New York and more

So I have not written in this thing in over two months! I am always so bad at these journal type things. Anyway, I am going to keep this short and sweet. So I have lived in NY now for a little over two months, and am loving it here. As irony has it though, I got 2 shows in California, so will be going back to California and living in San Diego from the beginning of January to the end of March. I am doing A New Brain as Nancy D/Waitress for the 3rd time from January 6-11th at the El Portal theater in North Hollywood. I am sooo excited to get to do this amazing show again with such an amazing cast. It is going to be a great finale for this show that never ends. Also, I am starting rehearsals during the day of January 6th for Miss Electricity, the show I workshopped at La Jolla Playhouse in September. I got a call last week and they offered me the role that I workshopped, and I couldn't be more excited! It is for La Jolla Playhouse's "PoP" tour which they do every year. I am going to be doing that show till the end of March, and then going back to New York! I am very excited, but it's going to be so weird living in California for those months. All in all, life is okay right now. My "professional" life is wonderful, so that always helps. I also got a call from Central Casting and I am shooting extra work for "Gossip Girl" tomorrow, so that'll be lots of fun. Anyway, hopefully to be continued. I will write soon...maybe.

So Close

So these past 2 weeks have gone by extremely fast...faster than I ever could imagine. I have been waiting and waiting to move to New York, and now it is finally coming. I am leaving Orange County tomorrow morning, and then leaving out of San Diego Thursday night. It is surreal. I cannot believe the day is almost here. It is amazing to think about, really. I have not thought about it literally much, which sounds silly but I really haven't. I have been so wrapped up in everything and just the idea of New York and have not really sat down much and thought about what it really all means. I am so so excited, but reality has not really kicked me in the head yet...I am sure it's coming. 

So 2 weeks ago I had my staged reading at the La Jolla Playhouse. It was such a blast and I met some amazingly wonderful and talented people. The reading in no way gives you the role that you were reading for, so I am planning on hopefully auditioning for the actual show probably in the beginning of January. I am sure the auditions are going to be in San Diego, but I think it might be worth it to come audition...we will see. Hey, I might even be in CA around then, because as of right now, A New Brain, part 3 is looking like it is going up in the beginning of January at some big theater in LA. Haha...the show that never ends. But if it all goes through, I will be extremely excited to do it again. After all, the cast is filled with my best friends, some of which I probably won't see till then! Other than that, I did a reading of Georgia Stit's new musical The Water this last week. What a beautiful musical! I played the role of Maddy and had an amazing time! I don't want to give anything away, so all I have to say is when it starts playing, you must go see it! I fell in love with the role I was playing, but she was 13, so I am not sure in the real world I would actually play the part...who knows, I may audition for that when it comes around as well! Anyway, back to NYC prep....

I have been saying good bye to some very close people in my life this last week. It is funny...I really realized who I care about this past week based on all of this. I found myself hanging out with my old roommate, Kelsey M. a good amount and it made me realize that she is honestly one of the greatest friends I have ever had, and I am sad we did not talk for so long after our roommate disaster. I know that after everything, we are going to remain friends. She is someone that I will def. make an effort to keep in touch with, as well as lots of others. There were some goodbyes that were hard, sad, and even creepy....the creepy I will leave out...ask me about it and I will def. share with you, but it's not for this blog! Anyway, I had a wonderful going away dinner at BJs on Friday night at 11:00 and I got to see so many of my friends I wanted to see so bad before I left. Thanks to all of you for coming out...it meant the world to me. I love you all so incredibly much, and I hope you know that! I also hope you know that you are always welcome in NY. I miss all of you already! 

So...knowing my blogging history, I probably won't write another post until I am on the other side unless something huge happens and I remember and write about it before then. So...to everyone again, I love you and hope to see you all very soon! Wish me luck!!

Love,

Ashley

Update

So I said at the beginning of this blog that I am not good at keeping up with a blog, and I am proving myself to be quite accurate with that statement. Life either gets a) busy, or b) too boring to blog about. I am going to try to get better at this over time though, I promise. 

So anyway, the newest news. My deposit is down on a 3 BR 2 BA apartment on West 163rd in Manhattan (Washington Heights to be a little more specific.) I am going to be living with my two wonderful friends Jessica and Gregg, and things could not be working out any better, knock on wood. Our apartment is directly above Courtney, Brian and Hillary's, so that is pretty much a dream come true. When Brian and I are at work, we can leave the pups together and not feel so bad leaving them alone for longer amounts of time. Kai and Olive will be reunited at last :) If you want to check out our apartment, here is the link I came up with from you tube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bttzyfG3Jao

Check it out, I am pretty happy with it to say the very lease :)

So, I have my ticket, I have my apartment and roommates, now I just need to finish selling things on craigslist, working and saving as much money as humanly possible, pack, and find a job. That's all easy, right? Haha anyway, I couldn't be more excited. I am seriously counting down the days, and it is officially 23 days until I board a plane to NYC! My Dad is coming with me and staying until Wednesday to help me get settled and everything. I already have a bed coming on the Friday morning that I arrive, and then my Dad is going to help me find everything else. I've decided that I am going to paint one of my walls either Tiffany blue or a pretty light yellow color. Any suggestions? I am super excited to make my "small space" my own. I am going to feel like my very own HGTV episode! Woo! Anyway, I think that's about all for now. My workshop for La Jolla Playhouse starts a week from today so I am super excited about that, and I am doing a workshop for a new Georgia Stit musical the following week, so once I get through this week, it's going to be smooth sailing! Till next time!

xoxo Ashley

The Move is Official!

So when Batboy fell through, I was really upset and decided that I just needed to get out of Orange County. I realized that I am currently not making enough money at Islands to do really anything with. I have been trying to save money with all of my might, but the money I am making is mostly covering gas and food and that is basically it. So, I came to the conclusion that I need to just move to New York because one, it is where I should be for musical theater, and two, I will make much more money out there as a server than I do out here. 

Sooooo the exciting news is that yesterday morning I bought my one way plane ticket from San Diego to JFK for October 2nd at 9:25 pm. I wanted to do a red eye because that way when I arrive on Friday, it will be in the morning and I will have an entire day to get things situated. I also thought arriving on Friday was a good idea because that way I can have a three day weekend to really arrange my living situation, and then on Monday I can start looking for a job. My friend Jessica who I will be living with is moving out to NY tomorrow, and is going to start looking for a place for us to live. I am soooo stoked to live with Jess because she is extremely responsible and a wonderful person. I just can't wait till we find a place so I don't have to worry anymore. I know that Courtney and Brian will have my back if I need to crash on their couch for a few days, but in a perfect world, I would love to be able to get off the plane Friday morning and go to my new apartment! We are thinking that the Morningside/ Upper West Side area is where we want to be. Hopefully it will all work out! I am just very excited to get the ball rolling! It is nice because I only payed $203 for my ticket and then $100 for Olive to come with. Not too bad. Just have to push myself to pull my savings up before I leave. And I don't even want to talk about my credit card. No bueno. Anyway :) 

Everything happens for a reason, and I've decided that Batboy wasn't supposed to happen because I was supposed to move out to NY sooner than later. I am very excited! To be continued...

♥

Ashley

Bad night...

So I have officially decided that when it rains, it pours. 

I smashed my foot when I came into my house tonight when my mirror key holder came crashing on my foot. Then...

I got a call from one of the artistic directors of Batboy telling me that they have postponed the show until at least March. Meaning, my life is back to where it was before. Boring with nothing to occupy my time but working at Islands. 

I want to move to NY in October again. I am over this place and just want to get out.

This is emo. I am just going to peace out. Just wanted to update those who read this to tell them that I am not doing Batboy anymore.

Ojai and other stuff!

So, the director of Batboy, Philip Nemy called me on Friday and officially offered me the role of Shelly, so I am pretty excited! (I said yes.) It should be a very exciting and new experience. I have not done a show where I had to relocate temporarily before, so this will be a new/great opportunity. I think it will be really cool to sort of experience little town life before I move to "the big city." As of right now, my plans are to move to NY the first or second weekend in November, as Batboy closes on November 2nd. I talked to the guy playing Batboy via email and he seems fantastic! He is 22 as well, and from Colorado. He was cast in a new musical in Pasadena and relocated to CA to do it. He seems like a very fun and dedicated guy, so I am really looking forward to working with him! I am also super excited to meet some new people! I love my friends more than anything in the entire world, but I have not really done a show with people I do not know before. This will be the first big time that I will be meeting a whole big new group of actors. 

In other news, my friend Jeremy who will be finishing up his last year in the acting grad program at CSUF let me know yesterday that he had been cast opposite me in Miss Electricity! He just found out yesterday because I guess they were having a hard time deciding if it would work out or not. He told them he would not be able to do the possible tour in Jan-March because he has to finish up his last semester in the grad program, so I think they were trying to find someone who would be able to commit to both. None the less, the called him yesterday and agreed on contracting him just for the workshop! I am so excited to work with him. He is an extremely talented actor, and I have much respect for him. I am eager to learn from him as we do this show!  

And besides that, let me think of anything else going on....

Oh, I have been watching the Olympics the past few days and am blown away!! To see all of those people with that incredible talent is amazing! I look at those girls doing all the stuff on the balance beam and all the floor work they do, and wonder if they realize how truly gifted they are! I envy them very much! Also, lets talk about Michael Phelps! Wow! He is out of control! I get so excited every time he swims! I know he is pretty much unbeatable, but I want it to stay that way so bad! I find myself getting so nervous for him because I want him to win so bad! Haha I am a nerd.

In addition to that, I went and saw my good friend Lesley in Les Mis at the Hollywood Bowl on Sunday night and had an incredible time! The Jean Val Jean was beyond anything I have ever seen. His voice just blew me away! The Javert (Brian Stokes Mitchelle) was stunning as well! Overall, it was an incredible show! I did not want to like Lea Michelle ( Wendla in Spring Awakening) who played Eponine, but I have to say, she was perfect for the role. She was a little poppy at times, but her voice is incredible. I was way jealous. 

So that's pretty much all for now from me! I am having my first music rehearsal for Batboy sometime this week in Ojai, and our first read through is Monday night! I couldn't be more excited! Hope all is well with everyone!

New News

So I have to be honest, I forgot my username and password for a brief time, but I actually sat down and thought about it today so now I can write again! 

Lots has happened in the past few weeks! I auditioned for a staged reading at La Jolla Playhouse for a new play/musical thing-a-ma-jig called Miss Electricity, and I found out last Tuesday that I got the role that I auditioned for! I will be playing the role of Violet who's "super-hero alter ego" is Miss Electricity. Right now it is just a two day workshop on Sept. 16th and 17th with a staged reading performance for people on the 17th at the playhouse. I guess this reading is in preparation for the Jan-March "pop" tour, so if all goes well (keep your fingers crossed for me!) I could get that as well. La Jolla Playhouse's Pop program is this thing where they rehearse and put on a 40 minute new show, and do it for a weekend or two at La Jolla Playhouse, but then also tour around San Diego County doing the show at schools, libraries and theaters and such for kids. It is geared to bring theater to kids that have not or would not normally get to see it. I am really praying that the workshop goes well and they offer me the tour. 

In other news, I auditioned for Bat Boy last week for Theater150 which is out in Ojai,CA. The audition was so much fun, and I loved all of the directors/producers I met at the audition. I sang "Come to Your Senses" from Tick, Tick, Boom! And then also sang a portion of the duet that Shelly and Batboy sing together called "Live Inside Your Heart." Then they had me do some sides and we chatted, etc. Well, I got a call from the director today telling me that he wants to cast me as Shelly, but wanted to talk to me about the distance and stuff. Ojai is 2 hours away from Brea, so the commute will be quite challenging. The good thing is that a good portion of the rehearsals can be held in LA as some of the other leads he wants to cast live in the LA area as well. He told me to think about it and let him know tomorrow. So...I think I've decided to let him know that I want to do it. It is not a for sure deal yet though because he still has to go through the producers and such. I will keep everyone updated! I do have to see doing Batboy and playing the role of Shelly would be a blast! The show goes until November 2nd, so I would just push back moving to New York a couple of weeks and get out there whenever I am done.

Anyway, enough talk about that stuff! I went down to San Diego for the past day or so and finally introduced my parents to Olive! They actually seemed to like her a good amount, my Dad much more so than my Mom. I showed them all of her tricks, and as much as my mom probably tried to hide that she was impressed, I could tell that she was. What can I say? My dog's got skills :) I also met their new puppy, Bella. She looks like a tiny little panda bear. She is soooo adorable! She bossed Olive around the entire time I was there which is funny because Olive is like 3 months older than her. All in all, San Diego was lots of fun. I got to see my Aunt Andee and my cousin Cole, as well as my mom's best friend and practically my other aunt, Eileen. They all adored Olive as well :) 

So that's about all for me right now! I dont have to work until tomorrow morning, and Geoff works tonight, so I think I'm just going to relax and finally watch Pirates 3. Yes, I have not seen it yet. 

Till next time,

♥ Ashley

Rough Day...

So today did not go really as I thought it would. I was planning to head down to San Diego early this afternoon with my dog Olive to finally tell my parents about her. I talked to my sister before I left for San Diego, and she told me that she thought it would be in my best interest if I told them about her before I just brought her down and showed her to them. So, I decided to go with what she said, and she told me dad and told me to call my mom. I told her that I wanted to wait and hear my dad's reaction to it all before I told my mom, because usually my dad is much more calm and lets things go easier. Well, he called me once he found out, and said all the normal stuff I expected him to say, i.e. "this is the stupidest thing you have ever done. You do not have the money to support a dog. You are being very irresponsible, you could have been saving that money, etc." Obviously I know all of that is true, but I am not one to be rational about things sometimes, so I got a dog knowing all of this. He then told me that he was going to call my mom and tell her because he knew she was going to be very mad, and wanted to be the one to let her know basically to help me out. Well, I get a call from my sister like 5 minutes later telling me that my mom has never been more furious in her entire life, and that I cant come home anymore. Turns out my mom is so upset that she wants me to give away my dog. She is livid. I know that I will not, and cannot give my dog away, so that is out of the question. I am just praying that she will calm down, and realize that though I did make a "stupid decision," it is just a dog, it's not the end of the world. I am just bummed because I was so excited to go down to San Diego and spend time with my family and introduce my dog to them, and now I may be getting cut off. I should have seen all of this coming, and in a way I did, but I guess I did not want to believe that my mom would act the way she did. Anyway, that is pretty much where I am at right now. If anyone has any suggestions on how to mend this problem, please let me know! Thanks! 

Being comfortable.

So I am at this point of my life where I am starting to get antsy. I know what I want to do with my life, and am trying to figure out how to make it all happen. So I just finished up A New Brain this last Sunday, and am now "showless." As of right now, I am working at Islands as a server about 5 days a week and that is pretty much it. Lots of my friends have left for other places already, and I feel pretty stuck. I still don't have a planned out living situation yet for New York, so until I do I am not 100% sure when I am moving. I am trying to push all of my friends who were not already planning on moving out there, to move. I am a bit of a scardy cat, so I think that if I get the people I love to go with me, the whole moving process wont be as scary. Also, I am really ready to meet new people and do new things. Certain elements in my life have gotten very comfortable, and I am ready for a change. I've kinda decided that being comfortable is lethal. I love being happy, but there is a very big difference between being happy and comfortable. I think being comfortable means that you are not taking any risks, and you are living life without trying anything new. I dont want to be that person. I want to be the person that goes out in the world and experiences life and accomplishes everything my heart desires. And what does me heart desire....I am not 100% sure yet, but I am excited to find out. I know I want to be an actress. I know that I love singing and acting more than doing anything else in the whole world. I know that I want to make a career out of it because no other job will make me happy, and we only live once, so I want to be happy. I also dont mind serving. I think it is hard work for good money, and I like working hard. I would be okay if I had to be a server for the next 10 years while I tried to make it in musical theater. I feel like that would be okay. It wouldn't be a desk job, and it would not feel permanent, so I think I would enjoy it. Leaving this comfortable life is also hard because it is also leaving some of the people you are so comfortable with. I am so used to the fact that I could drive for an hour and fifteen minutes and be at my parents house. I've never had to fly to see them before. I think that is what scares me the most. Family is so important, and I cant imagine not being there for my family. But I also know that my family wants me to follow my dreams, so I will not let them down. There will be many other people missed when I leave for NY as well. But I think the people who really care about me understand 100% that it is what I need to do. Anyway, I dont really know what this blog is about other then just getting some thoughts out. There are so many things I want to say but dont know how or why. Hopefully I will figure it out. So enough of this emo post!

I've got to go to work today at 12:00 and then I am meeting Geoff and his parents and my Dad and his work friend at the Brea Yard House for dinner. My Dad is up here on business so I am really glad that I get to see him! Part of me wants to tell him SOOOO bad that I have a dog just to get it over with. I feel like he would freak out way less than my Mom, but I also dont think the Yard House with Geoff and his family is the most appropriate time to tell him. Part of me just wants to go down to San Diego this weekend and bring my dog and just deal with the wrath of them finding out about her. It's going to be tough...they are not going to be happy! Okay, enough of that! I am going to relax before work. Till the next post :)

My fist blog ever!

Hey guys,

So I've decided to make this blog because I've realized that I am no longer in college, and wont be seeing everyone the way I used to, and I want to share my life with people. I know that I will be talking to most of my best friends via phone and everthing, but I thought this was a fun way to let everyone know what is going on in my life! So, this blog is basically going to be about the adventures of me and the starting of my career in musical theater. For those of you who don't know, I graduated about a month ago from Cal State Fullerton with my BFA in Musical Theater with 9 of the greatest people I have ever known. At Cal State Fullerton, they make you go through a jury process where you have to audition to get into the program. As a frosh, there are probably around 100-130 people who want to be in musical theater. During your soph. year, the numbers start going down for one reason or another. Some people just decide that musical theater just isn't what they want to do with their life. Other crazy people, like me, choose the crazy life of a musical theater major and start auditioning for the program. At the beginning of your soph. year, there is a small cut, but most people are kept for the first semester who decide to "jury." Then, at the end of that semester, there is a singing and acting jury that cuts the prospective musical theater majors to less than half. Our second semester there were about 24 or so people in the class. Then, at the end of your soph. year, you have a singing jury where you have to prepare 4 songs, an acting jury where you have to prepare a scene, and a dance jury which consists of ballet, tap and jazz. At the end of all that, they pick 10-12 people to make up the BFA class, which will continue on through Senior year. I was so lucky to have been picked as one of those people, and even more lucky to have been picked with the incredible people I was picked with. In my class, there were 7 guys and 5 girls that made up our class. I am so lucky to get to say that those were my best friends. So anyway, that program has been my life for the past 2 years, and now I am a graduate, and pretty much starting all over again! It is crazy to be so consumed with something, and then one day just be finished. I am so lucky to have had the incredible training and support that I had from my friends and faculty. Now, a new chapter is starting, and that is where this blog comes in! If I can be any good at this, I will be updating quite often about the happenings in my life. 

Now, as for what's going on in my life right now! I will be finishing up a 6 week run of "A New Brain" at The Rude Guerilla theater in Santa Ana this weekend. It has been a wonderful run, and I have truly enjoyed it. The cast has been amazing, and I have been so blessed to work with so many of my best friends again. There have sure been some rough moments, and times that we all wanted to just peace out, but in the end, it has all been worth it and wonderful. So...next on my plate: I am not sure! I have been trying to audition as much as I can lately, but this time of year is pretty slow because all of the summer shows have pretty much been cast. I have a few things I am going to audition for coming up, so we will see how all of that goes.

In other news, I have decided to move to NY sooner than I had originally thought. I was out in NY last week for a short trip with my sister for a call back I had, and realized that that is really the place I need to be. I cant keep asking my parents, or working my butt off to make enough money for plane tickets to go back and fourth to NY for every audition or call back or whatever I need to go for. It is going to be really hard to leave my family and of course Geoff (my boyfriend of 2 years in case someone is reading this who does not know), but I've talked to both and they all want me to do what I need to do. My Dad is a huge advocate for me going out there, and their support is incredible. I thought my Mom would be a lot more upset than she was when I brought it up, but she understands more than I ever thought she would. I have such an amazing family. Also, when I talked to Geoff about it, he told me that NY is where I need to be, and will support me 100%. So, I am not sure exactly when and where and who I am moving with, but it is going to happen sometime sooner than later. I am thinking Sept-Nov of this year...we shall see. I will keep everyone posted! So anyway, this blog has been painfully long! I will write when I have something new to write about! Thanks for reading everyone :)