Process

This week has been quiet audition wise. I haven't been hustling up auditions myself because I feel like I needed to take a little time off from that. The hubby and I had 3 days of "Staycation," i.e. we didn't go anywhere, but we turned off all cell phones and laptops and chilled - went to the park, went to a meditation center. Oh and we did this really cool thing - we went to a spa and floated in a dark, salt water bath for an hour. It's like you are in your mother's womb all over again - very relaxing. This and several other fun activities are listed in the book "50 Places to Find Peace and Quiet in New York City." A must have if you've lived here for more than 5 years.....gotta find ways to clear your head in this town!

So, I've been writing quite a bit, another screenplay reading has come my way at the Actor's Studio so I'm reading that too. Oh and I decided to work on a play on my own. Another actress and I have decided to work on "Rabbit Hole" in our oh so spare time. We met today and I feel I've really started to grow as an actress. I have more confidence in my choices.

I'm doing this thing in my writing too where I'm developing characters - I turn on a tape recorder and let different characters speak. Sometimes I use what's called "sub-part" work (see the book "Embracing Ourselves," I forget the authors names - a couple, Hal and Sidra Stone I think....), which is where you basically walk into an energy and let it speak. Or sometimes I use a gesture, sometimes a character I've worked on before. There are many ways to go about it. What's key is to not judge it AT ALL. But let it talk. Tomorrow I'll type out everything I taped, and sift through it to see if there's anything I want to hold onto. FUN!

More than anything, the writing has really taught me a lot about process. Sitting down, allowing the pen to move on the paper (or laptop), doing your best not to judge it or expect a masterpiece. Just keep moving the pen and trust that everything will come together. It may take months or years, but it will come together. Or maybe this piece inspires something else. Or maybe its simply a writing exercise.....that's okay too.

That has been a challenging part of my journey in the arts - my Aries tendencies do not like waiting around, not knowing the outcome of things. But the good news is that I do see progress with my patience, with the "not knowing." And I believe that is a challenging part of being in the arts. Especially if you are one (like me) who comes from a background with a lot of structure - having gone to college, worked in offices for a while. Liking things wrapped neatly with a bow. So I believe I've become more comfortable with letting go. It simply takes time and patience and doing it over and over again........