Welcome to the 60's! (Nov 2012)

From the Green Room:

I can't believe it's only been a month since last G2GR, so much has happened! The Buddy Holly Story had a great, albeit short, run. It was so bittersweet to say goodbye to that production and cast. We were really just hitting our stride when we closed. The day after Buddy closed, I flew right from Sullivan, IL to Syracuse, NY to begin rehearsals for Hairspray at the Redhouse Arts Center. I landed at about 7pm, and was in rehearsal by 8pm! I've been having a blast playing the role of Link Larkin so far (we open this weekend). This has been the “bridesmaid” of roles for me... Always a callback, never a call. I think I've been called back for this role for nine different productions, so it feels very good to finally be able to do it. This production is very special too because the Redhouse is an educational theater that utilizes professional actors (Equity Guest Contract), community members, and inner-city youth. It's so neat to be performing in a professional caliber show while passing on my knowledge to upcoming and community actors! Something I can definitely see myself doing more of later in my career.

From outside the Green Room:

As I mentioned, the Buddy contract was too short but I had such a blast doing it. That is quite possibly one of the most multi-talented casts I've ever worked with. Everyone could play several instruments, so we enjoyed several pretty awesome jam sessions. We also treated ourselves to a “Hallow-giving”, a huge potluck feast on Halloween. We ate amazing food and watched horror movies all night. Since being in snowy Syracuse, I've been very busy with rehearsals, but did get a chance to get away for Thanksgiving. I took off to St. Louis for a few days to spend Thanksgiving with Morgana's family. They have a HUGE family reunion feast with tons of people and food... such a great time! I also got to see where she grew up and spend some quality time with her family. It was a much needed break from rehearsal... although it was a little daunting to come right back into a 10 of 12 (12 hour tech rehearsal)! Besides that, this cast is great and I've loved working/living with the other “NYC professionals”. We live in an amazing apartment in the same building as the theater. Obligatory theater shenanigans ensues... Very “Real World” -esk!

Lessons Learned:

Green to Green Room was started to chronicle my journey from businessman into working actor. Ironically enough, if I keep it up, it may follow the journey back into the world of business, just with a brand new focus and much more direction. I say this because my new long-term career goal is to someday own/executive direct/artistic direct my own regional theater company. Don't get me wrong, I hope to still have plenty more performing days ahead of me, but I've started to take note for the distant future. My past several contracts have really allowed me to pin-point aspects of each theater company that I really enjoy. I love the production value and reputation of Ogunquit's main stage shows, the venue at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina, the “school” of the Little Theater, and the diverse educational aspects of Redhouse. So now my request to everyone, if you know of anyone that could set me up with a “theater biz” job, especially in NYC, I'd definitely be interested in speaking with them. Paid internships, production assistant, etc... Although, performing jobs still take priority! Thanks!

Peace and Love,
Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Another Openin', Another Show! (Oct 2012)

From the Green Room:

This month's G2GR is coming to you live from the dressing room of The Little Theater on the Square in Sullivan, IL where upstairs Buddy Holly is currently rocking the Apollo Theater! We are currently in our opening weekend for Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story after only ten days of rehearsal. This show is more of a play with music, as all the songs performed are done in a concert style with the actors playing all the instruments. This has made it a beast of a show to tackle in such a short period. Our director, Erik Hayden, is a fantastic musician as well as director and has been very helpful in assuring everything runs smoothly. Another big help is that many of the cast members have done the show before which allows more focus to be placed on the technical aspects of the show (sound, lights, sets, etc...) than scene work and music rehearsals. This is all well and good, except if you've never done the show before! I definitely had to put in many extra hours for line memorization, scene work, and music rehearsals. But it's all fun work to do! Overall, it's been a great experience and wonderfully refreshing to work on a new project! It is, however, a little overwhelming getting emails about my Hairspray rehearsal schedule before I've even wrapped my current show, but that's a good problem to have!

From outside the Green Room:

Things wrapped up nicely in New York before I left for my current contract... I had finally gotten back into the swing of coaching and was really starting to love ushering as well, but those things will always be waiting for me when I get back. I packed up my room and got it ready for my subletter a few days early because Morgana and I were headed down to the Washington DC area for my brother's wedding. It was a great venue, beautiful ceremony, awesome party, and all-around perfect weekend getaway with Morgana before I had to leave. You can read more about it on my new sister-in-law's blog! On the day of the wedding, we had some extra time to kill in the morning, so Morgana and I went horseback riding through the country. It was so nice to get outdoors! I don't think I've been on a horse for over a decade... I left Sunday and flew into Chicago where a theater representative picked me up and we drove the four hours down to Sullivan. It's a very quaint little midwest town but we've had some fun at a local Chili Cook-off and The Great Pumpkin Patch, among other fun little adventures!

Lessons Learned:

I was going to talk about how preparation and personal practice time are key in such a short rehearsal period (we put the whole show up in ten days, I remind you)... but decided to focus on something else because today at the Saturday Matinee, I got a little emotional at the Clearlake Concert which is basically a giant 20 minute concert of all of Buddy's greatest hits to finish the show. I play Keys 2 during this part so I get to look out over the audience and watch everyone. It really hit home that the majority of the people in the audience lived these moments for real... They may have never seen Buddy Holly live, but they definitely went and saw other shows like this and are very familiar with the music. It must have felt like a time-warp for them to be there. I saw elderly men and women literally dancing in the aisles like they were 16 again, smiles ear-to-ear, because the last time they shared this experience they were 16! The pure power of music and theater was made very evident to me today... and it's always nice getting reminded of that every now and again.

Peace and Love,
Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Better late than never... (Sept 2012)

From the Green Room:

I apologize to all who follow my newsletter for skipping a month and being late this month. New York City is all I remembered it to be! Hectic, hectic, hectic! But it's been great being back. I finished up in Ogunquit in the middle of July and headed back to Pittsburgh for some much needed R&R. I finally moved back to NYC on August 1^st to get back to the grind. I've been pounding the pavement and making the rounds at auditions and have fortunately had some luck recently! After several rounds of final callbacks for the national tours of Elf and Hair (for the role of Claude), as well as several cruise ships and regional theaters... I finally got a bite! I'm taking off on October 15^th to head to Sullivan, IL to play Norm Petty in The Little Theater on the Square's production of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. That wraps up November 4^th and I immediately fly to Syracuse, NY to begin rehearsals for the Red House Arts Center's production of Hairspray, in which I'll play Link Larkin! I've been wanting to play that role for a while now, so I am very excited! I also get to play piano in Buddy, which will be challenging but fun! So, as soon as I'm back in NYC, this crazy industry ships me off for the rest of 2012... and I couldn't be more excited about it!

From outside the Green Room:

After a much needed break in Pittsburgh, I made the move back to my apartment in New York City and began the process all over again. First on my list was to get that income back flowing! I had a little lull in the beginning of August where I was able to fit in some background work. It's a thankless job, but I really have a good time doing it! Look for me on future episodes of 666 Park Ave and Girls! I was then able to line up a great job working as an Usher at the Harold and Miriam Steinberg Theater in Times Square. It's a great off-broadway theater currently hosting Jake Gyllenhaal's American stage debut, If There Is I Haven't Found it Yet. I've loved working in the front of house, it really keeps my focus on where I want to eventually be! Finally, I started coaching soccer for Super Soccer Stars again which pays well and is a very rewarding job... who can complain about playing soccer with kids in Central Park! Outside of the “survival jobs” I've just been enjoying having Morgana and friends around and trying to take advantage of all NYC offers!

Lessons Learned:

Patience is a virtue... and so is focus. My two lessons learned (since I skipped last month) are patience and focus in this career. First off, it's important to know what you want and what you need to do to get it. I thought I wanted to do tv/film/print work when I got back from tour, but I did nothing to get myself there! I just kept going to musical theater auditions, and poof! I book musical theater jobs! I don't know why I'm surprised... but even this old dog can learn new tricks. I've been going to seminars with industry professionals and learning as much as I can about on-camera work, so I can really be ready to pursue that when I'm back. Piggybacking off that idea, I need to slow down my goals and set realistic benchmarks for myself, redefine my “personal success” if you will. I was back less than two months and I was already getting antsy for my next project. This is an industry where you've got to hear 100 “no's” before you hear that yes, so you better allot time for those hundred “no's” and not stress out too soon! Especially when trying to explore a new genre.

Peace and Love,
Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

A(nother) New Chapter (July 2012)

From the Green Room:

So I'm currently writing this from the dressing room of the Ogunquit Playhouse where we are finishing up our last week of South Pacific. It has been an amazing run and we've been incredibly well received! However, it is starting to become a little more real that I will soon be done with this show... for good! The difference this time is that I don't have anything lined up after this contract. I almost did though! I was offered a Lead Singer role in “Jersey Nights”, a casino style version of Jersey Boys in Reno, NV. Unfortunately, due to schedule conflicts, I was unable to accept it. It would have been a great gig because Morgana was offered it as well, so we would have been able to work together again which would have been amazing! With that being said, I'm very excited to get back to NYC and begin the process again. First on the “to-do” list is to make a dedicated effort to getting an agent, primarily for purposes of TV/Film and Print opportunities (any leads are appreciated!!!). I also look forward to getting back in voice lessons and various classes. This past year has been amazing to be constantly working, but also makes me realize that I still have lots to learn! If everyday I strive to be one step closer to that proverbial Green Room, I guess being in NYC is a good first step! Oh yeah! I've also completely revamped my website!! Check out the new and improved www.andrewmauney.com!

From outside the Green Room:

Ogunquit, Maine in the summer is beautiful! It has been such an honor getting to perform in this historic theater in this beautiful little town. Days off have been spent at the beach/pool or exploring the town. One show days include time at the gym, grilling dinner with friends, or throwing the football/frisbee/lacrosse ball around outside. Finally, after show activities have included hitting the (few) bars here, building camp fires to make s'mores, or game nights in the communal kitchen. It's a great first "Summer Stock" experience. Tour was amazing, but this has been a nice transition back into normalcy. It has been really nice to be in one single place for a prolonged period of time. It's getting me excited to be back in my old apartment in NYC!

Lessons Learned:

Ambition can easily cloud judgement. As great as it is to be a working actor, it's even more important to stay focused on what is truly important to you in your life by setting priorities. If nothing is more important than working, that's fine, but it will come at a cost. If my business degree taught me anything, it's that there is always an opportunity cost. I was faced with a very tough decision when it came to this Reno show. The job sounded fun, the money was great, but ultimately I had to put family first. Being a best man in my brother's wedding this fall and making sure that family remained a top priority ultimately made the decision a no-brainer. There will always be more jobs, but you're only given one family. That's my view on the matter, but to each their own!

Peace and Love,
Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

A New Chapter (June 2012)

From the Green Room:

Tour's over. Crazy. We had an amazing finishing stretch. There was some exciting news during our week in Rochester (besides my birthday!), I got to perform the role of Luther Billis! It was terrifying, exciting, and gratifying all at the same time. By throwing me into the fire, it helped me learn what it actually takes to be a successful understudy. It's important to have done the work and trust yourself and your cast, but then you just have to go out there and have fun! I absolutely progressed in my craft in three little hours. Finally, we wrapped up our nine month adventure at the amazing Filene Center in Wolf Trap, VA. Such a beautiful venue. If you ever have a chance to see something there, do it! After which, I was fortunate enough to head up to Ogunquit, Maine to be part of a different production of South Pacific at the beautiful Ogunquit Playhouse (OPH)! We've just wrapped up our first week of rehearsals. It's certainly a weird thing being in rehearsals for a show I've done 235 times, but it's a new cast with a new creative team, and therefore a new show. I also get to play a new role, taking on the personality of Yeoman Herbet Quale. Our brilliant director Shaun Kerrison, and the rest of our creative team, has emphasized the importance of not growing complacent. Keep searching for that new piece of information that inspires you, motivates you, deepens your character, etc... Basically, don't slip into the comfort of the work you've done before, but build ON TOP of that work. A great message for all walks of life.

From outside the Green Room:

I was fortunate enough to have a ten day layoff between Rochester and Wolf Trap in which I spent the time back in New York City! It was so great to be back. Morgana had planned an amazing birthday “day” for us which ended with us seeing Once on Broadway. This show is possibly my new favorite musical. I loved the movie, but the show is even better. I also saw Sister Act which was a fun, vocal gymnastics display with some stylized comedic acting. Finally, I won the lottery for Newsies, which was just incredible. Jeremy Jordan is a freak of nature and the dancing in that show is out of this world. I even got to see a concert dance show that one of Morgana's companies was performing in. Finally, once in Maine, I saw Always, Patsy Cline starring Sally Struthers at the OPH. I have loved watching so many different varieties of performances these last two weeks. It really helps broaden my horizons and gain a deeper appreciation for all styles of performance.

Lessons Learned:

I just got off the phone with my Dad and we were joking that work isn't called play for a reason. But the cool thing is, what I get to do everyday is put on a play. There's got to be something to that. As I now am doing this regional production, it's easy to focus on the fact that I'm back in rehearsals or that I get paid a third of what I was making on tour. That's what makes it all the more important to remember that I get to do what I love. I “play” for a living... and that's pretty cool. It's that “play” that allows us to enjoy the “work” I mentioned before. Not resting on our laurels, but instead striving to be better in all elements of our craft. It's just like going on as an understudy, trust your previous work, be open to new things, and have fun and you'll get better every day.

Peace and Love,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Last one from the road! (May 2012)

From the Green Room:

Here we are, show #221 of 235... A mere 14 shows remain in this grand adventure. Two more cities. Two more sound checks. Two more travel days. Next G2GR will come from the land of the unemployed actor! Crazy... After a wonderful two week sit-down in Ft. Lauderdale, we had a split week through the southeast, hitting north Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. We flew out of Birmingham into a week long sit-down in Buffalo. We played the fantastic Shea Theater to sold out audiences all week. It was, however, a bittersweet week. We enjoyed the crowds but also had to say goodbye to our wonderful Nellie, Mrs. Jennie Sophia. She left us to play Guenevere in a production of Camelot in Chicago. We were excited to draw from our own cast and promote the incredibly talented Rachel Rhodes-Devey into a full-time Nellie role for the remainder of tour! Our final split week took us through the northeast, finishing with a weekend sit down in Worcester, MA. Our show today was informally nicknamed, “Understudy Appreciation Day” as Nellie, Emile, and Cable were all out. Everyone stepped up and we put on a great show! Chaotic, but great!

From outside the Green Room:

This job is pretty awesome. I can't think of many other professions that would allow you the opportunity to hang out on the beach on work days, eat from the very first chicken wing joint, and be part of an epic marriage proposal... all in a month! We were able to recharge the batteries with our two weeks in Ft. Lauderdale. We stayed right on the beach, so most days consisted of beach, pool, volleyball, etc... It ended too soon, but it was good to get back to reality (and the Croswell bus... well, maybe not the bus!). In Buffalo, I grabbed wings at the Anchor Bar, home of the very first chicken wing. They were pretty good! I also got up to check out Niagara Falls which was really cool. Taking the cake for the month was witnessing my good friend (and fellow Steelers fan) propose to his girlfriend after a show this weekend. You've GOT TO read this article. It was truly magical and I wish them nothing but the best!

Lessons Learned:

It's okay to get tired. The key is learning how to cope with it. Our final push, meaning the last two months of tour have been: 16 straight shows, 2 days off, 8 shows, day off, 17 shows, day off, 16 shows, day off, 8 shows... That's 65 shows with five days off. It's completely normal to get tired with that schedule, but the important thing is to take care of yourself so as not to get sick or injured. I've been forcing myself to get a good warm-up in before every show and it's really been helping. The days I'm too lazy to warm-up, I end up giving a sub-par performance and in pain. I have also been constantly reminding myself that this won't last forever, and it won't take long of the audition circuit before I'm yearning for my days on tour again! It helps keep me focused on what I have, not what I want. A dangerous trap to fall in so near the end.

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

From The Beach! or, Thank Your Swing! (Apr 2012)

From the Green Room:

Well, I'd say this is well deserved! This edition of "G2GR" is coming to you live from the beach side pool in Ft. Lauderdale! (Well that first sentence was, I got distracted by sunny skies, cold drinks, and good company... I'm now in the green room at the theater.) Whew! We had a very busy month. Since Chicago, we have traveled 5,810 miles (103 hours) on a bus, it's been 47 performances (141 hours of South Pacific), but we are FINALLY rewarded with a two week sit down in beautiful Ft. Lauderdale at the Broward Center of Performing Arts. We've had some great audiences through New England, New York, the Midwest, and several cities in Florida. One of my favorite theaters was in Scranton, PA at the Scranton Cultural Center. The theater is actually a converted Masonic Temple! We just did another PR spot here in Ft. Lauderdale, check out the links to the video and pictures! Also, our crew took a cool time lapse of their load-in. These guys are incredible to do this day-in and day-out... I do not envy them.

From outside the Green Room:

You wouldn't think there IS any time outside the green room except on a bus, and you're not far off! With that being said, this has still been a really neat month on tour with lots of great experiences. I'll admit, I'm not much of a Frat Star anymore, but I have had the pleasure of getting to see several other chapter houses of my fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta. This month I got to see the houses at U of Vermont, U of Maine, and Indiana University. One of my favorite stops on tour so far was when we were in Portland, ME. It's such a quaint little New England coast town with some great food and awesome crowds. Plus, it's the home of Otto's Pizza which is some of the best pizza I've ever tasted. We stopped over in Columbus, OH for a night which is where I lived my “other” life as a computer dork business man before my quarter-life crisis. It was great to catch up with old friends, but I wish I had a show there! I've been loving Florida. I even bought goggles to play in the pools and ocean!

Lessons Learned:

It's really been a teaching experience to have such a tedious string of one-nighters, split-weeks, and long bus days into shows. Through all of that, I remain healthy... then as I'm in the midst of a two week sit down, I buckle my knee during a scene and have to sit act two out. It was so hard to sit in the green room and listen to the show happening without me, but so important that I rest and ice so that I can return healthy and avoid further injury. The lesson learned for this month is to swallow your pride and take care of yourself. This career needs to be looked at as a marathon, not a sprint. Also, thank your local swing. Our incredible swing jumped right into my track and finished out the show without skipping a beat! Yay Alex Pepper!

Now, as a side note. I'll be returning to New York this summer and would love to explore TV/Film/Print options. If anyone knows any connections, agencies, or means of exposure, please pass those on! Thanks so much y'all!

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

From The Bus! (Mar 2012)

From the Green Room:

Welcome to this month's, day-late G2GR, coming to you live from the Croswell tour bus somewhere in the middle of nowhere. It's very indicative that I'm writing this month's newsletter from the bus, as we are definitely heading into a heavy Bus-and-Truck final stretch. When I last left you, we were playing to great audiences in Nashville. We finished up there with the crowds remaining great before we moved into the majors... Chicago! A full, two-week, sit-down in Chicago's own Cadillac Palace Theater. A truly amazing theater right in the heart of the theater district of an amazing city. As promised from last month, our “surprise” PR event was filming a national TV spot singing “Dames!” Check it out! Our director was with us for a little more putting on the finishing touches as we started our “Nellie Transition”, phasing one amazing Nellie out for a new amazing Nellie. We also had to replace an ensemble guy, who is leaving to be Choreographer for a production of a show he had been a part of last year. Pretty cool stuff that he's now working on both sides of the “table”. From Chicago we moved to Springfield, Peoria, and Detroit (home of the incredibly ornate, 5000 seat Fox Theater) before trekking to the east coast again. We just finished a split week in Utica, NY and New Haven, CT (home of the Shubert Theater, where  South Pacific debuted 69 years ago). We're now on the bus headed for Elmira, NY... like I said, we're in the bus-and-truck phase for sure!

From outside the Green Room:

I've been able to SEE theater again this month! I never realized how much I missed SEEING it and not just making it. It's very inspirational and motivational to be back in the audience of some fantastic productions. In Chicago, we were able to catch a matinee performance of “American Idiot”. A really cool, high energy production that was made even cooler by hanging out with the cast afterwards (benefits of having tons of mutual theater friends!). While in Detroit, the NETworks (our parent company) production of “Shrek” was playing and we were able to get tickets to that. We even got a special shout out during the show. That show looks like such a blast to do. We also got to hang out after at a company sponsored “gathering” afterwards. Great time to exchange war stories, catch up with old friends, and make new friends! Finally, last night, after a matinee performance in New Haven, we took off for neighboring Hartford to catch the NETworks production of “Les Miserables”. Wow. What a show. I knew there was a reason why it's my dream show... so epic, so powerful, so amazing. It was really a great thing to get back in the audience and appreciate theater, and look around and see everyone appreciating it, just as they do in our own audiences... pretty cool stuff.

Lessons Learned:

It's easy to burn out. And it's not necessarily a terrible thing to feel exhausted. On a long tour like this (we just finished show #151), it's to be expected, in fact. But the important thing is to not let it impact your performance and not let it linger. When that exhaustion, that fatigue, that disinterest comes, it's important to find something that re-motivates you. For me, this month of theater could not have come at a better time. There is nothing more motivating that watching colleagues (and sometimes friends) perform in big-time professional theater productions. I was also able to steal down to New York City while we were in New Haven to visit Morgana... I could not have asked for a better reaction. I had feared I would grow anxious at even the prospect of being back in NYC where I'm always busy and tired... but the opposite was the case. I was excited to be back. Excited to get back to training. Excited to get back to work on my next project. The bus-and-truck phase is still going to be hard, but I know it's winding down and I'll be back in NYC before I know it. Time to finish strong!

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Light in the distance... (Feb 2012)

From the Green Room:

Hello again from the South Pacific National Tour! It may be a ways off, but the light at the end of the tunnel is now present. We are starting a four month stretch with no breaks until the contract is (for all intensive purposes) over. It's really a surreal, bittersweet realization. Sixteen more weeks... 16 more paychecks! Eeek! So where did I leave off. We finished at the ASU Gammage Theater and then had two split weeks. We traveled through Middle America, the Southwest (OK, KS, NM, NV) and California before getting to a week off. We all met back up in Nashville, TN where we've been playing the beautiful Tennessee Performing Arts Center to wonderful audiences. We also had the director in town working with some put-in rehearsals for some replacements, so that's kept things busy here. With Chicago as our next stop, we have also had some rehearsals for a cool PR spot we'll be doing, I'll definitely post it next month! (Can't ruin the surprise now!) The show continues to run and we've been receiving wonderful reviews. I was even kinda (see if you can spot it) mentioned in this great one from Nashville's Broadway World!

From outside the Green Room:

As mentioned before, there is definitely a sense of unease to see the end in sight, even if very distant sight. It's a feeling of uncertainty and change which can be both exciting and terrifying. That being said, one of my new years resolutions was to enjoy tour while it lasted. I did just that on my week off! I met up with Morgana in Las Vegas (my first time there) on Monday. A bunch of us rented a car from Palm Desert (our last stop before break) and drove it. It's a cool city for a very limited amount of time. I did see my first Cirque show though and it was incredible! If you're ever in Vegas, you have to see La Reve. It was, apparently, a week of firsts for me as I then continued on to Los Angeles for my first time there. Another really cool city that I just don't know if I could ever call home. As much as TV/Film interests me, its size and character didn't really jive with me. I love how NYC is a community. LA seemed a little to cutthroat and posh for my style. Other than the week off, I've been loving Nashville despite the gloomy weather, I had an incredible journey though the California mountains, had fun gambling in Laughlin, NV, and appreciated my tour of the Phi Gamma Delta house at University of Kansas.

Lessons Learned:

I would have to say that this past month has taught me to appreciate the journey, and not dwell on the destination. We drove though some COUNTRY roads passing through KS, OK, NM, NV, and CA... but it was all worth it driving through the California mountains. I must have looked like a 10 year old version of myself, just plastered to the window of the bus, taking pictures with my jaw wide open. It was honestly one of the coolest, most beautiful things I've ever seen. I have never wanted to go horseback riding more in my life, It's like driving through Middle Earth! There's a lot to be thankful for on this tour, but I can honestly say that between the sunsets over Laguna Beach, the view of San Luis Obispo from the top of a mountain, the rolling deserts of NV, or the roar of a sold-out house in Palm Desert... I am truly blessed. It's a really cool thing to do what you love for a living, and it's an even cooler thing when you realize it.

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Recharged! (Jan 2012)

From the Green Room:

Happy 2012 from the South Pacific National Tour! As I was preparing this month's newsletter, I was reading over last month's... it seems like AGES since that all happened! 2011 definitely ended in a whirlwind! We had a split week prior to our Christmas break in which we hit Rockford, IL, Evansville, IN, Richmond, VA, and Charleston, WV. I had a good group of friends and my brothers/sisters-in-law come see the shows in Rockford and Richmond which was great! Always nice having someone out there to perform for. After West Virginia, we bid adieu to the wonderfully talented Ann Northern (she was just filling in for Jenny who rejoined us in 2012) and took a much needed two week vacation for the holidays. We reconvened in Salt Lake City for a fantastic week long sit down at the beautiful Capitol Theater. We are currently mid-week at the historic Gammage Theater (one of Frank Lloyd Wright's last designs!) on Arizona State University's campus in Tempe, AZ. We've had a wonderful reception from a very enthusiastic and knowledgeable theater crowd here in Phoenix. We've been having health issues across the board so our understudies have gotten some serious stage time in 2012. I went on for Buzz Adams, the fast talking aviator, for a two show day in Salt Lake City! Fun but nerve-racking! I thought I did a good job, but there's always room for improvement!

From outside the Green Room:

It felt good to be back in the mid-west again. Don't get me wrong, New Orleans and Orlando were awesome... but there's a certain sense of peace I feel when I'm back in the mid-west. It was also great to have friends and family able to come out and show their support. During our two week layoff, I made relaxation a priority. Whereas we may be four of nine months into the contract, we were only about a third done with our show count (app. 80 of 240ish). I had a wonderful week at home in Pittsburgh with my family for Christmas, then got to spend the next week with my girlfriend's family in Destin, FL. While in Florida, my girlfriend, her family, and I were able to record two shows for her mom's local radio show, reading children's stories on air! I think they turned out great! Definitely sparks an interest in voice over work. Here are the FIRST and SECOND shows, enjoy! When it was time to fly out to Salt Lake City, I felt recharged and ready to get back to work! Salt Lake City is a really beautiful city, with mountains rising up on all sides. I was stoked to be able to get out to the mountains for a day of skiing at the famous ski resort Alta with a couple of cast-mates. Phoenix/Tempe has been more beautiful scenery. We spent an afternoon hiking Squaw Peak and another day wandering ASU, a HUGE (80,000 students!) university set in the heart of Tempe. A couple new years resolutions that I've been trying to keep up with are staying more active, eating healthier, and making an effort to stay in touch with friends better. So far, I've been doing a decent job... but of course, there's always room for improvement!

Lessons Learned:

Health and readiness... two incredibly important things when out on tour. As an ensemble member of a national touring company, maintaining my health to ensure I get out on that stage eight times a week is incredibly important. Whether it be vocal health, physical health, or even mental health... there are a lot of elements on the road that can get in the way of you doing your job. I've really been trying to take care of myself better, especially my voice in these dry desert climates. With that being said, if the health of the principal actor fails, readiness kicks in on behalf of the ensemble. There must be a readiness to pitch in a little extra to ensure the show still runs smoothly. This could be as simple as just knowing your understudy track. Thank goodness I knew my monologues for Buzz Adams! I got the call 60 minutes before curtain that I was going to be going on! All of our understudies and swings have done amazing jobs ensuring the curtain stays up! It also could mean being ready to roll with the punches on and off the stage. Whenever a single element changes in the show, it makes it a brand new show. That's the joy of live theater! Figuring out who will say what line, cover what part, make what move, shift what scenery, place what prop... all changes when a single person is switched out. It's what makes live theater so fun! But you must know the show inside and out, more than just what is expected of you. Something I can say there is definitely always room for improvement!

As a side note, I am still trying to figure out my summer plans. I have a couple of leads with summer stock companies but nothing set in stone yet. If you know anybody that could help further along my summer plans/career, please don't hesitate to send them my way! I would love to spend this summer continuing to work on my craft! Thanks so much!

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Giving Thanks... (Dec 2011)

From the Green Room:

Hello Hello! I hope everyone has had a good month. This has been another great month out on the road from the South Pacific National Tour. We finished up in Austin, did a split week down south (MS, LA, and TX) and then went our own ways for a much needed Thanksgiving break. We came back to two great week long sit downs in New Orleans and Orlando. Both cities have beautiful performing arts centers and great audiences to match! Also in New Orleans, we were joined by a new nurse, Ann Northern! Some of you may remember me mentioning Jenny Peirsol broke her foot in Milwaukee. Well, we finally got a replacement! Ann will be with us until Jenny gets back. She learned the entire track in two and a half days before going on for the first time. Pretty impressive Ann! Welcome to the cast!

From outside the Green Room:

This month was split up nicely with a week off for Thanksgiving. It was so nice to spend time with my family and recharge the batteries in the comfort of my own home. This month we also visited one of my favorite spots on the tour so far, too bad it was only for a single night. Oxford, Mississippi is a beautiful suburban southern town with a gorgeous college (Ole Miss) stuck right in the middle. It felt very mid-west and I felt very much at peace there. On the other end of the spectrum, we stayed about two blocks away from Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Good times were definitely had on Rue Bourbon, although I found myself enjoying the smaller, less touristy Frenchman Street a little more. Better live music, cheaper drinks, and a less rowdy crowd. Orlando was also a great time. A large group from the cast was able to secure comp tickets to Disney World through friends, so we had a large cast outting on Wednesday. For the Disney purists, cover your ears... we hit three parks in one day!

Lessons Learned:

This industry is non-stop. Complacency will only get you back on unemployment. As 2011 is coming to a close, I cannot help but start thinking about what 2012 could hold. This tour will run until June 2012, which still leaves me with six solid months of potential work on different projects. I've been spending time putting together lists of regional theater companies I've auditioned for in the past so I can be sure to email them and let them know I'd love to be considered for their upcoming summer seasons as well, despite missing the spring audition season in NYC. It's really inspirational to talk to my cast-mates about all of the regional/summer theater work that they've done. I've asked a couple for recommendations because they all have some they loved and some they hated! Gotta pay those dues to the theater gods I guess! If anyone knows any good regional companies they think I'd be a good fit for and would like to pass on my information, it'd be greatly appreciated!

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

That Lonesome Road... (Nov 2011)

From the Green Room:

Hello from the road! Here on the South Pacific 2^nd national, we keep trucking on! After being spoiled by our first month in which we had full week sit-downs, we got a taste of real road life... A couple weeks in a row of "split-weeks"! Now for those unfamiliar with the term "split-week", it means weeks with shows in more than one city... sometimes a new city every night! The travel has been long, but surprisingly rewarding. Daily sound checks two hours prior to our call, watching the crew scamble to finish load-in in, new theaters, new backstages, new dressers, and new audiences all get thrown together to ultimately create a new show! It's fascinating and exhausting traveling all day just to get off the bus and start getting ready to do a show that night! We've been through FL, PA, WV, DE, IA, SD, ND, WI, MN, CO, NE, WY, and TX all in a matter of a month. Pretty awesome stuff if you ask me! I love my job...

From outside the Green Room:

As tiring as the travel is, it's really pretty awesome as well. I've been working on finding the joy in the travel so as not to dwell on the fact that I'm adding years to my already failing knees by being crammed on a bus for so long! Simple things like the size of the horizon in middle-America compared to New York City is really kinda awesome if you let it be. I've had a few favorites including seeing the Rockies climb out of the horizon as we approached Ft. Collins, CO and then again on the way to the airport in Denver, stopping by Mt. Rushmore, playing in the Mall of America, watching a Texas Sunrise, and the COUNTLESS square miles of cornfields... okay, so maybe not the cornfields.

Lessons Learned:

A positive attitude will carry you far on tour. I have been blessed by being a part of such an incredible, talented, and drama-free cast. Even after losing one of our nurses to a broken foot (get better soon Jenny!), the general attitude remains positive. It truly is a blessing to have the opportunity to perform for a living, the trick is reminding yourself of that when you're dead tired from traveling all day, sitting at your station in your dressing room and they just called "15-minutes". I've found routine helps. I try my best to make sure I do the same warm-up, stretch, prayer, and mental prep before every show. This forces me to build momentum throughout the pre-show until I burst over that dune for "Bloody Mary"!

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Figuring it out... (Oct 2011)

From the Green Room:
 

Hello from the road! Here on the South Pacific 2^nd national, we have just finished our first three cities (Waterbury – Palace Theater, Boston – Boston Opera House, and Baltimore – Hippodrome Theater) and are on our way to Jacksonville (Times-Union Theater) now. So far, so good! It's been an incredible experience working (and playing) in different cities and theaters and experiencing different working conditions. Each space is unique so it adds a new challenge figuring out the logistics of the show with only an hour spacing and sound check meeting prior to our first show. Like I said, so far so good. Our theaters and audiences have been amazing and incredibly receptive. Let's hope Florida keeps with the trend!

From outside the Green Room:

I was able to meet up with some friends and family while performing in Baltimore which was really great. When you're out on the road, it's nice to have little breaks to get away from the show and spend time with people who knew me “pre-QLC” (quarter-life crisis). They definitely are a great support system, and it was great exploring the cities with natives so they could take me to all the hidden gems!

Lessons Learned:

A strong support system in necessary to keep going strong in this industry. It is so important to have friends, family, and my faith as a constant remainder that I made the right choice and I'm not going through this alone. It's easy to get lost in the chaos and uncertainty of this life, so it's definitely nice having some reassurance along the way. Find those that know you and love you and make sure they've got your back... sometimes they'll believe in you more than you do yourself.

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

Aaaaaand we're off.... (Sept 2011)

From the Green Room:

FINALLY! Rehearsals have started! Hurray! We got started with rehearsals on August 29th for the 2nd National Tour of South Pacific and things are going great so far. With just two weeks under our belts, we were able to put on a pretty solid run through for the design team (including Broadway revival director, Bartlett Sher). We are having a couple polishing days before we head off to Waterbury, CT to begin our two week tech process. It's been fascinating being a part of such a well organized and extremely professional process. The cast, the crew, the props, the rehearsal space (The New 42nd St. Studios, which are beautiful) have all been utterly amazing. I hope anyone that can see the show, gets to! It's going to be incredible.


From outside the Green Room:

Things in New York have been extremely busy the last month. Between quitting coaching at Super Soccer Stars, rehearsals starting, seeing friends before I leave, and trying to ready my room for my sub-letter, I feel like I haven't had a free moment... and I love it! For all the actors out there, I can honestly say that Super Soccer Stars is the one reason I am still in NYC pursuing this career. If you hate your survival job, look into coaching. You don't need to know anything about soccer, you play with kids all day, and it pays really well. No more waiting tables or handing out flyers for this guy...

Lessons Learned:

My take away for this month has to be persistence. If I've learned anything in the last two years of striving to be a working actor, it's that it's not easy. As I mentioned, the only way I was able to stay in NYC and not go insane was finding my coaching job. It has been a tumultuous past two years but it is all 100% worth it to be standing in that rehearsal space, preparing for such an incredible journey. I still can't believe that someone is willing to pay me for what I'd do for free (don't tell NETworks).

Hope all is well,

Andrew Mauney
www.andrewmauney.com

The Quarter-Life Crisis

I've started this newsletter (subscribe to the actual monthly newsletter) to try to help take myself to the next level in the world of performing. A little shameless self promotion. Whether it be on stage, film, or print, I want to stay in the forefront of all of my connection's minds and keep them in my mind as well!

Here's my story...

I got a bachelors degree in Management Information Systems from Miami University of Ohio (a top 20 business school in the nation). I worked in Columbus, OH as a technical recruiter before having my "quarter-life crisis" and moving to NYC to attend The American Musical and Dramatic Academy (AMDA) for musical theater. I have been working as an actor/singer here in NYC since I graduated.