I've had an exceptionally busy month. It's been great - and exhausting!
We travelled back to Australia for two weeks, which was so nice. It's only the second time we've been back in almost three years, and it's amazing how everything is still so familiar. I haven't forgotten how to drive - which is good considering the repercussions of the alternative. It's incredibly weird how I DO have to think twice when I cross the road, but when I drive I just automatically know which way to look and which side to drive on.
I had my fill of cappuccinos and mochas (OVER $5 for a regular mocha at Gloria Jeans - WHAT??), we had pies and sausage rolls, and fish and chips and loads of sakata rice crackers and that yummy cashew and chili dip that is SO amazing. We had fake Christmas (that's Christmas in February), a Bat Mitzvah, met a new baby or two, and caught up with many friends who forgot how cool we are (I know, that's hard, but it's been a long time). A nice time was had by all...
Then back to the action in the Big Apple. We arrived home on Friday night and I had to arrive on set and ready to shoot (my first movie role ever!!) Saturday morning at 9 a.m. Crazy times! I was jet-lagged and didn't know what we were shooting that day (scheduling isn't a strong suit for this bunch), and I spent a lot of the day waiting around and reading Rich Dad, Poor Dad (I thought if I have to sit around I might as well learn how to be rich). After learning that I really should own something called stocks which you buy at the market, I was called in to do my first scene on camera ever! BAM! I don't know what I did, or how I did, or what I said, or what I was supposed to say...it was just a lot of 'walk in and stand there and GO'. Ahhh...and wee!
We had another full day on Sunday, and then Monday I got to do something very exciting. I had an amazing voice over gig where I got to narrate children's books for Scholastic. And I even got to do silly voices - I was a millipede with a high voice, and a dung beetle with a low voice, and a nasty snippy scorpion and a cockroach who just said 'hiss'...it was so much fun. I really do think that's something that would make me incredibly happy were I to be able to do more of it. And then one day my dream of being a princess voice might come true...
Filming continued until Thursday night...going slower than they were expecting. They only had the venue until then and when we finished we still had quite a lot of scenes to shoot...so I don't know when we'll do those. I guess I'm still technically on call - and my contract says that they have exclusive rights to my time while they're filming. Let's just hope it doesn't continue for months and months...or years and years...But overall it's been a great experience. There was lots of waiting around and disorganization, but some of the actors I met and the crew guys were lovely.
I started Improv Level 1 (yes, I graduated from level zero!) on Friday and it was loads of fun. My teacher is Pat Shay and he's an actor as well as an improviser and he seems really great. And on Monday this week I started at Atlantic Acting School Level 2 - and that is just awesome. There were only eight in class, and two were missing, so a group of 10 is so perfect. We have a project where we have to pick a historical figure who's dead, or a mythological historic figure and write a two minute monologue followed by three minutes of question time, all while pursuing an action. And we have to research the person and come to class in costume. What fun! And I already have a scene partner for our Scene Analysis class and we've chosen a scene which we'll do next week. So I'm busy learning my lines by rote so that we can come to class and perform it together in front of the class for the first time! I love that - we're only allowed to do line readings together, but the first time we ever actually perform it is in front of the class.
And Matt and I are busy working on starting a theatre company. We bought a book, 'How to Start Your Own Theater Company'. Step one. We've started reading it. Step two. That's where we're at.
Ooh, and I made myself a website: www.kathleen-foster.com. I decided it was time to step it up and become a professional and get a real website and business cards (which are coming in the mail soon!).
That's it for now. Back to line learning, historical figure selecting and book reading (both stock market and theatre company related!).
