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prev # Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2004 1:12 p.m. # next
Naked and NativeI got naked yesterday. By that I mean, I did nude modelling for a figure drawing class at the university. I actually did a monologue about that once - ended with the character discovering a portrait of herself at a dinner party ("That's MY ass!"). If that never happens to me, I'll be glad. I didn't do this just for character research...Anyway, the class was interesting. It was from 4:30-7pm yesterday, and I started getting really nervous around 3:30. I've never taken off my clothes in front of a group of people that I didn't know...or that I did know, really - at least not 15 people at once - went streaking at IWU a time or two, but that's middle-of-the-night foolishness and nobody gets to scrutinize your body. So I was scared, but I made it. The moment of actually taking off the robe was by far the hardest, but once it was off and I was posing, everything was OK. The room was a bit *smaller* than I expected - the students were closer to me than I would've liked - but they were all professional about it, and they've had several models already so they're used to it at least. The professor's a sweet guy, gave me plenty of breaks. I spent most of the time doing 1-2 minute poses ("gesture poses"), then at the end of class one 15 minute pose in which I chose to recline nice and comfy. I made $50, not bad for pretty simple work. Doing it twice more, and now that I've gotten over the anxiety, it'll be easy. I think it was good for me, sorta empowering. I figure as an actor I should be able to "bear it all"...
Plus, as Ginger pointed out, it gives me more motivation to hit the gym! (something I've been lax about lately)
First rehearsal for TIC (Theater in the Classroom) was today - we're actually on lunch break, heading back in 1/2 hour. Spent the morning getting to know each other, introducing the new people to the theater itself and the company. The cast seems really cool, I'm excited to work with them. Mostly young people, early to mid twenties, very chill. We did some "cultural mapping" - asking a wide variety of questions (where were you born, where have you travelled, how many siblings, favorite Beatle, vegetarian/not, etc etc) and then standing in a place in the room based on your answer. Kinda fun, good way to get a feel for the group. Then we had a spontaneous but fascinating and revealing discussion about our spiritual journeys - what religion we were raised with (if any), what we believed (if we wanted to share it, of course), all of that. I find such discussions very intriguing, and I constantly want to hear what people think/believe. I'm in a very transitional phase right now, exploring my own spirituality. I love how different everyone's journey is, but I also see many similarities along the way. I was sad Jeremy was not there - if he'd wanted to share, his views would've been an interesting addition to the group. It seems to be a very open-minded crowd, from many different backgrounds, and we've already established a good atmosphere for rehearsal in terms of taking chances and respecting each other. Very cool. The show is Native American stories, and will certainly be quite spiritual, so this was relevant. We have a consultant, Rick Hawk Owl, a shaman who is really amazing. This should be fun!
Off to rehearsal...