Grapes!

So filming this weekend for A Discussion on the American Landscape was a blast! Being my first film I was a little nervous going in but it ended up being so fun. The cast and crew are so great and really helped me feel comfortable. I couldn't have asked for a better group of people to be with for my first film. I'm going to feel much more confident in my next film gig.

Discussion will be premiering next year at some yet-to-be-determined film festivals around the Twin Cities. I can't wait to see the finished product! Loocis, the director, has some really great and creative ideas. I'll keep you posted as to how the process is going.

Filming Starts On Discussion

I start filming for A Discussion on the American Landscape this weekend! They've been filming since Labor Day weekend but they haven't needed me until now. I'm so excited! I've been going over my lines and doing a little character work so I can be as prepared as possible. I'm happy with what I've come up with for my character's backstory. The script itself doesn't delve too deeply into Albert and why he is the way he is but that doesn't mean I haven't fleshed him out! Here's a few places Albert might like to hang out:

 It's going to be a great weekend and I'm so excited to be a part of this project!

A Discussion on the American Landscape

I've been cast in my first film! It's an independent film from Eruption Productions in Minneapolis. Not only is this my first film but it is also my first professional acting job. That's right, I am getting paid to do this. As my friend Jamie used to say, "Money in the bank!"

The film is called A Discussion on the American Landscape and it's about a teenage girl and her boyfriend trying to find a better life. As the dissatisfaction with their droll lives grow they turn to desperate measures in an attempt to get rich quick.

I play the cousin of the boyfriend who is an unknowing cohort to the couple's plan. I'm very excited and can't wait for filming to start! My role is a minor one but I've got a number of lines and something to put under "Film Experience" on my resume. You've got to start somewhere.

Those Who Eat Together

I was lucky enough to be able to perform in this summer's Minnesota Fringe Festival. Along with Kayla, I choreographed and danced in a piece called "Those Who Eat Together." It was part of a collection of four pieces entitled Family. Here's a link to clips of the whole collection, ours is the last piece:

Family - Presented at the Minnesota Fringe Festival

Our piece centered around the idea of the family dinner table and how eating together is healthy for family relationships. We wanted to explore how the function of the dinner table has transformed over time and how that has affected the family unit. It was a great experience. The Fringe is such a wonderful place for new artists, such as myself, to present their work and start to get their name out there.

Arts-In!

Well, I've just finished a week of directing a 4-H program known as Arts-In. Arts-In is a thirty-minute musical that is rehearsed over a 4 day encampment and then performed at the county fair. It is intense, hard work but it is so much fun! As one of the directors, I got to help write the show which was a blast. This year's show is called Five Flags and is about a failing amusement park that needs some creativity and imagination to bring it back to life. The employees need to work together and accept each others' ideas in order to turn the park around. We had sixty 4-Hers participate in this show and I couldn't ask for a better cast and crew! They were amazing. As you can tell, we had a lot of fun playing games, rehearsing, and just having a good time!

 

Everybody cut Footloose!

Back in April I was in a production of Footloose: The Musical at Ashland Productions. This was the first musical I have been in since I played Tommy Djilas in The Music Man. It was so much fun! I've always been a big fan of the movie and when I heard that Ashland was producing Footloose I had to audition. I ended up landing a part in the teen ensemble and I wouldn't have traded it for anything! I learned so much from the singing and dancing in the show. Since Footloose is a dance show all the numbers were intense and full of energy. This video gives an idea of the fun and energy of this show.

 

This was also my first show after graduating from Hillsdale and I couldn't ask for a better group of people to start out my professional career with. I hope I continue to get the opportunity to work with such incredible and talented people.

Three Sisters

 I had the great pleasure of seeing one of my fellow Hillsdale Alumni perform in a production of Chekhov's brilliant play Three Sisters. Anton Chekhov is one of my favorite playwrights and he holds a place close to my heart because we did scenes from Uncle Vanya for our Acting II class at Hillsdale. This production of Three Sisters was put on by the Bouyant Theatre Collective and I absolutely loved it! The performance space was in an old storage area or warehouse. The whole cast did an excellent job with some outstanding performances. My friend, Abigail Nones, shined in her role as the youngest of the three sisters, Irina. Other actors whose performances I really enjoyed were those playing the roles of Andrey, Kulygin, Ivan Romanovich, Masha, and Olga.

Andrey (Luke Weber) contemplates an intellectual career

 As with Chekhov's other full-length plays, Three Sisters centers around the decline of a wealthy, noble family in Russia. At the beginning of the play, the three sisters and their brother have recently lost their father. As children, they lived in Moscow but now reside at a country estate outside a small village. They all dream of the day they get to move back to Moscow but as the play moves on that dream becomes less and less achievable. Their brother gets into gambling trouble and ends up mortgaging the house without the permission of his sisters. Eventually, the soldiers who were stationed at the small village and who provided much of the amusement in the little town are moved to a new location. The sisters had developed strong relationships with many of the soldiers and their departure left the sisters feeling empty and alone. While the end of the play is bleak, there is a ray of hope in their determination to start their lives anew working for a better life.