I'm aliiiiive!

Yes, it's true, I've finally found five minutes to sit down and write in my dear darling blog. American Soldiers was a great experience, and has since come to a close. We had a great audience turnout, much more than I've experienced in Off-Off Broadway especially in the BITTER cold we've been having. Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess) my performance was not enjoyed by the two critics who wrote us up. Figures that my first actual New York reviews were unpleasant. But I say they were fortunate because now I understand that feeling and also understand how little it really means in the scheme of my career. One reviewer thought I, as the actor, had not decided what my character thought about what was happening or where her loyalties stood. I found that interesting, because first of all, I'm not stupid and of course I made choices. But besides that, I'm not sure how necessary it is to know how every character feels about every aspect of any situation. I'm not sure they ever need to know anything! Ever heard of Beckett? Pinter? Those characters are never entirely disclosing everything. Ugh, it's not even worth it to argue when the person you're arguing with is on the Internet and gets to judge you as their job.

The other review, from a very large publication, was just plain mean-spirited and I feel sorry for people who feel the need to project negativity on the undeserved. But enough about that, as it doesn't bother me anymore. The show was good, people liked it, just not the people who write on the Internet! Rawr.

But of course, in typical Julia busybody style, I am already in the thick of rehearsals for another show, and the character couldn't possibly be any different from Marie. Yes, I finally get to play an ingenue, and it's awesome. In Dear Brutus by J.M. Barrie, a bunch of strangers are invited to a mischievious ageless (Pucklike) man's house, where it's said on Midsummer Eve a magical wood appears. If you chance to enter the wood, you can experience what everyone there desires: a second chance at life. For my character, whose husband is in love with another woman, the second chance is the possibility of never marrying him, and therefore never being a wistful, sad pathetic creature. And it's a COMEDY!

As you can see, I'm really, really excited for this show. Everyone in the cast is spectacular, which is so important when doing period pieces. I'm using my Adler training more here than I've ever been able to before (the classical training anyway; how to sit in a chair, walk in heels, not be a clunky awkward thing, etc) and it's great to work with people who have the same vocabulary and understanding of the time period. And I love, love, love the challenge of working with a British accent. And this is RP, the mother of all British accents--this is the "oh, dear", and "Rather!", and "We're awfully sorry" accent that is so crisp and proper that my mouth feels weird after doing it for a while. It's hard not to get wrapped up in the character when you change how you walk, sit, and speak! I'm sure people who know me well will get a kick out of me being chased through the forest by a suitor wearing a flowery pink dress and holding a parasol. Hopefully the audience will laugh too. That's the other hard thing....this comedy is so specific. It's all about timing and inflecting the right words, so I'm lucky to have such generous and smart scene partners.

So come to Christopher Street and see me! We're at the Wings Theatre and the showtimes are weird so I'm going to list them here for clarity's sake:
Saturday 2/20 2p
Sunday 2/21 2p
Tuesday 2/23 8p
Wednesday 2/24 8p
Saturday 2/27 2p
Sunday 2/28 2p

Press, Industry, and Ticket Line: 212-627-2961

More info at theateronline.com

Anything else? I'm tickled pink that the Saints have won, as were the thirtysomething people gathered at my apartment. Many thanks to all who brought copious alcohol and pretty much gourmet food (including an awesome NFL cake) (thanks Lisha). Ummm, I have no Valentine's plans despite having a boyfriend. We may just eat chocolate and watch TV. That's pretty romantic to me. Not spending money is also romantic. Wow, I'm old.

Ok, I have to find time to update more often. I'm very pleased with all the work I keep getting, but it's making it very difficult for me to actually DO anything. Alright, I promise my next post will be soon. Soonish.