Notes on Living in NYC

So I think I feel so out of place in New York because I neither smoke nor drink coffee.  In order to fit in here (especially at the Public!) you pretty much have to do one or the other or (ideally) both.  In LA people may look down on you, but at least you can get away with drinking tea or hot chocolate and have peers who might actually do the same.

In other news, I was getting on the uptown 6-train after work today and I saw this woman who looks JUST like Allegra only a few years older and a much more New York attitude (read: cold hard bitch).  But not only did she look and walk like Allegra, she was also dressed like an east-coast Allegra.  Crazy.

Work today was alright.  I spent the weekend at home in LA so it's always hard to come back.  The trip home wasn't that exciting, I spent pretty much the whole time with Leland which was great for me (and hopefully for Leland) but probably boring for everybody else to hear about.

So yeah, work today.  One of the higher-ups is on vacation this week, so I get to use her desk and I'm trying to catch up on labeling all the scanned files.  It's pretty boring.  And I stayed at work until six today for the first time since pretty much I've been here since I'm working next to Lisa, my boss, and I don't want her to think I'm a flake.  It's not like I'm not getting my work done when I leave early; I've done more in three weeks than my predecessor did all summer on this project.  I also did a little project for Barry (of the Shakespeare Lab) where I copied all the teacher evaluation packets from this summer's Shakespeare Lab participants and made packets to be given to each teacher so they get the feedback.  It was cool to read the feedback packets and see what the Shakespeare Lab is like in the words of people who actually attended it.

The Shakespeare Lab is a 12-week summer intensive for professional/at least college-student-level actors interested in furthering their classical theater technique.  They take classes in text analysis, movement, voice, acting (scenes and monologues), stage combat, poetry, etc... and put on a showcase at the end of the program.  It's basically summer camp for grown-ups, since the participants have to pay to attend and attendance is mandatory for full-day, full-week sessions, so working during this time period is very difficult.  Many of the feedback sheets reflected the fact that a) it was very difficult financially to participate in this and b) the Public might lose some great applicants due to financial issues.  The program is audition-only, so I imagine these people must be at least mostly talented.  But reading their comment sheets was also kind of hilarious.  I respect that actors find the acting process a fairly moving experience, but some of the language used to describe "life-changing" acting experiences can be fairly hilarious.  In fact, the amount I will respect someone is directly related to if they have ever described acting in flowery, religiously undertoned, language, with extra points subtracted for use of the word "orgasmic."

The Shakespeare Lab also has Shakespeare Lab Jr. for underprivileged kids and this is what I was doing research on other summer programs for comparison for Barry last week.

Oh, and in the vein of actors, this morning they were holding a casting call for a play they're doing called "A Free Man of Color."  I didn't really know what they were casting, so I asked someone there what it was for.  I had come out of the area Public employees have access to, and I was in the lobby ON MY WAY OUT, and I asked this guy "What's this casting call for?" and he goes, "It's for A Free Man of Color, an off-Broadway play that--" 

I interrupted - "I know what it is.  I work here."

I mean, I was in the theater.  I was on my way out.  I obviously have some sort of Public affiliation.  But whatever.

Then when I was leaving tonight the lobby had been transformed from a free-for-all actors' hang-out to a little cocktail reception.  It was weird but kinda funny, I guess.