Check out the trailer for the new stageplay I am starring in. Stay tuned to find out when we will be in a city near you!!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=07YOiKBSYLI

(November 2007) I had my first experience portraying Santa at Macy's in Philadelphia. Santa is in a booth at the end of what is called Dickens Village, a sophisticated and wonderful presentation of Dickens' classic about A Christmas Carol.

This was a practice run with the families of Macy's employees. But for the kids it was real.

There were three especially memorable moments.

A three year old girl came into my booth, and was immediately frightened to see a huge Santa Claus. I spoke gently to her, and in less than 30 seconds, she came over to me, sat down next to me on her big brother's lap, and starting smiling and chatting with me.

Another girl visited me with her mom and was very shy. She didn't smile when pictures were taken. She left the room. A few moments later though, when the rest of her family came to visit me, she ran back into the room and hugged Santa while the photographer took a picture of her and her cousin. Like the three year old, I had won her over, too.

The third memorable visit was one in which two boys came into the booth and immediately came over and hugged Santa. They were just delighted and maybe relieved to be visiting Santa. I didn't have to win them over. They were already beguiled.

I think this being Santa is going to be a lot of fun.

(November 2007)

My picture has just been placed on the cover of Scientific American Magazine's Web site. For a limited time, you can see it at

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=slumber-reruns-as-we-sleep

The picture was taken during the PhillyBuster istockphoto shoot early in 2007 by Diane Diederich.

Hello,

I would like to start out by saying Im very excited to be apart of The DDA Experience! Im looking forward in working on the many projects DDA has in the works. I recently wrapped production on a feature film called UFAC. Its a Science Fiction Family Adventure that I wrote and starred in. The cast includes a plethora of outstanding talent for the Philadelphia and New Jersey territories. You can read all about UFAC via the Internet in two places&

The official UFAC Web Site
www.ufac455.com
&
On MySpace
www.myspace.com/ufacworld

(November 2007) I was part of a Busy Bee Promotion that spotlighted Starbucks at Philadelphia's 30th Street train station November 8. I arrived at 5 AM, and helped set up the booth and all the mugs and coffee.

I volunteered to be part of the choral group that would sing Christmas carols to commuters as they passed through the station. We were a quintet.

We had a book of songs (lyrics, not notes), so we practiced softly for about 30 minutes. When it was time to start, we had a great time for several hours.

The quintet walked around the food court area and the waiting area for the local trains. We sang song after song to the end of the book of songs, and then started back at page one.

Commuters smiled, and some even sang along. A handful covered their ears and said, "It's too early!" I guess they hadn't started their Christmas shopping yet.

A Busy Bee manager took photos and video of us, and told us how happy he was with our singing.

When we weren't singing, we chatted with the commuters, and invited them to go to the booth and get free coffee.

All in all, a great day.

(November 2007) Things are heating up now that the cold Christmas season is upon us.

I'm preparing to portray Santa at Macy's in downtown Philadelphia from late November through December.

I have a number of Improv shows coming up, performing with The GiggleMill Improv Comedy Troupe.

I am portraying a spy at the Bistro Romano Dinner Theater.

I am performing in three films this year and one in January.

And I play a detective in a Dave and Buster's murder mystery several times in November and December, including New Year's Eve.

Being busy is the best.

(November 2007) I am conducting an Improv class once a week in Cheltenham Township, just outside of Philadelphia, PA. The class is primarily Thursday evenings from 7 to 9 PM.

One of the things that makes this Improv class unique is that students will get up to a year to attend ten sessions. That means they won't miss anything if they can't attend a week, here or there.

This one - year duration is meant to help working actors, or those who have jobs where they sometimes travel. This applies to me too, of course. There may be a week here or there where I can't give the class because I'm happily working elsewhere.

But what about the class itself?

I believe that people learn best by doing. So my two hour class is full of games and play. I teach my students how to play short form Improv games, much like you would see on "Whose Line Is It Anyway?". Then I customize the training to what will help each student to get the most out of the class. No boring lectures, just straight talk and plenty of game playing.

So far, it has been loads of fun, and I have really enjoyed watching my students improve from one class to the next.

Just posting an update for the week! After a busy few weeks of auditions, with call backs for some nice lead roles, I accepted the lighter, more "etherial" no-intensity role of GLINDA in Wizard of Oz. This allows me the freedom to be available to go into the studio, where I will be recording in Jan-Feb with my group, Kol Simcha. So, for now, I will be content living in a bubble!!!
Dec 2nd I will be singing my original music at a Salon of Music and Theatre in Wynnewood, Pa and on Dec 8th I fly to cincinnati where I will be singing in a women's prison
I am also booked for a training video for an Audi dealership on Dec 10th.
Wishing you all a blessed and healthy THanksgiving!!!

I performed in a staged reading Sunday of a new play by Paul Kuhn, as part of the Independence Starts Here festival, presented by Amaryllis Theater in the Adrienne Theater. The play looks at disabilities from many angles, and I got to play a manipulating bitch who actually says
"he's deformed!" - that took guts!

I'm off to London Tuesday for a quick Thanksgiving vacation with my family - can't wait, especially as we have tickets to see Sir Ian McKellan starring in King Lear!

Hi, this will be my first entry into my DDA Diary and i'm so excited to finally be writing in it. I just recently started a job as Macy's Dickens Villager in the production A Christmas Carol that they have every season in a hide away place in Macy's. I say hide away because I think it's amazing how a whole land full of snow, and enchantment, can recreate London in the third floor of a department store. The training was amazing my best friend and I met so many people that believe in following your dreams and going for what you believe in and never letting your passion of acting going, or any passion for that matter. We believe that the next couple weeks will be great working there. Today I went on an audition for a commercial for Forman Mills, and as soon as I was on my way home and I came out of the subway, my agent called and told me the I was put on first refusal. I'm so excited now and can't wait to hear back from them. I really felt that everything went well and that I showed enough enthusiasm and let my personality shine through. I guess I will just have to wait and see.

So many auditions, so little time! That's the hard part about living this area. It can get very expensive running back and forth to NY several times/week. So, you learn to pick and choose. Shooting a PSA this weekend. Something I feel strongly about too. Nice to feel like you are doing some good with your work!

Actually, this is more of a 'get up to speed' than an update. I'm currently busy with three ongoing projects: an online drama series about college freshmen, online hosting for a brand new site (you'll be hearing a lot about this in the next few weeks) and I've recently returned to co-hosting a live tv show in Delaware. The TV show is gearing up to broadcast live on the web. It's official; the internet is my new fairy godmother.

It's amazing how the internet has changed the acting industry. For example, I get a lot of hosting work because viewers like everything online to be in short little segments. "Here's a clip..." "Here's another clip..." "Check out this half hour show, no, no, I'm kidding, don't go away, it's a thirty second minute clip!" I love it, everything is fresh and alive, it's very exciting.

Even the college drama, which was originally 45 minute episodes, has been carved up into 4 minute bite-size pieces. I've watched the style change, they are writing and editing it differently, focusing on action over character development. As an actress, it makes me a bit nostalgic for the days of 5 minute closeups. As a viewer, I appreciate having more time to obsessively re-order my Netflix queue.

I always find the first blog entry to be the hardest. So I'll just skip all the intro stuff and jump right in.

I finally did something I should have done years ago: I submitted one of my stories for publication. Dont congratulate me yet, I might get accepted. Thats right,
Ill be depressed for ages if they publish it. Because everyone knows that truly brilliant writers are misunderstood and rejected and feared.
Rather than focus on the negative, Im trying to visualize what would make me happy. A good outcome might be an acceptance letter somewhere along the lines of:

Dear Ms. Callie,

Thank you so much for submitting your wonderful story. We
would love to include it an upcoming issue of The New
Yorker. Of course you did not submit it to The New
Yorker, but we felt it would be nothing short of wanton
selfishness to publish it in a low-circulation literary
journal.

Sincerely,
Margaret Atwood, Philip Roth and W. Shakespeare

But lets be realistic. They would find a stronger adjective than wonderful. Anyway Ill let you know how it works out. (They boast an average of 8 months turnaround.)

It's been a busy week. I had an audition which went well. Went to a couple of performance events which were great. The first was a fund raiser for the Philadlephia orchestra held at a friend's home. They had 2 singers from the AVA perform. They were terrific! Last night I went to Princeton to see Rain. It's the Beatles show. The musicians were great and of course the music wonderful!!! I find it helps me in my work to take in as much cultural diversity as possible.

I've been brought on to play the role of Matt for Slanted Porch Productions independent film Burying Joe. I just sent an email to the writer, saying, quite honestly, that the more I read of the script, the more interested I was in the part. Plus the director and writer seem like they have their collective wits about them. I like them very much and am looking forward to working with them (in case they're reading this). :) The website describes Matt as:

a hapless loser, who doesn't look half bad, but has a spotty history with the ladies. Whether it's due to his OCD, his sleep walking, or the abridged version of AA he's racing through so he can get back to the boozing, he's the favorite mark of his friends' mockery, but so are all true characters. (Slanted Porch Productions)

I was also offered/accepted a very small role as a TV evangelist in The Sacrament of Life, an independent film coming out of Ten Past Nine Productions. Technically, I was the guy at the table read who did the voices of everyone who couldn't make it, because I found out that my scene has been cut by the studio for the sake of brevity, but the writer/director brought me on because he loves the monologue and wants to put it back in. We'll see if I even get a chance to make it to the cutting room floor.

I butchered an audition for a role as a PBS Sprout host for children's TV. Oh well. I have a couple auditions upcoming that could help shape my spring. A non-speaking guard role in Frozen at InterAct Theatre (InterAct Theatre) and I've been invited by the wonderful Carol Laratonda to audition for Getting Out by Marsha Norman (Simpatico Theatre).

In Novermber, I might actually have to start turning down work. I just got a call from Walking Fish Theatre to have a sit down with the writer/director of their new play Adventures in the Skin Trade (Walking Fish Theatre). Apparently that goes up in January. When it rains, it pours. I've never had to turn down work before (and haven't yet), but I'm getting dangerously close. It's a strange feeling.

That's all for now.

Ryan

I'm excited...I've been cast as The Ghost of Christmas Present in A Christmas Carol. The audition was great...Craig, the director really took the time to work with me and see different sides of my acting. He asked me to do my monologue a few different ways; sitting on a park bench, meeting someone at a cocktail party, etc. It was wonderful, he really took something I've memorized and done one way and opened it up to new possibilities. It made me very excited to work with him more extensively, and now I have the chance.

Featured in the Princeton Packet!

Man, Woman, Woman


'Intimate Chaos' features a male character who has trouble accepting that two women prefer each other to him.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007 1:47 PM EST
By Anthony Stoeckert


--> Video --> --> Photos --> Cheril N. Clarke can often spot a movie or television show featuring lesbian characters that has been written by a straight male without reading the credits. Too often, portrayals of gay women reflect male fantasies and flamboyant gay men exist for humor without delving into what their actual lives are like.

"What about life, what about us going to work and paying taxes and raising our kids, because we're really not that different," Ms. Clarke says during a telephone interview. "The only thing that's different is who we fall in love with, everything else in life is the same. We have kids who go to daycare and we go to work like everyone else."

As a novelist and new playwright, Ms. Clarke aims to write accurate portrayals of gay women, particularly African-American gay women. She has written four novels and has adapted 2003's Intimate Chaos for the stage. The play will premiere at the Academy Theatre in Bordentown for a two-weekend run starting Nov. 9.

Obviously, Ms. Clarke is aiming to attract gay (and gay African-American) readers and audiences by taking honest looks at gay characters and their experiences, but she and director Stephen Stahl see a larger audience as well. Intimate Chaos' main character, Sadira (played by Tiffany Barrett) is feeling ignored by her partner, Jessie (Tanya Randall). Sadira soon meets and is instantly attracted to Kenya (Nichelle P. Nichols), who accidentally knocks on her door one lonely evening. At the same time, Sadira is discovering how her childhood has shaped her (she was raised in foster homes after her parents died and her twin sister was adopted).

"Even though the two lead characters are women and are in love with each other, the core of the story really has nothing to do with their sexuality," Ms. Clarke says. "It's about exploring their childhood issues of abandonment and fear and having issues with commitment and wanting to be loved. The actual story itself is something universal regardless of whatever gender, orientation or religion people may be."

"It's about love and relationships, whether gay or straight," Mr. Stahl says. "It's about human beings who are always looking for something that can't be fulfilled and how you meet that challenge and bond."

Despite tackling such serious issues as childhood abandonment, Intimate Chaos has a lot of laughs. Many come from the character Devonte (Walter DeShields), Sadira's co-worker and best friend who has that straight male fascination with lesbians (in one scene he asks Sadira personal questions based on what he saw in an episode of The L Word).

"A lot of humor comes from Devonte and his fascination with the women that (Sadira is) dealing with and how two completely feminine women can completely ignore him," Ms. Clarke says. "A lot of the humor is him saying, 'What is all this going on? You have all this man here and you're fighting over each other.'"

The writer and director met online when Ms. Clarke, the producer, was seeking a director. Mr. Stahl, whose credits include a London production of Lady Day, for which he was nominated for an Oliver Award, was drawn to the play because it was funny and well written, and because he believes there's a market for lesbian- and African American-themed theater.

"I looked at it as a female piece for gay women," Mr. Stahl says. "This is something that hasn't been done and it truly shows what a relationship is like."

"When we met in person, it was an instant click, we really liked each other and worked well together," Ms. Clarke says. "I like what he's done with my work. We've made changes, of course, since the first draft and over the last six weeks of rehearsals things have been changed, but I love the direction that it's gone in. He's tried to bring out a bit more humor and I think he was successful in that and that's going to make it stronger and more entertaining."

Ms. Clarke hadn't intended on writing a play, but when readers of the novel asked if it would be adapted to a film or play, she decided to give it a try. Changes had to be made  the action of the novel and the play's first draft featured three settings, an apartment, a nightclub and a subway station. Rewrites led to all the action taking place in Sadira's apartment.

With the Academy, one of the few smaller theaters close to her Mount Laurel home, Ms. Clarke believes she's found the perfect venue to premiere her play.

"I just liked the set-up on the inside, it's pretty intimate and cozy in there," she says. "It's a little hidden treasure."

Mr. Stahl also is happy with the theater, although he had doubts when he first saw the outside, which is located in a parking lot next to Mastoris restaurant.

"I looked at the building and said, 'She's gotta be kidding me. This is an office complex,'" he says. That impression changed when he saw the inside.

"Central Jersey should discover this place because it's a gem of a theater," he says.

As much as they like their Bordentown spot, they're expecting to see Intimate Chaos performed on stages in bigger cities. Mr. Stahl envisions it being performed in various cities (Baltimore, Washington, D.C. and Atlanta) for three- to four-week runs and says a producer just might be interested in doing that.

Intimate Chaos will be performed at the Academy Theatre, 146 Route 130, Bordentown, Nov. 9-17. Performances: Fri.-Sat. 8 p.m., Sun. 3 p.m. Tickets cost $25, $15 students; (609) 870-1059; www.intimatechaostheplay.com

I started the day at Greer Lange. The interview and audition went well but was then hit again with this join yet another Pro Talent link. I would love to know other experience with this process. I am already on two links. Last evening I went to see Being Alive at the new Suzanne Roberts Theater. The theater is beautiful. It has wonderful sound. I loved the concept of the show but thought the performers where very uneven and unable to pull it off. The new lighting on Broad Street looks great!

I'm back from Jamaica where our son was wed on Sat. Now that is over I am ready to wrap my head around some juicy roles. Last evening was the first our my advanced film class with Mike Lemon and am joined there with two other DDA actors.

A fast stop right before my scene study class with Ben Lloyd at People's Light...A fun and lively audition last evening for a musical... quick character changes reading for both a good witch and a wicked one! Got a call from the Arden today to audition for Our Town! That's tomorrow. Looking forward to auditioning. A great classic!

Booked a training video project for an Audi Dealership...from last week's auditions! Got a call-back for a lead in an upcoming play and have an audition tonight for yet another show! I love this busy season in the biz! Auditioning is great for keeping your skills fresh and sharp! I have a concert in Dec in Ohio as a solo artist and will be singing on Dec 2nd at a Salon of Music and Theatre on the Main Line. Having lots of fun!!!

HELLO ALL!!

I am currently starring in a brand new stage play that opens this week, Nov. 9th, in Bordentown, NJ at the Academy Theater. It is written by an amazing writer and directed by Bucks County's own Stephen M. Stahl, award winning world renowned director.

WWW.INTIMATECHAOSTHEPLAY.COM

Based on the critically acclaimed novel by Cheril N. Clarke comes the stage production of Intimate Chaos.

Get ready for a journey you will not forget! Intimate Chaos is a comical drama that will have everyone at the edge of their seats. It is a story of love and betrayal that you don't want to miss!

(November 2007) I was chosen to present 4 programs to schoolchildren in 2008.

The programs are Bruce Segal Assemblies. The programs include "Rainforests", "Cultural Diversity", "Endangered Species" and "New Jersey".

I am training for these programs now. My presentation of these programs is contingent on Bruce's leaving for Costa Rica (and its rainforests) in January.

(November 2007) I was cast to portray three parts in two films.

I will be portraying "Ringleader" in a film called "Tippy Toes". The film is directed by Bill Benz.

Ringleader is a vaudeville type character who appears in a dream sequence.

I had a grand uncle who actually performed vaudeville about 100 years ago.

Art imitates life.

----------------------------------

I was also cast to play two roles in a dramatic film called "The Compass".

I will portray a priest and also the father of the main character. I can play both parts because my face will not be visible as the father, although I will be providing a voice over.

"The Compass" will be directed by Louis DeSanto.

(September 2007) My modeling photos have been selling better than I ever dreamed of, on istockphoto.com.

My photos have only been available on the site for a few months, but they have been downloaded (i.e. purchased) an astonishing number of times.

I am really excited (and humbled) about this, since I haven't actively marketed my pictures. My pictures are competing against long-established photos and models.

The download statistics as of 9/26/07:

* My photo is ranked in the top 2% of all photos for men in their 40s.

* I have the #1, top-rated photo for men in their 40s, shown sleeping.

* My photo is rated in the top 6% of all photos showing married men of any age.

* I have two photos ranked in the top 7% for couples in their 40s (one is ranked in the top 4%, the other in the top 7%)  I am pictured with Rebecca in both of them

Much thanks to all those people who are buying my pictures!!!

(September 2007) I am in the midst of having four opening nights in 5 weeks.

I had an opening night, Friday August 17, performing as Borgo at the Bistro Romano murder mystery dinner theater in "The Deadly Brief Case". I will continue to perform this role four or so times a month for the next four months and probably beyond.

I had an opening night 8 nights later, August 25, on the Strasburg Railroad, as Scarlett Pimpernel in "The murder of Woolly Sedge". I will have three more performances before the end of the year.

On September 14, I opened a show for Public Eye: Artists for Animals, performing in "The Veggie Cabaret", as an emcee, singer and sketch / Improv comedian. There was another (final) performance September 15.

And on September 22, I had an opening night at Dave & Buster's with the Murder Mystery Players as the Reverend Richard Richards in "Murder I Do". I will perform this at least four more times, including New Year's Eve. Opening night was an amazing experience with a crowd of people who knew each other well. It was easy to play with the audience members, as we can do in interactive theater.

I had lots to memorize, plenty of characterizations to solidify, with distinctly different dialects and syntaxes. I had to keep them all separate from each other.

Four opening nights in 5 weeks. I love my "job"!!!

(September 2007) I performed in "Veggie Cabaret" for Public Eye: Artists for Animals, September 14 and 15. Public Eye is a group that supports humane treatment of animals. The show's theme was about being a vegan or a vegatarian.

The performance was part of the Philadelphia Fringe Festival. The venue was the Rotunda, at 4014 Walnut Street in Philadelphia, PA.

The Rotunda is quite an experience in itself.

For one thing, the entrance is off the street. So if you have never been to the Rotunda, it's an adventure trying to find it. On opening night, a number of audience members arrived late, because they got lost trying to find the show.

In addition to being the emcee, I also performed in 2 sketch comedy skits, did an Improv skit ("The Grillmaster"), and opened the show with a song and dance.

As the emcee, I interacted with the audience while introducing the acts. It's as close to stand up comedy as I get.

In the two skits, I was characters from two opposite ends of the spectrum. In one, I was a hunter, looking for meat at a vegan restaurant. In the other, I was a "hippie" vegetarian, trying to find vegetables at "Harry's Diner".

In the Improv skit, I was the recipient of a "Grillmaster" barbecue machine with a powerful engine, alarm signal, all-terrain tires, with lots of additional features such as a spatula and, somehow a bra.

Dan Piraro, who is famous as the creator of Bizarro, a nationally syndicated cartoon, also performed. It was quite a thrill for me, getting to talk to someone I have always admired as a brilliant comic cartoonist and commentator.

Both nights, the Rotunda was sold out.

You should go to the Rotunda some time, even if it's just to figure out how to get to it.

(August 2007) What a weekend August 24 to 26!

* Friday August 24, Part one, storytelling:

I was at the George Washington Headquarters at Valley Forge National Historical Park telling stories to visitors from 10:30 AM to 4:30 PM. This was for Once Upon a Nation. The stories last about 7 to 9 minutes each, and I told stories about 20 times or more during the day, in the 85 degree heat. Visitors came mostly from the United States, but I had visitors from Kenya and from Germany.

* Friday August 24, Part two, shower and a drive:

After the day of storytelling, I needed to drive downtown from Valley Forge to Old City in Philadelphia to perform that same night at the Bistro Romano.

On the way to downtown Philadelphia however, I first stopped at the Bally's Gym in King of Prussia, in order to shower up.

Once I left Bally's, there was a major traffic tie-up on the Schuylkill Expressway, so it took well over an hour to get to Old City, rather than the usual 45 minutes. I called the Bistro Romano Stage Manager from the car to say I could be late for the call. She said it would not be a problem if I was, since the call was two hours before show time.

* Friday August 24, Part three, Bistro Romano dinner theater:

That same Friday night, I performed as Borgo, a Romanian spy, at the Bistro Romano murder mystery dinner theater in Old City Philadelphia. The show went until about 10 PM, and the clean-up afterward lasted until at least 10:30 PM. By the time I got home it was after 11 PM, and I didn't get to sleep until after midnight.

* Saturday August 25, Part four, first time rehearsal:

The next morning, Saturday August 25, I had a first rehearsal for a Fringe Festival Play, The Veggie Cabaret. The rehearsal lasted from 10 AM to noon. I will be the Emcee, a sketch comedian, and an Improv performer. I will also sing and dance to start the show. I helped to edit the two sketches, and also edited the outline of the Improv performance. I also worked on my song. I arrived at home by 12:30 PM.

* Saturday August 25, Part five, long drive to Lancaster:

That Saturday afternoon, starting at 2 PM, I drove to Reading, PA to join a car pool going to a murder mystery show on the Strasburg Railroad, "Woolly Sedge". Overall driving and riding time was well over two hours.

* Saturday August 25, Part six, playing a brazen hussy:

My character in "Woolly Sedge" is a man who is conflicted about his sexuality. This means I dressed as a woman for that show. That was a new experience for me (believe it or not). I had to get dressed on the train car, since I could not get changed into a woman's clothes in the men's room.

The audience reaction to me in "Woolly Sedge" was tremendous. I played it as the brazen hussy my character was meant to be. What fun! The performance went from 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM. I didn't get home until close to midnight.

* Sunday August 26, Part seven, storytelling again in the heat:

Sunday, after waking up around 8 AM, I was back at the storytelling bench at George Washington's Headquarters in Valley Forge. 85 degree heat again. I told stories more than 20 times during the 7 1/2 hour storytelling day, to audiences of different sizes.

Exhausting, but so much fun.

(July 2007) I had quite a busy day Monday July 2 telling stories for Once Upon a Nation at Valley Forge National Historical Park. The busiest day by far.

I call out to people as they pass by, and tell them I have a free story. Each time someone sits at my storytelling bench, I tell them one of 8 or so stories that I have memorized. Sometimes multiple families will sit next to each other. My stories are about George Washington, Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, Martha Washington and other Revolutionary War era heroes (and villains).

During the day I told stories 30 times, each time to a different audience.

Each story takes about 10 minutes to tell, including setting it up. That means that I was busy telling stories for about 5 hours during the day.

That's 30 performances lasting a total of 5 hours in duration, within a 7 hour time span of the day.

Whew!

(June 2007) I performed as a print model for Geisinger Insurance in Lancaster, PA.

Interestingly enough, during a chunk of my business career, I was in the insurance field. I ran market research, oversaw strategic planning and did product planning.

The photo shoot was set up by a Talent Agency located in Lancaster. The location was a warehouse. Not a typical location for an insurance office, but the shoot was to depict a company and its management that would be insured.

I was in three shoots during the day. In the first, I posed with a young man and woman, next to a fork lift truck. In the second, I stood at a chalk board with a middle-aged man who was pointing at some writing on the board. In the third and last one, I sat at a table in a conference room with a man and woman, showing them a brochure.

The photos are intended to be seen in flyers that Geisinger will use as promotional materials.

It was fun "pretending" to be an executive for an insurance company.

Deja vu, anyone?

(June 2007) I had a reunion of sorts with a newscaster, Sue Serio.

I appeared on a local TV news program (Fox, channel 29) June 18, as a storyteller for Once Upon a Nation.

The backdrop for the filming was the Memorial Arch at the Valley Forge National Historical Park. I appeared in the background from 7 AM to 9 AM, as Sue Serio gave her weather reports and other insights every eight minutes or so.

The park and the Once Upon a Nation storytellers and first person interpreters were being shown in Fox's "tank of gas" feature which highlights places you can visit within a tank of gas from Philadelphia.

Sue Serio remembered having interviewed me two years before, when I portrayed bank robber Willie Sutton at Eastern State Penitentiary.

Sue said that I never broke character during that interview and I "scared the bejabbers" out of her.

Little old me?

(June 2007) I began my third season as a storyteller for Once Upon a Nation. This year I am telling stories at Valley Forge National Historical Park.

I will be telling stories at George Washington's Headquarters. This is the headquarters where George Washington stayed during the 6 months the army was at Valley Forge. It is amazing to be at the site where one of the greatest Americans lived.

I will also be telling stories at the Memorial Arch. This arch, which looks a bit like the Arc de Triomphe in France, was built to memorialize the efforts of the Continental Army during some of the most trying months of the Revolutionary War.

The list of stories I tell includes:

1) George Washington's hero (and how his hero may have helped to change the direction of the Revolutionary War)

2) A birthday bash that took place at Valley Forge (Martha Washington actually makes a ghostly appearance during this story, and she is quite fetching)

3) America's favorite game show: Which George Was It? (This show is sponsored by Ben Franklin's kite and electricity store whose logo is "If you want to discover electricity, go fly a kite".)

(June 2007) You could call it walking a tight wire without having a net below to catch you when you fall.

I recently filled in for another actor in a murder mystery dinner theater production on the Strasburg Railroad.

I was not able to attend a performance or rehearsal ahead of time. Therefore...

My first rehearsal was also my first dress rehearsal which was also my opening night, all rolled up into one.

In other words, I learned the lines and movements without the benefit of a rehearsal or an interaction with my fellow performers. My first time rehearsing the show was right in front of a live, paying audience.

That is akin to taking a final exam in college without ever having attended a class; or like reading a book on how to cut hair, and then cutting a customer's hair without first getting any practice.

The audience seemed to like me, and the show moved as quickly as it did with the regular performer. I got a real actor's high because it went well.

But I still believe rehearsal makes performing a lot less harrowing.

(May 2007) I recently portrayed a high school principal in a film directed by Doug Poland, a senior at Temple University School of Communications and Theater.

The film was called "Going Public".

"Going Public" was entered in the Diamond Screen Film Festival at Temple University. To say it did well would be an understatement.

It won an award as the best undergraduate film.

It feels great to know I was part of something that received such acclaim.

Way to go, Doug and crew!

(May 2007) I performed in a show called "From the Mouth of The River", which was meant for animal lovers of all ages.

I portrayed Captain Bill, a crusty, seasoned fisherman. Seeing me in costume may have been worth the price of admission, by itself. I walked on stage in a cardboard "boat", with a sailor's hat askew on my head, which forced one of my ears down at an unusual angle. Most of my dialogue was with a 10 year old girl playing an under-sized, endangered fish.

The show was presented by a group called Public Eye: Artists for Animals. It was a family-oriented performance featuring puppet shows, dance, skits and song, to raise awareness about the human impact on aquatic animals in the Delaware Valley ecosystem and beyond.

In addition to following a script and occasionally using Improv to provide additional humor, I sang two songs during the show, "I Remember" and "Live".

I also did a voice-over narration for a beautiful 3 minute film depicting aquatic animals and the dangers some of them face, due to human actions.

It feels particularly heartwarming to perform for such a worthy cause. I felt like I was glowing after the show because of the audience reaction, especially from the children.

(May 2007) I am in the midst of a busy schedule in May and early June.

I have been named a Storyteller for the third straight summer by Once Upon a Nation (OUAN). Training for this season's program lasts three weeks in May including the memorization and staging of at least 6 stories, each lasting up to ten minutes. I will be opening a new storytelling program at Valley Forge National Historical Park, so there is much to learn.

I am continuing as Hal Lightbelt at the Bistro Romano dinner theater. I am also learning a second role in that play, which means learning a different set of lines, building a separate character and learning new entrances and exits.

What's more, for that new role, I will be having my first rehearsal, my first and only dress rehearsal and my opening night all at the same moment, in front of a live audience.

I am also learning a new part in a play that is debuting in May for Act 1 Production in Reading. In addition, I'm learning a role in another Act 1 play to fill in for someone else in early June.

I am emceeing and performing in three GiggleMill Improv Comedy productions in May, including two Improv murder mystery shows. That involves writing the murder mysteries, rehearsing them, and then performing them.

I performed as Captain Bill in May in a show for a group called Public Eye. I also did a voice-over for a film that was used in the show.

I am also performing in two shows for Murder Mystery Players, another interactive dinner theater group.

There is a lot of overlap.

One Saturday in May, I performed in three separate shows. The next Saturday, it was two shows, each of them miles apart.

So I am performing in a number of shows in one month's time, as 7 characters in all, not including the Improv comedy shows. That's a lot of memorization and characterization...and pressure.

I hope my voice box holds out.

(May 2007) I am the Managing Director of, and a performer with, The GiggleMill Improv Comedy troupe. We just performed at a sweet sixteen party. The GiggleMill plays Improv games similar to "Whose Line Is It Anyway?" We ask for audience suggestions, and then play games that have obstacles, such as not being able to say words with the letter "R" in them.

We built a version of our fully Improv murder mystery format to accommodate a room full of sixteen year old girls.

They wanted the murder victim to be the DJ (a male), and we made short work of that. Then one by one we introduced suspects into the games. The suspects were some of those 16 year olds in attendance at the party.

The plot thickened as we uncovered motives and possible murder weapons, all through the use of Improv games. At the end of the night, the murderer was revealed. It was a close friend of the birthday girl!

Any concern we had about entertaining a group of 16 year old girls was short-lived. They were fun, and into the spirit of the games from the start.

The girls supported their friends who volunteered to play in the Improv games. They giggled a lot and they gave funny suggestions for The GiggleMill to use.

We'll be performing for a party of 14 year olds soon.

WE ARE READY!

(May 2007) My professionally taken photos have been selling like hotcakes!

I recently posed for about a dozen professional photographers in Cort Furniture Store at PhillyBuster2007. To date (5/2/07), 535 photos have been posted for sale on a lightbox. This allows the public to browse and purchase the photos for their own use by downloading them. Of the 535 photos, about 5% were taken of me.

By May 2, 2007, a photo of me was the second most downloaded photo from among the 535 total photos. Another of my photos placed 15th, and a third was ranked 19th. Three of my photos were tied for 28th most downloaded, and two were tied as 38th most downloaded.

This means that eight of my photos were ranked within the top 38 in downloads.

On May 2, 2007, 154 of these photos were classified as men photos. Of those 154 photos, my pictures were rated number 1, 4 and 8. Two others were tied for 10th place in number of downloads.

I hope it's not just my mother buying them.

(April 2007) My trips to New York for auditions always wind up being adventures, even when everything looks as if it will go smoothly.

I was e-mailed the day before to go to an audition for a photo shoot. A photo shoot is a print modeling job, typically for a magazine, newspaper or brochure. The photographer called me the day of the audition, moments before I was to leave for the audition, in order to confirm when I would arrive. I wrote some notes down from the conversation, and then left for NYC.

I hit a lot of traffic on the way to the Hamilton, NJ train station. Thankfully I had left early, with plenty of time to spare. As I drove along, I kept re-calculating which train I would get, hoping I wouldn't use up all of my spare time, in the heavy traffic.

I had a performance that night, and I needed to drive about an hour to get to that show, once I got back from the audition.

When I arrived at Hamilton, I was greeted by a couple of fellows I hadn't expected to see. They had foreign accents (possibly Swedish) that were difficult for me to understand.

One of them told me that there were no parking spaces left in the garage and I would have to park in the contractors lot. He asked me for $5 to park there. I gave it to him because it was getting late, the train was arriving in 5 minutes, and $5 was the correct price. Also he had a receipt to give me, which made it look official.

I left my car behind, hoping it would still be there when I got back to Hamilton.

Once on the train, I realized that I didn't have the address where I was going for the audition. Before I left my house, when I wrote down the notes from my phone conversation with the photographer, I had left the address on the dining room table.

So here I was on my way to Manhattan, and I had no idea where I was going other than three blocks from Madison Square Garden.

When I arrived at Penn Station, I looked for a phone book. I thought I knew the name of the studio where I was supposed to go. I asked the information people at Penn Station if they had a phone book or knew where I could get one. They said there probably wasnt a phone book in all of Penn Station. They directed me to go to the Tourist Center.

When I arrived at the Tourist Center there was a young man and woman there. I told them the name of the studio. I was proud that I had remembered it. The woman looked the name up on her computer, but couldnt find it. I realized that she was on Google.

I asked if I could use her computer to get on my AOL account. She turned the computer around to me, I entered my information and there I was in AOL. I found the e-mail that directed me to go to the audition in the first place, saw that I had been giving the woman the wrong studio name, and took down the address of the audition.

After vigorously shaking the hands of both the man and the woman and heaving a big sigh of relief, I walked the three blocks to the studio, safe in the knowledge that everything else would go smoothly. The number for the address was 214. When I arrived at the correct street, I walked down the street and saw a door with 212 on it. I knew the next door would be 214.

Unfortunately, the next door was 216.

I looked at the 216 for a while, wishing there was some way I could change it to 214. Then I walked back to the 212. There was nothing in between the two that could have been 214.

A fellow was sitting on a ledge at 210. He must have instinctively understood my plight. He started talking to me in a thick, eastern European accent. I couldnt understand him very well, but he was patient. He finally said, Keep walking. As I walked away from him, past 212, he said, Keep walking. As I got to 216 he said, Keep walking. Sure enough, the next door after 216 was 214. Somehow, in the logic that is Manhattan, 214 is a higher number than 216.

I arrived at the audition.

To shorten this story, I wont go into detail about the blonde Scandinavian female model who was both nervous and seemingly very experienced, or the 22 year old woman dressed in all black, who was upset that I guessed her age was 25, when she wanted me to guess it was 18.

When I got back to the Hamilton parking lot, I noticed that I had left the riders side window open on my car for the entire day. Thankfully nothing was stolen. I made it home and then felt really good at the performance that night.

I guess Im starting to take Manhattan in stride.

(April 2007) I recently performed in a film called The Pink List as Jacques Seele, the French father of a boy who was held in a concentration camp during World War 2.

The film was written and directed by John Funk.

Moments before we started shooting, I met the woman who would be portraying my wife in the film, whose name is Toni.

Toni moved from the New York area to Philadelphia not long ago. She is a union performer (SAG, AFTRA and Equity) which is good for finding performing jobs in New York. She is finding it very different in Philadelphia, which is primarily a non-union town.

Toni and I worked very well together. Toni is talented and experienced. If you perform enough on stage and in film, it's easy to get quickly acclimated to someone new, and perform as if you had been working together for quite some time.

Each time I work with an experienced performer like Toni, I am also amazed at the interesting stories I hear. For instance, Toni is a member of Mensa, has been the killer in a murder mystery, and has performed in a film with Robert Redford.

Each person I chat with at auditions or performances tells a tale about the acting field that is in some ways like other tales I have heard. But in other ways, everyone's story is also very unique.

Acting is never dull.

(April 2007) I portrayed Willie Sutton for the second consecutive year at Eastern State Penitentiary, the weekend of March 31 and April 1.

Willie Sutton is best known for something that might never have taken place. He was widely known as a bank robber in the 1930's and 1940's, and was once called the "Babe Ruth of bank robbers". Reportedly, when a reporter asked Willie why he robbed banks, Willie answered, "Because that's where the money is." That may not be a true story.

I gave "live" interviews to visitors at the penitentiary all weekend. I re-enacted Willie Sutton's escape from Eastern State Penitentiary Sunday morning April 1.

The very first tour group that came through included a former prisoner of Eastern State Penitentiary. He listened intently as I told my story, never challenging me, other than asking why my shoes had shoelaces. I responded that the jailers trust me now. He rightly remembered that the jailers didn't want the prisoners to have access to shoelaces.

It was obvious that the former prisoner didn't like Willie Sutton much. But he also seemed to have a grudging respect for Willie.

I guess if Willie can survive Eastern State Penitentiary, he can survive a visit from a former fellow prisoner.

(March 2007) I am the Managing Director for, and a performer with, The GiggleMill Improv Comedy troupe. We recently performed for Middle School students from Houston, TX.

The students were on a history tour of the Philadelphia area. The organizers decided that the students would like a special treat, Improv comedy.

Improv comedy involves playing games that last 3 to 5 minutes each. The rules for each game are different. In one game for instance, we had two performers who could speak during the game. These two people could not move, though unless moved by two audience members. The two audience members were not allowed to speak during the game.

We had been warned by our associates how difficult Middle School students would be. In light of this, The GiggleMill prepared a highly interactive night of games.

When the students arrived at the location at 8 PM, they had already been awake since about 6 AM. The students had spent the day touring different parts of the Philadelphia area. The organizer warned me that they were exhausted, and they certainly looked that way.

Undaunted, The GiggleMill began its first of ten games. The games were very interactive, requiring not only suggestions from the audience, but the opportunity for volunteers to join The GiggleMill performers on stage.

The students quickly warmed to the task, eagerly shouting out suggestions for each game, when asked. There was no shortage of volunteers to perform on stage. The volunteers were funny and full of energy.

During the show, the eager murmuring in the audience and the enthusiastic applause they provided at the end of each game were beautiful sounds to hear. Audience members especially applauded the volunteers for their efforts. By the end of the show, almost every one of the 80 students either provided a suggestion or performed on stage with The GiggleMill. Those who were a little shy, and just wanted to watch, could do so in comfort.

At the end of the show, The GiggleMill received an amazing ovation. Individual students came up to the performers and thanked them for the wonderful show. This came from those supposedly difficult middle school students!

The organizer said he could not believe how much the students came to life during the one-hour show. He said he would use The GiggleMill again when he brings another student group through Philadelphia.

The GiggleMill had won them over.

(March 2007) Modeling is one amazing experience!

I modeled for a group called The PhillyBuster Crew. I was photographed by about 8 different professional photographers. I wore a business suit and posed at a desk in a furniture store.

The photographers had to sign up and then wait in line to take pictures of me. I was pretty much busy for three hours straight.

I was often matched up with Rebecca, a fellow actor. Many of the photographers took shots of the two of us in a number of poses.

I also posed in a casual outfit and in sleeping gear.

There were several other models, who were busy at other posts.

Aside from getting paid, I get to keep some of the pictures, which I hope to share on this web site when I receive them.

I felt very comfortable posing for the photographers. By the end of the night, a number of them told me they felt I was a natural at modeling. Coming from such seasoned professionals, I was flattered.

I was told that actors are very often good at modeling because they are so expressive

There will be a screening of the Arrival Video Production of the film "Ghost Tours of New Hope" directed by Scott Randolph at The Village Players of Hatboro on Saturday, November 17th, 401 Jefferson Avenue, Hatboro, Pa at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $10. The movie was first shown at the Bucks County Playhouse in New Hope, Pa. The film was shot in and around New Hope using dozens of local actors. I play one of the ghosts and served as casting director.

For more information: www.thevillageplayers.com or www.arrivalvideo.com

I am hopeful to be one of the models for a very popular infomercial t.v. program very soon. I have become a part-time employee of this company for extra income for the holiday and while sitting through orientation, someone from the HR dept who works with the person who oversees their models, couldn't resist asking if I modeled. Now approaching an employee is not their normal channels but when you see good talent, it's hard to pass up. I don't know what will come of this, but I'm staying optimistic that I will be asked to audition or even come on as one of their regular models.

(February 2007) I just got through shooting two scenes for a play called "Captive".

Although "Captive" is a live play, it's a multi-media event. That means that portions are filmed ahead of time, and later shown during the live performance.

I won't be part of the live performance, but I will be there, in living color on a screen, during the live show.

I had done this once before for Uncut Productions. I portrayed the father of a naive boy in a film that was a spoof of 1950's sex education films. The film was shown during the live performance of the play.

It will be interesting knowing that people will be seeing me on film at a live performance, even though I won't be there.

(February 2007) In the Dave and Buster's Play, "Death Plays the Market", a role was changed from Elizabeth to Elliott to accommodate my playing it as a male.

Elliott (as was Elizabeth) was from England. I played the character with a British accent, and had to change the nuances of the role from female (as it was scripted) to male.

After performing this role a few times, the director has asked me to change the character to a frenchman. That means speaking the same lines with a French accent.

Although this doesn't require my re-learning all the lines, it means that I have to re-learn how to deliver all of the lines.

The accent and language change is not the most unusual part though. The character itself becomes transformed, just as it did when it went from being a woman to a man, from Elizabeth to Elliott.

The French person in me plays Elliott very differently from the English person in me. The French have a different way about them. The language change and new accent make a very different character out of Elliott, even though the lines are almost exactly the same.

From woman to British man to French man. Quelle transformation!

(February 2007) Sometimes unusual things can trigger memories about past performances.

I have been performing as Hal Lightbelt (a loony character) at the Bistro Romano's dinner theater since May 2006. The show is a murder mystery called "Double Jeopardy".

At the Bistro Romano, we have a script we have to follow. Between acts, however, I go into the audience and interact (in character) with individual audience members. Sometimes, I get to talk to each audience member before the night is through.

I enjoy this the most. I never know what audience members will say, but when they speak, I react quickly to make them laugh, or to further the plot.

At the end of the night, the audience members are asked to fill out a form. On this form, audience members can guess who the murderer is, and they can add comments about the performance. Those comments are later shown to the actors (the authors of the comments remain anonymous).

In January, I saw the comments from the "Double Jeopardy" show of December 8th 2006.

One comment really touched me. It said, "I loved Hal. It was the greatest day of my life."

Because I was reading the comment over a month after the show, I couldn't imagine who the writer could have been. I couldn't remember who would have been attending that particular night.

Two people immediately came to mind, however, that may have been at that performance.

One was a young girl (8 or so?) who was there with her family. I had asked her to pretend to be the reigning "little Miss Universe". She agreed to do it.

Between acts three and four, I introduced her to the audience and had her stand up as "Little Miss Universe". The audience, which knew it was just a fun introduction, applauded her enthusiastically. Her smile was as bright as a lighthouse.

The other possibility was a young woman (about 17 years of age?) who was very shy. She was at the show with her family and a close friend. I discovered what her name was, and called out her name a number of times during the show, just to get her involved (and make her smile).

She was a little teary during the last act of the show. Her friend confided to me that she had said something regrettable to the young woman and was trying to console her.

While the show was in progress, I sat next to the young woman, and tilted my head against hers. She tilted her head back against mine, creating a kind of informal hug. She perked up, and stopped crying.

I don't know if the author of the comment was either of these two wonderful people. There are so many others who have been very responsive to "Hal", and have let me know through their laughter and smiles.

The words on that comment sheet, though, are important to me. It means that I truly made a difference in someone's life through my performance, and through my improvisation.

And I'm glad the comments have reminded me of those two young ladies.

(February 2007) I had to scramble a lot when I portrayed a high school principal in a day of shooting of a film called St. Francis High.

The shoot was at West Philadelphia Catholic School, which graciously allowed the filming at their location.

For this shoot, I had been told by the director, Doug Poland, to be prepared to shoot the last scene only. I would be having my other scenes shot another day. I worked on memorizing my lines.

Of course, as often happens in films, whether the most expensive feature film or the least expensive student film, things changed rapidly in the shot sequence.

Soon after arriving at the location, the director told me that he would be shooting another, much longer scene. That meant that I had to learn that whole scene in a few minutes before the filming began. Luckily I had reviewed it before, which made it easier to memorize.

In short order, I was ready and we shot the scene. Then, because we had some time to spare, the director decided to shoot another scene. I memorized that as quickly as possible, and we shot that scene too.

We didn't shoot the original scene that was planned for that day. That had to wait for another day.

This was all fun anyhow, and at least I have the last scene already memorized, for when we actually shoot it.

(January 2007) How did a night filming turn into an Improv performance?

First a little background. I portrayed Detective Morris in a film titled Hegemonster (pronounced "hedge-monster").

Detective Morris arrests and interrogates Taylor, the lead role in this film about drugs and murder.

The film was written by Natasha Eng and Eli Horne and is produced by Ryan Tuller and Sam Sero.

The first day of shooting for me was a night shoot, on the streets of Philadelphia. The script had me arresting three drug dealers during a sting operation.

As we rehearsed and shot this scene, a car drove up onto the set with three women inside. The driver came out, and asked what we were doing. She was told that it was the filming of a drug bust.

I decided to tease her about being a groupie. For the next couple of minutes, she and I spontaneously improvised a scene about how I was going to arrest her for being a groupie without a "groupie's license", while she protested my characterization of her as a groupie.

I had never seen her before, and I doubt she's a performer, but her Improv was about as good I've seen.

The cast and crew were in stitches, laughing. The women in her car had their mouths wide open, watching it all unfold.

After a while, she went back to being herself, said she had to go, and got back in the car and drove away.

The cameras were rolling, so the Improv was partly captured on film. I hear it will be included as an out-take and blooper.