07.28.2010
It is a pleasure to work with a director who highly values the importance of table work. Table work, for better or worse, refers to the process at the beginning of rehearsals when the director, actors and other interested members of the company sit around a table and talk about the play. I know theatre artists have diverging opinions of the value of table work, some think it’s a waste of time to sit around and talk about a play when discovery happens on your feet as you make choices and respond to scene partners. Other people need to talk in excess, asking subtle- and sometimes annoying- questions about the actions, motivations, and events on the page. I think there is a happy medium.
One of the vital advantages of table work is to create a common understanding of the world in which the play exists and then create a shared vocabulary to describe it amongst the company. How many plays have you seen where you thought: “those actors don’t seem to be in the same world?” This can be a deliberate choice or it can be a common mistake that can be resolved with more discussion of the play and voicing of the opinions that individual actors bring to the room. I find that the time spent talking about the play allows me to feel more prepared to make bold choices in action and explore beyond the options discussed with the company. Of course, you also need a director who is willing to take the time to experiment on her feet and not just stick to choices discussed around the table.
I knew that my current director, Jessi Burgess, would allow time for both. As the founder of The Inkwell, a company dedicated to fostering playwrights and developing their new work, Jessi thrives in the stimulating environment of the rehearsal room. She is intelligent, intuitive, nurturing, demanding and eager to have fun. We are currently working together on James McManus’ play, Cherry Smoke, with the excellent Tim Getman, Cliff Williams and Jjana Valentiner as part of the Round House Kitchen.
Jessi fell in love with Jim’s work a few years ago when she produced his Underground as part of the Inkwell Festival. Although the play has been produced in several cities, our company is very fortunate that Jessi and Jim have a productive working relationship to discuss and edit the play. They are in constant communication and Jim will be down from NY in a few weeks to watch a run and give feedback. Having that connection between the playwright and director and having a director that will use that relationship to not only help edit an already great play but also try to stage the best that play can be, is a stimulating and exciting process to be a part of.
I hope you can come see the play, and of course, give us some feedback 
Cherry Smoke runs in the Round House Theatre at Silver Spring, MD August 27th- September 5th.
03.23.2010
I’ve spent the past two months in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire, friends, located inside the black box of Everyman Theatre in Baltimore, Maryland. It has been an honor and challenge returning to the classic American play by Thorton Wilder as Emily Webb in Our Town.
I first played Emily at Brown Ledge Camp as a fifteen year old camper. Last spring, I was thrilled to be cast in the role for this season and eager to tackle the character again, this time with a little more understanding of the craft. I must say, it has been more of a challenge than I expected, especially playing the young Emily in Act One.
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12.22.2009
I’ve had a satisfying close to 2009: a year full of stimulating theatre and collaborations, fulfilling travel and rewarding times at home. The Picture of Dorian Gray was an incredibly challenging and growing experience. The cast had a great run together and the Round House audiences loved the show.
Since we closed in October I’ve been busy working as a standardized patient at George Washington University Medical School, where I get to utilize my acting and teaching skills helping medical students develop their communication and technical proficiency for when they work with real patients.
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09.14.2009
This past month has been one heck of a ride. Tonight we open The Picture of Dorian Gray at Round House Theatre and I must say I’m a little sad about that. Opening means that rehearsals are over, our playwright goes home, we say goodbye to our director- the amazing Blake Robison- and the cast is only together for three hours a day instead of eight (or twelve). I’m going to miss the luxury of just working on theatre- stimulating, challenging theatre- and will return to the day jobs. But what a run we’ll have!
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05.17.2009
It is the middle of May and I should be rehearsing Bruise Easy by Dan LeFranc at Catalyst Theatre. However, that show was canceled in March due to budget constraints. I was disappointed for the lost opportunity to work at Catalyst Theatre and with director Shirley Serotsky on a world premier play. I did my research and emailed some colleagues and got myself into some audition rooms. I knew I had a great job at Round House Theatre come August, which was a reassurance, but the idea of not working on a play was somewhat startling, especially after a year of non-stop work. However, there was something in me that also just wanted to take a break.
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03.22.2009
Our Cherry Orchard has opened up at Everyman Theatre in Baltimore! We had a wonderful opening night on Friday, lots of love from family, friends and loyal subscribers. It’s been a wonderful process so far. A real acting challenge for me as it is my first Chehkov and I’ve had the chance to discover and play with all the depth and possibility in his beautiful writing. Anya is a delightful character, full of optimism and hope, but also complex in her sensitivity to her family and past.
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02.03.2009
Happy New Year! What a challenging and productive year 2008 was for me in my home of Washington DC. I moved here in October of 2007 and have been busy working and playing since, or both really since they usually go hand in hand. January is my first break from rehearsals and performing since March and I am enjoying the evenings at home and working just two jobs instead of three! I have two exciting projects lined up for the spring: The Cherry Orchard with Everyman Theatre, which runs March 18-April 26, and Bruise Easy at Catalyst Theatre, May 24-June 21. And already auditions are approaching for the 2009-2010 season. Whew.
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11.18.2008
Wow, what a change of scenery! Last week I was performing in the stormy Caucasian mountains and now I’m rehearsing on Dicken’s streets of London. The timing is perfect and marks the advent of my holiday season. I love the holidays: the cool air and warm hearts, the general buzz of goodwill and family-time. And what a better way to immerse in the season than rehearse and perform in Dicken’s A Christmas Carol every day? The cast of Ford’s A Christmas Carol has jumped right into staging and after four days of rehearsal we already have the show on its feet.
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10.03.2008
Host and Guest opened last Friday to a supportive and congratulatory crowd. Check out my media page for some of our great reviews. The cast has had a wonderful time recreating this piece, adding our own personal style and personality. The physical training has been intense, though we have not had to rehearse with the same Synetic intensity since the show is a remount and most of the creative-improvisational work was done by the original cast. I am sorry to have missed out on that process with the company, though I hope to work with them again next season to help create a show from scratch. The pure physical endurance training along with the pantomime and dance technique we have learned has been invaluable to my personal growth. I feel blessed to be working with such a motivated and joyful company.
I hope you can see the show! We run until November 9th Thursdays through Saturdays 8pm and Sunday matinees at 3pm in the Rosslyn Spectrum in Virginia right across from the Key Bridge.
08.15.2008
For the past month I have been working with the award winning Synetic Theatre, a company based in Shirlington Virginia founded and run by Paata and Irina Tsikurishvili, former citizens of the Republic of Georgia. It has been a long process of auditions, callbacks, training and testing of our physical fitness, talent and stamina. Two weeks ago I found out that I was cast in the role of Jane in the company’s adaptation of The Cabinet of Dr Caligari, a 1919 silent film considered the first horror movie which marked the beginning of the German Expressionist period. I was very excited to be honored with the role and eager to begin official rehearsals after the training.
On Friday August 8th the Russian army invaded Georgia. When I returned to rehearsal on Wednesday our director, Paata, announced that the company would no longer be working on Caligari and they would now be remounting Host and Guest, a play the company previously staged based on a Georgian epic poem about the futility of war.
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