January « 2007 « kristalgrace.com Blog

Archive for January, 2007

Regarding Cover Letters

Monday, January 22nd, 2007

A director of mine once told me that when auditioning, if I am interested in a specific character, to mention it – she had once not gotten a part she was quite keen on, and only because the casting directors liked her for more than one part, so they picked one. Later, they told her that it would have changed things if they’d known. Hence the old adage, “Ask and you will receive.”

Of course, you don’t ALWAYS get what you want, but if you don’t say what you want, who’s to know what you’d rather have?!

However, on the opposite end of that…

A couple of weeks ago, I travelled a good hour away from home, slogging through slush and braving against the bitter, bitter wind to drop off an audition package. Going from Surrey to the west side of Vancouver via Translink isn’t a short trip on the best of days, and evening hours + snow = I’d be better off if I was a penguin. Unfortunately I’m not. So I went out, dropped it in the mailbox, sticking out so the director couldn’t miss it, and began the journey back.

I checked the casting call last week, saw that the auditions were supposed to be the next day – I hadn’t been called to audition. Odd. I’d auditioned for them before, and done a good job! So, why didn’t I get a call?

Today, I went to an callback for a different show, and a friend of mine asked if I’d gone in to the other auditions. I said no, they never called me. THEN, she told me that the part I’d wanted had already been cast – one of the company actors, who I’ve actually auditioned for before.

THAT’S when I realised why I probably didn’t get a call! In my cover letter, I’d written about how much I would love to audition for – yes, that’s right – the one part that was pre-cast. How awesome is that?!

So, for the future…? If you know the characters, do you specify which you’d like to audition for, or do you keep your letter vague? If only I’d known she already had the part! I would have written it differently, haha. But too late. I make it a point to not dwell on things – can’t change them after the fact anyway, right?!

It was just very, very silly.

Posted in All That Is Performing Related | 1 Comment »

Here’s A Tip

Thursday, January 4th, 2007

Maybe things are different on your computer, but when I’m viewing my blog after I publish posts, I could never find an archive list. I still can’t, but I’ve figured something out! If you click on the title of the current page, it will basically refresh itself, BUT! It will also have a trackback link so you can go back and view previous posts! How wonderful is that?

Very wonderful

Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »

“Too Much Of A Good Thing Can Be Wonderful.”

Thursday, January 4th, 2007

Quote, unquote Mae West.

When I was in high school, I had this notebook with black pages that I covered in aluminum foil and decorated with stickers, that I filled with quotes. Not price quotes, but the kind of quotes you’d find in school agendas and locker doors – and, of course, the never-dying cliche quotes.

I loved them. (Not cliches – I’m pretty adament about being anti-cliche nowadays.) I had quotes on binders, I wrote them on the white board, I put them in thank you cards (I still do that, sometimes). So was it anything out of the ordinary when I bought myself a desk calendar last year, filled with quotes? Not at all! Instead of tearing the sheets off and throwing them away though, I kept what I thought were the best, and put them in my journal. And I’d like to share them with you. There are a lot – get comfy!

Courtesy of my 2006 Women’s Wit calendar (And various Reader’s Digests!):

“To love what you do and feel that it matters – how could anything be more fun?” (Katherine Graham)
“Brevity – the soul of lingerie.” (Dorothy Parker)
“When mom found my diaphragm, I told her it was a bathing cap for my cat.” (Liz Winston)
“I can’t think of anything worse after a night of drinking than waking up the next morning next to someone and not being able to remember their name, or how you met, or why they’re dead.” (Laura Kightlinger)
“I went to college because they told me it was going to prepare me for the real world. Since when does the real world have spring break?” (Livia Squires)
“When faced with a decision, I always ask, ‘What would be the most fun?’” (Peggy Walker)
“Love is a fire. But whether it is going to warm your hearth or burn down your house, you can never tell.” (Joan Crawford)
“I don’t own a computer. I’m waiting for the kind where I can look at the screen and say, ‘Hey, I need a pizza,’ and one comes out and hits me in the eyebrows.” (Kathleen Madigan)
“It’s not how old you are but how you are old.” (Marie Dressler)
“If you love someone, set them free. If they come back, they’re probably broke.” (Rhonda Dickinson)
“A person who buries his head in the sand offers an engaging target.” (Mabel A. Keenan)
“You’re only a sellout if you had any integrity to begin with.” (Mel Fine)
“Whatever wrinkles I got, I enjoyed getting them.” (Ava Gardner)
“Irony. Is that when you put on a brand new exercise outfit and then spend the rest of the day watching the Olympics?” (Simone Alexander)
“If you’re going to be able to look back on something and laugh about it, you might as well laugh about it now.” (Marie Osmond)
“I want a man who’s kind and understanding. Is that too much to ask of a millionaire?” (Zsa Zsa Gabor)
“I honor my personality flaws. Without them, I’d have no personality at all.” (Margot Black)
“You want to know what the biggest kick in the pants is? When someone breaks up with you and starts dating someone fatter. What? Dude, I would’ve had the extra cheese.” (Wendy Wilkins)
“People want to take sex education out of the schools. They believe sex education causes promiscuity. Hey, I took algebra. I never do math.” (Elayne Boosler)
“Bite off more than you can chew, then chew it.” (Ella Williams)
“I only believe in do-overs in golf. In life, I believe in no regrets.” (Robin Roberts)
“Take your work seriously, but never yourself.” (Dame Margot Fonteyn)
“The only reason I would take up jogging is so that I could hear heavy breathing again.” (Erma Bombeck)
“Don’t compare yourself with someone else’s version of happy or thin. Accepting yourself burns the most calories.” (Caroline Rhea)
“Money isn’t everything…but it ranks right up there with oxygen.” (Rita Davenport)
“Whatever you want to do, just do it. Don’t worry about making a fool of yourself. Making a fool of yourself is absulutely essential.” (Gloria Steinem)
“Creativity comes from a conflict of ideas.” (Donatella Versace)
“A lot of good things have come out of dreaming.” (Arthur Miller)
“Instant gratification takes too long.” (Carrie Fisher)
“It’s a great challenge to be better than your opportunities.” (Sarah Jessica Parker)
“Reality is the leading cause of stress for those in touch with it.” (Jane Wagner)
“I’m extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end.” (Margaret Thatcher)
“Boys don’t make passes at female smartasses.” (Letty Cottin Pogrebin)
“The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” (Sally Berger)
“The secret to staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age.” (Lucille Ball)
“Think wrongly, if you please, but in all cases think for yourself.” (Doris Lessing)
“I’m amazed at people who wake up by themselves. I have a friend who says, ‘The sun wakes me up. I don’t need an alarm.’ I find that amazing. The only way the sun could wake me up is if it set me on fire.” (Livia Squires)
“Resolve to take fate by the throat and shake a living out of her.” (Louisa May Alcott)
“I’d like to grow very old as slowly as possible.” (Irene Mayer Selznick)
“Delusions of grandeur make me feel a lot better about myself.” (Jane Wagner)
“Normal is just a cycle on the waching machine.” (Whoopi Goldberg)
“No day is so bad it can’t be fixed with a nap.” (Carrie Snow)
“Old age is no place for sissies.” (Bette Davis)
“If you don’t act as if your name were on the door, it never will be.” (Patricia Fripp)
“Why not seize the pleasure all at once? How often s happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation?” (Jane Austen)
“Don’t get your knickers in a know. Nothing is solved and it just makes you walk funny.” (Kathryn Carpenter)
“No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.” (Eleanor Roosevelt)
“Remember, if people talk behind your back it only means you are two steps ahead.” (Fannie Flagg)
“Kids? It’s like living with homeless people. They’re cute but they just chase you around all day long going, ‘Can I have a dollar? I’m missing a shoe! I need a ride!’” (Kathleen Madigan)
“I call everyone ‘darling’ because I can’t remember their names.” (Zsa Zsa Gabor)
“I’ve been on so many blind dates I should get a free dog.” (Wendy Liebman)
“Glamour really has to do with good lighting, doesn’t it?” (Nigella Lawson)
“Why do women go to tanning salons? What a waste of time and money. Guys only like the white parts, anyway.” (Margot Black)
“I’ve never had a humble opinion. If you’ve got an opinion, why be humble about it?” (Joan Baez)
“All you’ll get from strangers is surface pleasantry or indifference. Only someone who loves you will criticize you.” (Judith Crist)

Archive for January, 2007

/Voice Over

Regarding Cover Letters

Here’s A Tip

“Too Much Of A Good Thing Can Be Wonderful.”