Good times are here to stay! (I hope!)
Hello world! It's been a few weeks since my last entry, but I'm alive and well and so excited to share some fun stories and life updates. New York has been so good to me these last several weeks and despite some crazy bipolar weather (no, it's not just Alabama), everything has been going swimmingly!
As many of you are already aware, I started my new job last week! I am no longer serving cheesecake realness at Juniors on 49th and Broadway! I grew to not hate it as much as I did at first, and I did make a few friends but I am so thankful for the opportunity to begin a new job so quickly! So I thought I'd begin with the details of the theatre and actual position... The Westside Theatre, located on 43rd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues, has been a staple of the Off-Broadway world since the eighties. (Quick reminder, Off-Broadway theatres seat between 99 and 499.) The Westside theatre is the home of two performance venues, an upstairs theatre and a downstairs theatre, which both seat around 250. The Westside Theatre has been home to famous off broadway productions such as I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change, March of the Falsettos, The Marvelous Wonderettes, and DisEnchanted. One of the many qualities I love about off Broadway theatre is how they work to support productions both before and after a Broadway run and give homes to shows not large enough for a thriving Broadway run. Many off Broadway spaces also house new, experimental theatrical productions that may not have a large fan base but still get the chance to be produced and seen by a theatrically educated market. In many cases the quality of acting, music, scenery, and costumes is on the same level of many Broadway shows. So if you're ever in NYC and don't want to pay big Broadway prices, I encourage you to take a look and research what shows are playing off Broadway!
Moving on from my "I love off Broadway" speech...
My title at the Westside Theatre is Assistant Box Office Treasurer. I've been fortunate enough to work several box office/front of house/administrative positions over the years and build a resume that doesn't focus solely on my performance abilities. As we all know, it's very important for all theatre folks to be as versatile as possible. No, you don't necessarily need a "back up plan" (I detest that statement), but it's helpful to be as well-rounded and educated as possible. When I began college I quickly learned that I was never going to maintain a career if I only focused on performance. An actor should dip their toes into the pools of technical theatre work, front of house, and design any time the chance is presented. This is the best advice I was given as a college freshman! (Listen up kids!) My job at the Westside Theatre includes selling tickets, pulling various marketing and sales reports, assistant the front of house team with pre-show preparation, and making each and every guest feel welcome and excited for an enriching evening of theatre! I've just completed my first week and the people I've met have been nothing short of wonderful. From the General Manager, to the House Manager, and the actors and technicians of the show, everyone has been so kind and helpful. Nancy Opel (Broadway actress, most famous for her role in Urinetown, currently in the show Curvy Widow playing in the upstairs theatre) says hello to me every day as she walks into the theatre. It truly is a welcoming environment. I enjoy the box office because we get the opportunity to interact with everyone involved with the production (stage manager, company manager, musicians, technicians, and actors) which means I've already heard tons of hilariously entertaining stories of the ups and downs of show business. Not to mention the people who purchase tickets which are mostly elderly New Yorkers, but occasionally someone such as Judith Light or Jason Alexander will come to pick up their tickets and make your entire day!
Other than adjusting to the new job, I've really started to get in the groove of the NYC hustle. Not that everything is perfect all the time, but I'm really starting to feel at home and at peace here. My roommates are wonderful, we finally have more furniture and are finally making a home in our apartment. We've dealt with a number of hellacious circumstances such as a water leak from the apartment above causing serious water damage, no gas for cooking, and a management team that won't ever answer our questions but that's all part of living in NYC. Despite the flaws, I still wouldn't want to be anywhere else during this time of my life. Not to mention there's always something amazing going on such as the BROADWAY FLEA MARKET which was this past Sunday! Though it was 90 degrees (Happy Fall?) I was NOT going to miss my first Broadway Flea as an NYC resident! The Broadway Flea Market is a huge outdoor even sponsored by Broadway Cares Equity Fights Aids (BC/EFA) featuring tons of theatre-related merchandise for sale, theatre company vendors, a grand auction, meet and greets with Broadway stars, and tons more. It's a huge outdoor event that thousands of fans attend every year to raise money for BCEFA! I only lasted two hours because it was ridiculously hot, but I am so glad I went! I bought tons of vintage playbills (from original productions of West Side Story, Mame and Seesaw) and some other fun merch and saw lots of cool show-people as well! That night, I attended "Deconstructing Patti", a benefit concert also presented by BC/EFA starring PATTI LUPONE and Broadway personality Seth Rudetsky. It was held at the Nederlander Theatre where LuPone is currently starring in the musical WarPaint based on the lives of makeup tycoons Helena Rubenstien and Elizabeth Arden. This was, without a doubt, the absolute best evening of my entire life. As all of you know by now, Patti LuPone is my number 1 Broadway idol. Sure, she has quite the reputation in the business, but she's tough, incredibly talented, and has never let anyone walk over her. The love and respect I have for her is at a scary level to be quite honest. The concert most definitely did not disappoint. She performed numbers from all of her signature roles and told hilarious and honest stories about her ups and downs throughout her career. She's seen the highest of highs along with some really tough lows and her honesty and grit is so incredibly inspiring. No, she's not perfect but I definitely admire her strength and charm! Who couldn't love Patti?! Not to mention she can still belt a high F and sustain it in exactly the same manner as she did circa Evita (1979), which for a woman her age is unheard of. The voice deteriorates as we age and the fact that she sounds just as good now is absolutely thrilling. She sang many of my favorites including Rainbow High, Buenos Aires (both from Evita), and even With One Look from Sunset Boulevard (which she wrongly only got to perform in London - but I could write an entire blog post about that scandal!) She also performed with several special guests including Raul Esparza, Frances Ruffelle, Christine Ebersole, and Howard McGillin. (I also happened to be sitting directly in front of these special guests in the audience so I was on a whole other level the entire night!) I could talk about this evening for several paragraphs but I'll save you all the time and leave it here for now!
That's enough ranting for this entry! I'll be posting my next entry in a few weeks for those who are interested. Now that I'm finally starting to feel at home here, I've been researching various acting classes, voice lessons, and auditions so maybe I'll have more to report in my next entry! I'm ready to begin finding creative outlets and educational opportunities as soon as I can. I'm in one of the largest and most creative cities in the world! There's no reason I shouldn't be pushing my limits and learning something new each and every day. I hope you all challenge yourselves to do the same no matter where you are! Let's be a better version of ourselves tomorrow than we are today!
-Macon