Pick A Little Talk A Lot

Hot time, summer in the city . . . As summer kicks off I have to scramble to see the shows that are soon closing after the recent Tony awards and I am wondering what we will be watching on TV. Showtime has very thoughtfully arranged season four of Weeds featuring New Yorker Mary-Louise Parker who is often seen roaming the West Village in person and now in larger than life sized posters on the sides of New York buses. I read some mixed reviews of the first episode but found it fascinating myself as the house, setting and town for the series went up in a blaze. Obviously, a Hollywood face lift this season.

Law & Order Criminal Intent has finished its season of shooting on the streets of New York and is running new episodes. I may have to check out NBC-TV’s Nashville Star to see if it compares to American Idol.

I am eagerly awaiting A & E’s The Cleaner featuring Brett De Buono as Benjamin Bratt’s son. I first met Brett when he attended the TVI Actors Studios Young Actors Professional Intensive which we have each summer. He is an extremely talented young man with a supportive family.
Above all, I want to know how I can get my fellow workers on “The Singing Office” the new TLC show hosted by Mel B and Joey Fatone of “Dancing with the Stars” fame.

All in all, it looks like a fairly decent television summer.

One of the new shows in New York this season will be cast by Bowling, Miscia, Lubbe Casting, the casting office that also worked on the NBC-Universal Pilot. The show is a nightime soap based on the story of King David in the Bible who battled the giant Goliath.
“Deadwood’s Ian McShane returning to TV to star!

The Academy Awards truly reflected the international nature of the entertainment industry this past Sunday as winners from around the globe were announced. Spain, France, England were all represented this year with Javier Bardem, Tilda Swinton, Daniel Day Lewis and Marion Cotillard winning the major individual actor awards. Even Best Song was from an Irish low budget film and was composed by an Irishman and a woman from Czechoslovakia. It was a great reminder of how technology has linked the world and a reflection of the international quality of film and television these days. Productions are becoming global affairs these days and the Oscars showed that even Hollywood is branching out to vote for the best and not just its own.

It was announced today that the artists, actors and dancers who were interviewed by Michael Bennett for the Original Workshop of A CHORUS LINE will receive a financial interest in the current Broadway production and in all future shows. This is a landmark decision and very interesting when considered in reference to the writer’s strike within a similar industry. Michael Bennett’s hit show was based on interviews with the group of actors that first did the workshop with him which included Donna McKechnie, Kelly Bishop, Priscilla Lopez and Robert LuPone. The Bennett Estate and these artists arrived at this agreement which extended the artists’ 1976 agreement. Seems like a fair decision. For the basic facts you can check out Playbill’s article on the subject.

I read on buzzsugar.com that “Michael Clayton” is being released again later this month. If you didn’t see this movie last fall in its first release, don’t miss it. Apparently it is at the top of numerous critics list (Golden Globe & BAFTA nominations) and it was at the top of mine. George Clooney, Tilda Swinton and Tom Wilkinson all give superb performances but apparently no one saw it!! I saw it at the Angelika in Soho sipping a cappucino (which always makes every movie more enjoyable to me!) Let me know what you think if you saw it and if you haven’t check it out later this month.

Sundance is happening! Award Shows are Not! It is most definitely an election year as we follow the candidates from state to state! Everyone is waiting to hear when and if favorite TV shows are returning! “American Idol“ is back on TV with a kinder, gentler Simon Cowell and the same, boring pre performance format! How many times can we make fun of bad singers and get high ratings? Clay Aiken of Idol fame is joining the cast of Broadway’s “Spamalot” tomorrow–hmmm? Perfect timing! Think it was planned? Above all I want to take advantage of the many cultural offerings in New York that I often miss–I recommend a new blog at The New Yorker Magazine: Goings On - Cultural happenings in New York and elsewhere. to help you keep up with Manhattan’s happenings.

I am resolving to attend more plays, ballet, art shows, openings, book signings etc. and am starting with an Off Broadway show and a workshop presented by two actors this weekend. Two new shows that are at the top of my list to see: “39 Steps” at the Roundabout Theatre. I had lunch with UK Casting Director Simone Reynolds, who cast the UK original version, and found out all about this hilarious spoof on Alfred Hitchccok’s movie thriller. 4 actors play about 100 roles which I would think makes for a really creative piece! Also, I hope to soon see Steppenwolf’s “August: Osage County” since I have been hearing raves about it since Chicago. As the writer’s strike continues it is good to have Broadway up and running. Having just returned from Los Angeles (where it is very quiet for actors right now) it is good to have a new year of theatre revving up!

Sen. Hillary Clinton said in her speech after her New Hampshire Primary win that she had “found her voice.” To find your voice can mean many things: to discover who you are, to express your self freely or simply to not be afraid to be who you really are, not who you think people want you to be. Are you trying to be the person that will win the election, get the job, win the award, get cast. Actors have many voices or do they? Maybe it is one voice expressing itself in different ways. So much of an actor’s audition these days is the interview - self-expression - who the actor is, how he behaves, “personality.” It’s not just the talent but also who you are and what you are like to work with that can land the part. That is where the actor’s voice comes in. An actor has his own voice and should have the confidence to express it. Hillary finding her voice reminded me of Sally Field when she won her Academy Award: “You like me, you really like me.” Underneath it all, presidential candidate, actress, person on the street, we are all trying to find our own voice and just have it heard. Vernice Klier, an international acting and voice coach, who I met with in Los Angeles recently, said that she always has any actors studying with her work in a different art form in addition to acting. For example, painting, singing, journalling etc. To me, this stretches the actor - makes their world not just about acting but focuses on them as “a person” who acts. The more an actor develops confidence, branches out, grows as a person, the more he can bring to any audition. Actors find your voice!

Saw A Chorus Line last week with Susan Lowery, one of my closest friends, NYC from Dallas for a brief visit. Susan is not a professional actress but should have been one. She was in a production of the final number for a charity event in Dallas directed by Bob Hess, director, actor and choreographer, so the show brought back a lot of great memories. I had seen the original cast in 1975 so there was a bit of fabulous deja vu for me returning me to those old days in New York. I love a good revival. Comparisons are inevitable but I still found the show thoroughly enjoyable. The dancing is outstanding. I really did not find anything about it dated and I have heard some people remark on that. Charlotte d’Ambroise is an amazing talent. Broadway is lucky to have her. My friend Susan could not stop grinning and said she was going to get her derby out and dance when she returned to Dallas. I bet she is!

I am back after a brief hiatus which much to say. Spring and summer in New York is a time of endings and new beginnings–Broadway Shows end and new ones gear up for the autumn season (JOURNEY’S END has already closed and I could kick myself for not seeing it during its brief run), the NY institution HBO’s Sopranos now “sleeps with the fishes”! Although I think the touted last episode may have been a set up for a feature film or HBO movie! I was stunned and not in a good way! The last few minutes were the best because of the tension that was built and then Pow! I thought the cable went out as I am sure half of America did. Speaking of America–I am not sure what I think about this year’s AMERICAN IDOL! I am still processing. The two ladies of my favorite current Broadway musical GREY GARDENS collected their much deserved Tony awards. (I have to say by the time the Tony Awards arrives I am weary of awards shows) I did see a portion of the MTV awards and which did seem to be totally about duplicating the old MTV kiss between Madonna and Brittany. When Sasha Cohen Borat and Will Ferrell did their own liplocking, it was time for me to tune out!!! More of my opinions to follow! We haven’t even touched on all the television series in New York, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, Christopher Plummer on Broadway, summer movies, Ocean’s 13 and more!

The Broadway Bears 2007 Auction benefiting Broadway Cares/Equity Fights Aidsis in a pre-bid stage now! These one-of-kind bears costumed by Broadway’s finest designers and audtographed by Broadway stars are fabulous pieces of memorabilia and at the same time benefit a great cause. I’m most definitely bidding on the Edie Beale Bear autographed by Christine Ebersole star of Grey Gardens on Broadway simply because this bear has “the perfect costume for the day”!