Today was a very exciting day for me, and I imagine that tomorrow will be just about as exciting. As an intern in the great city of Philadelphia, InterAct sent me and another intern to watch the annual auditions for the Theatre Alliance of Greater Philadelphia. Not only were we watching the auditions, but we were scouting for certain roles. While it was exciting to be able to see so many different actors audition, it was also a little bit scary because just after the first break began we were left to ourselves. There were really only a couple of actors who could potentially fit into one of the roles still available for next season, but there were so many people who were so much fun to watch. It seemed after a brief discussion before Becky left that we were all kind of on the same page and it seemed a little less daunting. Being thrown into the mix like that without much of an idea what they are looking for other than having read the scripts once was...different.
Many of the actors I saw today were SAG or AEA, and/or had received their MFA. It was a lot of fun to look at the resumes and see what these people had done and could do. It was helpful from an acting perspective as well as being helpful from a casting perspective, since I have no experience with it. I do wish that Becky had been able to stay that way Jessica and I could have had a little bit more guidance as to what they were looking for. The way it was put to us was basically that it isn't likely that anyone from these auditions will actually work for what they're looking for, but it's good to at least see what new talent there is in Philadelphia so they can put people on their radar.
Beyond all that, I've read 2 of 4 plays that I need to read probably before Wednesday. The first I read was When We Go Upon the Sea by Lee Blessing (which I talked about before). It turned out to be a very interesting play. George Bush is on trial for international war crimes the next morning and is staying in a hotel where a man, Piet, is watching over him for the night. They start talking about politics and the people of the U.S., and shortly after a woman named Anna-Lisa comes to the room to help relax him. Over the course of the evening, they talk about life and politics while they drink and do drugs. Very interesting stuff.
The other play I read was called City of Numbers (written and performed) by Sean Christopher Lewis. It is a synthesis of interviews of convicts, families and friends of victims, and community members about the crime in Philadelphia and the Philadelphia's Mural Arts program. This show would be so interesting to watch as it made me think about so many different things, like privelege and how fortunate some people are for the opportunities that are presented to them (and me). I was also forced to think of how convicted murderers are still human beings. I was so conflicted because even though I recognize these convicts are humans, and they can thrive if given opportunities, they've permanently taken away any opportunity to thrive from another human being. I love the idea that the problem of crime in Philadelphia is being recognized through this art and that it is showing that there are people who are trying to make a change by actually building a community.
Tonight I'm planning on reading yet another play, and tomorrow I'll be at auditions all day again. Very exciting! The picture at the top is one of the many murals which are all over Philadelphia.
