I'm gonna say it: it's downright difficult to Christmas shop in New York. Over the past week, I've made two separate attempts to buy gifts, and both times I've returned home empty-handed. Of course, it doesn't help that my family will give me no clues as to what they want (e.g. "Oh, nothing for me this year" or "Just a little something, you'll know it when you see it.")
On top of this, there is an overwhelming amount of options that are quickly narrowed down by price. So, it takes a large amount of sifting to find things that won't put me in the poor house, and when I find it, there's a line for the checkout that wraps around the perimeter of the store.
I (stupidly) tried to make my way down 5th Avenue yesterday, and while it was busy, I was trying to coerce myself into having fun and getting into the spirit of holiday crowds. This quickly ended, however, when I found myself trapped in an Italian-style crowd at the corner of 50th and 5th, just outside of the American Girl Doll store. Apart from the mob of angry mothers and shrill tourists who "drove half the day from Baltimore to wait in line to even get inside the store," there were mounds of other people blocking traffic and causing police on-foot to intervene. I literally couldn't move for 5 minutes.
So, I will now try to complete my shopping either online or when I return to the Midwest. I suppose it won't be as terrible after work, so I might try that when I have a night off.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Sunday, December 2, 2007
We had our first snow this morning when I woke up. The last couple days have been blustery, and while not nearly as cold as the MN temps, those long east-west Manhattan blocks sure know how to trap the cold winter wind.
Now that the Broadway strike is finally over, MTC employees have been offered a plethora of comps to fill seats these next couple weekends and see the show for free. As a result, yesterday I went with Alex and some co-workers to see Is He Dead?, a long-lost play of Mark Twain's that was discovered in 2002. It was a silly farce starring the current king of musical theatre, Norbert Leo Butz, and it was quite hilarious and solid. It's still in previews and doesn't open for a few weeks.
I got my first issue of Time Out: New York yesterday. This weekly magazine is basically the New Yorker's bible for what's going on in the city. I got a great deal on a subscription price (always the case with these magazines, it seems) and it makes a great subway read, as well.
The tree lighting for Rockefeller Plaza happened this week, and I was only a few blocks away working at our off-Broadway theatre. I was going to try and stop by when I got off, but it was crazy packed and definitely wasn't worth it. Midtown in general seems to be busier on the weekends now that it's the holiday season, so when I'm not going to or from work, I try to seek out less crowded neighborhoods.
It's definitely weird to think that I only have three weeks left here at MTC. The intern group drew "Holiday Gift Exchange" people this week (in Iowa it might be referred to as "Secret Santas") so that should be a fun weekly project. We'll do our big gift ($10-15) at our Holiday Party (which is going to take place at a bowling alley)!
The job hunt is coming along. I've got a few things in the works, but I don't want to jinx anything, so I'm going to stop talking about it. It definitely helps to work where I'm working though, because I've already had some good words put in for me from various MTC employees who seem to know everyone in this incestuous business.
My friend Jen (who I was living with for the month of October) was offered a job this week as the Assistant to the Executive Producer at 59E59, another theatre company on the East Side, and she accepted! She actually didn't even apply for it: the Executive Producer called up our Intern Coordinator, and since Jen basically has that position now except to the Director of Development, he offered it to her. She got extremely lucky and got a pretty good package from what I hear.
This coming week is pretty busy once again. We've got our Pumpgirl opening on Tuesday, which, for now, will be my final opening night at MTC, but I'm sure it will be awesome.
I need to know what you guys have on your Christmas lists! I was instructed to start working on my own, and I've come up with a few ideas, available upon request...
Now that the Broadway strike is finally over, MTC employees have been offered a plethora of comps to fill seats these next couple weekends and see the show for free. As a result, yesterday I went with Alex and some co-workers to see Is He Dead?, a long-lost play of Mark Twain's that was discovered in 2002. It was a silly farce starring the current king of musical theatre, Norbert Leo Butz, and it was quite hilarious and solid. It's still in previews and doesn't open for a few weeks.
I got my first issue of Time Out: New York yesterday. This weekly magazine is basically the New Yorker's bible for what's going on in the city. I got a great deal on a subscription price (always the case with these magazines, it seems) and it makes a great subway read, as well.
The tree lighting for Rockefeller Plaza happened this week, and I was only a few blocks away working at our off-Broadway theatre. I was going to try and stop by when I got off, but it was crazy packed and definitely wasn't worth it. Midtown in general seems to be busier on the weekends now that it's the holiday season, so when I'm not going to or from work, I try to seek out less crowded neighborhoods.
It's definitely weird to think that I only have three weeks left here at MTC. The intern group drew "Holiday Gift Exchange" people this week (in Iowa it might be referred to as "Secret Santas") so that should be a fun weekly project. We'll do our big gift ($10-15) at our Holiday Party (which is going to take place at a bowling alley)!
The job hunt is coming along. I've got a few things in the works, but I don't want to jinx anything, so I'm going to stop talking about it. It definitely helps to work where I'm working though, because I've already had some good words put in for me from various MTC employees who seem to know everyone in this incestuous business.
My friend Jen (who I was living with for the month of October) was offered a job this week as the Assistant to the Executive Producer at 59E59, another theatre company on the East Side, and she accepted! She actually didn't even apply for it: the Executive Producer called up our Intern Coordinator, and since Jen basically has that position now except to the Director of Development, he offered it to her. She got extremely lucky and got a pretty good package from what I hear.
This coming week is pretty busy once again. We've got our Pumpgirl opening on Tuesday, which, for now, will be my final opening night at MTC, but I'm sure it will be awesome.
I need to know what you guys have on your Christmas lists! I was instructed to start working on my own, and I've come up with a few ideas, available upon request...
Monday, November 26, 2007
here it is...
More kitchen.
The eat-in kitchen from its doorway. The table's a bit bigger than it looks here.
My favorite feature! The anteroom/changing room, and then the bathroom is beyond that.
The bathroom...close-up.
Looking back down to the front door from the bedroom hallway. I told you we need a real table there or something...
My room...if it wasn't foggy you could see the Manhattan skyline through that window.
Alex's room...he wants you to know that it's messy because his "parents are terrible and threw him out of the house with all these boxes full of crap he doesn't want anyway". And "he's such a hard worker he doesn't have time for petty tasks like unpacking".
t-gives
I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! I certainly did as I explored New Jersey holiday culture. Thankfully, we had a half-day of work on Wednesday, so I figured we'd beat the rush down to Jersey. However, apparently everyone in New York has a half-day before Thanksgiving, and this made our commute a little crazy. After waiting for a stalled subway and maneuvering through a sea of people at Penn Station, Alex and I met up, jumped aboard a double-decker train and stood in a packed car for the majority of the trip. That night the Foard's made lamb, though, so that made it all worth it.
On Thursday, we loaded up their Volvo full of food and headed to Morristown, NJ where we had a big suburban Thanksgiving with Alex's parents' best friends from grad school. They've been celebrating it with them for the last 30 years, and it was fun to have a big Thanksgiving (about 16 in total).
Colin and Susannah, Alex's twin and sister, respectively, didn't come home for the holiday, so it was just the 4 of us for the Foard Thanksgiving on Friday. The food was amazing, and I don't think I've ever eaten so much over a 3-day period.
I had a great time meeting his friends that were home and seeing all of his gang's hangouts.
Chris, Alex's dad, drove us back on Saturday morning with another load of his stuff. We spent most of Saturday having a much-needed day of movie therapy. My friend from high school, Cindy, was upstate for a few days prior to this and came down to spend two days at our place. We saw an awesome Bollywood movie at the Indian movie theatre down the street, and then on Sunday we did all kinds of New Yorky things like brunch, a play (I took her to see The Receptionist for free), and a little shopping down 5th Avenue.
I've decided to have a mini photo-shoot of our apartment tonight. So, I will post some pictures in a few hours. It's definitely not in a finished state yet, but when our budgets and schedules allow, we'll get a few more items (primarily a table and mirror for our humungo entrance hallway).
On Thursday, we loaded up their Volvo full of food and headed to Morristown, NJ where we had a big suburban Thanksgiving with Alex's parents' best friends from grad school. They've been celebrating it with them for the last 30 years, and it was fun to have a big Thanksgiving (about 16 in total).
Colin and Susannah, Alex's twin and sister, respectively, didn't come home for the holiday, so it was just the 4 of us for the Foard Thanksgiving on Friday. The food was amazing, and I don't think I've ever eaten so much over a 3-day period.
I had a great time meeting his friends that were home and seeing all of his gang's hangouts.
Chris, Alex's dad, drove us back on Saturday morning with another load of his stuff. We spent most of Saturday having a much-needed day of movie therapy. My friend from high school, Cindy, was upstate for a few days prior to this and came down to spend two days at our place. We saw an awesome Bollywood movie at the Indian movie theatre down the street, and then on Sunday we did all kinds of New Yorky things like brunch, a play (I took her to see The Receptionist for free), and a little shopping down 5th Avenue.
I've decided to have a mini photo-shoot of our apartment tonight. So, I will post some pictures in a few hours. It's definitely not in a finished state yet, but when our budgets and schedules allow, we'll get a few more items (primarily a table and mirror for our humungo entrance hallway).
Sunday, November 18, 2007
November is supposed to be the crappiest month for weather in New York. So far, that's been fairly accurate. More times than I can count, my winter coat has gotten soaked through because it's always about 38 degrees and raining. Naturally, I usually forget my umbrella at either home or work. Today is no exception.
This weekend was my first time in New Jersey, and I had a lot of fun. Friday after work I met Alex and we took the train down to his house in Little Silver. Since we were planning to take his parents' van to Ikea the next morning, it made sense to stay at his place that night. It was a really fun trip, mostly because I got to indulge in the suburban experience that I have oddly been craving lately.
It was my first time meeting his mom, and she's really funny and smart. They are absolutely a traditional (albeit ultra-liberal) suburban family with nightly meals and walks around the neighborhood. They were very accomodating, giving me Colin's (Alex's twin who's away at grad school in California) room and bathroom to use when I stay there.
New Jersey is actually quite beautiful. I'm not sure exactly from where it gets its negative reputation. And they are actually experiencing a fall! The trees were very notable, unlike the few in the city. Alex gave me the grand tour of his town and the neighboring ones, and he's only about 10 minutes from the ocean, so we went over there too.
Ikea proved to be fairly successful. We managed to find almost everything we needed, with the exception of a few items that were out of stock, so now we are mostly set. We brought the load of unassembled furniture to our apartment in the van, then drove the van back down to Jersey and came up again on the commuter train. Then we had a furniture assembling party that lasted well into the night. All in all, a very long but productive day.
The strike is still going on this weekend, so I wasn't able to see August: Osage County. But everyone is raving about it, so hopefully there will be another chance to see it once the strike is over. Whispers from up above say that it probably won't be lasting too much longer.
Work is going well. I gave them my notice that I will not be returning next semester. It was a difficult decision, but I've learned to trust my gut instinct by now, and it had definitely made up its mind. While my position is important and pretty rewarding for the time being, I've learned basically all that I can learn in it, so staying in an internship that works me too many hours for too little money doesn't really make sense at this point. I love MTC though, and they like me, so I know opportunities in the future will definitely be a possibility.
I have an interview tomorrow morning with Hartig Hilepo, an agency that represents actors in film, television and on Broadway. I'm pretty excited about it, although I'm not sure that it will be a good match for me right now. It's basically an apprenticeship that will most likely become an assistant agent position. I'm going to prepare for it in a little bit, but since I don't know what to expect yet with hours/pay/start date I'm not going to get my hopes up. It's a well-respected agency in the city though, and these positions are the key to getting into that biz. So, we'll see.
I'm so happy there are only 3 days of work this week! I definitely am feeling the 60 hour work week, and I need some time to reboot. I'll be going down to Alex's parents' for it, so I'm excited about that. His mom is supposedly a really good cook, and I hear that they do two Thanksgivings with different groups, one on Thursday and one on Friday. It will be my first T-day away from home, so that will be a bit of a bummer, but being an honorary Foard for the weekend will be fun.
And I got a haircut this week (for $30--great for NYC), so I'm not shaggy anymore. Always a plus.
This weekend was my first time in New Jersey, and I had a lot of fun. Friday after work I met Alex and we took the train down to his house in Little Silver. Since we were planning to take his parents' van to Ikea the next morning, it made sense to stay at his place that night. It was a really fun trip, mostly because I got to indulge in the suburban experience that I have oddly been craving lately.
It was my first time meeting his mom, and she's really funny and smart. They are absolutely a traditional (albeit ultra-liberal) suburban family with nightly meals and walks around the neighborhood. They were very accomodating, giving me Colin's (Alex's twin who's away at grad school in California) room and bathroom to use when I stay there.
New Jersey is actually quite beautiful. I'm not sure exactly from where it gets its negative reputation. And they are actually experiencing a fall! The trees were very notable, unlike the few in the city. Alex gave me the grand tour of his town and the neighboring ones, and he's only about 10 minutes from the ocean, so we went over there too.
Ikea proved to be fairly successful. We managed to find almost everything we needed, with the exception of a few items that were out of stock, so now we are mostly set. We brought the load of unassembled furniture to our apartment in the van, then drove the van back down to Jersey and came up again on the commuter train. Then we had a furniture assembling party that lasted well into the night. All in all, a very long but productive day.
The strike is still going on this weekend, so I wasn't able to see August: Osage County. But everyone is raving about it, so hopefully there will be another chance to see it once the strike is over. Whispers from up above say that it probably won't be lasting too much longer.
Work is going well. I gave them my notice that I will not be returning next semester. It was a difficult decision, but I've learned to trust my gut instinct by now, and it had definitely made up its mind. While my position is important and pretty rewarding for the time being, I've learned basically all that I can learn in it, so staying in an internship that works me too many hours for too little money doesn't really make sense at this point. I love MTC though, and they like me, so I know opportunities in the future will definitely be a possibility.
I have an interview tomorrow morning with Hartig Hilepo, an agency that represents actors in film, television and on Broadway. I'm pretty excited about it, although I'm not sure that it will be a good match for me right now. It's basically an apprenticeship that will most likely become an assistant agent position. I'm going to prepare for it in a little bit, but since I don't know what to expect yet with hours/pay/start date I'm not going to get my hopes up. It's a well-respected agency in the city though, and these positions are the key to getting into that biz. So, we'll see.
I'm so happy there are only 3 days of work this week! I definitely am feeling the 60 hour work week, and I need some time to reboot. I'll be going down to Alex's parents' for it, so I'm excited about that. His mom is supposedly a really good cook, and I hear that they do two Thanksgivings with different groups, one on Thursday and one on Friday. It will be my first T-day away from home, so that will be a bit of a bummer, but being an honorary Foard for the weekend will be fun.
And I got a haircut this week (for $30--great for NYC), so I'm not shaggy anymore. Always a plus.
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Things are moving along quite nicely. After living in the new place for a week with nearly no furniture (except my new awesome bed), Alex and his dad brought up a big load of furniture yesterday that they are kindly lending to us. Now, we have a sofa and chair in the living room, the table and chairs in the kitchen and a few other odds and ends. We are still quite a way off with getting some necessities, but I think we might try to run to Ikea next weekend with his parents' van to pick up a few cheap but cool things. Primarily, I need to get a small desk and nightstand for my room and a coffee table for the living room. And a TV stand. (Thanks to Dad and Barb for sending all my bedding--I got the comforter in the mail yesterday!)
Speaking of TV, the cable/internet guy came today and installed our package, so now we are successfully plugged in. It's been difficult not having internet for the last week, so this will be a great improvement, especially on the job hunting front. I've been working all day today, and I'm totally jealous of Alex who is sitting at home at this very moment indulging in a TV/internet extravaganza.
Yesterday was my first time meeting Alex's dad. After we finished moving the furniture in, he took us out to lunch at this great Argentinian restaurant. He's really cool and is very interested in the arts, so we talked quite a bit about my internship. They are excited that I will be going to their house for Thanksgiving...they seem to really love houseguests!
Right now my high school friend Alan and his entourage are in town, so we've been hanging out. We went to a hip diner on Thursday night and I showed them around the midtown/Times Square area. Unfortunately, there is a strike occurring on Broadway at the moment because the stagehands keep making more and more ridiculous demands. So, all Broadway shows (excluding all of ours and the other non-profits) are cancelled until further notice. This is apparently loosing the city of New York approximately $18 million per day in revenue. Our plans to see a show this weekend were thwarted by this.
Hopefully it will be over by next weekend because I have free tickets to see the new hot play, August: Osage County.
Some bad news for MTC...apparently we had to cancel The Starry Messenger, our spring show with Matthew Broderick. It was going to be absolutely huge, and they were planning to make a movie of it afterwards, but apparently there are some "scheduling conflicts". I actually just found out about this today from news online, so I don't know any details or what we are going to do to replace it. Tomorrow's going to be a very interesting day at work, no doubt.
Oh, and the other night I was walking past Rockefeller Center and they were putting up the big tree! There was a crane and all these men on platforms setting it up. The season is drawing near...
Speaking of TV, the cable/internet guy came today and installed our package, so now we are successfully plugged in. It's been difficult not having internet for the last week, so this will be a great improvement, especially on the job hunting front. I've been working all day today, and I'm totally jealous of Alex who is sitting at home at this very moment indulging in a TV/internet extravaganza.
Yesterday was my first time meeting Alex's dad. After we finished moving the furniture in, he took us out to lunch at this great Argentinian restaurant. He's really cool and is very interested in the arts, so we talked quite a bit about my internship. They are excited that I will be going to their house for Thanksgiving...they seem to really love houseguests!
Right now my high school friend Alan and his entourage are in town, so we've been hanging out. We went to a hip diner on Thursday night and I showed them around the midtown/Times Square area. Unfortunately, there is a strike occurring on Broadway at the moment because the stagehands keep making more and more ridiculous demands. So, all Broadway shows (excluding all of ours and the other non-profits) are cancelled until further notice. This is apparently loosing the city of New York approximately $18 million per day in revenue. Our plans to see a show this weekend were thwarted by this.
Hopefully it will be over by next weekend because I have free tickets to see the new hot play, August: Osage County.
Some bad news for MTC...apparently we had to cancel The Starry Messenger, our spring show with Matthew Broderick. It was going to be absolutely huge, and they were planning to make a movie of it afterwards, but apparently there are some "scheduling conflicts". I actually just found out about this today from news online, so I don't know any details or what we are going to do to replace it. Tomorrow's going to be a very interesting day at work, no doubt.
Oh, and the other night I was walking past Rockefeller Center and they were putting up the big tree! There was a crane and all these men on platforms setting it up. The season is drawing near...
Sunday, November 4, 2007
I'm in the apartment! I decided to take a personal day on Thursday and move myself in. It all went very smoothly, and my bed was delivered in the afternoon. I've been sleeping on the mattress the last couple nights because the assembly process seems a bit daunting.
Alex moved in yesterday with most of his stuff and a lot of kitchen supplies. We were able to pick up the TV we bought on Craigslist with his parents' van. The apartment is a pretty good size, so we're going to have to get creative with filling the place on a budget. The rest of his stuff (the big stuff like his sofa, chair, etc) is being delivered hopefully next weekend, so that will help clear the echo out.
Overall, it's a really great place. Our neighbor from below came up to introduce himself to us and said that we have the nicest apartment in the whole building! So that's good to know. AND one of the best parts of my room is the view: I can see both the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building from one of my windows.
I must be heading because this weekend has been crazy and I still have to get to Target tonight (yes, one of the only two Targets in NYC is one subway stop away from the new place!), but I will keep you updated soon. I will post pics of the place as soon as we get some more stuff put away.
Alex moved in yesterday with most of his stuff and a lot of kitchen supplies. We were able to pick up the TV we bought on Craigslist with his parents' van. The apartment is a pretty good size, so we're going to have to get creative with filling the place on a budget. The rest of his stuff (the big stuff like his sofa, chair, etc) is being delivered hopefully next weekend, so that will help clear the echo out.
Overall, it's a really great place. Our neighbor from below came up to introduce himself to us and said that we have the nicest apartment in the whole building! So that's good to know. AND one of the best parts of my room is the view: I can see both the Empire State Building and the Chrysler Building from one of my windows.
I must be heading because this weekend has been crazy and I still have to get to Target tonight (yes, one of the only two Targets in NYC is one subway stop away from the new place!), but I will keep you updated soon. I will post pics of the place as soon as we get some more stuff put away.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Wouldn't you know, another delay in moving. Originally, the tenant was supposed to be out on Monday of this week, but since he is the super of the building, the rules apparently don't apply to him. He didn't make it out of there until the middle of the week, so therefore the painting got pushed back until this weekend. Therefore, my plans of residing there as of this weekend haven't worked out so well.
After scaring my realtor (and my coworkers) with a wild phone rant at work this week about said issue, I've come to accept it and will deal with a November 1st move-in date. Alex and I signed the lease yesterday for November 1st, and we will be able to pick up the keys tomorrow, so it's a done deal. I'm so glad that Jen and her roommates don't see having me stay with them as an imposition, otherwise I'd be pretty miserable.
I swear living in the city for just 2 months has made me pushier and has turned me into a little bit of a schmuck. But I'm embracing it. You just need a little bit of an edge to get things done 'round these parts.
I had my mid-term review this week at my internship, and apparently all my bosses love me and want me to stay on another semester. I've told them this most likely will not be the case primarily because of the financial situation, but I technically have until November 7th to decide. It was nice to have a check-in though because now I feel more validated in my work.
Last Monday I met up with Lauri for dinner with her friends that she was staying with in the city(one being Leslie, the voice teacher I was talking about before). They picked me up from work in Leslie's Lexus (loved riding around town in that) and took me down to Little Italy. We ate at this great, authentic restaurant and then went to a famous Italian dessert bar. They were incredibly fun and interesting, and they paid for everything against my will. It was almost like having a relative in town...an awesome opportunity for catch-up and a little pampering. It made me miss Italy, too.
Tues/Wed/Thurs were pretty event-filled for MTC. I worked a wine tasting provided by our wine distributor at one of our theatres on Tuesday, and then Wednesday was our first patron night for The Receptionist. These patron nights are way better than the ones for Mauritius, because instead of a pre-show dinner, there is a post-show cocktail party. One of my tasks for the evening (in addition to schmoozing patrons at the party) was to escort the cast from the performance to Beacon, the restaurant for the reception, after the show. So I got to go backstage before the show and introduce myself and give them the run-down, and they were all awesome. Very down-to-earth. And after the show on the way over I chatted with Jayne Houdyshell and Kendra Kassabaum about their runs in Wicked and (of all things) Minnesota.
Another patron night for Mauritius on Thursday, so Jen and I worked the lounge for that, as well.
This weekend I've been working on revamping my resume and writing new cover letters. They're looking pretty good at this point, I believe. It's time to start getting them out, and there's one job in particular that was recently posted on the NYFA website that I want to apply for ASAP.
Tuesday is Opening Night for The Receptionist! And our third play, Pumpgirl, is in heavy rehearsals now. I'm working at the front desk today and one of its actors practiced a monologue on me a couple minutes ago...that was intense.
After scaring my realtor (and my coworkers) with a wild phone rant at work this week about said issue, I've come to accept it and will deal with a November 1st move-in date. Alex and I signed the lease yesterday for November 1st, and we will be able to pick up the keys tomorrow, so it's a done deal. I'm so glad that Jen and her roommates don't see having me stay with them as an imposition, otherwise I'd be pretty miserable.
I swear living in the city for just 2 months has made me pushier and has turned me into a little bit of a schmuck. But I'm embracing it. You just need a little bit of an edge to get things done 'round these parts.
I had my mid-term review this week at my internship, and apparently all my bosses love me and want me to stay on another semester. I've told them this most likely will not be the case primarily because of the financial situation, but I technically have until November 7th to decide. It was nice to have a check-in though because now I feel more validated in my work.
Last Monday I met up with Lauri for dinner with her friends that she was staying with in the city(one being Leslie, the voice teacher I was talking about before). They picked me up from work in Leslie's Lexus (loved riding around town in that) and took me down to Little Italy. We ate at this great, authentic restaurant and then went to a famous Italian dessert bar. They were incredibly fun and interesting, and they paid for everything against my will. It was almost like having a relative in town...an awesome opportunity for catch-up and a little pampering. It made me miss Italy, too.
Tues/Wed/Thurs were pretty event-filled for MTC. I worked a wine tasting provided by our wine distributor at one of our theatres on Tuesday, and then Wednesday was our first patron night for The Receptionist. These patron nights are way better than the ones for Mauritius, because instead of a pre-show dinner, there is a post-show cocktail party. One of my tasks for the evening (in addition to schmoozing patrons at the party) was to escort the cast from the performance to Beacon, the restaurant for the reception, after the show. So I got to go backstage before the show and introduce myself and give them the run-down, and they were all awesome. Very down-to-earth. And after the show on the way over I chatted with Jayne Houdyshell and Kendra Kassabaum about their runs in Wicked and (of all things) Minnesota.
Another patron night for Mauritius on Thursday, so Jen and I worked the lounge for that, as well.
This weekend I've been working on revamping my resume and writing new cover letters. They're looking pretty good at this point, I believe. It's time to start getting them out, and there's one job in particular that was recently posted on the NYFA website that I want to apply for ASAP.
Tuesday is Opening Night for The Receptionist! And our third play, Pumpgirl, is in heavy rehearsals now. I'm working at the front desk today and one of its actors practiced a monologue on me a couple minutes ago...that was intense.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
more building
This is it! A six-story pre-war building.
I think the corner one on top is ours.
Taken from the cross street.
the new building
Walkway up to the front door
No worries: A hospital right across the street! (Now all I need is health insurance)
I just met up with my college friend Aditi! (the one who's basically Kelly from "The Office"). She's in town for the weekend seeing high school friends. It was really great: we sat in a restaurant and caught up. It was almost like we were back in St. Paul. She's got a great job as a study abroad coordinator at Macalester, so she was telling me all about the going-ons at Mac.
My old voice teacher Lauri is also in town for a long weekend, so I'm hoping I'll get to see her before she leaves. She is considering moving out here to focus primarily on performing.
Yesterday, I had a little bit of time before I had to work in the afternoon, so I went to Jackson Heights (my new neighborhood) and walked around to orient myself. The area is really great: it's very ethnically diverse and there are a ton of great restaurants, markets and shops. Our apartment is a block from a Duane Reade (New York's version of Walgreen's), less than a block from a hospital, and close to several other amenities I will be discovering soon.
About 4 blocks away is a very well-known area of Jackson Heights commonly referred to as "Little India". On a single block, there are about 20 Indian restaurants and clothing stores. It's one of the perks of my neighborhood I'm most excited about. Also, I took the E express train into midtown Manhattan, and the ride took less than 15 minutes! I originally thought the subway stop was about a 15 minute walk from the apartment, but it's really more like 8! So my commute really is not going to be bad at all.
Not too much is new this week because I've had to work a lot of evenings. Therefore, I haven't been able to do that many things out in the city, but it was a good week for saving money. I went out with co-workers for Happy Hour drinks on Friday after work and I saw my first New York movie in a theatre ($11...arg). It was a vampire film called 30 Days of Night. I actually would recommend it to those of you who would be into that kind of thing (Claire, go see it).
The current renters of my apartment have to be out by tomorrow, and then they will clean it and repaint my bedroom (it's currently pink). So, I'm think that I will be able to move in toward the end of this week!
I will post the pictures I took yesterday of the exterior of the building when I get home from work.
My old voice teacher Lauri is also in town for a long weekend, so I'm hoping I'll get to see her before she leaves. She is considering moving out here to focus primarily on performing.
Yesterday, I had a little bit of time before I had to work in the afternoon, so I went to Jackson Heights (my new neighborhood) and walked around to orient myself. The area is really great: it's very ethnically diverse and there are a ton of great restaurants, markets and shops. Our apartment is a block from a Duane Reade (New York's version of Walgreen's), less than a block from a hospital, and close to several other amenities I will be discovering soon.
About 4 blocks away is a very well-known area of Jackson Heights commonly referred to as "Little India". On a single block, there are about 20 Indian restaurants and clothing stores. It's one of the perks of my neighborhood I'm most excited about. Also, I took the E express train into midtown Manhattan, and the ride took less than 15 minutes! I originally thought the subway stop was about a 15 minute walk from the apartment, but it's really more like 8! So my commute really is not going to be bad at all.
Not too much is new this week because I've had to work a lot of evenings. Therefore, I haven't been able to do that many things out in the city, but it was a good week for saving money. I went out with co-workers for Happy Hour drinks on Friday after work and I saw my first New York movie in a theatre ($11...arg). It was a vampire film called 30 Days of Night. I actually would recommend it to those of you who would be into that kind of thing (Claire, go see it).
The current renters of my apartment have to be out by tomorrow, and then they will clean it and repaint my bedroom (it's currently pink). So, I'm think that I will be able to move in toward the end of this week!
I will post the pictures I took yesterday of the exterior of the building when I get home from work.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
goodbye, wash heights
It's been awhile since I've wrote much and a ton has happened. Overall, the last week was very busy because 2 people from my department were on vacation. I spent much of the week setting up the Patron Lounge for our second theatre, City Center, because our first off-Broadway show, The Receptionist, started previews there this Friday.
To accomplish this, I was out of the office for periods each day, running around Midtown like an idiot acquiring supplies to take over there. Aside from a roach problem in the Patron Lounge coffee closet (seriously so big I thought they were mice upon first glance), the lounge is now up and running and the problems have all been fixed (hopefully those traps will work).
Highlights of the week include:
1) OPENING NIGHT!
This was seriously kick-ass. During the show, Jen and I worked the Patron Lounge (open to everyone tonight, because these are celebs/press/industry people who are more important than patrons, anyway) at the Biltmore, and we got to converse with quite a few celebs, one of the nicest being Patricia Clarkson http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0165101/. During intermission, the P.Lo got completely slammed, and I couldn't even look up from pouring wine to see to whom I was serving it. We went through 20 bottles in 15 minutes.
At the after-party at Bryant Park Grill, I worked for a bit as a table guard right inside the door. This was an optimal position, because many people I had seen before on TV came up and started asking me questions. This involved Chris Noth (Mr. Big from "Sex and the City") throwing his arm around me and asking about the restroom. After I was finished working, I got to enjoy the food and the open bars. Everything was decadent, and much bonding was had by all.
There was also an after-after party for the staff at a bar nearby, and that was great as well. The next morning my commute and first couple hours at work were not as great.
2) I MOVED OUT OF THE SOON-TO-BE CONDEMNED BUILDING IN WASH HEIGHTS!
The other intern in my department, Jen, generously offered me a spot in her apartment in Astoria, Queens as a transition away from the crappy situation up north. She has two other roommates, and the apartment is huge (tw0-floors of a house), and it's a very homey place. My quality of life has so infinitely improved I can't even talk about it. I'm staying in the living room on a futon, but it's essentially my own room because it's off to the side and people rarely go in it. I am forever indebted to her, but she is very kind and insists that it's nice to have me there.
Oh, and I got my full security deposit back from Ybelka! That was a shockingly nice surprise.
3) I'M A PROUD PAPA OF AN APARTMENT
We finally got our apartment in Jackson Heights! We met with the realtor on Friday afternoon and paid him the rest of the dough after our deposit (broker fee, 1st month's rent, last month's rent, and security deposit). After that, my bank account looks a little sad, but at least I won't be living in the street!
We got a great deal on a great place, and I will post pics of it just as soon as we move in, which should be quickly after the 22nd (or earlier, if the people moving out leave sooner). As of now, I need to find a bed, so I'll be working on that this week. Now that I have an apartment, I can start looking for a JOB!
4) THE RECEPTIONIST STARTED PREVIEWS
This is our second play of the season and will be running at City Center while Mauritius continues to run at the Biltmore. I saw the show last night for free and brought Alex along, and I really liked it. The acting was very good overall, and the portrayal of the office setting is strikingly fresh, yet appropriately monotonous. There were some things, of course, but overall a very funny, strong show. We'll see what Ben Brantley (the reviewer for The New York Times) has to say about this one. I've learned that his word is the be-all-end-all of critics in New York, and he didn't like Mauritius a whole bunch, even though most other critics really liked it and the audiences still LOVE it http://theater2.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/theater/reviews/05maur.html.
After the show, Alex and I went down to the Village for celebratory drinks after our long apartment hunt.
I've found a huge load lifted from my shoulders after I know that I now have a place to live. My mind has time to think about other things now, and my schedule doesn't constantly involved running around Queens like a chicken with its head cut off chasing down landlords/realtors/supers. While the frantic search and occasional hysterics have shifted now to tracking down short-term health insurance (a near impossibility to find for under $200/mo) and a job, it's nice to know that my life in NY is no longer at the mercy of the cutthroat housing market.
To accomplish this, I was out of the office for periods each day, running around Midtown like an idiot acquiring supplies to take over there. Aside from a roach problem in the Patron Lounge coffee closet (seriously so big I thought they were mice upon first glance), the lounge is now up and running and the problems have all been fixed (hopefully those traps will work).
Highlights of the week include:
1) OPENING NIGHT!
This was seriously kick-ass. During the show, Jen and I worked the Patron Lounge (open to everyone tonight, because these are celebs/press/industry people who are more important than patrons, anyway) at the Biltmore, and we got to converse with quite a few celebs, one of the nicest being Patricia Clarkson http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0165101/. During intermission, the P.Lo got completely slammed, and I couldn't even look up from pouring wine to see to whom I was serving it. We went through 20 bottles in 15 minutes.
At the after-party at Bryant Park Grill, I worked for a bit as a table guard right inside the door. This was an optimal position, because many people I had seen before on TV came up and started asking me questions. This involved Chris Noth (Mr. Big from "Sex and the City") throwing his arm around me and asking about the restroom. After I was finished working, I got to enjoy the food and the open bars. Everything was decadent, and much bonding was had by all.
There was also an after-after party for the staff at a bar nearby, and that was great as well. The next morning my commute and first couple hours at work were not as great.
2) I MOVED OUT OF THE SOON-TO-BE CONDEMNED BUILDING IN WASH HEIGHTS!
The other intern in my department, Jen, generously offered me a spot in her apartment in Astoria, Queens as a transition away from the crappy situation up north. She has two other roommates, and the apartment is huge (tw0-floors of a house), and it's a very homey place. My quality of life has so infinitely improved I can't even talk about it. I'm staying in the living room on a futon, but it's essentially my own room because it's off to the side and people rarely go in it. I am forever indebted to her, but she is very kind and insists that it's nice to have me there.
Oh, and I got my full security deposit back from Ybelka! That was a shockingly nice surprise.
3) I'M A PROUD PAPA OF AN APARTMENT
We finally got our apartment in Jackson Heights! We met with the realtor on Friday afternoon and paid him the rest of the dough after our deposit (broker fee, 1st month's rent, last month's rent, and security deposit). After that, my bank account looks a little sad, but at least I won't be living in the street!
We got a great deal on a great place, and I will post pics of it just as soon as we move in, which should be quickly after the 22nd (or earlier, if the people moving out leave sooner). As of now, I need to find a bed, so I'll be working on that this week. Now that I have an apartment, I can start looking for a JOB!
4) THE RECEPTIONIST STARTED PREVIEWS
This is our second play of the season and will be running at City Center while Mauritius continues to run at the Biltmore. I saw the show last night for free and brought Alex along, and I really liked it. The acting was very good overall, and the portrayal of the office setting is strikingly fresh, yet appropriately monotonous. There were some things, of course, but overall a very funny, strong show. We'll see what Ben Brantley (the reviewer for The New York Times) has to say about this one. I've learned that his word is the be-all-end-all of critics in New York, and he didn't like Mauritius a whole bunch, even though most other critics really liked it and the audiences still LOVE it http://theater2.nytimes.com/2007/10/05/theater/reviews/05maur.html.
After the show, Alex and I went down to the Village for celebratory drinks after our long apartment hunt.
I've found a huge load lifted from my shoulders after I know that I now have a place to live. My mind has time to think about other things now, and my schedule doesn't constantly involved running around Queens like a chicken with its head cut off chasing down landlords/realtors/supers. While the frantic search and occasional hysterics have shifted now to tracking down short-term health insurance (a near impossibility to find for under $200/mo) and a job, it's nice to know that my life in NY is no longer at the mercy of the cutthroat housing market.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Best birthday present ever!!! An apartment! I got the call yesterday that we were accepted for our apartment in Jackson Heights, Queens! I'm not sure when exactly we will be moving in, but it will be soon. We are meeting with the realtor this afternoon to pay him big bucks.
We went down to the Village last night after work and got some awesome pizza at this famous place called Two Boots. Then, we went to the world-famous cupcake shop called Magnolia Bakery and I had the best cupcake of my life.
I will write more soon, but I'm at work right now. It has been absolutely insane this week. Sorry I haven't written in awhile.
Thanks to you all for the birthday wishes and fun stuff!
We went down to the Village last night after work and got some awesome pizza at this famous place called Two Boots. Then, we went to the world-famous cupcake shop called Magnolia Bakery and I had the best cupcake of my life.
I will write more soon, but I'm at work right now. It has been absolutely insane this week. Sorry I haven't written in awhile.
Thanks to you all for the birthday wishes and fun stuff!
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
I am filled with rage at the moment. So, I didn't want to blog about finding our apartment until I knew 100% that we'd be living there, and now I'm glad I didn't. Long story short: Alex and I found a great apartment this weekend in Jackson Heights that was big and in a good area. It was through a real estate agency in Queens (NY is probably the only city in the US where you have to use a realtor to find an apartment), and we decided to take it because we are both SICK of looking. We went back to the agency, filled out tons of forms, got about 100 forms for Alex's parents (our co-signers) to fill out, and we put down a deposit of $800. They told us it would take a couple days for everything to go through.
The agent called me today and told me that we didn't get the apartment. Apparently, we were approved and our paperwork was great, but another agent at this same agency had shown the apartment to someone else who had gotten their application in before ours. So, the apartment board approved theirs instead.
They have another similar apartment that is a little closer to the city and a little bigger for $100 more a month that is opening up on October 22nd, and apparently we can "be at the top of the list" for that. I hear it is in a similar building. After talking to Alex (he helped calm me down), we decided we are going to look at it on Friday. We just don't want to deal with any more paperwork. It'd be nice, though unlikely, if they could give us some kind of a discount (maybe a little off the top of their finder's fee?) for putting us through this trouble.
New York City is pushing my mental buttons while making me jump through hoops. This is one of the ultimate tests to becoming a New Yorker, I swear. After starting the hunt for places to live in mid-July, I'm just ready to settle down on a sofa with some nice cable television. My roommates at my current apartment (mice and cockroaches) don't help the situation, either. OK, I'm going to stop complaining about it now and be happy.
Tomorrow night is Opening Night for Mauritius! I will be working in the Patron's Lounge with Jen and then working a little bit at the party which will take place at Bryant Park Grill. There, I will be acting as a table guard (telling important people they can't switch the name settings to sit by famous people and vice versa) and a door monitor (think bouncer)...haha. There is going to be an after-after party for MTC staff after we are all done working, so that should be good! We all still have to be to work on-time Friday, however.
With Opening Night here, things are crazy at the office. There is so much politics involved when it comes to seating at the performance and reception. With so many important and famous people in one room at one time, there has to be a lot of meticulous planning on our end. It's also even crazier because two of the people I work under (Antonello and Sage) are on a cruise this week, so there's a lot more work.
I served Ethan Hawke the other night in the P.Lo. He came in and looked really out-of-place among all the well-dressed patrons. He was scruffy and was wearing a cap and an old hoodie. I almost asked to see his patron card (which we are supposed to do if we don't recognize someone as a patron) but then realization set in when we made eye contact and he started talking to me. He was really friendly and he even tipped me!
Also, Matthew Broderick was in the office the other day. They are busy casting the other roles for his play with us in the spring, The Starry Messenger. I heard he was coming in, and I didn't even recognize him the first time I saw him. I had to go back and look a second time (very nonchalantly, of course). I just finished reading the script for this, and it's very good. I guess that it's also going to be made into a movie in the near future starring him as well.
I met with Leslie Giammanco Thursday, a close friend of my old voice teacher Lauri at Mac www.lesliegiammanco.com . She actually lives near me, so I went over to her apartment. Although it's only about 7 blocks away, it's an entirely different neighborhood with beautiful luxury apartments. She is a prominent voice teacher who is opening her own business called Divagrams, where she lines up well-known performers to do singing telegrams. She was actually in the original Broadway touring cast of Phantom of the Opera. Before, we had emailed about me possibly working for her in trade for voice lessons, but she doesn't need the help right now. She's very nice, however, and treated me as a good friend from the beginning of our chat, giving me wonderful advice. She really does know many industry people, so she's a good contact to have. And Lauri's coming to visit in a couple weeks, so we are all going to get together then.
Yesterday some friends and I went to a seminar that is specifically for people doing theatre internships in New York, and the speakers for the evening were agents. After hearing all about what they do, I've found that it's a new area of interest for me. I never before really considered becoming an agent, but I think that it's something I might be good at and enjoy. I'll have to look into it a little...
The agent called me today and told me that we didn't get the apartment. Apparently, we were approved and our paperwork was great, but another agent at this same agency had shown the apartment to someone else who had gotten their application in before ours. So, the apartment board approved theirs instead.
They have another similar apartment that is a little closer to the city and a little bigger for $100 more a month that is opening up on October 22nd, and apparently we can "be at the top of the list" for that. I hear it is in a similar building. After talking to Alex (he helped calm me down), we decided we are going to look at it on Friday. We just don't want to deal with any more paperwork. It'd be nice, though unlikely, if they could give us some kind of a discount (maybe a little off the top of their finder's fee?) for putting us through this trouble.
New York City is pushing my mental buttons while making me jump through hoops. This is one of the ultimate tests to becoming a New Yorker, I swear. After starting the hunt for places to live in mid-July, I'm just ready to settle down on a sofa with some nice cable television. My roommates at my current apartment (mice and cockroaches) don't help the situation, either. OK, I'm going to stop complaining about it now and be happy.
Tomorrow night is Opening Night for Mauritius! I will be working in the Patron's Lounge with Jen and then working a little bit at the party which will take place at Bryant Park Grill. There, I will be acting as a table guard (telling important people they can't switch the name settings to sit by famous people and vice versa) and a door monitor (think bouncer)...haha. There is going to be an after-after party for MTC staff after we are all done working, so that should be good! We all still have to be to work on-time Friday, however.
With Opening Night here, things are crazy at the office. There is so much politics involved when it comes to seating at the performance and reception. With so many important and famous people in one room at one time, there has to be a lot of meticulous planning on our end. It's also even crazier because two of the people I work under (Antonello and Sage) are on a cruise this week, so there's a lot more work.
I served Ethan Hawke the other night in the P.Lo. He came in and looked really out-of-place among all the well-dressed patrons. He was scruffy and was wearing a cap and an old hoodie. I almost asked to see his patron card (which we are supposed to do if we don't recognize someone as a patron) but then realization set in when we made eye contact and he started talking to me. He was really friendly and he even tipped me!
Also, Matthew Broderick was in the office the other day. They are busy casting the other roles for his play with us in the spring, The Starry Messenger. I heard he was coming in, and I didn't even recognize him the first time I saw him. I had to go back and look a second time (very nonchalantly, of course). I just finished reading the script for this, and it's very good. I guess that it's also going to be made into a movie in the near future starring him as well.
I met with Leslie Giammanco Thursday, a close friend of my old voice teacher Lauri at Mac www.lesliegiammanco.com . She actually lives near me, so I went over to her apartment. Although it's only about 7 blocks away, it's an entirely different neighborhood with beautiful luxury apartments. She is a prominent voice teacher who is opening her own business called Divagrams, where she lines up well-known performers to do singing telegrams. She was actually in the original Broadway touring cast of Phantom of the Opera. Before, we had emailed about me possibly working for her in trade for voice lessons, but she doesn't need the help right now. She's very nice, however, and treated me as a good friend from the beginning of our chat, giving me wonderful advice. She really does know many industry people, so she's a good contact to have. And Lauri's coming to visit in a couple weeks, so we are all going to get together then.
Yesterday some friends and I went to a seminar that is specifically for people doing theatre internships in New York, and the speakers for the evening were agents. After hearing all about what they do, I've found that it's a new area of interest for me. I never before really considered becoming an agent, but I think that it's something I might be good at and enjoy. I'll have to look into it a little...
Sunday, September 23, 2007
I just sprinted through Times Square. I was in Astoria this afternoon looking at a couple apartments, and I left early enough to get to work by 4 (I'm working the front desk this evening). However, they like to do maintainance on the subways on weekends, and for some reason the N train toward Manhattan was closed, so I had to go farther into Queens, get on a different train, and this one decided to stop and sit in the tunnel between 2 stops for 20 minutes. So, in essence, I was 30 minutes late to work. All is forgiven though in NY when you have a good train delay story.
This last apartment I looked at was really good and decently priced. It was in a nice building in a nice area of Astoria in Queens...the only downside was the fact that it didn't have a living room (which we decided we need). Both bedrooms were ridiculously big though. And the real estate agent looked/acted like Lil Kim and carried a teacup Yorkshire Terrier in her bag. There were 6 other people looking at it at the same time, so if we don't just in the next 5 minutes, it will go to someone else...which is probably okay.
I'm trying to keep a positive attitude about finding an apartment in New York. Put lightly, it is a painful process that should not be subjected upon anybody.
In other news, I've been working quite a bit this week. I've settled into the routine now, and with the extra shifts at the Patron Lounges and the front desk, I'm workin about 55-60 hours/week. Multiply my salary by 40 and you might mistake me for an investment banker!
Tomorrow is the Patron Sneak Peek which is taking place at the Biltmore. Basically, there will be a panel of our artistic people discussing our season for our patrons with a cocktail schmooze-fest to follow. I will be helping with the check in/schmooze parts. Tuesday I'm working in the Patron Lounge at night, and then Wednesday is our very first Patron Night. Each MTC show has 3 Patron Nights where the upper-level patrons come to a special pre-show dinner or post-show cocktail hour. For Mauritius, there is a pre-show dinner at a Russian restaurant called Firebird http://www.firebirdrestaurant.com/html/index.htm where I'll be helping with damage control in addition to running the Patron Lounge at the theatre.
This last Tuesday I got free tickets to the MTV taping of Legally Blonde: The Musical. Apparently, MTV and the producers of the musical thought it would be a smart idea to broadcast it on TV. The musical was overall pretty bad, filled with lackluster songs, unimpressive sets, and poor casting choices, but taking it for what it is, it was still fun. Oh, and everyone had to wear pink to get into the theatre, too. Mostly, it was filled with screaming 12-year-old girls who were more excited about the presence of the stars(?) from MTV's The Hills than the actual musical. Check it out October 13th, even though you probably won't see me.
We got assigned out MTC mentors this week as well. They are important people from other departments, and we each get a different one to help expand our horizons, allowing us to have a second mini-internship. I got Kristin in Casting (my first choice!) and the other interns are jealous. We are going to have our first coffee meeting this week.
Our intern seminar this past week was RIDICulous. The Internship Coordinator Amy is good friends with the dramaturg at Disney Theatrical, so she got him to come in and talk with us. He is really friendly, has a doctorate, and is living the LIFE. He basically has a ton of power and say with actual artistic decisions that are being made in Disney musicals on Broadway (Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, and the much anticipated upcoming The Little Mermaid, etc.) He gave a lot of helpful advice, and spilled a lot of dirty secrets on Mermaid fiascos with script changes, last minute music re-writes, etc before it opens in November.
Up in the Heights this week, my landlord Ybelka decided to build a wall in the living room in order to create a fourth bedroom she can rent out. Since she doesn't live there, she gave me the money to pay the men who were doing the labor Wednesday evening. I was not having it, but after a bit of begging, I decided I would do her the favor (plus, she emptied out 2 mousetraps in my room that night that contained 1 dead mouse and 1 semi-dead mouse (that's a whole 'nother bucket of worms)). ANyway, the men built the wall, I did a little quality control to make sure it was complete, and then gave them the money, which apparently was about half of what they were expecting. After explaining to them in my best Spanish that they'd have to go through Ybelka if they had a problem with the payment, they shook my hand and left. Did I mention that the lightswitch to my bedroom, which used to be in the living room, is now in this 4th person's bedroom? Ah, the glamorous life...
This last apartment I looked at was really good and decently priced. It was in a nice building in a nice area of Astoria in Queens...the only downside was the fact that it didn't have a living room (which we decided we need). Both bedrooms were ridiculously big though. And the real estate agent looked/acted like Lil Kim and carried a teacup Yorkshire Terrier in her bag. There were 6 other people looking at it at the same time, so if we don't just in the next 5 minutes, it will go to someone else...which is probably okay.
I'm trying to keep a positive attitude about finding an apartment in New York. Put lightly, it is a painful process that should not be subjected upon anybody.
In other news, I've been working quite a bit this week. I've settled into the routine now, and with the extra shifts at the Patron Lounges and the front desk, I'm workin about 55-60 hours/week. Multiply my salary by 40 and you might mistake me for an investment banker!
Tomorrow is the Patron Sneak Peek which is taking place at the Biltmore. Basically, there will be a panel of our artistic people discussing our season for our patrons with a cocktail schmooze-fest to follow. I will be helping with the check in/schmooze parts. Tuesday I'm working in the Patron Lounge at night, and then Wednesday is our very first Patron Night. Each MTC show has 3 Patron Nights where the upper-level patrons come to a special pre-show dinner or post-show cocktail hour. For Mauritius, there is a pre-show dinner at a Russian restaurant called Firebird http://www.firebirdrestaurant.com/html/index.htm where I'll be helping with damage control in addition to running the Patron Lounge at the theatre.
This last Tuesday I got free tickets to the MTV taping of Legally Blonde: The Musical. Apparently, MTV and the producers of the musical thought it would be a smart idea to broadcast it on TV. The musical was overall pretty bad, filled with lackluster songs, unimpressive sets, and poor casting choices, but taking it for what it is, it was still fun. Oh, and everyone had to wear pink to get into the theatre, too. Mostly, it was filled with screaming 12-year-old girls who were more excited about the presence of the stars(?) from MTV's The Hills than the actual musical. Check it out October 13th, even though you probably won't see me.
We got assigned out MTC mentors this week as well. They are important people from other departments, and we each get a different one to help expand our horizons, allowing us to have a second mini-internship. I got Kristin in Casting (my first choice!) and the other interns are jealous. We are going to have our first coffee meeting this week.
Our intern seminar this past week was RIDICulous. The Internship Coordinator Amy is good friends with the dramaturg at Disney Theatrical, so she got him to come in and talk with us. He is really friendly, has a doctorate, and is living the LIFE. He basically has a ton of power and say with actual artistic decisions that are being made in Disney musicals on Broadway (Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, and the much anticipated upcoming The Little Mermaid, etc.) He gave a lot of helpful advice, and spilled a lot of dirty secrets on Mermaid fiascos with script changes, last minute music re-writes, etc before it opens in November.
Up in the Heights this week, my landlord Ybelka decided to build a wall in the living room in order to create a fourth bedroom she can rent out. Since she doesn't live there, she gave me the money to pay the men who were doing the labor Wednesday evening. I was not having it, but after a bit of begging, I decided I would do her the favor (plus, she emptied out 2 mousetraps in my room that night that contained 1 dead mouse and 1 semi-dead mouse (that's a whole 'nother bucket of worms)). ANyway, the men built the wall, I did a little quality control to make sure it was complete, and then gave them the money, which apparently was about half of what they were expecting. After explaining to them in my best Spanish that they'd have to go through Ybelka if they had a problem with the payment, they shook my hand and left. Did I mention that the lightswitch to my bedroom, which used to be in the living room, is now in this 4th person's bedroom? Ah, the glamorous life...
Sunday, September 16, 2007
bet on it.
It's autumn in New York! The last two days have been incredible because I didn't sweat buckets as I stood on the platform waiting for the subway to come. It's still hot down there, but since it's cooler outside, walking everywhere is much more bearable. Yesterday was a perfect day. All the fashionable New Yorkers broke out their new fall attire and took to the streets. I met up with Alex and we did another round of apartment hunting in Queens, and we saw one that might be a possibility. Since he's done with his job now, he can come up more often and we can get this searching ordeal licked. Then, he headed back to New Jersey, so I did a little shopping on Fifth Avenue and then sat in Central Park and read scripts for awhile. Part of my job is knowing all about the plays we are doing this season, so I'm in the process of reading all of those now.
After the park, I walked over to Lincoln Center (where the Metropolitan Opera is, along with Julliard, The American Ballet, etc) and I just soaked it all in. It was the first time I got over there, and I felt like it was one of the most spectacular and comforting places I've seen in New York so far.
This week went very fast for me. I'm pretty much all trained in at work now, so I will probably start actually taking calls on the Patron Hotline this week. I spent a lot of time getting the Patron Lounge ready for its season debut on Thursday. Everything is well-stocked and in place. I was a little worried about running it, but after my first time, I've found that it's actually a lot of fun. I basically just chat with the patrons before the show and at intermission as I get them wine and make sure their experience is going well. One man even gave me a $10 tip just for watching a shopping bag of his for the first half of the show!
I got news that Aunt Janine passed away as this was going on Thursday, and it saddens me because I thought for sure that she had longer. But, it may be better this way instead of having it drag out longer and be more unpleasant in the end.
On Wednesday, MTC staff were invited to the final dress rehearsal of Mauritius before it started previews on Thursday. I wasn't as sure as to what the outcome would be when I read the script, but after seeing it staged, I can say that it's an incredible play. The cast is amazing, and there is a great dynamic tension that plays out well throughout the show. The staff at MTC were very happy, and there's talk that it might be the best play we've done here in some time. I think there's definitely some Tony buzz starting up. It's so cool to see the advertisements for it all over the city too. And the theatre, the sets, and everything else look great.
I had to stop by the theatre to drop something off on Friday before the show, and as I was leaving through the stage door I literally ran into Allison Pill (the main actress) smoking a cigarette. It was funny.
We started our weekly intern seminar this week where a different head of each department comes in and talks to the interns for 90 minutes. This week was George, the director of Telefundraising at MTC, and he was great. He has a pretty zany life story and he offered a lot of useful advice for making it in an industry like New York theatre. He really emphasized how you have to spend time learning names and knowing the important who's, what's, and where's of the industry's history.
Right now I'm working the front desk at MTC from 9:30-4 and then I'm working in the P.Lo for tonight's show. I've found I actually can make a bit of extra income by doing these outside-business-hours jobs. I got a new bank yesterday because apparently US Bank is not really a US bank. I decided to go with Chase because they have the most ATMs in NYC. I need to set up my direct deposit and then I'll be good to go.
After the park, I walked over to Lincoln Center (where the Metropolitan Opera is, along with Julliard, The American Ballet, etc) and I just soaked it all in. It was the first time I got over there, and I felt like it was one of the most spectacular and comforting places I've seen in New York so far.
This week went very fast for me. I'm pretty much all trained in at work now, so I will probably start actually taking calls on the Patron Hotline this week. I spent a lot of time getting the Patron Lounge ready for its season debut on Thursday. Everything is well-stocked and in place. I was a little worried about running it, but after my first time, I've found that it's actually a lot of fun. I basically just chat with the patrons before the show and at intermission as I get them wine and make sure their experience is going well. One man even gave me a $10 tip just for watching a shopping bag of his for the first half of the show!
I got news that Aunt Janine passed away as this was going on Thursday, and it saddens me because I thought for sure that she had longer. But, it may be better this way instead of having it drag out longer and be more unpleasant in the end.
On Wednesday, MTC staff were invited to the final dress rehearsal of Mauritius before it started previews on Thursday. I wasn't as sure as to what the outcome would be when I read the script, but after seeing it staged, I can say that it's an incredible play. The cast is amazing, and there is a great dynamic tension that plays out well throughout the show. The staff at MTC were very happy, and there's talk that it might be the best play we've done here in some time. I think there's definitely some Tony buzz starting up. It's so cool to see the advertisements for it all over the city too. And the theatre, the sets, and everything else look great.
I had to stop by the theatre to drop something off on Friday before the show, and as I was leaving through the stage door I literally ran into Allison Pill (the main actress) smoking a cigarette. It was funny.
We started our weekly intern seminar this week where a different head of each department comes in and talks to the interns for 90 minutes. This week was George, the director of Telefundraising at MTC, and he was great. He has a pretty zany life story and he offered a lot of useful advice for making it in an industry like New York theatre. He really emphasized how you have to spend time learning names and knowing the important who's, what's, and where's of the industry's history.
Right now I'm working the front desk at MTC from 9:30-4 and then I'm working in the P.Lo for tonight's show. I've found I actually can make a bit of extra income by doing these outside-business-hours jobs. I got a new bank yesterday because apparently US Bank is not really a US bank. I decided to go with Chase because they have the most ATMs in NYC. I need to set up my direct deposit and then I'll be good to go.
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
the first days.
Greetings from the Great White Way! I decided it might be a good idea to start a new blog as one way to keep in touch while being here in New York. I know most of you read The Milanese Exploit, so hopefully you will continue to read this one. In Milan, however, it was not as easy to keep in touch, so the blog was my main form of communication. Here it’s a different story. So just because I’m writing a blog doesn’t mean you get out of calling/writing/emailing me, and I will try to remember that on my end, too.
It’s been over a week since I’ve been here, but it definitely seems like longer. I pride myself on the fact that I’m quick to adapt, and I’ve found that after spending this short time here, I’m pretty well-adjusted. There has just been so much that has occurred in the last eleven days, so it’s been a little emotionally volatile for me.
First of all: I love my internship. For having so little idea of what I’d actually be doing at Manhattan Theatre Club before I came to New York, I am quite pleased with how this has worked out. The people are fantastic: it’s a really fun, young crowd that runs this multi-million dollar theatre company in the middle of Times Square, and I’m so excited that I get to be a part of it. Yesterday, we had a full-staff meeting (about 80 people) with introductions (the artistic director of twenty-some years, Lynne Meadow, is taking a year sabbatical and a well-known Broadway director named Daniel Sullivan is filling her spot for the time). It was really fitting for MTC: an interesting mixture of serious business and joking around.
My department (Development) has a lot of cool people as well. My bosses are pretty demanding--yet very nice--and they are willing to answer any and all questions that I have as I adjust into the position. Overall, my job consists of several different areas. Here’s a brief outline…
I manage the Patron Lounges at both our theatre—the Biltmore—and the New York City Center where we rent space for our smaller productions. These Patron Lounges are perks for those who give MTC a lot of money each year to be patrons. So, basically I handle all the scheduling, ordering, facilitating between the space and the company, and other random tasks.
I also speak with patrons on a day-to-day basis through the Patron Hotline where they can call to order and exchange tickets and make other various requests/demands. These people are the highest of the high when it comes to New York A-Listers. We’re talking Tom Brokaw, R.L. Stein, CEOs of Fortune 500 companies…the list goes on and on. For this part of the job, I have to learn this software application called Tessitura that is used by most large arts organizations to store patron info, book tickets, and perform everything else you could ever want. My head is still spinning from “Tess Training”, but it is a really useful tool that will become indispensable to me in the future. I am trying to learn it thoroughly so I don't look like an idiot when I talk to someone who makes more than the GDP of most Latin American countries.
I also do a variety of other tasks, from conducting patron research (part of my job is to know all about these people from their jobs to their kids to their interests...but it's okay: I can find SO much information about them on Google!) to creating auction letters and certificates (basically every New York foundation asks us to donate tickets to their black-tie event’s silent auction). I won’t bore you with the other things I do, which, being an intern, includes the obligatory occasional copy duty and phone duty at the front desk.
The office itself is pretty neat. It’s two floors of a large building and the floors are connected with a nifty open staircase in the middle. The 8th floor holds reception and all of the studio spaces and the 9th floor houses all of the offices. Everywhere you look on the walls hang large photo stills of most famous people you can imagine in plays they starred in at MTC. Right now, we are in rehearsals for our first play of the season, Mauritius, so I often see the actors when they are not in rehearsal and it’s pretty surreal. No one too famous in this show, but people you would know if you saw them from their roles in various TV shows and movies (Allison Pill, Bobby Cannavale, F. Murray Abraham). Other big casting agencies will rent space from us as well to use for auditions because we have a pretty sweet set-up, and in the past week I've been there while auditions for Les Mis and Wicked were taking place.
The other interns are great, too. We have intern lunches and get to go to a lot of free theatre events around the city. I have a feeling that we’ll be hanging out quite a bit in the future.
I have spent a lot of time when I’m not at work trying to explore the city and get my bearings. I’ve learned the subway routes pretty well just by going around. Ground Zero, the Upper East Side, Upper West Side, Statue of Liberty, Union Square, Bryant Park, Soho, the Village…I’m making my way. Right now I’m living by the A train and the 1 train in Washington Heights (WAY up north on Manhattan). This is probably the part about NY that I am loving least right now. My apartment and building is nothing to look at, and by nothing to look at, I mean a bit dirty, noisy, and generally gross. The neighborhood is similar. But, that’s what I get for paying by the week, and I keep telling myself that Alex and I will find a place soon enough.
Speaking of which, he came into the city on Saturday and we started neighborhood shopping. For our price range, we’d like to live in Queens because it is a little bit cheaper but still safe. He is finished with his job in New Jersey tomorrow, so then he will come up to the city for a couple days and we will hunt more aggressively. I swear I will truly love this town once I get settled and have a place to call my own.
I met up with Laura Zeccardi (a Mac friend) this last weekend. She is going to grad school at NYU and lives in a dorm in a really nice area of Brooklyn. Since we are both new to the city, we went exploring, particularly in the Soho neighborhood, a really upscale, trendy area with a lot of bars and shopping. The next night I went out with a Waverly friend Cindy who was in town visiting some of her friends from Jersey. We went to an Ethiopian restaurant and then headed down to Little Italy (it took me back a bit).
Well, I should wrap up for now. Tomorrow I get to go to the invited dress rehearsal for staff for Mauritius, and there is a pre-show cocktail party at a bar nearby the Biltmore! Then, on Thursday the show opens for PREVIEWS. While open to the public, they will tweak things before all the big critics, Tony voters, etc. come. So, the Patron Lounge opens Thursday as well with me working it, so I have been scrambling to get everything ready for that.
I hope you all are well and have been enjoying the past couple weeks. I promise the future posts will be more thoughtful and reflective, I just got a little carried away with getting a whole bunch of info into the first one. I will try and post some pictures very soon of some things I have seen so far, but the internet connection at my apartment is very, very slow and spotty (we have to steal it, of course), so it might take awhile before those get up.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)