The Artist had an audition last night for a play. While this isn't his usual type of acting gig, he has performed in plays in the past.
Zach arrived at the theater and was greeted by a long-haired dachshund and four older gentlemen who looked like they were booked by Central Casting to play the part of theater directors. They were dressed in a variety of hats and scarves and sat in the shadows to observe the proceedings happening on the stage.
After the initial introductions ended, Zach was called up to the stage to perform his scene, The character was a smarty pants teenager having a conversation with his mother. He performed the scene with a reader sitting to the side of the stage. The scene ended and there was silence in the room. Finally, the guy in charge of the group of theater people said this insightful comment:
"Huh."
Silence once again filled the room as everyone tried to determine what he meant by that one word comment. Zach was the first to speak up:
"I have absolutely no idea what that comment could possibly mean."
Everybody laughed and the audition director gave Zach a few notes while looking at his resume. The director noticed all of the comedy and improv in his background and remarked that he had perfect training to play a kid with a smart mouth. After a few more jokes back and forth, they started the scene again. Zach got halfway through when the director said that was enough. Of course, Zach was afraid that he had missed a line or not followed the directions properly. Instead, the director said:
"Callbacks are Monday night at 8pm. Can you be here???"
After agreeing to the time and date, Zach was dismissed from the stage.
Think good thoughts for him over the weekend and into Monday night for his callback. He is okay with not getting much in the way of conversation from the folks running the audition as long as they keep inviting him back to the theater.
This actor also has a stand-up comedy gig next week.
Showing posts with label teenagers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label teenagers. Show all posts
Friday, May 5, 2017
Sunday, August 28, 2016
How To Deal With Different Comedy Crowds And Still Get Laughs
The Burbank Comedy Festival was earlier this month and Zach spent the week absorbing as much info as he could from the other comedians and festival organizers. Overall, I'd give him an "A" or "B+" for his week as each show presented some challenges.
The festival kicked off two Sundays ago and Zach's first show was that night. It was also one of those nights where the audience was not on his side at the start of the show. It's not that the crowd was hostile or not there to be entertained. The reason he had to win them over became apparent a few comics into the show. The host for the evening came out and did 5 minutes that were okay but was well received by the audience. The host brought out the next comic which turned out to be his wife. She did a stronger set and the crowd was with her. As the crowd was laughing, Dana and I looked at each other as we realized a good portion of the audience was made up of their family members. The next few comics were greeted with polite laughter but nothing major. The host then brought out his son to do a set. The crowd was alive and into the show again! Once the son finished his set, Zach came out to do his material. The response was lukewarm at first but he won them over by making fun of tourists on Hollywood Blvd. By the end of the set, I wouldn't say he killed but he did get more genuine laughter than the other comics who simply scored polite laughter. (BTW...the only comic after Zach that was loved by the crowd was yet another host family member.)
Zach's second show of the festival was the next night and there were no family members involved in the show. The Monday night show was probably his best show of the week. The comic who received the least applause from the audience was the host of the show. His "killer bit" was introducing each comic as an old friend and randomly announcing their city of origin. It got to the point that the other comics would come on stage and let the audience know they had never met the host in their life and they were not from whatever city he announced to the crowd. Zach seemed to connect with the audience as he was the youngest performer on the bill. I think the audience was genuinely curious to see what the kid was going to talk about on stage.
He was supposed to do a show on Thursday night. However, the organizers moved him to a Saturday afternoon show along with the other teen performers of the festival. The Saturday afternoon show at the comedy club is specifically designed for a younger crowd so it only made sense to have the teen comics do the show. Plus, the show was in the main room which is always more fun for the audience and the comics. Dana and I arrived a little bit early so we were able to watch the crowd enter the room. We quickly realized that "a younger crowd" meant a really young crowd. The room filled with parents and their children who were anywhere from 7 to 12-years-old. Little kids are great because they will laugh when they find something funny and don't politely laugh like adults do on a regular basis. However, a good portion of Zach's set for the day involved college and girls. How would that play to the crowd? The show host got the kids in a great mood by doing silly tricks and jokes designed for their age group. The first two comics before Zach did okay but were not loved by the kids. It was finally Zach's turn and he came on stage and started talking directly to the kids. I could tell he was adjusting his set as he was going along to discuss school and superheroes (two big topics for young kids). He definitely held his own and was one of the best received younger comics during the show. The MC killed but Zach was able to read his audience quickly and adjust to fit the crowd. It's a skill that should serve him well in the future on stage and in the business side of acting and comedy.
Zach also took advantage of the fact that being part of the festival allowed him to attend panel discussions and other shows. He watched Andy Dick's set which he said was "strange and entertaining but not laugh out loud funny." Zach was also able to attend industry panels and seminars about getting booked on the college circuit and how to use social media to help get noticed by others in the comedy field.
I'm definitely proud of him for getting into the festival. There were over 800 comics that sent in a submission and Zach was one of the comics that made the cut. He was able to meet comedians from all over the country and get advice from industry professionals. The chance to witness so many different styles of comedy in one week made a big impact on him. He's working on new material right now and it will be interesting to see what he writes after this experience. Hopefully it will be funny and not "strange and entertaining" like his review of Andy Dick.
This comedian starts the new college school year tomorrow.
The festival kicked off two Sundays ago and Zach's first show was that night. It was also one of those nights where the audience was not on his side at the start of the show. It's not that the crowd was hostile or not there to be entertained. The reason he had to win them over became apparent a few comics into the show. The host for the evening came out and did 5 minutes that were okay but was well received by the audience. The host brought out the next comic which turned out to be his wife. She did a stronger set and the crowd was with her. As the crowd was laughing, Dana and I looked at each other as we realized a good portion of the audience was made up of their family members. The next few comics were greeted with polite laughter but nothing major. The host then brought out his son to do a set. The crowd was alive and into the show again! Once the son finished his set, Zach came out to do his material. The response was lukewarm at first but he won them over by making fun of tourists on Hollywood Blvd. By the end of the set, I wouldn't say he killed but he did get more genuine laughter than the other comics who simply scored polite laughter. (BTW...the only comic after Zach that was loved by the crowd was yet another host family member.)
Zach's second show of the festival was the next night and there were no family members involved in the show. The Monday night show was probably his best show of the week. The comic who received the least applause from the audience was the host of the show. His "killer bit" was introducing each comic as an old friend and randomly announcing their city of origin. It got to the point that the other comics would come on stage and let the audience know they had never met the host in their life and they were not from whatever city he announced to the crowd. Zach seemed to connect with the audience as he was the youngest performer on the bill. I think the audience was genuinely curious to see what the kid was going to talk about on stage.
He was supposed to do a show on Thursday night. However, the organizers moved him to a Saturday afternoon show along with the other teen performers of the festival. The Saturday afternoon show at the comedy club is specifically designed for a younger crowd so it only made sense to have the teen comics do the show. Plus, the show was in the main room which is always more fun for the audience and the comics. Dana and I arrived a little bit early so we were able to watch the crowd enter the room. We quickly realized that "a younger crowd" meant a really young crowd. The room filled with parents and their children who were anywhere from 7 to 12-years-old. Little kids are great because they will laugh when they find something funny and don't politely laugh like adults do on a regular basis. However, a good portion of Zach's set for the day involved college and girls. How would that play to the crowd? The show host got the kids in a great mood by doing silly tricks and jokes designed for their age group. The first two comics before Zach did okay but were not loved by the kids. It was finally Zach's turn and he came on stage and started talking directly to the kids. I could tell he was adjusting his set as he was going along to discuss school and superheroes (two big topics for young kids). He definitely held his own and was one of the best received younger comics during the show. The MC killed but Zach was able to read his audience quickly and adjust to fit the crowd. It's a skill that should serve him well in the future on stage and in the business side of acting and comedy.
Zach also took advantage of the fact that being part of the festival allowed him to attend panel discussions and other shows. He watched Andy Dick's set which he said was "strange and entertaining but not laugh out loud funny." Zach was also able to attend industry panels and seminars about getting booked on the college circuit and how to use social media to help get noticed by others in the comedy field.
I'm definitely proud of him for getting into the festival. There were over 800 comics that sent in a submission and Zach was one of the comics that made the cut. He was able to meet comedians from all over the country and get advice from industry professionals. The chance to witness so many different styles of comedy in one week made a big impact on him. He's working on new material right now and it will be interesting to see what he writes after this experience. Hopefully it will be funny and not "strange and entertaining" like his review of Andy Dick.
This comedian starts the new college school year tomorrow.
Sunday, July 31, 2016
Are You Ready To Laugh In August?
Zach recently did his first gig in the main room at Flappers in Burbank. He was pleasantly surprised to find a dozen teenagers and a table full of adults in the audience to support him that night. I think the only person not happy about the crowd was the headliners as he remarked a few times that the millennials in the crowd were not getting some of his jokes. He was a good sport about it but you could tell he didn't know what to make of the teenagers.
It was a good gig for Zach because he did a mix of new and old material. He has to write a lot of new material in the next few weeks because we just received his bookings for the Burbank Comedy Festival. Zach is performing three sets that week and he is one of the youngest performers booked for the event. The Festival receives hundreds of entries each year and one of the main goals of performing is to make it into one of the "Best of the Fest" shows on the final night of the Festival. Those shows are attended by comedy bookers across the country and serve as an industry showcase for the comedians that are part of the "best of" shows.
The performers are a mixture of household names, seasoned road comics and people trying to make a name in the comedy world. If you're in the Burbank area the week of August 14th, you can catch Zach during the following shows:
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40569
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40563
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40619
While he is preparing for his week of shows, he is still busy with auditions. He went straight to callback yesterday so keep thinking good thoughts for him for that one. He is busy enough between acting, auditions, improv and hanging with his friends that he always has new sources of material. His friends might not realize they are providing him with material but they will discover it when he is talking about their adventures during his shows.
I just realized I should keep my mouth shut for the next few weeks or I will end up being part of his set as well. Shutting up now!
New photos of Zach are now on his IMDb page. Check them out when you have a moment.
It was a good gig for Zach because he did a mix of new and old material. He has to write a lot of new material in the next few weeks because we just received his bookings for the Burbank Comedy Festival. Zach is performing three sets that week and he is one of the youngest performers booked for the event. The Festival receives hundreds of entries each year and one of the main goals of performing is to make it into one of the "Best of the Fest" shows on the final night of the Festival. Those shows are attended by comedy bookers across the country and serve as an industry showcase for the comedians that are part of the "best of" shows.
The performers are a mixture of household names, seasoned road comics and people trying to make a name in the comedy world. If you're in the Burbank area the week of August 14th, you can catch Zach during the following shows:
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40569
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40563
http://flapperscomedy.com/booking/h2f_flyer.php?id=40619
While he is preparing for his week of shows, he is still busy with auditions. He went straight to callback yesterday so keep thinking good thoughts for him for that one. He is busy enough between acting, auditions, improv and hanging with his friends that he always has new sources of material. His friends might not realize they are providing him with material but they will discover it when he is talking about their adventures during his shows.
I just realized I should keep my mouth shut for the next few weeks or I will end up being part of his set as well. Shutting up now!
New photos of Zach are now on his IMDb page. Check them out when you have a moment.
Monday, July 4, 2016
Sometimes The Artist Is Such A Teenager!
As Zach continues to get older, we are letting him take the lead on certain aspects of his career. He writes all of his own stand-up material, chats with his manager about YouTube activities, pays for his acting class and sometimes drives himself to auditions.
The decision on driving himself depends on where the audition is located. It's not so much distance to the audition as much as ease of parking once he gets to the location. I took him to an audition near the Beverly Center because it was an area of town with little street parking and too many daytime parking restrictions in the surrounding neighborhoods. I didn't want him to deal with the stress of finding parking when he needed to focus on the audition. However, there are other audition locations where it is easy for him to park near the casting office.
Dana took him to an audition on Friday in Santa Monica. Her office closed early for the 4th of July holiday so she had time to get him to the casting office. While he was waiting to see the casting director, he discovered his buddy Jake was at the callback. Jake and his parents live near us and they offered to give Zach a ride home so Dana wouldn't have to kill time waiting outside.
Great!!! This was around 3:30pm and Dana was eager to avoid as much Friday rush hour traffic on the 405 as possible. What could go wrong with this fantastic plan?
Flash forward to 4:50pm. Zach called and was close to being dropped off at home. He had a stand-up gig at Flappers that night and had to get ready for his show. He did have one problem to take care of before getting ready for the show:
He left his acting folder at the casting office.
Plus, the role he was trying out for had him dressed in athletic gear so he had to put his wallet in his acting folder. This meant that his driver's license, debit card and all of his acting paperwork was in Santa Monica. On a Friday. At 5pm. In rush hour traffic. On a holiday weekend.
We quickly called the casting office and hoped they weren't closing at 5pm that day. Thankfully, they were still casting for other projects and would be open until at least 6pm. Zach couldn't drive back to Santa Monica because he had to get ready for his gig and be at the club by 7pm. Plus, he didn't have his license and I didn't want him to risk getting a ticket.
I jumped in the truck at 5pm and hit the 405. Santa Monica is a great city but it is also a giant pain to get in and out of on a daily basis. From Sherman Oaks, you have to take the 405 to the 10 or the 405 to Wilshire or Pico or Olympic to get to Santa Monica. It's one of those destinations where all routes seem to be backed up at all times. This was not going to be a short, or easy, drive to the casting office.
I quickly discovered I was going against the flow of traffic and was actually making pretty good time. The drive that took Dana 65-minutes earlier in the day took me 30-minutes on the nose. Traffic going home looked to be a nightmare but at least I was going to make it to my destination and get his stuff before they closed.
I walked into the casting office and was greeted by the sight of about a dozen guys all over 6-feet tall wearing tight athletic clothing to show off their muscles. I was wearing a baseball cap and a t-shirt I've owned for about 4 years. I was definitely the answer to "one of these things is not like the other" from Sesame Street.
I walked over to the girl who appeared to be in charge and said I was there to get a folder they were holding for my son. She looked at me with relief and we had the conversation below:
(Girl): "Thank goodness you made it here to get the folder."
(Me): He couldn't drive here because he has a stand-up gig and his license is in the folder."
(Girl): "His license is in here?" (Looks in the folder) "Is that his wallet????"
(Me): "Yes it is."
(Girl): "Wait...Is that all of his paperwork? Coogan account and Legal 18 paperwork???"
(Me): "Yep."
(Girl): "How could he forget all of that and his wallet????"
(Me): "I guess you don't have a teenager or you would know the answer to that question."
(Girl): (Hands me the folder while laughing) "Tell him the folder was lost! That would be funny."
(Me): "I'll just steal from the wallet and tell him the cash was already gone when I picked it up."
(Random Guy In The Room): "That's a great idea!!!"
My adventure was only half over as I had to figure out how to get back to Sherman Oaks in less than an hour because Zach needed to leave by 6:30pm to make it to Flappers by his 7pm talent check-in time. I left the casting office and was able to get a good view of the 10 which was completely stopped. Rather than relying on Google Maps, I decided to make it up on my way home.
I went from the casting office to Pico and made okay time as I passed McCabe's Guitar Shop and other landmarks. I was getting near the 405 but there was a large backup to get to the exit. I randomly decided to turn left to see where it would take me and I ended up passing Cotner Ave. Cotner took me to the same 405 exit I had bypassed by turning left but in half the time. I was now on the 405 and it was around 6pm. Traffic crawled along and I could feel myself losing the battle to make it on time. Once again, it was time to try a different route so I made a last minute exit on Moraga Drive and headed down Sepulveda Blvd. I raced down Sepulveda and made it back to my place at 6:27pm!
Zach got his wallet and headed to the comedy club. I still had time to go inside and get ready. Everyone made it to Flappers at their expected arrival times. He had a good set and I was able to brag to our friends at the show that I made it to Santa Monica and back in just under 90-minutes.
I would have been out of luck if it hadn't been for traffic being off a little bit thanks to the holiday. Having said that, I'm glad I was able to help the kid as well as beat the clock during rush hour on a Friday!
I did not take the money out of the wallet of this actor.
The decision on driving himself depends on where the audition is located. It's not so much distance to the audition as much as ease of parking once he gets to the location. I took him to an audition near the Beverly Center because it was an area of town with little street parking and too many daytime parking restrictions in the surrounding neighborhoods. I didn't want him to deal with the stress of finding parking when he needed to focus on the audition. However, there are other audition locations where it is easy for him to park near the casting office.
Dana took him to an audition on Friday in Santa Monica. Her office closed early for the 4th of July holiday so she had time to get him to the casting office. While he was waiting to see the casting director, he discovered his buddy Jake was at the callback. Jake and his parents live near us and they offered to give Zach a ride home so Dana wouldn't have to kill time waiting outside.
Great!!! This was around 3:30pm and Dana was eager to avoid as much Friday rush hour traffic on the 405 as possible. What could go wrong with this fantastic plan?
Flash forward to 4:50pm. Zach called and was close to being dropped off at home. He had a stand-up gig at Flappers that night and had to get ready for his show. He did have one problem to take care of before getting ready for the show:
He left his acting folder at the casting office.
Plus, the role he was trying out for had him dressed in athletic gear so he had to put his wallet in his acting folder. This meant that his driver's license, debit card and all of his acting paperwork was in Santa Monica. On a Friday. At 5pm. In rush hour traffic. On a holiday weekend.
We quickly called the casting office and hoped they weren't closing at 5pm that day. Thankfully, they were still casting for other projects and would be open until at least 6pm. Zach couldn't drive back to Santa Monica because he had to get ready for his gig and be at the club by 7pm. Plus, he didn't have his license and I didn't want him to risk getting a ticket.
I jumped in the truck at 5pm and hit the 405. Santa Monica is a great city but it is also a giant pain to get in and out of on a daily basis. From Sherman Oaks, you have to take the 405 to the 10 or the 405 to Wilshire or Pico or Olympic to get to Santa Monica. It's one of those destinations where all routes seem to be backed up at all times. This was not going to be a short, or easy, drive to the casting office.
I quickly discovered I was going against the flow of traffic and was actually making pretty good time. The drive that took Dana 65-minutes earlier in the day took me 30-minutes on the nose. Traffic going home looked to be a nightmare but at least I was going to make it to my destination and get his stuff before they closed.
I walked into the casting office and was greeted by the sight of about a dozen guys all over 6-feet tall wearing tight athletic clothing to show off their muscles. I was wearing a baseball cap and a t-shirt I've owned for about 4 years. I was definitely the answer to "one of these things is not like the other" from Sesame Street.
I walked over to the girl who appeared to be in charge and said I was there to get a folder they were holding for my son. She looked at me with relief and we had the conversation below:
(Girl): "Thank goodness you made it here to get the folder."
(Me): He couldn't drive here because he has a stand-up gig and his license is in the folder."
(Girl): "His license is in here?" (Looks in the folder) "Is that his wallet????"
(Me): "Yes it is."
(Girl): "Wait...Is that all of his paperwork? Coogan account and Legal 18 paperwork???"
(Me): "Yep."
(Girl): "How could he forget all of that and his wallet????"
(Me): "I guess you don't have a teenager or you would know the answer to that question."
(Girl): (Hands me the folder while laughing) "Tell him the folder was lost! That would be funny."
(Me): "I'll just steal from the wallet and tell him the cash was already gone when I picked it up."
(Random Guy In The Room): "That's a great idea!!!"
My adventure was only half over as I had to figure out how to get back to Sherman Oaks in less than an hour because Zach needed to leave by 6:30pm to make it to Flappers by his 7pm talent check-in time. I left the casting office and was able to get a good view of the 10 which was completely stopped. Rather than relying on Google Maps, I decided to make it up on my way home.
I went from the casting office to Pico and made okay time as I passed McCabe's Guitar Shop and other landmarks. I was getting near the 405 but there was a large backup to get to the exit. I randomly decided to turn left to see where it would take me and I ended up passing Cotner Ave. Cotner took me to the same 405 exit I had bypassed by turning left but in half the time. I was now on the 405 and it was around 6pm. Traffic crawled along and I could feel myself losing the battle to make it on time. Once again, it was time to try a different route so I made a last minute exit on Moraga Drive and headed down Sepulveda Blvd. I raced down Sepulveda and made it back to my place at 6:27pm!
Zach got his wallet and headed to the comedy club. I still had time to go inside and get ready. Everyone made it to Flappers at their expected arrival times. He had a good set and I was able to brag to our friends at the show that I made it to Santa Monica and back in just under 90-minutes.
I would have been out of luck if it hadn't been for traffic being off a little bit thanks to the holiday. Having said that, I'm glad I was able to help the kid as well as beat the clock during rush hour on a Friday!
I did not take the money out of the wallet of this actor.
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