The Rebirth Of The Cool

in the beginning, 

God created the funk, and the cool

now, the coolness was chaotic, and without form 

and discord covered the face of the deep

and God said

let there be peace

sparkling like diamond

gentle as the ray of the sun

an interstellar drum

with a cosmic heartbeat

and yes, there was the blues

that blacker than 1,000 midnights blue

eternal blazon of endless nothing

that chasm between reason and dream

the place i call home

and the cool was with me

the cool was in me

the cool was me

the cool knew me

the way i know

my very own name

sweeter than the taste of fresh cut sugar cane

we walked the yellow brick paths

of each and every dimensional plane

i sing a song for the cool

that melodic thumping in my ears drums

that comforts me just before i fall asleep at night

the gentle tap taps on the outskirts of my slumber

that whisper sweet nothings of peace and light

i sing a song for the cool

boogalooing jazz hall droplets of sweat

that glisten on brows of every color men

the mutated mind emissions

of castrated time transmissions

searching for a light wave

a loose-leaf page

and a pen

i sing a song for the cool

a post-modern influx

where faith is a crutch

hobbling thru fears of the day

our passions grow slender

but children remember

life is what unfolds along the way

syncopated sound waves

that sparkle like a moon ray

seeking out river bank reflection

resonant and free

we struggle not to be

sissified by delusive introspection

before there was ever any such thing as a wino or a junkie

we were cool

before there was ever any such thing as homelessness or aids

we were cool

before there was ever any single parent homes or halfway houses

or so-called holy wars

we were cool

me, i sing a song for the cool

Method Living

So, someone asked me the other day, what is Method Living?

In short, to see the world through the eyes of a true artist. Nothing more, nothing less.

Traditional method acting employs a tactic of what is called "sense-memory techniques" to draw upon real life experiences from the past and use them in your current character. It's sort of an 'imagine me if I grew up this way' technique, which is the basis for most of modern acting. 

What many people mistake for the whole of method is the whole thing where you are in a character for weeks on end and acting all weird on the set as that character. That is only 1 singular method technique, and it gets a bad rep for the whole Daniel Day Lewis thing. And then there's the method exercises that can go awry in acting class where they do psychology games to "break down" an actor's psyche and get closer to some Id form of the creative process. I don't mess with those in my workshops or my classes. If you want to get broken down to pieces psychologically, there's lots of free ways to do it.

My technique is Method Living. True method living is training yourself to see the world, the people in it, and your own damn self, freely and unabashed, and without judgement. (As the late great Colonel Kurtz taught us through the eyes of Marlon Brando, "it is the judgement that kills us"). For many of my students the hardest part of reaching their potential is allowing themselves to act freely and without embarrassment.

Some of the most creatively expansive things I've ever done on stage took place in my acting class at Northwestern University. I was fortunate. I was honored to have the great David Downs leading my class for 3 years, and the environment he created was one of discovery, and freedom. He encouraged us to reach for new and abstract ways of relating to a character, whether bringing in an observation from an animal at the zoo, or choosing a music number to emote fully and unhindered. One of my favorite exercises we did was when Professor Downs gave out the assignment of going to a statue park and working up a silent story (essentially a mime short) that would lead up to the pose of the statue. 

Although I didn't fully realize it until much later, these types of exercises garnered the state of mind to observe and report the essential ethos of story telling. In most art forms, this can viewed as some heady, intellectual, abstract thing. But acting burns away all of that. And not to say that acting isn't an intellectual sport, but first and foremost, it IS a sport. It takes athleticism. It takes a oneness of mind, body and soul. (And like good music or dancing, it does help if you have soul).

An actor (on stage or screen) gets to be the maestro of moments. It is the stringing together of instances of clear lucidity that pulls an audience in, or makes the character "fly off the screen" so to speak. Too many people think that you have too try hard to emote. It is largely the opposite. If anything you have to try hard during your homework. By the time you get to the set, everything must look effortless. This is only achieved by an extremely high level of preparation.

When I was in the jazz band in high school our music director Mr. Kirk, (we should've called him captain) he had a great saying that has stuck with me to this day. He said that "when we go up in front of the school or at competition, that is a performance. What we do here during class, that is a rehearsal, and what you do at home to prepare for class, that is called practice."

Your homework is your practice. Make sure and put the time in by yourself or you will wasted the time of your fellow actors when you go in for scene study. All of this becomes easily apparent when it is time to actually do a tech week in a theatre run, or heaven forbid, the inescapable table reading. Seeing the world in a constant state of creativity (and keeping a good actor's journal along the way) is the best way to be constantly practicing, constantly taking in new ideas and modes of living and ways of seeing the humans around you. Take notes, but no judgement. Just observe, and let it soak. But you have to put in the time. And you have to want to get better, every single day.

(for bookings for acting workshops and motivational speaking events, 

please send all queries to blackaugustent@gmail.com)

Tao Poetry

Ikkyu said it best:
writing something to leave behind is another kind of dream
when i awaken, i know that there will be no one to read it

the true master lowers himself into illusion every time he speaks
what is there to be said for the natural born teacher?

your genius must remain as hidden as your pending insanity,
a cerebral solar flare that eclipses the icy caverns of neptune
          runs circles round mantras

shimmering mellow tones of grey luminosity
reach up the stratosphere and cry freedom
          sometimes in silence,
          sometimes aloud

the true master lowers himself into illusion every time he speaks
what's there to be said for the natural born teacher?

sisyphean griot destined to translate the circumference of pi
into astronomical units that the people can consume

bring the people together, and watch what comes forth

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sometimes the most refreshing things in the world can be
to just sit outside in the sun and sweat

rejuvenating elixir of early summer pheromones
that broil the skin to cool down the core

we wear our emotions like the shadows at our feet
ignoring and disbelieving the silent wisdom they contain

pressing the suppressing the proverbial inner voice
wringing the dirty laundry out

neglected impulses stretched taut
like kites shifting from one breeze to another

turning and turning in the midsummer air
the way of the samurai is silent immediacy

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a single moon clear and bright
          in an unclouded sky
yet still we stumble in this world's darkness

how simple and chase were the words of the ancients
calligraphic star charts of mystery and sage wisdom
mapping out the middle passage
                    from the square to the circle
                    the chaff to the grain

inspiration poems are the best
not to take anything from those complex ideas
that curve along like a twisted valley carved
from years of weathered toil and erosion,
setting the boundaries on our mental tributaries

its the impulsive trips downstream that bring us closer to home
          the next step is always right before the eyes
obscurity
          passion
                    brutal honesty
                              that's a good place to start

There's Only One You

     As a working actor and professional coach, I try to keep several handy things in mind when it comes to navigating the treacherous waters that are the acting life. First of all, this is going to be hard, I mean really hard. The craft of acting study is rigorous enough. But when added to the labyrinth lifestyle that is the entertainment industry, it can be the most frustrating endeavor out there. Simply put, there is no way to luck into an acting gig without being more than prepared in the first place. Too many agents will tell you that in this day and age social media and brand marketing are the end-all be all. That will only get you part of the way there, at best. Take the time to learn your craft to the best of your abilities. You never know when that big opportunity is waiting around the corner. Often the part picks you, not the other way around. One thing I always tell my acting students is that there is no big break without first acquiring big skill. 

     One of my current acting roles is on a crime drama slotted for cable network called "10th Ave". We just got our IMDB page, I have to admit, and the whole process is very exciting: https://www.facebook.com/hellskitchenstory?fref=ts

The tapings are going exceedingly well, and mainly its just nice to finally take advantage of a pilot season. I, myself, only got the part when another actor had to drop out of the show. If it wasn't for a theatre friend thinking of me and mentioning me to the director I would have never found out about the gig at all.  I went from literally submitting to the director on a Thursday to filming on that following Sunday. And I bring this up just to hammer home the concept of marketing vs. skill building. If I hadn't performed well in my theatre run, then my friend would never have recommended me for the tv role in the first place. And I certainly would not have been able to keep the part if I had not been already prepared to step on to a set.

     Secondly, becoming an actor is becoming an entrepreneur. If you aren't prepared to be your own business CEO for the commodity that is your artwork, then you might as well step out of the game now. Too many sit back and wait for that ever elusive some-thing to happen. It doesn't work like that. Especially if you are an aspiring musician, you have to be even more business minded than your counterparts. Know your business goals, and what you expect from the next fiscal year. Have a foundation in marketing and branding techniques so that you don't sound like a total novice when you do get that all important meeting. This is a business. So you can't expect anyone else to do the homework for you. And if you don't do the homework, you will loose out. 

     And thirdly, be prepared to dare to be different. Remember, your lifestyle as a professional artist will be vastly different from 90 percent of the people you come across. Blending in is a way of the past. You have to dare to be different, and dare to be You. Even at auditions, too many people I come across are trying to play a type, or play the guessing game of reading the casting director's mind. You are not a mind reader, (and if you are, that should be your professional act, not pilot castings). You never know what that director has in mind for a role. If you've done your homework, and the headshot/resume is on point, then your best bet is always just to be yourself. There's a million types out there. There's only one you.

Battle Cry -- Poem

back in the days before evil was born
i used to spend my carefree afternoons
roaming the vast garden of earth

but all that changed once the serpent gave birth
to the first acts of definace, and blame

and the people looked down and were ashamed

my restive days and sleepless nights are now and forever filled
by the search for new recruits

wanted:
open minded able bodied freedom fighters

degree in phraseology recommended but not required

slave to the tired and the huddled masses
i enroll millions in mediation classes
and inquire of friends and countrymen alike
to kindly lend me an ear

and i can teach possibilities of joy filled years
turning mortal fear into immortal cheer with just
the flash of my smile

like inspiration to the bastard child i create potential
by spreading visions of a virtuous tomorrow
across disenchanted miles

i helped solomon build an empire
founded on courage and fortified by wisdom
yet pleasures and riches soon led him astray

and still today i seek out articulate potentials
literary mercenaries who can spread my message
to the ends of the planet and back

it was me first who stacked the mortal and marble
founding the academy at athens greece
ensuring that my voice would forever speak peace

when planted in deep and fertile soil
my thoughts bear rich and luscious fruit

and my juices be floatin’ down like rain
soakin’ into the nappy brains of my people

i am the eternal flame
driving the weary runner on thru the night
when place with might i grasp him tight
tugging him onward and upward
to carry my torch to distant lands

he spreads my fire to every man

where others have fallen he will stand cause in his mind
i be whisperin
i think i can
i think i can
i think i am mighty
therefore
i am

born of nothing but men’s minds they cultivate and grow me
and yet i enslave mankind when they fear or don’t know me

a pack of chained cave dwellers flock to breed and mate
these, self proclaimed enemies of the enlightened state
populate the legions of my mortal enemies

ignorance
envy
and hate

their undying ability to procreate leads me quickly to make battle
and at the speed that thought travels
i unravel the dreams that plague sleeping poets

they are the drivers of passion pumping stallions
herded into reality’s stables

i morphed into metaphor once and they called me aesop’s fables

and like a turn table spinning around
my cipher never ceases
as long as sound can shatter
the blissful state of ignorance
into pieces

my master thesis on the power of music
molds masters our of average earthlings
for i am the reason why the caged bird sings

from dusk to the rise of the sun re-born
i am he that brings memories of hope’s last dawn

yet still the spawn of pride fight hard and long

so silently i lick the wounds
inflicted upon the many wombs
of my wife
man’s written verse

she lost her fighting stance while slamming in a serpent land
in the battle of general bigot’s last stand
poetry was severed from the hearts of man
yet just when the art of rhyming threatened to cease and be no more
this new thing called hip-hop armed me with rhymes galore

so i be aimin’ my darts at the hearts of youth
with semi-automatic riffles loaded with truth
but don’t shoot until you see the whites of their lies
and don’t fire if you can feel the self loathing in their eyes

the day that i lack compassion
is the fateful day that my mission dies

i am
the wounded warrior

jaded
yet ever crawling towards peace
and ever searching for restless writers
to set my soul at ease

won’t you fight for me

There Is No 'Try'

     Another year, another round of pilot season. I encourage actors to pick up the pace starting around the holidays, and its never stressed enough: you don't need an agent to pick up gigs.

     These days, with the advent of the social media, and all the multiple platforms, there is no "waiting for the phone to ring" involved anymore. An actor has as many opportunities as they can create for themselves. I say this to be much more than a quick tagline or bumper sticker. (Although I would put that on the back of my car.) These days the online database is king. You have to be choosy, and you have to find the ones that work best for you. Asking around is never a bad thing, but know that everyone's experiences will be different. Either way, its a mentality of always submitting, always searching for new social media groups, or industry networking events. Finding new ways of conjuring up projects is half the fun. And even if its not, you have to keep telling yourself that. Its the only way.

     I recently did a comedy pilot that I submitted to from NYCastings.com ( I highly recommend them for east coast actors, I'm not sure if there is a company quite like theirs for LA.) and by the time the casting director called me up all randomly at like 7:30 at night, I couldn't even remember what the show was. The lady wanted me to tell her a funny story on the spot, and while I can't say I brought the house down, I did book the part. It was interesting to me, I'd never had to do that before. I told a story about traveling to Connecticut for a theatre run, and how it was interesting to me. Eventually she laughed. I don't know, I don't think there were any real punch-lines per se, but it was an interesting story. And sure, she laughed....eventually.

     I say this just to point out that it is sort of an on-call occupation. Its not just that "an actor prepares", an actor must STAY prepared. You never know what lies just around the corner. And I think a lot people miss out on opportunities because they won't think outside the box.

     I have to admit, I hate the phrase when people say "oh, you're trying to be an actor." Thats not the way it works. You're either an actor or you're not, and the choice is yours to make. There is no pie in the sky day of "now you have made it" that appears one day just because you've booked a series or something. Sure, there are different levels of financial solvency that one can reach in the entertainment industry, but that's not necessarily what  I would call having made it. There are a ton of actors out there with more than comfortable bank accounts that I would not like to be. The whole concept these days is to create your own career path. No one waits for some agent to do it for them. Those days are long past.

     I'm proud to be on the "D List". I'm a horror movie actor. And I've chosen this path. My newest show I'll be appearing in this year is a vampire series called Night Life. I got to do the voiceover for the trailer and everything, its been really fun so far.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58zqnyPzw7s
   
     All that is just to say, keep your head up and keep it moving. Don't ever let someone tell you an actor has to be in LA to take advantage of pilot season, or that you have to be with some big agency to get work. Its simply not the case. The name of the game is A.B.G. Always Be Grinding. Now get back to work, coffee's for closers!

Sit Back and Enjoy the Show

Exciting people live for exciting times. The trick is in the in-between. No one can be "on" all the time. 

I've been fortunate enough to be asked back to the Sherman Playhouse theatre in Connecticut to do another theatre run for them, and rehearsals have just begun. I say this every time I have an extended interim between stage plays; there's no rush out there that can hold a candle to live theatre. Actors need to act. Its like clean air, and fresh water. The body simply does not work without it. Classes are fun, and can be a tool for getting in front of agents and casting directors. But there is no class or workshop that can replicate the feeling of a live show. 

I'm fortunate. This fall I get to commute to the plush countryside of New Milford, CT, and get exposed to a whole other market of theatre goers outside of NYC. Believe it or not, many (I'd say just short of most) New York actors would snub their noses at doing a show like this. I say why? Even Malkovich does random experimental theatre, and its alway phenomenal. This day and age, Anything off-broadway is technically community theatre. We live in a digital world now. If its not on tv, to most people, it doesn't exist. I say, good. Let the pop cultured masses have their fill. There are more than enough people that still love an electrically charged evening of comedy and drama. You just have to have the guts to stand up. 

As a matter of fact, next to stand up comedians, theatre actors are the realest it gets. 

Stand up and take your bow. And if the crowd sucks that night, screw 'em, another full house will be here tomorrow. 

Its the communal experience that they come for. And its the electric funky soulful acting that keeps 'em coming back. Film and television will never replace that. 

This year we lost a handful of some of the most prolific actors of our time. Robin Williams passing has been a wake up call to perfumers, and non performers alike. Every one has their own demons to battle, and you never know what the person you are idolizing on TV is really going through. Actors across the board, but especially comedians are constantly forced to be "on" all the time. Thats like meeting your favorite basketball player and expecting him to go dunk a double clutch jam for you right quick, so you can get a picture for instagram. How ridiculous would that be? But thats what happens every day in the world of entertainment. 

Just think about that next time you bother a celebrity at a ball game. Or photo bomb a selfie with some rapper at a club. 

They're the celebrity. You're the customer. Just relax, sit back, and enjoy the show.