Well it sure has been awhile since I last wrote one of these. For those of you who check my myspace page, you knew I had one of these updated and ready to go. Due to some technical internet difficulties, I lost my last blog...and it was lllloooonnnngggg. Oh well. Here’s another one and a bit more up-to-date.

Last time I wrote, I told you how I had just signed up for a class called “The Path” at Capes Coaching. Well I’ve been going and this past Thursday marked week 4 in our 6 week journey before starting on our path. Let me explain to you what the class is and how it works since some of you may be curious. “The Path” class is a 6 week class that will help you plan out the next year of your career; coming up with a realistic and achievable goal to reach by next year. And of course you can use this at any time for anything in your life. A couple of weeks ago I decided on my one year goal. I had been saying this particular goal for as long as I can remember, but it’s so different when you actually put it on paper and know that this is what you are striving for.

“But Nicole, what was your goal?

I’m so glad you asked. My One Year Goal was like so:

“On December 6, 2008, I will currently be performing in my first Broadway musical.”

Saying that aloud was thrilling and I was so excited by it...then the days were going by and the next thing I knew, I was beginning to doubt myself. I kept thinking, “Can I really do this? My resume isn’t that strong. I know it can happen but will it happen to me?” As the days got closer to our next class, my one year goal didn’t seem right...at least not right now. Doing what I always do whenever I get in a rut, I talk to Jon (for those of you who don’t know....he’s my amazing and wonderful boyfriend who is also a fantastic actor). He suggested that maybe I reconsider my goal and gear it more towards “resume building”. Thinking about it, it made more sense and made me feel better about my One Year Goal. So I went into class last Thursday and voiced my concerns. Dave, the instructor for the class, and my classmates were really supportive and I then shaped a new One Year Goal. While my original goal is realistic and absolutely achievable, now is most likely not the best time. So, my new One Year Goal is:

“On December 6, 2008 I will have booked AT LEAST 2 professional theatre gigs and made AT LEAST 5(casting director, producer, and musical director) contacts and AT LEAST 15 actor contacts.”

Not bad, huh? Not only does this sound better, it feels better. Broadway will be achieved but maybe that’ll be my 2009 goal. This class is really great and I would recommend it to anyone who isn’t sure where to go and what to do. (www.capesco.com)

I have also been taking another class called “Audition Ready” with Sharon Barnett. I just had my 2nd class this past Tuesday night and I find myself enjoying it. It’s a 4 week class, very reasonable in price and something that, as an actor, you can find very helpful. “Audition Ready” is pretty self-explanatory in that the class is to help you audition better. Sharon, who is an actress, playwright, etc, has held many auditions where actors have had no clue as to what they are doing in the room....walking in wearing pajama pants, not knowing how to introduce themselves in a professional way, all sorts of shocking things that you wonder to yourself, “How could someone NOT know that?” Therefore, she developed “Audition Ready” to prepare the actor to have a great audition and help sell yourself. Sharon is a very sweet woman and is very helpful. She video tapes each week and sends it to you. There’s nothing like seeing yourself and being forced to see what you should be working on...YIKES!!! Sometimes the truth hurts. Week 1 you work on gaining confidence, Week 2 you work on monologues, Week 3 you work on songs and Week 4 you get to audition for an agent. Not bad, huh??? If you’re interested in this and to see what else Sharon has done, check out www.auditionready.com.

I went on a couple auditions as well. The first was at American Girl Place. It was actually a very enjoyable day. Not only did I see some Montclair Alum that I knew there, I felt like I had one of the best auditions I’ve had in a very long time. I didn’t get in the room until about 1:30 (waited about 2 hours or so...not bad, right???). We were to prepare 16 bars from 2 musical theatre songs for the audition. The monitor though had told us to do 16 bars from the song we thought was best for us and that we may not be asked to sing our second song. Ok...that works for me. So I walked in. The monitor introduced me and the 2 women in the room were absolutely pleasant. To some you may wonder what the big deal is...but sometimes those auditioning you don’t even look at you let alone acknowledge your presence. Anywho...it was a great start to my audition. Walked over to the pianist, showed him what I was doing, tempo, etc. and then my audition began. I felt my song went very well. And I guess they did, too. They asked to hear my second song. What a great feeling that was. Even though I haven’t heard anything and at this point probably won’t, I felt really great about that audition. I knew it went well and couldn’t have asked for more. I also had another audition for ArtsPower tour on Monday. I had actually met the program coordinator, Andrea, at the NJEA teacher convention last Friday. WHAT WERE YOU DOING THERE??? Geez...you guys have so many questions. I was helping out Winceyco, a touring company I worked with last year. They do musically educational programs at schools throughout Jersey and NY (www.winceyco.com). Anyway, I met Andrea and it wasn’t until the day was almost over when I made the connection that I would be auditioning for her company on Monday. So Monday came and I waited for 6 ½ hours before I got in the room for my 1 minute audition. It was yet another audition where I haven’t (and probably won’t) hear anything but felt that it went well. I felt great going in and I remember being taken aback for a second when I opened my mouth and started to sing. I felt that the first couple notes I sang sounded AMAZING...I couldn’t believe it. I walked out of there knowing that sounded great. So while I most likely won’t hear from either of these companies, I know I did a great job...and that’s all you can ask for.

I do promise to write more often and keep you all updated. If you have any suggestions or any advice for me, LET ME KNOW!!! I love knowing and learning new things. AND any new contacts would be great...I love meeting new people. Until next time....Take care and break a leg.