Tag: Acting advice

Grind and hustle….  Hustle and grind. Those are the classic actions of the Chicago actor, are they not? Bouncing from one audition, show, set to the next. All the while, trying to maintain a sense of control over the uncontrollable fluster of your creative life. Have you ever thought about creating your own work? At the end of the day, we are each in control of our preparation, choices, and…

Learning to navigate the “business” and demystify the actor-agent relationship is much of what I teach every Winter to BFA Seniors at the Theatre School at DePaul University. This year the students were assigned to interview the agents. Two students visited each Chicago SAG-AFTRA franchised agency and asked them questions about their agencies, audition advice and marketing for actors.  Not only were the agents generous with their time, they also…

Oh, the day job. Most of us need one in order to survive, but as actors, we need flexibility in our work schedule. This can be a challenge because it means the typical 9-5 job isn’t going to work for us. So what do we do? It means that most of us need to be resourceful and flexible to create a stable income while we audition for that guest-starring role…

Many Chicago theatres are in the midst of holding their General auditions. These auditions require a monologue. Performing a monologue, (while a standard in our trade) can still seem daunting. Finding the right piece can be one of the most stressful parts of an upcoming audition. It’s one of the only times in your career when you will get the chance to cast yourself.  What should you choose? What are Casting…

As actors, our resumes and our head-shots are essential in our business. If you’ve never had to put together an acting resume before, it can be a bit confusing. Your resume should be helpful and informative, so what kind of information should you include on your resume? What should it look like? What’s a good format? Here are the basics: Your acting resume is always on one sheet of paper…

The Reality of the Business  Let’s face facts; most actors have a hard time turning ​our ART into our BUSINESS. It is surprisingly easy to fall into that spiral of only working the survival job and convincing ourselves​​ that we‘re too tired, too busy, or too broke, to do the real thing ​we​ decided to make our life’s work. ​We​ lose motivation and​ drive, and without positive feedback or reinforcement; there is a risk we might ​shut down. Yet we all…

It’s important that we all remember that as actors and working professionals we have  the right to expect a safe experience and room when we audition. We at Acting Studio Chicago want to make sure that new actors understand what they should expect in these situations. 1 First and foremost, “actors’ rights” mean that all actors should feel safe when auditioning and rehearsing. If at any time during the process…

We’re excited to have Esteban Andres Cruz join us at Acting Studio Chicago to teach Applied Viewpoints! We asked him a few questions about his experience and his teaching style. When did you decide to become an actor and where did you get your training? Acting wasn’t much of a choice – it came upon me, as they say. I was one of those-performing-from-the-womb types. My first play was at…

Becky Keeshin spoke with Award winning, Musical Theatre actor, Michael Hayden to ask him about his thoughts on the profession and teaching ASC’s first Musical Theatre class,  Acting The Song. How did you discover theater and music? How old were you? How was your journey to becoming a working actor?  I discovered it as many of us do. Doing plays in elementary school and then getting serious about it in…

Mid-July 2017: I’m going to be really honest with you guys, I’m not just tired, I’m exhausted. As I write this I find myself fantasizing about my bed and when I can get back in it. My eyes feel bleary. I know I’m grumpy because I lose my patience with inanimate objects. Seriously, guys, I just yelled obscenities at my desk phone. I got angry at a pad of post…