The Extra Good

Yesterday I was on set as an extra, and it was a great time. The folks working behind the scenes at Boardwalk Empire do an amazing job and I am very proud to have taken part: here's hoping they will call my number again!

Now, there's no certainty of being seeing when doing background work. Although, the great thing about being an extra is that your position within the film can change rather quickly. It's like throwing your name into a raffle and you could win some face time on screen and with a few people you might really like. This is also a great chance to network and meet people. I've learned over time that it's more important to have fun and enjoy the people you're around than always looking for a selling angle. So, I do what I naturally enjoy doing: making some friends and neat acquaintances. This show was an excellent example of that.

But you WILL see my face on T.V tomorrow night. It's Discovery I.D's Dates from Hell, and I'm a lead! It'll air at 10pm tomorrow.

Happy Fourth

This is one of my favorite Holidays. I love that, tomorrow, we can all embrace each other as country-kin. And, in spite of the fact there remains great difference, I hope you find camaraderie that is beneficent and wide-embracing.

I'm already thinking of the wonderful mellow heat that will fade away into quiet darkness--before the booms of fire flowers make their brief glows across the sky--with the comforting scent of grilled embers, wafting through the background.

Yeah, yeah, I'm getting poetic,

but no matter where you are, or where you have come, or by what category you define yourself, I hope you'll find time to be safe and enjoy!

-Ben

Discovery I.D. and Me!

Well, the secret is out and you're all the first to know! My humble debut on television will be with Discovery I.D's Dates from Hell. It's a series covering really wild encounters told by the survivors of some very scary first dates. And all the stories are true, which makes the tales all the more fascinating. I guess I won't reveal too much about my own character, but needless to say tha,t if you know me, it's the last kind of person you'd expect.

My episode will air July 25th at 10pm. Huzzah.

-Ben

The Original Starship Enterprise

I just so happened to be working a gig on the water last night, and saw the Enterprise. And took the photo you see now. It's incredible to finally see it in person. Let's all cross our fingers that we are merely delaying out 'reentry' into American space endeavors.

(Like this picture? I did it WITH MY PHONE.)

The Best Thoughts on the Arts I have ever Heard.

There are so many of you who are graduating, and many of you who have passed beyond the years of academia, watch the video linked below. The speaker is Neil Gaiman. And his words are the complete truth about the careers in which we artistic souls embark.

The best thoughts on the arts I have ever heard.

This. Is. ACTING.

Update Report (or "Repor", if you will...):

Yesterday I auditioned for the Philadelphia Shakespeare company season. And since it's Shakespeare, I had to go. This was my first time doing long distance from up North: the challenge was to make a noon audition and then return to New York before 4pm for the start of one of my Supporting Jobs. This was so only because the original day was in conflict and there was no other sane approach to make the commitment possible. Buses saved the day (anything else would have been prohibitively expensive). Although I had somehow lost my charger. My phone was completely out of power when I woke up. By the time I got to Philly, the location was a bit fuzzy and, to my astonishment, no one in the N. 30th street train station or the bus stop had any idea that where this place was. I managed to find an odd-looking charging replacement, looked it up once again for good measure, and made it with seconds to spare. Sometimes, even the best planning has it's foils! I then went in, where I was warmly welcomed, did what we actors do, and then managed to catch another bus 15 minutes later to get back to the Sleepless City. In all, I had been to the land of Cheese Steaks (I still haven't had one from there!) for barely 30 minutes. And there you are.

I have a lot of acting work coming up this weekend and more thoughts on being on my first major Film set.

See ya soon.

-Ben

Incredi-densed!

Ah....

...

(Is this thing on?)

Oh. There you are. And here I am.

Surprised to see me?

I'm a little surprised myself.

You can take a wild guess that if I haven't been able to post for awhile that a lot of pretty amazing things have happened!

As of now, I no longer return to my dwellings down by the Jersey Shore (not the Show!). I took a look at my bank account. And then I took a, well metaphorical, look at New York City. It's this magical place where actors of many kinds and all directions converge. Four years ago, the light came on and my love for the city has grown ever since. So, OF COURSE, I know how much fun was being missed.

The choice came down to move NOW, and hope that all will move forward as dreamed for a long, long time, or wait at least another year or two and see if any traction would put tread beneath my determined toes.

I
am an impatient man.

The plan has been evolving and striving for realization ever since. We're about an annum from the difficult first attempt.

With lessons learned, and new wisdom now conscript, I made another effort into the battle to push North. And, at last, I have arrived!

Well, I'm in Newark. But it's a heck of a lot closer! Put in Long Branch, New Jersey, in your favorite online map program (I google it myself...the hopelessly Big Brother'd person I am). Then put in Herald Square, New Yorkk. Hit the public transportation icon for directions. This was the first 45 days of my plan to hold the job that will pay for the permanent move. And, by golly, I did just that.

I pounded pavement; got employed. On the first day of official training, literally a week before exhaustion and expenses would, again, have made the whole thing grind to a halt (mind you, I'm up by 6am and not home until 1-2am the next day, not to mention that New Jersey Transit prices from the shore are almost highway robbery), I'm talking to a coworker/mentor the first day of training. He begins asking about where I'm from and why I'm up there (and not a bit further south). I tell him journey thus far, and my serious need for a new living space.

"Well, actually, one of the guys here just got a new place and really needs someone."

A few hours later, I'm finding myself working next to my future roommate and landlord (?!).

This house has the PATH train within walking distance. And the surprisingly charming Ironbound, filled with the influences of Brazilians and Portuguese, is now my home.

Now you may be saying, if you had the fascinating impulse to talk to your computer/smarter-than-you phone screen,

"Hey Ben, but weren't you in that show thing in New York already?".

Yes I was.

And then immediately afterwards, was cast in another show with the good folks at The Attic Ensemble.

When that closed its curtains, I proceeded to allow myself to curl into a warm, crumpled ball and focused on my survival work. And a little rest.

In the past month or so, I put my foot down again and started submitting. There will be a commercial, a TV program, and a new HBO series, all with me somewhere within. And the Attic Ensemble guys called me in for another kids show, which just wrapped up.

There are also a whole snowing of other auditions, including more independent short and feature films, a new musical, a tour, and yes, maybe some more theater dashed in there. All the while, finding more survival employment to extend my stay here and really start investing towards the big stuff. 

So there you have it. The incredi-densed version of the last three months.

Caught. Upon the January Wind.

It seem like I turned around and the month is gone. There was all this cool stuff I was gonna do! Didn't the Joker say something about people who try making plans?

Anyway...

January has been about getting Unreachable Eden ready for next week (!), networking, job hunting, and of course, auditioning.

I have been commuting from the Shore (yes, that one; thanks to Monstrously Trite Viewings) to New York City. The goals as of now have been to live in New York City by the end of the year, develop a steady stream of creative activity in my daily living, and push myself to be in position to sign with an agent and/or manager.

The immediate concern turned to income, with housing a very near second. If this sounds familiar, I was in the exact same place last spring and remember all too freshly how vastly unprepared I was for the labored carnage that is our economy. Acting is a business as much as an artistic endeavor. Consider it more like running a theater company: you're the self appointed artistic and managing director. One gives you vision, the other, the provisions. The challenge is to never compromise one for the other. Both are necessary for creative survival.

The hope has been for actor employment, but I learned from last time, that the only ideal job is the one you can get. I opened my search more widely, but this time, only New York would do. I'm teaching myself wines in response to restaurant hirings. It's been really fun actually.

The added bonus of The Hunt is the presence of this freakishly useful smart phone, with which I type to you now. The laptop has been down all month due to a faulty charger (soon to change), which has made communication itself a radical transition.

The Third War of Unemployment has officially ended as of last week. The result is a new job and I'm very close to having a place near the city. So much money and time soon to return!

Acting itself has gone well. Unreachable Eden runs on schedule. Can't tell you how happy I am to be an actor amongst actors again. Again, the show starts next week. I have to relearn how to post links through here, but we've had press releases published throughout the New York websphere. I also got a featured on Monmouth County Arts Council twitter site. These folks are directly responsible for a lot of the creative scholastic and theater fundraising back where I grew up. Much thanks to them! Rehearsals are very different from the touring work I've done. We only go for 4-6 hours (sometimes less) at a clip. And we'll have had this entire month to put the whole thing together (for those wondering, that's quite a luxury!).

As for networking, there are companies you can pay a nominal fee to meet agents and managers. For the unfamiliar, these are what the business calls Sellers. They are the sales force partner that fights for you out there, grabbing the attention of casting directors and producers-otherwise know as the Buyers.

Now to be clear, since 'getting an agent' becomes a bit of an obsession among performers, now is the right time for me, as I've already got training and professional experience working my chops on the past three tours. I'm even garnering regional theater interest now. The response at auditions has been incredibly positive. Although the most surprising discovery so far has been how many of these talent-pros think I'm a camera friendly guy.

Hey: acting is acting, to me!

-Ben

The Post-Post New Years Post

First off, Happy New Year! Whether it was loud or quiet, I hope your celebrations were good ones. I was truly blessed with the number of you I bumped into this past month. There's no better gift than getting time with those you care about most.

Some interesting facts about the blog: it's been viewed almost 1800 times and it has been read in 10 countries (whoa is right!). So thank you for helping me make a grand splash for 2010. We'll be making a lot more waves this year!

Let's look at remainder of the month at all the happenings.

• Now, many of you have been expecting stories of the tour. Those will be coming shortly. I promise. I am sorely behind and intend to at least give you one good account.
• A few of you suggested I make a list and of all the places I've went to stuff my face during my travels...consider that one an on-going project (too many eateries for me to remember!).
• My actor thoughts and plans for Resolutions.
• And what I'm 'bout to say below...

Ok, now for the REALLY REALLY good news: I'm in another show! In New York City! And it's a brand new play called Unreachable Eden. (WOO-HOO, ticker tape!)

The show opens February 9^th and runs through the 26^th of the same month. Thursday through Saturday shows are at 8pm and Sunday's will be a 3pm matinee. You can already get tickets through the theater's website here.

This is based on the true story of a woman named Eve Adams, a Polish Immigrant who lived in Greenwich Village back in the 1920s. And through some great misfortune, found herself deported into Europe...right in the middle of the ensuing chaos that was soon to come. It's been really exciting since we have primary documents (their letters, transcripts of trial cases, etc.) and other research the author has collected on Ms. Adams, as well as some well-known authors that she happened to know—like Henry Miller and Anais Nin, for instance. A lot of work and love has, and continues to be, poured into this project. The whole cast and crew has been absolutely awesome and rehearsals are moving with haste. We're also extremely grateful to have Theater for a New City supporting us. If you don't know who they are, check them out: they've spent over 40 years devoted to the creation of new artistic endeavors.

Given the number of people already asking about this show, I've posted all the show information and more in a box near the top left part of my blog page titled “UPCOMING EVENTS”. For the facebook inclined, there's also a facebook event for the show you can get to through this link, with lots of cool graphics and stuff (sorry folks, still a bit on the low-techie end here). However, I have attached some very purdy digital postcards here...

so spread the word!


-Ben

P.S.- Look below for the digital postcard(s)!

Shameless 'Unreachable Eden' Postcard(s)

The title says it all. Some eye candy for ya while you're waiting for the show. If you haven't already heard, listen on how I got these guys and plans for the coming year. Enjoy!

-Ben

P.S.-And while you're at it...wouldn't hurt to let some of your friends seem them, too (just sayin').