"I Wanna Be a Producer"
The second weekend in November was a momentous occasion for me because I went to a Producer's Pro Super Conference. The action all began on Friday night at a Pro Mixer. At it I took the annual obligatory selfie with Tony Award Winning Producer and group organizer Ken Davenport. Just attending his cyber office hours and several conferences has led me to know that this is the industry I belong in. He has so many inspiring stories of how he initially made it into the theatre. True grit and determination is what enabled him to continue. One time while feeling severely depressed I read in a book that an artist just doesn't create because they were assigned to do something, they create because they feel this innate desire to create. At this point I feel like right now I am kind of living in a confusing limbo. I am not yet one of the theatre and prepared to create some sort of theatrical piece. I would some day love to write and possibly choreograph my own work but I am still finding my way through this confusing journey.
I have this book franchise that I feel I need to finish, but I am sick of always feeling like the victim and feeling that if I want to be interesting I have to put myself or others down. I want to go through life with a different mindset of understanding that everyone wants to make positive choices, however along the way I feel like some people are confused by the choices they make, distractions that come along, or wealth.
In my New York stint I have managed to do a lot of soul searching along the way, have experienced so many wonderful adventures, and have passed the three month mark of a relationship (even if I had only technically reached friendship status, that is still something to applaud).
In this photograph I am featured as an attendee of the Producer's Pro Super Conference. I was very happy to showcase my name tag in this photo which labeled me as hailing from Astoria, NY. Wow! This was a first for me. I finally had made my way out of coming from Fairbanks, AK.
For this conference it was two days of listening to panel discussions and at the end of the day there were always KeyNote speakers. For these KeyNote speakers I was able to listen to Joe Iconis who wrote, conceived, and composed "Be More Chill" and Stephanie J. Block who recently won the Tony Award for her portrayal of Cher in "The Cher Show." I have to say that Joe Iconis was weird, eclectic, and a true artist, however Stephanie J. Block gave an absolutely amazing speech. She was a last minute speaker who served as an understudy for Heidi Schreck (What the Constitution Means to Me) and was absolutely amazing and inspiring. I wish that she hadn't spoken dead last at a time where I had absolutely no energy left. I wasn't even able to muster up enough energy to pull my phone out of my purse and take a photo.
This next featured photo is of one of the panel discussions that I sat in on. I felt so privileged to be in the presence of Andrew Lippa who composed the score for "The Wild Party," "The Addams' Family," and "Big Fish." At this point I do not feel comfortable approaching these geniuses or asking questions. To this day I feel that I am still catching up or learning through "osmosis." But by listening and surrounding myself with like-minded individuals, I hope that one day I will feel comfortable interacting and possibly even collaborating with them.
It's ironic, but the whole reason for deciding to move to New York was to surround myself with creative individuals, and a more artistic environment. Don't get me wrong, the move to New York has been fun, however, it has not been easy. Going from an environment that is completely familiar and comfortable to something foreign that I have to figure out along the way has been tough. Keeping an open mind and greeting every opportunity with enthusiasm and vigor is the way I get by.
I remember while sitting in my living room just prior to leaving for the Big Apple, I watched a Sutton Foster PBS special. In it she sang the Kander and Ebb song "Say Yes." I'll never forget the piece of advice she gave to her audience, "In life just say Yes, unless it's for porn." I have taken on that mentality while in New York City. I always try to say "Yes" because "Yes" leads to so many wonderful opportunities and you never know who will be waiting around that corner prepared to say "Yes" to whatever it is that you're looking for.
