Shine Time!

Well...

WE DID IT!!! Our long-awaited, much-anticipated debut of The Spotlight with Sean Taylor went off without a hitch tonight in Ars Nova's A.N.T. Fest! Hooo-wheeee!!! And, what a night it was!

I was a bit anxious earlier in the day, finalizing what it is I should wear and making sure that I had everything I needed to pull off a successful show. I arrived to the theater at around 5:30 to warm-up and get ready for sound check, which was called for 6pm, however most of the band members were coming from work and didn't arrive until closer to 6:30. Eek!

I got to run my song one more time, and then before I knew it - we had to clear out of the theater so that the house staff could prepare the space for our audience. That was the most nerve-wracking thing of all. I hope we have a house!

Well, thankfully people did come and they enjoyed what was one of our most successful "Spotlights" to date! It was really swell having a full band up there to back me, and we had a lof of fun guests and other bits to boot!

I'll let these pictures speak for themselves...

Getting ready to go on...

Host Sean Taylor and Sidekick Matt Shafeek...

Host, Sean Taylor asking the tough questions...

House left of our beautiful audience!!!

The Spotlight Band!!!

Singin' "Just A Little Bit Famous"

The Spotlight Band (post show)

Matt and Spotlight Head Writer, Tony Carnevale

Spotlight Improvisers!


As I had predicted, as soon as Sean uttered the words "This has been The Spotlight with Sean Taylor, goodnight!" I let out a huge sigh of relief. That was a great ride!

After all of the planning and rehearsing and careful preparation, it was a wonderful feeling to know that we had pulled off yet another excellent show. Nonetheless, the feeling of relief is quickly replaced with the feeling of looking forward to the next one. We were all so thrilled to have had the opportunity to bring "The Spotlight" to this new, incredible venue for Ars Nova's A.N.T. Fest and I hope we can do it again!

Putting on a show is like a roller coaster with lots of ups and downs and stomach-dropping loop-da-loops. It's a wild ride, I tell you - and we can hardly wait to get back in line for the next one!

T-Minus One Day...

With our grand debut of "The Spotlight" less than a day away, I sent out a final round of email reminders and facebook notifications to prospective audience members. I'm really hoping to fill the house tomorrow night!

I was getting pretty nervous about it and I wanted to take one last look at the space before going in there tomorrow night, so I decided to go to the show that was on tonight: "Pirates and Ninjas!" It was a smaller, shorter show, but they had a nice turn-out and it gave me higher hopes for us tomorrow night.

I just have to believe: "If you promote it, they will come."

After the show, I decided to stick around and wait for our drummer to arrive so that he could unload his drum kit and keep it over night in the space so as to not have to schlep it in on the day of the show. We want to be ready to rock and roll as soon as possible - so best to make sure that everything is ready to go.

This is it! Tomorrow is the big day!

Hair Today!

I donned a pair of my favorite bell bottoms and flowed it and showed at a chorus call for "Hair" which was being held this afternoon at The Public Theater. I saw the show this summer, and loved it - so why not try to be in it?

It was a surprisingly small showing of Hair hopefuls (I was only number 47) - possibly due to the fact that the show is already fully cast. I don't know this for sure, mind you. This theory was merely pointed out to me by a fellow-auditioner while I was waiting for my number to be called.

"I don't even know why I'm here," she said. "I mean, they're looking for like ONE other person!"

So not groovy man. I don't like to think about things like that - and neither should she, but also it's also possible that she was just trying to trip me out. I can't say for sure, but I didn't jive with her negative vibe, so I politely excused myself to go refill my water bottle and waited on the other side of the room. Of course, as fate would have it - once I was put into line, she was right along side me. Oh well. I politely chatted with her and some other girls and she seemed to chill out a bit.

My audition went really well today, though. I sang my 16 bars as requested and at the end the Casting Director seemed pleased. "Cool!" she said. How apropos. So we'll see what happens! For now, best to just go with the flow.

Casting My Vote

What an historic day this was. The world is forever changed all because Obama enabled everyone to believe that change is possible by empowering them with his simple three-word slogan: "YES WE CAN!"

There was an electricity in the air this morning and I could feel it as I excitedly marched over to my assigned voting center with a leap in my step and a song in my heart. I couldn't wait to cast my vote! I took my time too. I wasn't going to let this important moment in history pass me by. Can I take my time in the booth?
YES I CAN!

However today, wasn't all about politics for me. I still had my own agenda for the day, which included heading over to the Actor's Equity Building to put my name down on the Chorus Call list for "Hair" and "Wicked." While there I got a list of Equity Showcases that are currently running around the city. Can I attend any of them for free just by presenting my Equity card?
YES I CAN!

Back on the streets there was election fever everywhere I looked. Times Square was ablaze with flashing lights and screens broadcasting coverage of the polling centers. There were even dudes selling Obama and McCain condoms. (I almost bought one, but two condoms for $7 seems a bit hard to swallow. I mean sheesh, aren't we getting screwed enough as it is by this limp economy?)
YES WE ARE!

After work, I met up with some friends in Rockefeller Plaza to watch the numbers tumble in and the states ice rink get painted blue or red. It was magical! I didn't expect a final result to come so early in the evening. At around 11:00pm the race for the White House was over and New York City erupted in applause and cheers. Wow! Wow! Wow!
Did we all have an unforgettable night?

YES WE DID!!!

Spreading the Work

The final countdown to "The Spotlight with Sean Taylor" has begun! I spent much of today trying to get the word out through handy dandy tools of the trade - aka Facebook and good old-fashioned email. I'm not a big fan of mass emails which lack the personal attention they deserve, so I've been going the extra mile and writing individual emails to friends, clients, co-workers and family members.

I sure hope this works!!!

The most nerve-wracking thing about putting on show is the possibility that no one will show for the show! Ay yay yay! It's the stuff that nightmares are made of! Not that we're putting all of our eggs in one basket, but we certainly have high hopes for this show and we want it to do well! And not only that, we want to have plenty of witnesses! I mean, if a tree falls in the forest and no one is around to hear it, does it really make a sound? (if you catch my drift.)

We've been putting a lot of time and effort into this show and I'm confident that we will not fall, but we will be heard! Go Spotlight!!!

Practice-ally Perfect!

Tonight I had a final rehearsal with "The Spotlight Band" for our show which is coming up THIS FRIDAY at Ars Nova's A.N.T. Fest!!! The band was in high spirits and I think that we're all really excited to do the show.

At tonight's rehearsal we rehearsed the opening "Spotlight With Sean Taylor" theme song and practiced more improvised commercial jingles. (The band really gets a kick out of those.) We also ran my song several more times and put some finishing touches on the final product.

At the end of rehearsal we practiced a closing to the show and then ran the whole thing from cue to cue. It went swimmingly and I'm feeling good about it. Now all that's left to do is make sure I have my song fully memorized backwards and forwards. No lead sheets will be used on the day of performance!

I think we're ready. Until then, this has been The Spotlight with Sean Taylor, thank you and...goodnight!

Organization Scales

Trying to get organized today...The Spotlight is now less than a week away and I am in charge of "The Spotlight Band" and making sure they have all the info they need.

Tonight I looked through our production packet and retrieved the info regarding set up and tech times, equipment and call times so that I could email out to the band. We have one more rehearsal tomorrow evening, so it's time to make sure that everyone is on the same page and our course of action is locked down.

I've been running through my song and making some adjustments here and there based on what we did at Thursday's rehearsal. Little by little the song has been taking shape. It may not be the most incredible song in the world, but it's mine and I'm proud of it.

Here's another version of the song - with some slight improvements/changes...

Ever since I was a little girl
No one doubted I could dream,
Of being someone big some day
On the silver screen

Playing in my room alone
I would dress in my mother's clothes
Decked myself out in high heels
And in her pantyhose

Everywhere I went I knew just
how to make a scene
'Cause if I didn't get what I wanted
I had no choice but to scream

Then I'd sit and cry and cry
In the mirror for an hour or three
You might think that was a waste of time
But not for this drama queen

Chorus:

'Cause I just wanted to be a little bit famous
(I could taste it in my tears)
Yeah I just wanted to be a little bit famous
(I cried for my own entertainment)

I grew up an only child
In a smaller family
I had a captive audience
When the attention was on me

I would sing at any chance
That would come my way
I even wrote a little Oscar speech
So I'd be ready for that day

Chorus:

'Cause I just wanted to be a little bit famous
(singing in the living room)
Yeah I just wanted to be a little bit famous
(I still feel I grew up a little too soon)

Now I'm grown and I still wanna see my full name up in lights,
Although it would be fine by me if the marquis is not that bright
And if you recognize me while I'm walking down the road,
That's totally cool by me, just don't follow me home

Chorus:

'Cause I just wanna be a little bit famous
(I no longer want super fame)
Yeah I just wanna be a little bit famous
You may vaguely know my name)

I just wanna be a little bit famous
(I can take on any role)
I just wanna be a little bit famous
(Without losing complete control)

I'm Britney!
I just wanna be hit one more time Baby,

I'm Shakira!
I just wanna see underneath of what you're wearing

I'm Cher!
I just wanna Believe in life after love after love after love after love

Chorus:

I just wanna be a little bit famous
(I will sing in any voice)
I just wanna be a little bit famous
(I just wanna have the choice)
To be me. To be me. To be me.