So far, I have on three occasions been required to kiss girls as part of my job. On the first occasion, I auditioned to play Will in a scene from Good Will Hunting. In the scene, Will and Skylar wake up in bed next to eachother.
The actress who played “Skylar” and I approached the scene in as professional a way as possible. An acting teacher told me that actors should always discuss beforehand what our physical boundaries are. This scene involved intense emotions and physical contact, so I told her I would be pretty comfortable with whatever she felt was natural in the scene. I think she figured out I was not some sort of weirdo, and she gave me the same liberty.
When it was our turn to audition, we really pressed into the emotions appropriate to the scene. We of course did our best to emote the lines, but she also wrapped her leg around me, and we kissed in an almost violent way. At the end of the scene we broke apart, and the directors gave us their feedback. Then we did the scene again.
When the audition ended, I thought to myself, “only in this business!” and called my friend Jason to tell him about the experience.
The girl who played Skylar was the most attractive girl I have met since I got to LA. I have since wished I had her number, but it turns out that, when you meet someone for only a few minutes, even if you kiss, you don’t necessarily feel justified in asking for someone’s number.
I recently received the role of Balthazar in The Knightsbridge Theater’s new production of Much Ado About Nothing. My role is not large, but I am eager for my first Shakespeare experience. I am also excited because the production is set in the 1940’s, just as the soldiers are coming home from World War II.
True, being in a play will limit my availability for other acting opportunities over the next couple of months. However, I think the long-term benefits of acting in the play will outweigh the costs. Acting Shakespeare should improve my ability to portray characters completely, and I hope it will help prepare me for meaningful and period pieces.
Allow me a moment to explain myself. Though certain roles appeal to me now, I also have a “someday” category in my heart of hearts. I would someday like to act in movies with excellent messages, the sort where one would rightly be glad such a message is heading out into the world. For example, I put The Shawshank Redemption and The Pianist under this classification. My other “someday” yearning is to do movies set in the past–say in the 18th or 19th century–and perhaps even in Great Britain. I have a real tender spot for the British Isles.
Now, if my availability for film acting is ever to be limited, I think early on in my career is the best time. A casting director could call me in the next couple of months, offering me a role in her newest motion picture—but this is more likely to happen later on than it is now.
I am excited about the play’s 1940’s setting because it allows for three swing dancing numbers. Back in Wisconsin, I learned to swing dance at The Art of Dance Studio for a ballroom dancing competition. I am eager to refresh my skills and to learn some new fancier moves for the show. Our dancing director has referenced throws and “holding girls upside down.”
The show runs October 26 to November 25, though an understudy will play my role the last weekend, when I plan to be in Colombia. If any of you is in LA, please come and see the show! Acting in a play matters so much more to me when people I am close to are present.
I am back into the swing of substitute teaching, and this week I have ESL. This classroom is unique because all my students are not only new to the school, but also new to the country. Students are from El Salvador, Mexico and other countries.
These students and I have something in common because we all feel like foreigners; they from other countries, I from the Midwest. While we all agree that Los Angeles looks different from the places we are from, I am sure we feel most foreign because we are surrounded by people we do not know.
I remember that, when I moved in high school, I had mostly positive feelings about it. For me, the prospect of a clean slate, free of the pre-conceived expectations of others, was attractive.
De vuelta estoy enseñando como maestro de escuela sustituto, y esta semana, enseño a estudiantes que aprenden inglés como un segundo idioma. Esta sala de clase es única porque mis estudiantes no solo están nuevas en esta escuela, sino también en este país. Los estudiantes vienen de El Salvador, Guatemala y México.
Estos estudiantes y yo tenemos algo en común porque todos nos sentimos como extranjeros; ellos son de sus países y yo soy del Medio Oeste. Mientras estamos de acuerdo de que Los Angeles se ve diferente de los lugares de donde somos, yo estoy seguro que nos sentimos extranjeros más porque no conocemos a la gente que está alrededor de nosotros.
Recuerdo que, cuando me mudé durante mis años de high school, mis sentimientos sobre la mudanza eran principalmente positivos. Para mí, la idea de una vida nueva, sin las expectativas preconcebidas de los demás, era atractiva.
Recently, while doing extras work, I have become more selective about what I call in for. Last week, they were looking for a patient on the television show “House,” and I jumped at the chance. Hugh Laurie, the star of House, has done excellent British period movies that interest me. Working with anyone of his caliber and repertoire appeals to me very much.
When I arrived, wardrobe gave me a hospital gown and some slippers and led me to the set. There was a legit nurse on set who directed all the doctors about what they really ought to do to make their actions authentic. She “iodined” up my abdomen and got me ready for the shot before Hugh Laurie and Robert Sean Leonard walked in. This was rather exciting for me because not only would I work with an actor from “Sense and Sensibility,” but also with the star of “Dead Poets Society,” which easily makes my list of the best movies I have ever seen.
True, I did not interact with them much. In fact, my only verbal interaction with Hugh Laurie was when, halfway through filming, he realized I was a real body and not one of the rubber bodies they often work with. He peaked over the synthetic divider separating my face from the rest of my body and greeted me. Nonetheless, I was on set with them, and if any background opportunities will be productive ones, this is probably the type that will be.
