So I just want to write something powerful and moving on this, the most important of our non-religous holidays. Unfortunately, I am not an especially good writer. Still, I want to share the significance of this day.
On this day, 232 years ago, 13 colonies set aside personal differences, and in defiance of the most powerful empire of the day, ratified one of the most powerful and moving documents in the history of the world.
When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness...
Read those words carefully. Every single word written by Thomas Jefferson was very carefully chosen. Every. Single. Word.
Five years later, some of them would live long enough to see the colonies, now called states, victorious and free. Not quite united yet, but starting down the road to where we are now.
The United States of America is not perfect. Nothing crafted by human hands ever is. Still, I love my country, flaws and all.
I love it for the liberty it provides me. I love it for the chances a free society provides me to pursue my happiness. I love that I was able to serve my country, and in some small way, contribute to all the is America.
I recently finished watching the John Adams mini series from HBO. I cannot recommend this series enough. It is powerful and moving. It really helps illustrate how fragile our country was, and how even a few or single good person can make a difference.
I hope you all have a happy and safe 4th of July.
If you are fortunate enough to live in America, and if you find yourself so inclined, Give thanks to whatever God you believe in that you are fortunate enough to be here. If you do not believe in God, then you can still give thanks that there were people who came before you and sacrificed and fought for you without ever knowing you.
As I close this out for tonight, let me leave you with one more bit of wisdom from our esteemed Founding Father, Mr. Thomas Jefferson:
"A government big enough to supply you with everything you need, is a government big enough to take away everything that you have...."
It is NOT the government that makes America great, it is the people. Don't ever, EVER forget that.
I'm never late, and I commute back to Laguna Niguel every night. I'm off book, and I was one of the first actors off book. I bought my own cowboy boots. I bought my own cowboy hat. I bought my own cowboy pants. I brought in a black shirt to be 'cowboyized' (I just made that word up).
My free time is very valuable to me, and I chose to spend it rehearsing and working on this show.
I do all of this without pay and without asking for pay because I believe in the experience and what we are doing.
Despite all of that...I cannot do a damn thing to please this director.
I had some fellow cast members tell me that the director walks over me because I am too nice. Everybody thinks I am nice - a nice guy. I wish that were true. I try to be nice because the alternative is Anthony Davis, mean guy. Very few people have seen that person, and he is a cold blooded son of a bitch, just ask my ex-wife.
Tomorrow during rehearsal I have to walk a line. I can't, as Abi warned me, go from super nice to super mean in a split second, which is what I am ready to do, because she said no one will see it coming. So somehow tomorrow I have to find this middle ground and make it known that if she doesn't like my work, she just needs to fire me - all without being Angry Tony.
The bottom line and honest truth is, the director is actually VERY good at what she does. Just for some reason, she is hammering me and no one else. I get 15 to 20 notes a run through, compared to 1 to 3 for everyone else. She stops me in the middle of lines and action, robbing me of momentum, to correct some stupid blocking where I am off by a step or something equally trivial. She tells me to be more confident and do follow my instincts, but when I try to experiment with the role, I get the old "STOP! STOP! STOP!" routine or worse, the loud sigh of exasperation, followed by scribbling in her pad because I just wracked up ANOTHER note.
Sorry for ranting here...I'm just very tired and angry.
So I emailed my bio for the program for The Rainmaker.
Here is what I sent in:
Anthony Davis (Bill Starbuck)-This is Anthony's first show at Westminster Community Theater. Originally from Texas, Anthony is fairly new to acting. His previous credits include First Lord Dumain in All's Well That Ends Well, Arles Struvie in A Tuna Christmas, and Lenny Ganz in Neil Simon's RUMORS. Anthony's ultimate acting goal is to portray the evil scientist who is betrayed and killed by a giant radioactive komodo dragon and some pesky teenagers. Till then, he hopes you enjoy tonight's show. Anthony would also like to thank his friends, family and God for all their love and support.
In other news, I have been watching the John Adams HBO special and it is amazing. Paul Giamatti is an incredible actor and he really brings a certain dignity and grace to the role.
Here is the trailer for it in case you never heard of it:
Everyone who knows me knows I am a nerd and they know I'm a gamer. Here is a brilliant, twisted yet slightly heart warming video with some of the things I love about gaming:
The show opens in 21 days. I don't have rehearsal again till next Tuesday.
Romance scenes are hard!
Imagine you have to convincingly sell 'romanctic' attraction in a theatrical play. Normally, this is sold to the audience by building the relationship, tension and through dialog. If successful, the audience find themselves being immersed into the story.
I don't believe this, in and of itself, is that hard. Men + Women + tension + attraction + dialog = $$$ Profit $$$
What DOES make it hard, is when you are in the middle of the scene, working the scene, and then you hear, "STOP! STOP! STOP!".
Then the director gives you some advice, good advice to be sure, but it still pulls you out of the moment.
It's like if I was driving a car with a standard transmission. First gear, Second gear, 3rd gear, 4th gear, and THEN you throw it into REVERSE while going 100 mph.
If you have never done this, your car will basically make a big "KA-CHUNK" sound and the engine will then LEAP through the hood of your car and yip off down the road like a scolded dog.
So I didn't go to the gym this morning. I didn't get home from rehearsal till almost midnight and it is my belief that a good night's sleep is more important than a trip to the gym at the crack of dawn.
I cannot afford to be mentally sluggish at work due to a lack of sleep.
Anyway, rehearsal last night went better. First we rehearsed all the non-romance scenes, including the fight scene in part 3. Paul Burt was a tremendous help in making the fight look and flow better.
After we rehearsed those scenes twice, the director let everyone but Abi and I go. The romance scenes went a lot smoother than I thought, despite the fact that I was nervous. The director actually clapped, smiled, and said she was very happy at the way the romance scenes were progressing.
I would go to the gym during lunch to make up for missing my morning trip, but I got to drive down to "Grants for Guns" and pick up a cowboy hat.
I got up at 6:30 am today and went to the gym. I started off by warming up on the bike. After that I went and did pull-ups and dips. I finished off the weight training portion with some bicep curls and some hammer curls. I then went and ran on the treadmill for about 10 minutes and I followed that up with 15 minutes on the bike.
I then went home and had some oatmeal for breakfast.
It then occurred to me...I have Pilates tonight. Great.
I tell you now, don't let the cute Pilates instructors fool you! Robin, my instructor, seems all cute, sweet and nice before the class starts, but once that class starts, then the tears flow. My tears.
"Scoop those abs!" "Don't lower those legs!" "Switch! Switch! Faster!" "Your leg hits the floor you owe me $5!"
I swear, if she cashes in on that last one, it would probably be enough to buy her a car.
Oh well, if I have one small consolation, it's that I will be nice and sweaty when I go to rehearsal tonight. Are you reading this Abi? Abi is the woman who is playing Lizzie in The Rainmaker and tonight we are working on the 'tack room scene'.
HahahahAHAahahHAAHa! I think I will have some garlic and onions for lunch too! Just a big bowl of garlic and onions...maybe some Oreos too, for color.
Ok, so my "Six Week Leading Man Plan" hasn't actually gone according to plan. My original plan was this:
1. Exercise 4 to 5 times a week (success!) 2. Eat less (partial success...which is just another way of saying partial failure) 3. No ice cream or cake (fail) 4. No beer or booze (fail) 5. No more soda, only water and fat free milk (success)
There were some other parts too, but I can't remember.
While I've only lost a couple of pounds so far, I have gained a lot of muscle and gotten stronger, however that was not the goal. The goal was slim and sexy, not big and sexy. I mean come on, I'm always sexy .
Ok seriously, I am going to try to start getting up in the morning and go to the gym. Currently I mostly go to the gym during lunch. These morning gym visits will be to focus on cardio which apparently, is the secret to being more slim.
I'm still taking the Pilates class Monday and Wednesday after work. Man, I remember thinking that Pilates was a class for "babies and grandmas" (to quote my friend Josh Sawyer) but boy was that a mistake. Pilates is actually Greek for "Abdominal Scooping Torture". Don't let the cute instructors fool and beguile you.
Well, that's about it. I figured I would write this now because when I get home from rehearsal, I'm going to sleep in anticipation of delicious cardio in the morning.
Things have been VERY busy lately. Rehearsal for the show and work is going full steam ahead.
So here is what is going on. I was in a 'staged reading' for the Dana Point Theater company. That was fun and here are some pictures from that:
"Buried Alive"
"Rhubarb"
We have also been continuing the Sunday night Karaoke tradition. Here are some pictures from that!
The Magic Moment...
Alletta feeling the music!
Alletta and Chris dancing the night away!
Me and Eddie. Beer is the great lubricant that keeps society and karaoke bars functioning.
Chris has turned into quite the rock and roll star.
Chris and Eddie...yeah I don't know either...
Dennis and Vicki, this super nice couple we met at the karaoke bar! I dedicated my singing of Radar Love to them!
Eddie, Lena and my hermano Jose!
Jimmy. Simply Pure 100% Jimmy.
Chris gets ALLLLL the ladiez.
Why so serious? Especially Eddie...holy moly.
The Man, the Myth, the Legend...Paul "Heartbreaker" Burt! Ladies, this man can sing.
Ladies, this next song is for you!
LOL, yeah, look at me go.
Anyway. We had a good rehearsal tonight. However, I forgot to put my bed sheets in the dryer - so I am now watching Big Trouble in Little China, also known as the the Best Movie EVAR, while I wait for them to dry.
"Just remember what ol' Jack Burton does when the earth quakes, and the poison arrows fall from the sky, and the pillars of Heaven shake. Yeah, Jack Burton just looks that big ol' storm right square in the eye and he says, "Give me your best shot, pal. I can take it."
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