Friday, December 28, 2007

LA Weekly- Best of 2007

Theater 2007: Listing Toward the Valley

Here’s to the memories

By STEVEN LEIGH MORRIS

Wednesday, December 26, 2007 - 10:24 am

A couple of random observations on local theater in 2007. The Valley is rising, and so are the beaches, to a lesser extent. A trend has been developing over the past three years that became even more pronounced in 2007 — the number of rock-solid theater productions emerging from North Hollywood and Burbank. In years past, our critics would consider it punishment to be sent to the Valley. But in today’s economic-artistic climate, there’s been a noticeable geographic shift in the number of productions worth considering for review — from Hollywood to the Valley. The quality of those productions has been reflected in reviews — and not just from this newspaper. Speculation as to the cause: real estate. The costs of putting on a play in Hollywood have driven most of our best companies out of the region — Actors’ Gang and Theatre/Theater spring to mind. (Circle X has been performing in Hollywood for years, but remains technically a gypsy troupe.) With the exception of Theatre of NOTE and Open Fist Theatre, among the last of the better Hollywood membership companies, Hollywood is now the land of indie productions in rental houses — people who roll in to do one show for whatever reason people would want to do one show in Hollywood. (Hmmm . . . wonder what that could be.) Even Open Fist, which took over Actors’ Gang’s former digs on Santa Monica Boulevard, is getting itchy to move on to economically friendlier pastures. Here’s a list of memorable shows, arrived at capriciously, from 2007. I’ll start with the Valley.



1. Palace of the End, 49th Parallel and Open at the Top Productions at the Noho Arts Center. In a richly textured survey, Judith Thompson’s interrelated soliloquies spun a trio of characters converging on Iraq: U.S. Army Pfc. Lynndie England (Kate Mines); British weapons inspector Dr. David Kelly (Michael Katlin); and Anna Khaja’s Iraqi ghost Nehrjas (killed during the first U.S. invasion). Finely directed by Sara Botsford and C.B. Brown, Thompson defiantly scraped to the marrow of opposing camps, offering a lament that contained a rare, eerie beauty.

2. Loyal Women, Theatre Banshee (Burbank). A topflight ensemble under Sean Branney’s direction gave Gary Mitchell’s grimly amusing drama its propulsion. This was a story of women set in a Protestant enclave in Northern Ireland, where the tyrannies of the local UDA Women’s Auxiliary — such as forbidding a romance between young Adele (Lisa Dobbyn) and her Catholic beau — make the horrors of our local homeowners associations (take down that basketball hoop from your garage!) seem benign.


3. The Glory of Living, Victory Theatre Center (Burbank). Another great Valley ensemble populated the stage in Rebecca Gilman’s homicidal road saga about the 15-year-old daughter (Rachel Style) of an Alabama prostitute (Saige Spinney), who runs off with a smooth-talking drifter named Clint (Martin Papazian). Though the play trafficked in melodrama, the emotional authenticity was a revelation.


4. Why Marry?, Theater Neo at the Secret Rose Theatre, North Hollywood. Who knew about Jessie Lynch Williams’ 1917 comedy — the first recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for drama? David Cheaney’s winking staging helped unearth a forgotten treasure that anticipated all the cultural crises that would accompany the “free love” ’60s, opening a window on where we are romantically, and how that’s a consequence of where we came from.


5. Black Watch, National Theatre of Scotland at UCLA Live. Far more interesting than the Royal Shakespeare Company juggernaut that arrived on its heels, Gregory Burke’s docu-drama (with video footage, naturally) gave us a haunting and innately theatrical rendition of wartime travails among members of the Scottish Black Watch army regiment in Iraq, and the slightly bewildered playwright who struggled to capture their story. John Tiffany’s directing style of cinematic macho realism suddenly folded into a kind of ballet. If this technique didn’t keep wartime clichés at bay, at least it reinvented them.


6. The Complications of Purchasing a Poodle Pillow, Steve Allen Theater at the Center for Inquiry–West, Hollywood. Mary Lynn Rajskub — more famous as the anti-terrorist computer expert, Chloe, on Fox’s 24 than she is as a standup or performance artist — spun that paradox in a seemingly discombobulated one-woman show about fame, dating and making stuff up. Just when you thought this was about everything and nothing, an hour’s worth of her accumulating images suddenly congealed into a world-weary and world-wise view on life.


7. Richard II, Independent Shakespeare Company at Barnsdall Park, Hollywood. This very good company keeps getting better. David Melville brought his trademark South of England sarcasm to the gay regent who figured he could spend all of England’s resources, banish his detractors and act on the bad counsel of his close friends. If this sounds like somebody we all know in a more familiar empire, director Joseph Culliton’s bare-bones staging didn’t push that comparison, but let the play’s implicit parallels tell the story.


8. Orestes Remembered: The Fury Project, Ghost Road Theatre Company at the Powerhouse Theatre, Santa Monica. Writer-director Katharine Noon spun the Clytemnestra legend, and the forlorn young murderer (Ronnie Clark) who’s now haunted after killing his mom (for betraying his dad, but that’s another story). This ensemble creation resulted in a unique, animated and infinitely engaging, if bipolar, production that was half campy, existential mystery and half courtroom drama. Yet the actors’ devotion to the project was evident, and made it memorable.


9. N*gger, Wetb*ck, Ch*nk, Ivar Theater, Hollywood. Writer-performers Rafael Augustin, Allan Axibal, Miles Gregley, Liesel Reinhart and writer Steven T. Seagle’s dance party, poetry slam and sketch-comedy show took some of the ugliest words in the culture and gleefully mocked them into impotence. The “can’t-we-all-get-along” theme was a bit honey-soaked, but I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face through most of this show.


10. Quartet, City Garage, Santa Monica. Director Frederique Michel and production designer Charles Duncombe do challenging, esoteric European works out there near Hooters. Their productions of Ionesco’s Rhinoceros and Pirandello’s The Bald Soprano drew crowds this year. Quartet didn’t, but it was their finest work. That’s what you get for staging an adaptation of Les Liaisons Dangereuses by the late German grump Heiner Müller. It went beyond Christopher Hampton’s titillation and dug into the grimy part of the psyche that has made the act of hurting vulnerable people a pastime of the ages. Excellent peformances by Sharon Gardner and Troy Dunn.


11. Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, Elephant Theatre Works, Hollywood. Deborah Dir and Daniel De Weldon’s electric performances slid right past the insufficiencies of John Patrick Shanley’s two-character play about lost souls discovering, losing and rediscovering each other. Michael Arabian directed the vivid, smoky mise en scène.

Friday, December 21, 2007

Website and new credit up

IMDb has finally decided that I was actuaully on Grey's Anatomy again and my credit is up! Also my webpage is almost completely done but feel free to take a look if you'd like. http://katemines.com/, enjoy!

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

November 29, 2007

thats the day my episode of "Grey's Anatomy" is on. Yet again I have a surgical mask on so you may miss it if you dont watch closely. My line is when Dr. Haan and McSteamy are operating in the OR!

Thursday, October 25, 2007

back to the set of Grey's Anatomy

got a call from my agent yesterday at around 3pm that they wanted me for an episode of Grey's Anatomy today. So at 8 am today i'll be back playing another OR Nurse.

So I just got home and I officially have a RECURRING role! Yes 2 is recurring and hopefully 2 will turn into 10 into 100. Anyway I shot a scene with Callie, Dr. Haan, Dr. Sloan, Izzy and Alex Karev today. Everyone was very nice and welcoming. Its episode 10 called, Crash Into Me: Part 2. It should air sometime in late November. I'll keep you updated as I know.

Thats all for now.

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

i got a callback...

Here is the link for info about the show including some of the music.

Sunday, September 30, 2007

offers and auditions

Haven't written since I returned from Jordan. Things have been going well. I'm trying to really use the momentum from the film to propel forward with casting directors and agents. Ideally I'd like to have 3 additional credits on my resume when the film comes out in '08.
  • I got a call from the California Shakespeare Festival on Friday offering me the role of Cordelia's understudy in King Lear. I had auditioned there several times and they never had a place for me in their season but always said they liked me. Of course now I'm in LA, so its not really a possibility for me now but flattering none the less.
  • I am auditioning for Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson at the Mark Taper Forum on Monday. It is a musical. I know, I know, I can't sing!!! That my friends is why I'm going to act the hell out of the song and they won't hear the notes. I have to bring a rock song, so I'm doing, You Oughta Know by Alanis Morsette. Ah... the 90's gotta love it. It's a company I'd love to work for but am not sure this is the perfect role for me. However, I'm so excited to be seen by these casting directors so they can keep me in mind for future projects. Below is some info about the show.



A new Wild West rock musical

A fast-paced irreverent Wild West rock musical on the founding of the modern Democratic Party. Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson redefines America’s seventh president, a frontiersman of humble stock who invented populism, removed Indians west, and played a kick-ass guitar. “Populism Yea Yea”


I'll let you know.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Home Safe

After 26 hours of travel... I'm home. Thanks for reading. I'll continue to update as I get auditions and stuff.

Tuesday, September 4, 2007

homeward bound

on my way home today!!!

Monday, September 3, 2007

On Set

Here are some pix from the set, on location:
Enjoy!

the green room, where the actor's hang out


hair and make-up trailer with Elizabeth and Christian


catering tent


me with my "dirty" make-up on,
so it looks like I've been in the dirt all day


me in full costume


some of the extras hanging out

Sunday, September 2, 2007

IMDB.COM

They finally got around to adding me. Click HERE to check it out.

Keepin' it Local

As we continue to wait for shooting to resume, Christian and I decided to experience the culture from a local's point of view. (p.s. shooting does resume tomorrow)

On Saturday....

Christian, Rassan, his daughter Dareen, and I all drove down to the Dead Sea. This time we got a daypass for the Movenpick. Its a swiss resort. We hung out, ate, and watched the sunset while floating in the Dead Sea.

Christian and Rassan with mud at Dead Sea

On Sunday...

We have become very friendly with Rassan's family and today he invited us over for lunch. He calls us "family", as is the custom here, much like in Turkey. We had a traditional Jordanian lunch and hung out in their house.



The Ladies

Christian, Rassan, with his eldest son, and wife




After we visited the oldest sweetshop in Jordan where they have traditional sweets made with pistachios. I am exhausted from all the socializing and sun exposure. Looking forward to finishing and coming home.

Friday, August 31, 2007

Roman Theatre

Today I had the day off so I decided to do a little exploring of Amman City Center. Today is Friday and a lot of the businesses are closed except in the City Center. I started out at the Roman Theatre and then went on to do some shopping for gifts. FYI, shopping for men is very difficult. Below are some pictures from the day. I am getting more comfortable and confident alone in cabs so I can venture further away from the hotel.


base of amphitheatre


view from the top


columns at the base


browsed museum after
below are some interesting parts of the exhibit


original tiles from a Church in Jerash, Jordan (6th century AD)

Going back to Dead Sea tomorrow for a day trip with Christian. Nice and relaxing I'm sure.

Thursday, August 30, 2007

Update

We left Aqaba at 8 am this morning only to find that there was a protest along the one road into Amman. The farmers were upset about gas prices apparently and were literally all just sitting in the road. What should have been at 2 1/2 hour drive turned into about 5 hours! I'm finally here and just got a call from our AD. We're not going back to work until Monday. So now I'm scrambling to get back out of town again. I've pretty much exhausted Amman and would like to see some more parts of Jordan. I do have to admit that I am quite ready to get home though. Its all boys and all the time here. We all work, eat, play, everything together and some new faces would be nice. My friend Erin, from high school, worked at the UN in Paris with a guy named Eric who now lives in Amman. I think I'll get drinks with him tonight. I'll keep you updated as I know more.

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Under the Sea... Literally

We left Amman at 6 am this morning after Jeremy was able to roll out of bed and headed down to Aqaba. The highways here are empty but narrow and wind all over the place.


Wadi Rum- we passed this on our drive down

We arrived in Aqaba at the Movenpick Hotel around 8:30 where Christian, Mark, Kathryn and Chris (Mark's Bro, who is working on the film) were eating breakfast. We all then headed over to the Diving Center to pick up our gear then off to the Red Sea. From our location we could see Israel, Eqypt and Saudi Arabia.


The Read Sea... Israel and Egypt in the distance

Kathryn, Christian, Jeremy and I decided to stick to snorkeling. We saw a lot of fish, eels, and even a sunken ship! I had a blast. We topped the night off with a relaxing dinner by the water.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Aqaba

I'm leaving Amman and heading to Aqaba tomorrow for at least 1 night. Leaving at 5am! I'll try to bring my laptop.

Stalled

So... Jeremy injured his foot yesterday so we're taking a few days off for him to recover. I am trying to plan a trip as we speak. I'll keep you updated as I know.


Sunday, August 26, 2007

The Dead Sea

I just returned from the Dead Sea today. Yesterday around 1pm Anthony, his girlfriend Amber, Fadi and I drove down to the Kempinski by the Dead Sea. Though it was only an hour away, we decided to make a weekend of it. On our way we had to stop at a few checkpoints where they of course stopped us and checked our ID's because we are clearly foreigners. Fadi said he never gets stopped when he's alone. There are a lot of security measures here like checking in trunks and under cars with mirrors.


check point on Dead Sea Highway

We met up with Brian and his girlfriend Laura at the resort. We had an infinity pool looking out over the sea and over to Israel. Although its far accross the water Israel seemed so close. We hung out by the pool for a bit then went and floated in the sea and had the mud bath. There is so much salt in the sea, you literally just get in and float. You'll see in the picture below my arms and feet are above water. The mud bath is supposed to be very good for your skin. Its a weird feeling but cool at the same time.


me floating in the Dead Sea


Anthony, Amber, Kate, Laura, and Brian covered in the mud from the Dead Sea

We watched the sunset and then went back to our rooms and returned for dinner. At 9:30 pm it was still unbelievably hot. I'm still extremely jet-lagged so I forced myself to bed at 11pm to try and get myself off naps and on to a regular schedule. A very loungey day but very relaxing with great food, views and company. I could get used to this lifestyle.


sunset Dead Sea
This morning we did breakfast and a little more poolside chillin' then back to Amman. I am called at 6:30am tomorrow so it'll be an early night for me.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Lost in Translation

Note: I am very tired.
Spelling and grammar will be awful in this post.
Read with caution.

DAY 2:

After night one when I stayed up until 5 am the next day’s wake up call at 10 am was a bit rough. I found a letter under my door letting me know that I would have a car pick me up at 1pm to take me to my fitting. After returning from breakfast I fell back asleep and woke up at 12:45 and still hadn't heard from production. I called Nick, the AD (Asst. Dir.) and he said there had been a bus accident with the extras so we were short on transportation guys so everything ended up getting pushed back. So, around 2pm I finally left to go to my fitting and ended up at the production office where they asked me what I was doing there. I said that I had simply gotten into the car they sent and went where he took me. After some discussion in Arabic I was carted over to the Costuming Dept., which is housed in a converted furniture store.

Here’s the thing about driving here. I honestly fear for my life almost all the time when I’m in a car. A lot of the cars don’t have seatbelts, no lanes, and seemingly no laws. There is this unspoken understanding between drivers, which I of course don’t get because I’m not a local. They tailgate so severely that the emergency brake is pulled at every stop so they don’t roll back 5 inches and hit the car behind them!! Anyway, I’m off track. So I had a very long and scenic drive to the costuming department.

Here are some pics from that drive:

There I met George, Moira and Dan. I was fitted with camo pants, a beige shirt, boots, a jacket, vest, and helmet, all very heavy and very warm. After finishing my fitting I was driven to the set to see Kathryn, the director, and Mark, the writer who I had not seen yet. They were shooting in the middle of a neighborhood. It's interesting because there are civilians everywhere and real military people too. Hard to tell sometimes who is in costume and who is actually military, not to mention all of the Jordanian extras who look American. I then came back to my hotel and headed out for dinner. I decided to venture out by myself and happened upon a Turkish Restaurant, which was quite nostalgic, I have to admit, making me miss my days in Ankara. I took a picture of the menu when I had another lost in translation moment.

Look at the sixth item on the menu:
This is the night club I see from my Hotel window:


After wandering around a little more I ran into Fadi, Jeremy and Malcolm who were headed out to a bar. We went La Calle, which was a balcony bar looking out over the city. Pretty mellow and not too late of a night, which was nice, considering I had a 7:30 am call the next morning.

DAY 3:

6:30 am wake up call, breakfast and I off I went to set. Christian and I got into costume and went through make up and hair. Make-up consists of dirtying us up. We went over to the set at around 9:30 and until 1pm shot in the beating sun. The make-up assistant, Elizabeth, fainted and was sent to the hospital. Both Christian and I were used but said no audible lines today. I was also given some script changes written on the spot by Mark. We, however, did not get to them. Lunch was a 1:30pm and after that I pretty much slept until I wrapped at 5:30pm. I think jet-lag is starting to catch up with me. It was both exciting and weird to actually be on the set. I am playing a Lieutenant in charge of several men, many of them much older than I am, and all of them of course bigger than I am. Oh well, I’m used to being bossy! I’m realizing how hard this job can be sometimes. I had a fairly cushy day today sitting in the air conditioned trailer but all the guys were out there in the beating hot sun for hours on end. They’ve been here for 5 weeks away from their friends and family. With all the good comes the weirdness of having no real home base other than a hotel and being in a constant state of change. Ok, I'm off to bed.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Finally Here!

After all the anticipation I'm finally blogging from in my hotel room in Amman. I left my house at 11:30 am on Tuesday, Aug 21st and arrived here at 7pm on Wednesday, Aug 22nd after 20 some odd hours of flying. I do have to say having a first class international ticket is pretty sweet. The seating, the lounges, and the service were all fantastic.

I arrived at the airport to a man holding a sign who helped me through customs and I was off with a chauffeur, with no snags. I was met at the hotel by a very friendly man named Imad who helped me check in, gave me my cell phone, and told me to meet him in the lobby. After changing I met back up with him, Anthony, and Jeremy (two other actors from the film). We all went to Chinese with some other folks from production. As we drove I asked Imad what street we were going to and he explained that there are 8 circles here. People always just refer to what circle your destination is close to and then next to this, around the corner from that and the restaurant was in the middle of a very residential area. Glad I wasn't driving. Great food, honestly much like a Chinese restaurant in the States. Then we were off to Club Cube.Upon arrival we had a hard time getting in but after many cell phone calls and texts we were granted entry. It was essentially an 80's club predominantly populated by teenagers. Very interesting set up, it looked a lot like a living room in someones house. Surprisingly, many of the kids spoke English to each other. Almost everyone here seems to speak English and all the signs seems to be in both English and Arabic. However, we ran into a girl named Leigh at the club who is here on a Fullbright and she said this is just the upper class showing off their wealth by speaking in English. I haven't been here long enough to make a judgment call. However, I will say I am surprised how many blonde haired blue eyed people there are here. We left the club around 4 am and I couldn't fall asleep until 5 am because it was merely 7pm my time in LA. Today I'm sure will be rough adjusting to the jet lag. As of now I have a costume fitting set up for today.

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Accomodations and more

I got the info. for where I am staying.
Click on Kempinski Hotel Amman for pix and info.


The reviews I've read online have been very complimentary about the service, rooms, food, bowling alley (in the hotel), etc...


Its getting more exciting by the day. My shoot dates have changed but I'm still there for the same block of time. As of now I'm flying out the 21st and returning to MD for a wedding on the 31st. Looks like it'll be a 20 hour flight! Too excited to care, got plenty of books to read.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Unrelated but totally Cool!

I started compiling my packing list for Jordan yesterday and stumbled upon this site. Packing list Online You enter your destination, the weather, how many days you're going for, what kind of activities you're going to do, etc... and it creates a packing list for you! So this is very exciting to me, just wanted to share.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Good News an Bad News, which do you want first?


Good News: OK...so Friday I get a call from Allison Jones casting to come in and read for a role on the next episode of "The Office". Great comedy, I'd love to work on this show.

Bad News: It shoots while I'm in Jordan. I had to turn down the audition so I didn't burn the bridge and double book.

Conclusion: It'll come back around again but still disappointing and exciting all at the same time. It feels like it's all starting to happen.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Skype...get it

So I just discovered you can talk for free between computers if you use Skype. You just download it here Skype and then we can talk for free! My cousin does it from Peru to CA all the time. If anyone wants to talk while I'm abroad that's how but remember its 7 hours ahead there....I think. Hope to see you in cyberspace!

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Suggestions

If you've been to Jordan and have any suggestions for places to visit, stuff to see, anything I should know ahead of time leave me a comment under this post. I'd love to get any info other than the stuff I'm reading online from strangers or reading in books.

Monday, August 6, 2007

How it all started...

June 2006: I did Much Ado About Nothing with The Haven Theatre Company. It was a really tiny production in a middle school auditiorium. Needless to say, not my best work, and as a side note the company doesn't even exist anymore. Anyway, I played Hero and the man playing Benedick, Ken Ward, and I became fast friends.

January 2007: Ken gets a call from a buddy of his from college, Christian, who was in a movie called K:19 starring Harrison Ford and directed by Kathryn Bigelow. Kathryn has called Christian asking him to round up some friends to do an informal reading at her house of a movie she's thinking of directing called The Hurt Locker. So Christian, Ken, a few others, and I all go over to Kathryn's and read through the script. I leave thinking nothing of it.

June 2007: Mark Bennett, a casting director, calls me out of the blue saying Kathryn has requested me for the movie and wanted to put me on "hold" and to make sure I had a passport and availability in August to go to Jordan to shoot. I, of course, said yes! (Luckily when Will went to Prague 2 summers ago, I tagged along to the passport office and got a passport too.)

July 2007: I signed with a new agent, Jana Luker.

August 2007: Jana calls to let me know I'm off "hold" and "booked" for the film. As of now I'm flying out the 21st.

Sunday, August 5, 2007

My First Posting

The purpose of this blog is to keep anyone/everyone who may be interested in my acting career up to date on my latest gigs. Feel free to read it daily or never.


My first big gig:

I just got word that I booked a feature film called The Hurt Locker. What I know now is the information up on IMDB.com (Internet Movie DataBase.com)




Here are some links to stuff online about it:
IMDB posting
another article I found about the movie

I'm flying out to Jordan on August 21st and planning on being there a week. I have no idea exactly what role I'm playing, however, I think its a soldier.

Right now I'm scouring the net for info on what I should bring, what not to wear, and info. on travelers cheques.

I'm very excited and will keep this updated as much as I can although I'm not sure I can take a laptop with me to Jordan.