The first few months….and onward….

NYC so far…

I feel very lucky.  I have had some wonderful experiences these first few months of chasing the ole’ dream.

But, they didn’t start off that way.

Just ask anyone: moving is a pain!   Between issues with my apartment not being ready when I arrived, living temporarily in a different location, finding broken items during transit, trying to get acclimated to a new place and a giant city, and everything else associated with new-city relocation…let’s just say it was a bit of a chore.

Luckily, I did a lot of preparation, studying, reading and planning before moving-day.  So, I was ready to hit the ground running the first week of December.  And, I tried my hardest to do so.

Well…….maybe it was more of a light jog!

Good Wife Still: There's me....bottom left...

The great part is, about two weeks in, I found work (my first paid job in NY) on the CBS series The Good Wife.  I played the role of a reporter and was on location for a two-day shoot.  It was quite exciting!  In fact, when the episode aired on February 2nd, my phone went off-the-hook as people located me in various shots.  I won’t lie, it was exciting.

I know for a lot of folks this might not seem like a big deal.  But, for this little fella’ from Harborcreek, PA…it was quite a thrill.  When I was a kid watching movies on the big screen, I used to point to someone in the background and say, “Wouldn’t it be great to be that person?  Even if I didn’t say anything.  To be captured on that film, at that moment, forever would be so great.”

Now, I will forever be a reporter in THAT episode of The Good Wife.

Happy shivers!

In early January I was cast in a short-film called The Biggest Lie.  I auditioned for the role of the stand-up comedian named John Singleton.  Some of you might not know this but, for almost a full year in 2002, I did stand-up comedy.  In fact, I “opened” a couple of times at Jrs. Last Laugh (in Erie, PA) as well as performed for various workshops and functions.   And I was paid for it!  Score!  At the time I was experimenting with anything and everything in terms of performing in order to get the feel for it all.

Well, I tried to pull from that experience and bring the same energy to my character in The Biggest Lie.  The one-day shoot took place at the New York Comedy Club on March 1st.  It was great!  I got to perform on the actual stage and have a nicely planted audience “laugh and clap” on cue.  Ha!  A stand-up comedian’s dream.

It went really well.  I am looking forward to its completion (and hopefully getting a photo-or-two on the site).

Finally, I was cast in my first theatrical show in NY called A Delightful Quarantine.  It is a cute little show opening on West 43rd in Manhattan mid-March.  It was exciting to be cast not only because it looked like fun, but also because it is opening a block from 42nd Street in an Off-Broadway Theater.  It’s a wonderful opportunity (and who knows who might be there to see it).

Wink!  Wink!  If any of you are reading this.  Wink!  

More on that next week.

Otherwise, I have been trying to audition whenever I can, take some classes, work a little on the side, meet people and stay positive.  I am having a blast and am glad to be able to share the experiences with you all here.

Thanks guys.  Until next time!

The greatest friends and family…money can buy….

Yes, I know what you are thinking.

“Why did it take him so long to update his blog?”

And by “you”….I mean, my mother, who is probably the only one checking this area on a regular basis.

Love you Mom!

The quick answer is that other priorities needed to come first.  In many ways, a ton of items had to be checked-off-the-agenda after the move  to New York City before website updates could begin.  As a result, the creation of a regular blog and information center was put on-hold.

Until now!

I have to be honest…I wasn’t too certain if anyone out there would be interested in regular updates based on my big jaunt to New York City.  But, the one thing I definitely know is (from numerous phone calls, texts and letters, as well as from the amount of people who seem to really enjoy my Facebook status updates) I have some of the greatest friends and family on the planet.

Their support and enthusiasm really fuels my excitement even more.  In fact, it picks me up on days when I really need it.

For that, I can never thank them all enough.  No matter what happens here as I chase a dream-or-two, their kindness and love toward me will be something I will never forget!

And…with that said…

We begin a new Month and a new fantastic blog!  

Hmm….what do I write??

Hmm.

Aside from my original “welcome” blog, I wondered what exactly I should write about here. What are people actually going to find fascinating? What are people really going to care about that I have to say?

Trust me, I’m not really that interesting.

I began by typing my initial thoughts on the film Wall-E I recently saw in the theater. It was just wonderful and I rambled on about my thoughts on Pixar and the HUGE heart those guys seem to have. I then compared it to “Cars” which I recently watched on Bluray (and am currently listening to director commentary about in the background as I type this right now). There is something emotionally that touches me when I watch those particular films and they do such a great job capturing that almost every time.

After typing a long blog on this thought, I started to think to myself, “Would people actually care about this? This isn’t a movie-review blog.”

So, I saved that blog and started again.

The next one essentially was about my life this particular year. There were many plans in place, which had been in the works for a number of years, that literally disappeared at the end of 2007 in the blink of an eye. As a result, it has flipped my life on its end with a question as to where things are actually going. Interestingly, some wonderful things have happened as a result of these plans not actually taking place (including being cast in my favorite musical of all-time and being involved in all of the stuff 2008 has brought so far).

After reading my first rough-draft on these random life musings, I said to myself, “Who cares about this? This is the site about my upcoming performances and work. Why would they care about what’s going on in my life other than my thoughts on productions?”

So…saved draft and on to number three.

I just sat there thinking and thinking and having NO idea what to talk about.

I need your help!

If you guys have any ideas what you would like to read here, let me know. I am honestly not sure. I’m at the point where the future is so questionable, and what this site will actually be used for is so confusing, that I don’t know where to even start. You know?

Send me an e-mail or leave a comment. Let me know what you would like to read on a regular basis here. A personal journal? A “here’s what we did at rehearsal today” account? A combination of them all?

I’ll leave that up to you guys.

Thanks, as always. Looking forward to hearing your suggestions!

Hello world!

Hey everybody and welcome to my performance “blog.”

I’m so glad that the official site is FINALLY up and running. I hope you’ve enjoyed looking around and I hope to start “blogging” here very soon (as well as adding new and interesting things as time moves forward). Check back for updates and news!

As for now………take care.

Thanks!
Chris