 10 years, at least professionally.
Health, Wellness, and Industry Challenges
00:40:34
Speaker
What are the issues that you see with your colleagues around health and wellness that maybe aren't quite optimally being addressed right now that people that are listening to this might be able to help you with? I don't know specifically. I think a lot of it is just
00:40:58
Speaker
sort of what we've already spoken about, people understanding, having a better understanding of our industry, maybe truthfully taking the industry a little more seriously in that field. Because like you said before, athletes are very well taken care of and for obvious reasons than they should be. But in a lot of ways, we're athletes as well, just in a different kind of way. So I guess just shedding more light on that.
00:41:27
Speaker
And how, like I know Yasi asked you earlier, the number of hours a day that you might be putting in, is it a nine to five job? Is it more than that? It's a nine to five job. Yeah. You get done at 10 o'clock at night. How do you, do you have a post game meal? How do you unwind? You know, how do you, you're all probably keyed up and high from being in front of an audience.
00:41:52
Speaker
How do you get back to normal again and do it again the next day? What's that process? Yeah, it is. That's an interesting topic because a lot of people will start their day at 6 a.m.
00:42:09
Speaker
Like I'm thinking specifically of like people in my family, they have their day where they start at six and they go to five and they're probably asleep by like 9 p.m. Whereas I start my, like let's say it's a Saturday and I have a two show day, I start my work day at probably like noon to get ready for the show, but then I have to be there at like 1, 1.30.
00:42:29
Speaker
And then that goes until probably 10 or 11 at night. And then to your question, it takes us a minute to wind down. So sometimes, you know, we'll go and have a drink together and depress that way or go home and watch a TV show, but then I'm not asleep until like midnight or one.
00:42:46
Speaker
And so the schedules are just sort of a skew. But that's our schedule. It just is kind of interesting how it fits into the rest of the world, because if I go home to Chicago and I'm seeing family, they're always like, why do you wake up so late? And I'm like, well, that's just kind of where my body clock is, because I usually don't get home from work until like 11, 11 30, sometimes midnight, depending on how long the show is. I mean, when I did Titanic just over a year ago, that show is
00:43:14
Speaker
like pretty close to three hours long. So if you have an eight o'clock show, eight, nine, 10, 11, then you have to take your costume off and your makeup off.
00:43:25
Speaker
It almost feels like you're not sleeping till like 2am. Sometimes, yeah. And some people, like my husband is pretty good at going home actually and going to sleep pretty quick. I can't do that. And I know a lot of other people who can't do that because you're just kind of wired because you've just been under the lights for so long.
00:43:47
Speaker
putting on a character which requires a lot of energy. So I mean, it's just a different kind of lifestyle, different kind of schedule. And how do you keep your energy up? Are you snacking throughout the day? Are you hydrating? Do you have the support needed to know the importance of constant hydration and, I don't know, getting electrolytes when you need to? I think so. Depending on the show, like when I just did 9 to 5,
00:44:17
Speaker
My character and the other three ladies, I played Dora Lee, which was the Dolly Parton role. And then the other two women, the three of us are practically on stage the whole time. So for a show like that, I always had, well, A, I always have my water bottle backstage, no matter what the show is. But for a show like that, I had my water bottle, but my water bottle was filled with the, oh, what's it called?
00:44:42
Speaker
liquid, liquid IV, that has all those electrolytes in it. So it was always filled with that. And that's what I was drinking for that show specifically, because I knew how much I was sweating and how much it was working. And, you know, there wasn't really enough time to go and just like sit down and have, you know, whatever, whatever decompressing moment I needed. So
00:45:01
Speaker
It's always case by case, show by show. A lot of times we keep like candy backstage, which, you know, I guess for going to sleep is not so good. But, you know, we, I like, I always have a big bag of the Albany's gummy bears in my dressing room. A, because it'll lubricate the throw a lot for singing. And B, it's sugar. So I have a lot of energy then. And hopefully no cavities, but you know, we'll do all that later.
00:45:31
Speaker
Yeah, and you've been doing this for so long that you know what works for you, right? So you know the types of meals or the amount of sleep you need to get. Yeah. Well, and it can be day by day too. Sometimes if I have a two-show day,
00:45:52
Speaker
you just listen to your body, right? Sometimes I'll be like, I am so tired that what I actually need to do is go and lay on the couch for at least 30 minutes in between shows. Or some days I'm like, okay, I'm a little bit tired just from the show, not exhausted, but a little bit tired. I'm actually going to go on a run just like a quick mile just to sort of reinvigorate my body. But you just kind of, and
00:46:17
Speaker
the days change and that will sort of depend on what your body needs, right? Like in anything. So you just kind of listen to yourself and after a certain amount of time, you figure out what your body needs specifically. And this might not apply to you, but I wonder if you've seen other performers who this schedule, like let's say during, again, seasons where the show is going on for two to three months.
Keeping Performances Fresh and Engaging
00:46:46
Speaker
the same schedule every single day, busy, the same lines and the same script, does it ever become, I don't want to use the word boring, but does it ever become kind of stagnant where you have to do something to get yourself excited again so that you're showing up 100% every single time?
00:47:10
Speaker
Yeah and I think that comes a lot from like the connections you make with people in the show and the community you create with them that you're like your cast.
00:47:19
Speaker
because it can become, you know, and listen, two months isn't even that long of a show, like two or three years, Broadway can run for years. I haven't experienced that other than on the ship, which was seven months of a show. So yeah, you kind of find ways within your cast. Sometimes we play little games, like there's a game called the Penny Game, or it's something called the Penny, and you have to do it, obviously,
00:47:44
Speaker
very professionally. Like you're at a level here now where if we're playing a quote unquote game on stage, you know that everyone is of the mindset that the show is first and foremost important, but we're just a little bit of fun as well, right? So well, you hold a penny and what happens is if you're on stage inconspicuously, you pass the penny and whoever ends up with a penny, like, you know, I don't know, loses or something, but it's just like the idea of like keeping the penny going.
00:48:09
Speaker
that adds a little bit of energy. I mean, sometimes you like scare people backstage. You make jokes backstage. I don't know. There's a lot you can do to keep it fresh. I mean, like just even playing little games. There's the, it's, what's it called? I want to call it the ninja game, but that's not what it's called.
00:48:27
Speaker
It's like, gosh, I can't think of what it's called. Basically, somebody's the murderer, and somebody's the angel, and they're going around, and if they wink at you, then you die, but you obviously don't. Yeah, yeah. Fresh backstage. There is this other game, this card game, my dresser of South Pacific, one of my dressers, she brought these cards in, and they had
00:48:53
Speaker
three words on each. And basically the object of the game was to get the other person. So if I was playing, I would get my dresser to say one of these words without her knowing what my words were. And if she said all three of the words, then I won and vice versa. And that's what we would play backstage, like while I'm in like a 30 second quick change, you know? And it's just that kind of stuff that keeps it fresh and fun. A little laughter off stage. Yeah. Games are okay. Yeah.
00:49:22
Speaker
But if you're playing the penny game, you got to make sure the pennies are age to the show, like Titanic and the penny is 1912. It's brilliant. And Les Mis, let's go back to 1793. That would be a game in itself trying to find a penny from that time. Exactly. That would be fun. That's crazy. So I have a question. When you rehearse
00:49:47
Speaker
Talk to us a little bit about the live audience impact. I mean, when you're doing this and rehearsing and there's very few people in the room versus, can you feel the difference? And as someone who's not been there and been up on stage and doing that, what is it? That's probably one of the reasons you keep coming back is the feeling you get there. Can you talk about that a little bit?
00:50:11
Speaker
Yeah, I'd love to. So the first thing that comes to my mind, every show I've ever been in, there is always a moment where collectively we say, whether it's out loud or just to ourselves, there's an energy shift where we're like, we are ready for an audience. And oftentimes we say it out loud. Because once you've set a show,
00:50:32
Speaker
especially regionally, the shows are rotated so fast. So in rehearsal process, the show is set pretty quick, like usually within the first week, the whole show is set. And then you sort of go back and detail and find intention and yada, yada, but the bones of the show are set. So now you've been running, and I know two weeks doesn't sound like a long time, but when you're running the same two, two and a half hour show over and over again, it starts to feel,
00:50:59
Speaker
the same or you feel like you can't find certain moments that an audience usually will help. Especially if there's comedy or even dramatic beats. A lot of times you can't fully set what your intention is until you have natural reaction and you don't get that after the first time from your director or your cast mates or the crew because they've seen it over and over and over again. So usually
00:51:25
Speaker
By tech week, almost always, everyone is like, we need an audience. We are ready for an audience because they are 50% of the show, if not more. I mean, the reason I tell stories is to hopefully change and impact lives and also enhance mine along the way from audiences' reactions and being able to see how much whatever story I'm telling impacts people.
00:51:51
Speaker
So I think the audience is without a doubt the most important part of the process and storytelling and they do really, they put the button on the show. Let's put it that way because you don't know how a lot of things are going to be received and you don't know where beats are going to land until you have your scene partner, which is the audience most of the time.
00:52:14
Speaker
I also feel like different shows give you insight into the real world and our form of therapy as well.
The Transformative Power of Theater
00:52:22
Speaker
I went to the company recently. I watched the company here in Los Angeles and it was about someone who, right, she's 35, hasn't been married yet, has all these married friends. And oh my gosh, I just remember watching and dying of laughter and stepping out of that and saying, you know what, I'm going to honor
00:52:43
Speaker
It was like the perfect therapy session I needed in that moment. And it was just through music, art, and dance. And it was awesome. It was like everyone needs to go watch this. But it was great. That makes me so happy. That is such a good show too. And I know Brittany Coleman, who played with me. She's incredible.
00:53:04
Speaker
incredible. And I and you know, the reason why I asked how people show up 100% every night is because of that I was she, you know, she was involved in so many of those scenes, but also just so authentic. She was smiling. She was vibrant. And I was like, How is this? How is she able to do this every single night? It's awesome. You sort of you sort of in a way
00:53:33
Speaker
And I say this, I say this very lightly. You sort of in a way disassociate in a way, because you are putting yourself into a different character. So when I say disassociate, I guess you disassociate from whatever's going on in your life. And not completely, because a lot of times you can use your own emotions and your own experiences within your character, but it's almost like you're watching a movie and you are the movie and that's what's going on stage, if that makes sense.
00:54:01
Speaker
You're the co-founder of a performance event called Safe Space. Can you tell us about this? I know that you've been really excited to share it with us. You've shared a little bit through email. You've talked about this event, and it sounds like it means a lot to you. So Safe Space is a performance event at its core. My friend and partner, Jen Smith, we started this in 2022.
00:54:28
Speaker
who, which is October will be two years of us running this. It started from being sort of in the middle towards the end of the pandemic. And in the entire world, we were all sort of having differences in our lives and changes. But in our industry, there was a lot of nothing for us for a while.
00:54:54
Speaker
And we were, as artists, are always hungry to create and feel creative and use our artistry in whatever way we can. And a lot of us felt really stuck. And so me and my friend, Jen, were out just having a drink together. We hadn't seen each other in a while. We had a drink in Central Park. And we were like, what if this place, this magical place existed where we could just go to sing because we love to sing? And we were like, wait, does anything like that actually exist?
00:55:25
Speaker
And to our knowledge, the answer is no, because a lot of directors, casting directors, other actors, people create spaces and oftentimes do a really good job of creating safe spaces, but they more often than not still have the end goal to impress somebody else or get the job, book the job.
00:55:52
Speaker
And that's not to say that we don't hope that people do get that from us, but what we exist for is truly just to support artists and performers.
00:56:02
Speaker
And people come to try out new work. People come to try new registers of their voice. People come who have been on Broadway. People come who have been on tours. People come who have never been in a show, who just love to sing, who have a nine to five job. We have people all over the spectrum. And what happens when you come to save space is you get up, we have a little rug and we put little plants out to try to make it feel as homey as possible. And they stand on the rug and we just support the hell out of them. Excuse my language.
00:56:32
Speaker
get, we are there to support. And the biggest thing that we've taken away from Safe Space is the community of it, which I think is so special, especially coming out of a pandemic. I think a lot of us felt really lost. And it's nice to have
00:56:51
Speaker
people there who are truly just there to support. So yes, it is a performance event at the end of the day, but it is really about people coming together and just singing and performing because that's why they feel that they're on this earth to sing and perform. And it's very, very special, the folks that we've had come through. And I'm just so proud and honored to be a small part of it, having created it with my friend. And I just think that
00:57:19
Speaker
We've met some of the best people in the entire world. And I hope that people find it as beneficial as, as we do, because it is so very cool. How often does it run? It's running like, is it once a year, once a week? It usually runs, um, once a month. We actually just had one this past Thursday, which is why we reschedule. Um, and then, um, and then, um,
00:57:46
Speaker
And thank you, by the way, for that. I really appreciate that. And then the next one, we're actually doing it in two weeks, which is very exciting. We usually do it once every month. So hopefully we get a good turnout for two weeks. It's sort of an experiment. So we'll see.
Impact of the Pandemic and Future Directions
00:58:02
Speaker
Very cool. So with the changes in theater from the pandemic, what kind of lessons would you say you've gained from the pandemic as far as how society reacted to it towards with theater? Because one of the things that we talk about is seeing how like
00:58:20
Speaker
I thought that the pandemic made performing arts much more essential to life. We started seeing people deprived of that. It really affected people negatively. And what did we do when we were locked down? We were watching as much performing art as possible on TV and iPads and everything like that.
00:58:38
Speaker
Yet theaters were closing down left to right all across the country and very little support was coming from the federal government for that as opposed to other businesses and such. So I guess from your perspective, what did you take from this experience dealing with the pandemic, seeing how the public was reacting to everything?
00:58:59
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, theaters, I think generally, especially regional theaters, weren't as well taken care of. And there was a lot of back and forth about what the right thing to do was. And that was coming from the union. That was coming from whoever was running the theaters. I mean, there was a lot of butting heads and figuring out what the right thing to do was. And so that was, I think theater took a major hit. I know that the world did.
00:59:29
Speaker
And without a doubt, it was a very hard time for everyone. But theater took a really big hit. And I think you're right in saying that we sort of had a renaissance of realizing why entertainment and maybe theater, but also like film and TV is very important and storytelling changes us and is essential in our lives. And I think that people found a new appreciation for that. But I also think that because theater lost a lot of money
01:00:00
Speaker
And this is starting at Broadway and going down. I mean, everyone in the theater community lost a ton of money. And so I think the response was, and still is today, to just put whatever out to get money. I think a lot of us in the theater community are sort of craving something new, new works. We're seeing a lot of movies on stage. And truthfully, a lot of these movie musicals are actually very good.
01:00:29
Speaker
But in some cases, they're not so good. And that also can be person to person opinion. But I think we're craving, quote unquote, old Broadway. And what I mean by that is just like new shows that have new intentions and are telling new stories. Because that's what we want, too. You always want to recycle a character that somebody knows really well or that we've seen a million times. You as the performer and as the actor want the challenge of
01:01:00
Speaker
finding this new person in the world and telling their story. And that's not across the board. Again, I want to be clear that some of the movie musicals on Broadway are fantastic.
01:01:14
Speaker
Um, but I think there's just that like little itch itch underneath of why can't we find new creativity? Why can't we tell new stories? And I think the answer is money, unfortunately. Sure. No, it makes total sense. I, you know, in Detroit, I subscribed to our theater season and yeah, it's like, Oh, I'm not a movie. I know that movie. I know that movie. I know that movie. You're like,
01:01:36
Speaker
Oh, everything's just movies on stage now. So okay. Or or the other thing is like Jersey Boys is being done everywhere. And in some cases, like in like, let's say one theater in a season back to back, you see it in both seasons, because they know that that's going to sell and Jersey Boys is a fantastic show. Yes, but they're just do everyone is just doing that show, because that's how they're going to make money back. And of course, like, of course, that makes sense. And you understand that. But then that sort of
01:02:08
Speaker
marginalizes our lane in a way. I guess if they make enough money back from these kind of shows, then once they get to a more, I guess, more stable footing, they can then branch out to more creative stories. Yeah. Or not more creative, but more original stories. Yeah. Yeah. That's a great way to put it. More original stories. I mean, there was a show on Broadway called Limpika that
01:02:30
Speaker
Was was great and but it was new and it didn't last very long and I think I think if it had gone on Broadway Five six seven years ago. I probably would have lasted so things like that. It's just there's not enough money to support Original right now So when you're a character this may be getting out of sequence a little bit but how difficult is it for you to switch back to
01:02:59
Speaker
and turn your character off, either at the end of the show or when you get home at night. Is that part of your transition that you need to be focusing on as well?
Advice for Aspiring Actors
01:03:10
Speaker
Not really, because a lot of the time, even when I come off stage from the scene and the show is still going on, I'm me off stage, joking around, hanging out with my friends backstage.
01:03:23
Speaker
I think that might be a person to person question. I think some people might stay in the show and be a little more method than I might be. But that's just actor to actor difference. But I think it could depend, specifically when I did Titanic again.
01:03:45
Speaker
That show was really hard to come down from, not so much because I had trouble getting out of my character, but just because I had trouble getting out of the weight and the heaviness of the show.
01:03:57
Speaker
you know, we obviously all know what happens in that show. And that coming home every night, I literally would come home and sit down and just truly because I mean, the first act is fun and beautiful music and then the second act is the tragedy. So that's, that's like an hour and a half on stage of
01:04:18
Speaker
devastation. So yeah, so and fatalities and I mean, it was beautifully staged and the music is gorgeous and it is truly a great show. But again, we know what happens and it's devastating. So coming home and decompressing from that was difficult. So I think for me, it would be more like show and content based is what I would have to
01:04:42
Speaker
is what would vary how I come home from a show, not so much the character, at least not yet. There could be a character out there that could have specifically to that character that weight and heaviness that I just haven't played yet. Yeah, that's powerful. For the younger generation now who may be auditioning and
01:05:04
Speaker
Or anyone who's in college and auditioning, just moved to New York. Any tips that you may have? I feel like the audition process really builds a lot of resilience for a lot of actors and those who want to be performers. And you've been through it so many times. So any tips or any advice you would want to give? Maybe your younger self or anyone who's aspiring to be similar to you and your role?
01:05:34
Speaker
I think the best piece of advice, no matter how cliche it sounds, is to just keep going and to not be afraid to put yourself out there, to not be afraid to put yourself in the conversation. Whether that means you could feel a little pushy, you could feel a little
01:05:56
Speaker
I don't know whatever word, but that's networking. I mean, obviously there's a way to do it with tact, but just to never be afraid to
01:06:05
Speaker
make yourself a part of the conversation. Go out and see shows and stand in circles of conversations with people and just never stop auditioning because you never know what's happening behind the scenes. And again, that sounds so cliche, but it is so true. Very true. If you go to one audition, they have your headshot and you have no idea when they're going to pull it out and give you a call. And the other piece of advice I would give is
01:06:35
Speaker
meditate as much as you can so that your patience is top-notch because the whole game is patience. You can truly be, I mean, so unbelievably talented and it comes down to timing and luck a lot of the times. So just have patience and keep going. That's the best advice I could possibly give.
01:06:57
Speaker
And if anyone wants to learn more about you, Carolyn, or SafeSpace, where can they go? There are two separate Instagram accounts they can visit if they want. Mine is at Carolyn Ann Miller Actor, and SafeSpace is at SafeSpace Manhattan. And they can come and follow us. And all of the information for SafeSpace will be there if they want to come to SafeSpace.
01:07:26
Speaker
feel free to reach out to me through my personal, for anything about safe space or about me. I'd be happy to answer any questions and whoever needs whatever. Thank you so much. It's been an honor having you on our show today and I hope to come to one of your shows very soon. Thank you so much. We appreciate your time. Thank you so much for having me. This was a blast. That brings us to the end of another episode.
01:07:52
Speaker
Remember, if you like what you hear, please feel free to leave a review and tell your friends as well. For Yasi Ansari, I'm Stephen Karaginas, and this has been the Athletes and the Arts Podcast.