Is an old, low-quality clip of acting work better than having nothing to show at all?

I suppose that depends on what the purpose is. Are you trying to put together a demo reel for film? If the video is of you in play you did, then this might not be the best thing for you to use. If its film work…if the clip is old, and you don’t look like you did in the clip anymore, then that’s not so helpful either. It might show your range, but they want to know what you look like.

If you need to be more specific to get a better answer, feel free to contact me directly.

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Are you a morning or a night person? Do you think you could make the switch, if you had to? (Get up at 6am to go to the gym, or go to bed at 4am to…finish…stuff that isn’t finished?)

Right now, I’m a morning person. I’m up at 5am every day, and even on the weekend I can’t sleep past 6am. I could switch if I had to (I’ve done it before), but there had been a pretty good reason for my doing so, since its not a fast transition. Changing my sleep schedule is not something that happens overnight.

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Is there a good ratio of rehearsal time to production time? (Production time being the length of a single performance).

I have heard that you should spend 1 hour for every 1 minute of script. This might be a little excessive, depending on the play. However, its not a bad barometer to base your time estimate off of. Its important that you spend enough time going over the play, this is from book work, to blocking, to exploration. Its possible (and I’ve been involved in productions where this happened) to under rehearse. Whether this means that you just didn’t allow yourself enough time, or that you didn’t explore enough. I think an hour for every minute is a good starting point. This of course, increases if you have stage combat, or music, or dancing.

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How do you tackle writing for characters from different cultural/gender/backgrounds than yourself?

I tend to approach writing characters in the same way that I approach acting a character. As I write, in my mind, I go through the same exercises I do when acting. So, just as I can play someone from a different background than I, I can write them because I am playing the character as I write. This might not be the most efficient way of writing, but its how my mind works.

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Who’s the most talented person you know?

This question is more difficult to answer than you know. I know so many talented people. I’ll take this opportunity to name a few, and tell you why they are so awesomely talented.

Jim Zubkavich and Ray Fawkes make awesome comics. If you haven’t checked out Jim’s Skullkickers or Ray’s Possessions, you really are missing out.

Daisy MacLean makes movies, and good ones at that. Watch her, because you’ll know her name soon enough.

Adrianna Prosser is a talented actress, among many talented actresses I know. See also: Ginette Mohr, Hannah Barnett-Kemper, Dana Fradkin and…frankly, too many others to mention. Other actors to be watched: Nick May, Adam Bradley, Dylan Jukes and Scott McCulloch.

David Atkinson is a musical genius.

Those are just a few of the most talented people I know.

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