Thursday, October 25, 2012

Seth 10-25-2012

Well, it's been a pretty hectic month here at Florida Studio Theatre. Time sure does fly by though. I love it, but if I could only get rid of the heat I would love it even more.

The job I have taken here is an Acting Apprenticeship and it was not at all what I was expecting.

I was told we would be taking classes, doing workshops, attending rehearsals, etc. What I didn't know was that we Acting Apprentices would be teaching those classes and leading those workshops. It has been crazy learning how to do all that in a short amount of time. But I am now at a comfortable spot where I can accomplish this. Unless I'm left all alone in a classroom full of 3rd graders.

Anyway a little bit about what I'm doing. There are 8 Acting Apprentices and we are split in half into two children's show. The first is The Frog Prince, a story about; Amaryllis, a spoiled but beautiful princess is forced to deal with her shortcomings when she encounters a down to earth Frog with an amazing secret. This show started out in one of our FST theaters and acted like  Nashville Children's Theatre show. Schools all over the area would come see the show. It was really great. Now they are on their touring part and are visiting schools all over the area.


Our second show (the one I'm apart of) is The Playmakers Tour which specifies in Touring schools in the whole state of Florida, from Miami all the way to the panhandle. Our show takes plays written by kids and performs them for schools. Then after those plays are done we lead a workshop on how to write plays of your own. We do some improv acting and teach all the elements of a play. Our show consists of 3-4 plays, 1. Popcorn (we play popcorn kernels in a microwave popcorn bag) 2. I Miss PawPaw (a story about a young boy and his emotions about his grandfather who has passed away) 3. Out of the Box (a play about how classrooms are forced to obtain information and memorized facts, instead of using our imagination to create wonderful work) 4. Forgetful Squirrels (A story about two squirrels who can never remember where they bury their acorns).


I planned on not displaying my musical talents and focusing more on acting but sure enough they asked if anyone could play a song for some of our classes and shows and of course I volunteered.


I played songs I wrote and songs I perform well which led to me writing all of the music/songs for our Playmakers Tour. It was really great writing songs for a show because I got to use the skills that I learned in all of Cathy and David River's classes, songwriting and digital audio production. A lot of the songs are similar to "Thanks Columbia State". 


I find out every day that I'm using everything anyone at Columbia State has taught me and I am so grateful. 


We will be touring all over Florida until about the end of February and unfortunately I will not be able to leave anytime. This means holidays. I wont be home for Thanksgiving, I wont be home for Christmas, or ever Easter. It's going to be tough but I plan on coming home once my contract is up in the summer. I plan on working in Nashville for a good bit before I can go back to NY.


I hope I hear from all of you soon. I may not answer a lot of the times but I want you to leave a message with all that you are doing. I want to know everything.


Love you all!


Seth.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Can't wait til next month.

Well I try to do these things once a month but I have exciting news that I can't wait til next month to tell you because well next month I wont be living in NYC anymore.

Thats right. I have been offered a job at Florida Studio Theatre in Sarasota Florida and I have accepted. I am really excited about this. I will be doing their 2012-2013 season which I have no idea if the shows have been posted but you can check out their website at http://www.floridastudiotheatre.org.
I will also be taking classes, workshops, doing rehearsals, and understudying roles. This is a super big step for me in my acting career.

Thanks for all the support while I tried it out in NYC. When I get the chance to come back you know I wont hesitate.

-Seth

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Last Man Standing

Today (August 7th, 2012) marks our 1 year anniversary that Courtney and I moved to NYC with Lenny, who actually joined us a little bit later, and I am the last man standing (barely).

A year ago my mind was filled with thoughts like; "I just graduated college." "I'm pursuing my dreams." "Real life is going to be so much better than being stuck in the place that I grew up." "Nothing is going to hold me down." "I rock." And while some of those thoughts still occupy my mind, they now hold more/different meanings to them.

"I just graduated college." = "I'm brand new."
"I'm pursuing my dreams." = "My hopes are set too high."
"Real life is going to be so much better.." = "Real life kicks my ass."
"I rock." = ... well I still think I rock just not out loud. :)

The first time I was on my own was in Nashville. I had some pretty bad experiences in school and I needed some time off. I was working at restaurants, playing music sometimes, and basically on a year's vacation. I was filled with anger and regret. This time in NYC I feel i'm actually trying to do something that is better for me in what I want to do. It's good this time and as I write about all the not so great things in my life, i'm happy about it. Strange.

When Courtney and I decided to move here we made a deal. I don't remember what we actually said to each other but we agreed that we were going to give it a shot out here, spend 3-4 years at the least. We knew it was going to be hard and risky. But we told each other that we were in it together, in NYC. We knew that one of us might get a job that would take us either out of state or over seas for a period of time and we promised we would be prepared for that. And I was prepared for it, I wasn't prepared for how it would make me feel. I won't go into detail but in short, I really miss her, and I don't know if she will ever come back to stay for good. I know she will always be my friend but she will not always be my room mate. That is hard to deal with. First Lenny left, and now Courtney is gone. I am the Last Man Standing.

Managing money has always been a struggle for me. I find myself thinking that if I were rich and I owned everything then all would work out for me. I'm really trying to remind myself that I have little money and even bigger responsibilities.

Okay...now work news! 
Silence! The Musical has just moved to Times Square and we all couldn't be happier about it. We have an AWESOME marque and signage on 42nd street. It's really amazing to see the show I work on on a building in Times Square. Our theater is called The Elektra Theater, it actually use to be a stip club of some sort a while back but now it holds our show, which is located in the TIMES SCARE building. So we share a space with a haunted house, a creepy and disgusting magic show. and a lot of other special events. This is not a place that I would take my parents to but I want them to see my show!

I started working for Dan McMillan (drummer for Silence!) and Randy Cohen doing some load-outs for shows/recording sessions around town. We did the Book of Mormon First National Tour a few weeks ago that was really cool. I'm hoping I can meet a lot of great people and make good connections. There was also a hint of doing some keyboard programming for some shows.

A funny and neat thing happened at Silence! a few days ago that gave me the chance to do something a little different for the show. A few nights ago the show's computer that runs the sound and light cues was stolen from our theater, we don't know how it happened but it was gone and that's that, we needed a new one that same day for that nights show. So I get a call from the producers asking me if I can go purchase new equipment (not with my money) and then take it to the theater to set up the show again. I agreed and when I got the equipment to the theater I had to call our lights and sound guys and have them walk me through how to set up all the programs (QLAB and MOTU) to get the show back running. I was pretty nervous because I didn't want to screw the show up in some way but I did what they asked. I didn't even think twice as to why they were having me do this when my department is wardrobe. But as it turns out they meant to call the guy who runs our sound to do all of this, his name is also Seth. And none of us figured it out til they had to send me emails with audio and video licenses for QLAB and MOTU and I wasn't getting the emails. The good thing about this is now they know that I can do other things than wardrobe.

Well it has been quite a year here in NYC. I love it, I hate it, I love it and hate it again, but overall I am here to stay. I miss everyone back home and I wish you all would/could come visit. Aside from my depression about being by myself in this now I know this is where I'm supposed to be. I have made some really great friends and I have gotten the chance to work with and for amazing people. I hope i'm moving forward.

Love you all, you mean the world to me.

COME VISIT AND SEE MY SHOW!
http://www.silencethemusicalnyc.com

-Seth

(Don't forget to subscribe to our blog for updates)

Thursday, July 26, 2012

from Courtney Pierchoski (Columbia State Commercial Entertainment Graduate)

Greetings from Pigeon Forge!

  Working in the entertainment field is so exciting - so first of all, THANKS COLUMBIA STATE for the education and preparation for "real world" theatre. I feel so blessed to be able to go to "work" every single day doing something I am truly passionate about and my instructors from CState painted a very detailed picture of reality. They were right about everything - the good and the bad! Here's a link to the Commercial Entertainment (CEN) Facebook Page so you can stay up to date with current students and alumni! http://www.facebook.com/ColumbiaStateCEN

  A special and BIG congratulations to fellow CEN alumni Hayley Sorenson (Disney Live: Europe), Josh Lowrey (Pippin), Jessica Folly (Holland America Cruise Line), Crystal Grimes (Veggie Tales Live Tour), Courtney Blackmun (Bye Bye Birdie), and Seth Teegarden (Silence! The Musical). They are all working graduates of the Commercial Entertainment Program with incredible gigs right now and I am so excited for all of them!!! You can find them all on CEN's Facebook page! (Link is above:)
  Things are always happening to keep entertainers on their toes. One of the things I love about this show, in particular, is that it is changeable so we are always swapping numbers in and out and adding new and exciting material! It's been one month now since I've been put in and the show is beginning to feel more and more comfortable. The 30 second costume changes are now a piece of cake and with four to five shows a week, the show order is more than ingrained by now!

  Pigeon Forge is a happening little theatre town! There are so many incredible shows with so many talented people. Trip Advisor is one of the internet's great tools for finding what real people have to say about entertainment in your area and so I have attached a link to our trip advisor page! I'm proud to say that "America's Hit Parade" at the Grand Majestic Theatre is the #5 theatre show and the #2 musical theatre show in the area!!! ("Soul of Motown" is the Grand Majestic's other show and it holds #3 theatre show and #1 musical theatre show!!!) So here's the link! http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g55270-d1473629-Reviews-The_Grand_Majestic_Theater-Pigeon_Forge_Tennessee.html

  Make sure to let me know if you find yourself in the area and I can get you discounted tickets!
  ~Courtney

PS. My Mom is coming to vist and see the show tonight so I'm super excited!!!

PSS. More exciting things going on with Seth Teegarden in NYC so ask him about it!



Monday, July 9, 2012

Summer in NYC

With Court being in TN these next few months I have a lot of time to myself. Hopefully I will be able to start doing video song requests again. I'm making a lot of connections and such so maybe I can have some collaborations on some works which will be exciting.

Also the heat here really sucks. You don't have the open fields of TN for all the heat to expand. No the buildings and the streets keep the heat locked in the city. I can't walk anywhere without it looking like a just stepped out of the shower, with my clothes on. I would much rather NYC be Winter or Fall all year.

As far as theater goes, I'm still working for SILENCE! The Musical. Next week on July 17th we will be moving to a new location on Times Square  8th avenue and 42nd Street. Right now we are in the East Village at Performance Space 122 on 1st Avenue and 9th Street. This is really big news and it helps me out A LOT! The bus that we take from Weehawken drops us off at 42nd and 8th so I will never have to ride the subway to work again, which will save me almost $30 a week.

Recently I submitted for an audition for "Bound for Broadway N.E.W. Musicals" and I got an appointment. They do a series of staged readings that are on their way to a broadway stage. Unfortunately something came up and I was not able to attend the audition. Later that day I received a callback notice for a show in their series for a lead role. I was really shocked considering that I wasn't even at the audition. But they said because of my resume/reputation they really wanted to see me for the callbacks. I hope it goes well and nothing comes in the way of me going to the callback.

Other than that I'm trying to look for a second job. It's difficult up here because every business does all of their applications online. I hate that method so much, it doesn't give me the opportunity to hand in my application and shake the hand of a possible employer. And it really doesn't evaluate an individual to a great extent. A good way to push my buttons. Anyway, I do have a lead at an indie pet shop, which might be cool. People bring their pets in all the time.

I really want a pet.

-Seth

Sunday, July 8, 2012

Summer News!

    I suppose it's about time for an update! I'm sorry it's been so long. Life has been crazy! The last two months in NYC have been filled with beautiful weather and spring/summer coming out. I've never seen NYC in the summer and I loved it! (Yes, "loved" as in past tense). I recently signed a contract for a gig that took me away from the beautiful New York City. However, I am very excited and grateful to have a job doing what I love! Just recently I had become a server at the restaurant I was working at on Times Square and as much fun as that was... ;) ... I would really rather be doing what I have been trained to do.

    I have re-located to Pigeon Forge, TN for the next several months - spending my summer in the Smoky Mountains! It is beautiful here as well:) I am working at the Grand Majestic Theatre in a show entitled "America's Hit Parade" so if you happen to be in the Pigeon Forge/Gatlinburg area of TN in the next few months then please come visit me! As I do every day, I had been searching for audition notices, came across this one, and less than one week later I had packed up and was making the 13hour drive all by myself. I'm living in cast housing and so far I am having a blast with everyone! There was another girl  joining the show at the same time as me so her and I had only one week of put-in rehearsals before we went on! We have just finished up our first week of shows and are beginning to settle into life in the area. The experience has been interesting so far but overall, good. It was the first time for me being put into an up and running show with two and a half hours of singing and choreography to learn! We managed to make it through! We spent the entire week in choreography rehearsals, vocal rehearsals, costume fittings and photo shoots and only two blocking rehearsals with the cast. That left costumes and costume changes, hair and makeup, mics, running the show in order (and in its entirety) and running the show with the cast...all for opening night!!! It was a bit stressful but mostly exhilarating and not as hard as I thought. Vocal rehearsals this weekend to polish things up and we go back into our run on Tuesday! Our shows are Tuesday-Saturday:)


    Kimberly Simmons came to visit me this weekend! Well, she was here for a completely different reason but it just so happened she could stay with me a couple days so it was lovely getting to see my CState roomie again:)

    Blogging is something I will try so hard to be better at! Thanks for the encouragement and support! Ask Seth what he's up to in New York!

Sunday, March 18, 2012

Exciting Week!

Hello to all:) To CState students - Cathy tells us that the Pro-Company show was AMAZING! I'm so sorry I missed it - also heard "9-5" was right on track! Congratulations to Josh Lowery for the Disney audition - get it Joshua!!!

The weather continues to be unusually warm here and I am loving every second of it.
Well, here is a bit about the particularly interesting week the city has brought:
A submission for a dance audition led to an invited appointment for a pretty prominent new show here in the city. My friend had been on the audition before and was able to tell me exactly what to expect - technical combination, no improv, act the part.  So I show up to this place where we audition ON SET with 45min of improv. My mind has never been so exhausted!

Work has been very interesting this week! I've worked many more hours than usual. One night I was actually recognized by a woman that was eating with Broadway legend Sara Gettelfinger! This woman (Mel) asked me over to the table and I stood there for five minutes while we threw around random possibilities as to how she could possible recognize a girl from TN that's only been here for seven months! Mel said she didn't know how but she just KNEW that she recognized my smile. She asked what I did outside of work - I told her theatre, she asked if I was into childcare services - I told her no (but this sparked an idea). I said to her "This might seem extremely random, but by any chance are you associated with James Wilkie Broderick?" In response, she grabbed my arm with both hands and said "THAT'S how I know you!" As it turns out, she was one of James' nannies that I had only met once, very briefly, but she recognized me from the show I did with little James over Christmas! She introduced me to everyone at the table and explained how she didn't recognize me in my "trendy" clothes in comparison to looking like a 30 year old mother of three in "A Christmas Carol" but she knew it was my smile:) Well that made me very happy!

The other exciting event that took place at work is I found out that BR Guest Company forms a softball league every summer and we can sign up and get t-shirts and everything! One game a week all summer! I haven't played softball since high school but it's the only sport I've ever really cared for and am super excited about getting some exercise in the city park every Monday morning:) Oh! AND...I am finally beginning my server training at the restaurant this week!

So many crazy things are going on - today is my one day off so I'm spending it doing taxes, searching and scheduling auditions, stapeling and cutting headshots and resumes, and creating business cards (on Pat Addiss's orders:) Ximena (our amazing roommie:) secured the three of us tickets to see the midnight showing of "The Hunger Games" on Thursday night so that should be fun!

Don't forget to
CHECK OUT THE VIDEO BLOG BELOW and subscribe as a follower of our blog!

PS. Whatever you do - never come to NYC on St. Patrick's Day. I've declared it much worse than Halloween...which is really saying something:/

~CourtneyLynn




This is my mental image every morning when I wake up:)
True for anyone but very personal.
Life is all about choice.
Fierce!

Friday, March 16, 2012

Next Alumni Blog..with friends!

First Alumni Blog (Columbia State)

Hey everyone, Courtney and I have been asked to do a video blog for Columbia State. Soon these will be on their website for promotional use. Why not also put them on here?! Enjoy.


Friday, March 9, 2012

March 2012

On the Pier viewing the Statue of Liberty


Central Park Bridge
Well, here we are in what should be the dead of winter right now. Yesterday it was 66 degrees and sunny! Today the wind is scary and the temperature spiraled back down into the low 30s but we won't talk about that...

Josh kissing "Alice" on the cheek:)
We had visitors this week! Four friends from the Commercial Entertainment Dept. at Columbia State spent the entire week with us and we had a blast. Seth and I really enjoyed the company. Plus, I'm not going to lie, it's fun to go do all the touristy stuff that we never have time for otherwise;) so thanks guys for choosing to spend your spring break in the big apple with us!                                              
Currently, Seth and I are working on a video blog for CState so stay tuned to hear and see more about how that works out! We're pretty excited about it - as I type this I can hear Seth editing the video footage in the next room. Auditions are still coming around constantly - always working for that callback that will lead to a job! Thanks to everyone for all the encouragement and support:)

Friends: Josh Lowery, Daniel "Tumnus" Thomas, Luke Collins & Seth McGraw

Saturday, February 18, 2012

from Seth on 2-18-12

I'll admit I am a horrible blogger.

When Courtney and I moved to NYC we promised our families and friends we would keep a blog going on whatever was happening on our “adventure”.
Well I can say one thing.. We are busy. I'm not sure we have time to spending writing blogs. Even right now I'm writing this from our Internship’s office.
On a different note, Courtney and I are currently trying to audition for anything we can. We just finished working on a project, a children’s musical called “Welcome to Tourettaville”. The show teaches kids how to deal with our differences and to treat others with kindness. It’s cute.
Courtney is still working at Ruby Foo’s and she loves it and hates it.
I am still working as an Assistant Wardrobe Supervisor for the Off-Broadway musical Silence! The Musical. For those who don’t know it is a musical parody of the film The Silence of the Lambs. You can catch the TV commercial on either TV or youtube (caution: strong language).
My boss at my internship has guaranteed a few jobs for me coming this spring to work as a production assistant for some musicals, so there is something to look forward to. 
I really love performing and being up on stage but for right now I feel my best contributions to the theater are in tech work. I need to take more classes, pump some more iron, and gain more weight before I can feel like I would be great on the stage up here. It is really a different world, and self-consciousness gets the best of us a lot of the time. There are still a lot of times when I want to go home to TN and I'm glad to say that I fight them because overall I am very happy I am here.

from Courtney on 2-07-12

  Beautiful weather is gracing us with its presense for the first time in weeks! The sun is shining and it's not biting cold outside! Thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to everyone who has been keeping up with us throughout this transition of a move from the beautiful hills of middle Tennessee to the rather unforgiving concrete universe that is New York City. Nothing puts a bigger smile on my face than seeing a text message from a friend from home or a random call or a facebook note! Even a simple invitation to play a game of "Words With Friends" from a family member or old school-mate is enough to make me feel closer to the people I miss most:) Making friends up here (anywhere new really) is difficult and takes time. However, today is the sixth month mark of the day we packed up our lives in that little car, and I feel blessed to have as many friends up here as we do:) That's one great thing about theatre - we are all crazy and therefore we all accept each others craziness - instant friendships;)
    The daily struggles of living in this area are much more challenging than those from down South. Transportation is a constant test of patience, food is unreasonably expensive if you're not careful, and the weather is more unpredictable than the swimming patterns of a gold fish. Money is tight and much more difficult to come by in these parts. I am still working as a host for the BR Guest Restaurant and have just picked up a second job with a Broadway merchandising company (to begin in March!) so hopefully the two combined will help! For the past week I have been working as a sub at "Silence! The Musical" with Seth and have really enjoyed working with the talented cast and crew of the show. Being around theatre in any capacity is always worth the experience. Over the weekend we wrapped up our tour of the Musical we were performing in and now its continuing to seek the next gig. These little short term theatre jobs are always a blast and hopefully I will be able to continue picking a few up here and there. I am still working for the incredible Pat Addiss and I still volunteer my time when I can at Amas. Two internships + two jobs + auditions + classes. It's ALMOST worse than college....but not quite;)
While all these little part-time jobs allow me to pay my bills and take a few classes here and there, auditioning is my full-time job. I spend at least two hours a day searching for new audition postings from numerous different websites and the rest of my free time preparing for these auditions. Whether I'm stretching to force a better extension (what I'm doing as I am typing this, actually;), going to the gym to build up cardio and strength, singing or sometimes trying to sing, learning new songs, researching monologues, looking up casting directors and choreographers, etc., the list seems endless and yet I push myself through the ritual every day. Auditions are really picking up now - it's that season. Some of them have gone really great! Last week I went to an open call for Spring Awakening and made it all the way through the end of the day out of over three hundred people! A few others have had great results like getting put on file and receiving invited appointment only emails, but most auditions end with a lovely (or not so lovely) "thank you" from the director accross the table. ("The Last Five Years" was right...ALWAYS MEN!!!) And then there are audiitions like the embarrasing display of attempted talent I put forth this morning - Not so great. Sometimes you just have those days, I guess. You get off work at night, get four to five hours of sleep, wake up at 5AM to put rollers in your hair or iron a dress, haul your suitcase weight of a bag on busses and trains and then that mile you have to walk to arrive at the audition center by 6:30AM to sign in on an unofficial list you pray to God they accept, and you wait. And wait, and wait, and wait - becuase you showed up at 6:30AM to an audition that doesn't begin until 10:30AM. With any luck, you will have signed in at a number below 80 to even consider being seen before lunch, if at all. In the words of Laura, "You pray you get the callback and when you get the callback, you pray the callback ends before your next shift at work begins!". That pretty much sums it up. 
My mood has begun to opperate on extremely high highs and extremely low lows - there is no middle ground anymore. It's up or down. This constant rise and fall in emotion is slightly annoying and can really get to me. I think that's the most difficult part of this business. I'm learning to live with it - I'm learning to be patient and forgiving with myself and how to spend my time wisely. If I have one goal this audition season (besides booking a gig, of course) it is to learn everything I can from every audition I attend. I learn to make minor adjustments to my resume, choose a different 16 bars, don't stretch my legs to the point of being weak while I'm waiting for three hours...little things:) I am writing down all the choreography I learn so that when this company comes around next year using the same routine I'll be ready! For the most part, I've been able to maintain a positive attitude thus far - though I'm sure Seth and my Mother can testify to plenty of times when I have been quite the opposite of positive. I'm doing my best. I do at least three things every day that could better myself - something for my spiritual health, something for my physical health, and something for my career. Sanity has to start somewhere!
All in all, the everyday here is not so everyday because each day brings something completely different. I want everything this city has to offer me and I won't stop working for it until I have reached my goals. 
Tomorrow brings another early morning audition and a Broadway show before work! Bring on the inspiration!!!