First Day

Whoa.

So here I am at Starbucks because I don't get internet in my apartment. This is unfortunate because I'm paranoid that people are going to look over my shoulder and see what I'm doing. What I'm writing. See me taking pictures like the one above. I also had to buy a cocoa. Otherwise I feel guilty. I also only get two hours. See, Denver has this awesome thing where you can use the internet for two hours in a 24 hour period when you're on the 16th St. Mall. Way cool, except that it was INCREDIBLY slow when I tried using it sitting on a bench out in the street, so I had to come into Starbucks.

I like Denver because people are always out and about. In a very friendly, living sort of way. I feel like the people here enjoy good company and strolling and it reminds me very slightly of la passagiata in Florence. Very slightly. But they could all be sitting at home watching TV and they're not. I love them. It does make one a leetle bit lonely though when you're in town with no friends. Yet.

The 16th St. Mall is a long street where only pedestrians, the lightrail, and horses and buggies can go. Plenty of good shopping, plenty of good eating. There are several delicious looking bakeries, which is my weakness. But what a nice part of town. Every town should have one of these. Then maybe more people would walk and talk.

One great thing about my apartment: directTV. Too bad I have no time to enjoy it! Another Great thing about my apartment: a gym. I haven't been there yet, but I hope it's a good one. I'm pretty happy I don't have to pay $75 for a month membership.

So today was the first day of the workshop. I was the last one to arrive, how embarrassing! I would say how unlike me, but my first classes of the day this past year can attest to the fact that I was consistently a few minutes late. I wasn't late this morning, but everyone else was early. More than one minute early.

First impressions during orientation: ok, these students don't look too scary and Impressivo like I imagined them (I imagined them as super-talented geniuses). They look my age or younger for the most part (I imagined them all as 25-30 years old with loads of world and work experience). And this building/space reminds me of Geva, which is comforting. These professors seem nice, but I'm a little terrified of that woman who showed me where the theater was, why aren't I better at small talk?!

They took us on a tour of the building, and it really reminded me of a Geva with far more studio space. There are like 12 studios or something ridiculously nice. Not too many windows though... We're going to be working in the Company space, but today and tomorrow when the company is auditioning we are using the NTC space. Oh how I want to go to school here! I just found out that they pay for your gym membership as well as your school and housing and equity membership. Dreamy.

There are 29 students, split into two groups: Gilbert and Sullivan. I am in Sullivan. I have no idea if that means anything. There is one other girl here who came to callbacks in March for the MFA program, but ultimately wasn't accepted. She's in the Gilbert group. I like her, she's the one I've talked with most, so I wish she was in my group. Our first class we were altogether for movement. Our movement instructor is quite a character.

Oh yes, on my journey here I also drove throught the infamous town of Laramie. As Bob the movement instructor mentioned. Dick Cheney has also lived there, he said with a derisive glint in his eye.

Movement was great, I neeeded that relaxation.

We will be learning hip-hop and Afro-Cuban dance. What?! I hope that I have learned from my hours of watching So You Think You Can Dance? At least it's not ballet.

So at lunch time my fears and panic attacks seem to have been forgotten. I feel like I can do this. In fact, by the end of the first class in the afternoon I'm feeling a little guilty because this seems like it's going to be way too fun. Like, BYU gave me all that money to just have fun here? Not to make that class (Extended Character) seem like it's not going to be hard, it is. It's going to be way hard. But fun. I really like the guy who's teaching it, he's pretty awesome and not intimidating. Some of our assignments for that class:

-Pick a monologue for a character of any type, gender, age, etc. that is a stretch for you. I can play anyone in any play in the history of theatre that i want to. My mind is blown. What would you play? I really want to know, please comment. Every one of you. Remember, any gender.

-Pick a scene for a character, same as above.

-Pick a monologue from a film/TV to exactly mimic. Favorite performance? I will impersonate the actor playing the role down to every twitch of the eye, inflection of the voice. A la Grey Gardens second act. Again, my mind is a little blown.

-Same with scene from Film/TV

-Pick a song for ROCKSTAR exercise. We will each lipsynch and air guitar our way through our favorite song. We will rock this joint, getting the performance down to every word, every breath.

-All of the impersonations above are NOT judgemental. I'm not commenting on the actor or myself, I am just being the actor or singer. So many songs, what to choose?! What would you choose? Again, I really really want to know. I have minimal contact here, folks, please humor me.

It's 8:30 and my mind is still blown. I feel like I have no mental power left to focus on anything, but I have so much to do! And I must get to bed by a reasonable time because I need sleep, 9 hours of it, to focus from 9-5 every day.

So I get to Scene Study, my last class of the day, with that woman who kind of terrifies me. Only because she's the head of the MFA acting program here and she got her BFA and MFA from Yale and worked with Juilliard for a couple of years and is buddies with the top playwrights of the business and oh my heavens I'm intimidated. Tonight I must come up with a kickbutt presentation on Chekhov's life. And read his letters. And reread Uncle Vanya. And memorize my lines for my scene (Elena in U.V., the goodbye scene with Astrov). And find a stimulating picture for Character, whoa I forgot about that, I should not be wasting my precious internet time. By the end of Scene Study I was losing it. I could not focus anymore. Bless that hampster who died causing the instructor to end class a bit early so she could comfort her grieving son. Oh that is horrible! So horrible. I don't bless that he died, that's sad.

See? I'm done. But I have so much to do. And I have to go back tomorrow. This workshop is going to be hard. I think it's going to be really fun too. I wish we could get to know the other class better, I think we're barely going to see them.

There is one person here who is older. Like older older. He's my scene partner. Love interest. Hm. It is weird to be scene partners with people I don't know at all, people I haven't even played trust games with. I suppose trust and knowing will come soon, but it's still weird after being at BYU where I knew everyone.

The classes are great. I took so many notes. I wish I had time to process. And time to do all the reading I want to. I forgot to mention the library! They have a great, really really GREAT script library here. I've already borrowed three scripts which they do not have at BYU, Chekhov's biography, and Chekhov's love letters. When will I read these? I have no idea. I can't wait til the weekend.

Have I mentioned how much I want to go to Denver Center for my MFA? It's been one day and I'm kind of sold. I don't doubt I will just get further impressed the more time I'm here.

I'm so scared of doing my first scene. It's one thing to do monologues I've already prepared, but to do a scene in two days I just got today? A little scary.

Heavens, I know I'm scattered. Blame the limited internet time and my fried brain.

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