tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post6103048103450202191..comments2024-02-27T16:59:54.089-05:00Comments on (The New) Theatre Ideas: Advice to a Theatre Major About to Graduate from CollegeUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-26526932923200377242013-04-18T11:26:09.180-04:002013-04-18T11:26:09.180-04:00This is beautifully written.
I'm a 40-year-ol...This is beautifully written.<br /><br />I'm a 40-year-old theatre professional who has managed to do work regionally and in New York, and I've even had several years where theatre was my full-time pay-the-rent job. And as I look back on my career I find that the time I'm happiest is right now, when I'm working as a full time optical dispensary manager and doing work on evenings and weekends, choosing projects that are important and challenging to me--and skipping most auditions.<br /><br />It's not just the actor in me that hears this advice ring true. As a director, I find myself often frustrated with actors, particularly young ones, who only know acting. Real-world work experience, life experience, is every bit as valuable as actor training. I am immediately suspicious of the artistic honesty of actors who only know how to <b>pretend</b> to be a "real" person with a "normal" job. And I worry about the personal growth of actors who have to audition for <b>every show in town</b> and who are miserable if they're not in a rehearsal room or in the run of a show. There is so much more to life than being in a play all the time.<br /><br />Learn how to live life, young artists. It will help your art and, as a bonus, will actually give you a life. Learn to cook. Learn a trade. Go to church. Fall in love with someone who isn't another actor. Cheer on a sports team. Meet some people who know about something other than theatre. Volunteer for a charity organization. Expand your circle of friends outside the rehearsal hall.<br /><br />Developing yourself as a person will impact your art in ways that the reverse cannot.Andrew Hammhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08714127938846605400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-47710085514497738922011-08-26T07:17:56.902-04:002011-08-26T07:17:56.902-04:00This wonderful post appealed to me, as a sophomore...This wonderful post appealed to me, as a sophomore studying theatre: seeing so many of my classes dropping the major and transferring to a different school can be disheartening, but reading this made me realize that they never knew WHY they were majoring in theatre. This sparked a blog post of my own, partially in response to yours: http://acollegetheatredork.blogspot.com/2011/08/every-day-learn-learn-so-that-you-can.html<br /><br />So thank you, for helping me acknowledge why it is that I'm going to graduate a theatre major in a few years!Shelbyhttp://acollegetheatredork.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-7249557093497162542011-05-07T05:19:57.537-04:002011-05-07T05:19:57.537-04:00Wonderful. Thank you.Wonderful. Thank you.Matt Beresfordnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-67004236810430843922011-03-11T08:07:07.351-05:002011-03-11T08:07:07.351-05:00This is such a great conversation. 2AMt has had a ...This is such a great conversation. 2AMt has had a similar discussion in the previous week, where bloggers describe their arts work set up- full-time, part-time, freelance. It prompted me to examine my own.<br /><br />One of the terrifying, yet rewarding aspects, of a life in the arts, is that your life is part of the creation! There really is no one path, one size, one answer. There is an opportunity to do anything- pursue the arts as a career, or find a day job that supports you habit. And then everything in between.<br /><br />But answering the why and the how tells you what's a good fit for you. Great advice!Nicole LaBondehttp://www.nicolelabonde.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-37098909323824363182011-03-08T06:22:01.534-05:002011-03-08T06:22:01.534-05:00This is a great post - both the question and answe...This is a great post - both the question and answer! I remember going through this a few years ago, when I was about to graduate. I wasn't the only one who felt a bit lost, and was perhaps expecting some sort of advice or direction from the lecturers, but none was given. And then we were all on our own and clueless! I think every graduate feels like this at the moment...<br /><br />I definitely agree with you about figuring out what's important. Since graduating I've still not really settled on what it is I want to do, but I've tried a lot of things, in different combinations, locations, and at different levels. At first I was worrying all the time but then I figured I might as well spend this time exploring my options! And even if you do have to wait tables/temp for a while, it doesn't have to be forever, and it might even be enjoyable. :)<br /><br />Those are my thoughts! Thanks for the post and good luck to 'Nervous and Normal' :)Dhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06518919562780685453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-16876687.post-3453451743380623672011-03-08T01:15:33.470-05:002011-03-08T01:15:33.470-05:00I ended up very glad that I stopped to examine the...I ended up very glad that I stopped to examine the why - turns out that what I really love is doing creative work in a team setting, and having my theater be an "after hours" gig is great for me. Doing it that way made theater fun for me again, when by the end of my BA it was starting to drive me a little insane.Katehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02435624421890596638noreply@blogger.com