I Am A Badass.... (I Think I Can. I Know I Can. I Will.)

I am working to transform my stories from the written page into fully mounted productions, ie getting them mounted on a stage or edited into a film. However, I am, by nature, someone who wants to know everything about a task/project/place before I make a single step in its direction. I want to feel fully equipped to handle every possible mishap and figure out its solution. Call me the Queen of Research if you want... actually don't call me that. There is nothing appealing or badass about that title. Ick. Next.

But, since I am attracted to badasses and I want to be one, one day, I have force myself to get over my bullshit anxiety. Badasses don't need to know everything to make a move.Well behaved women rarely make history. No guts no glory. I'm looking especially to AFFRM (African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement) founder, television & film director, and one of my biggest inspirations Ava DuVernay who says

“You can’t move forward when your actions hinge on someone else doing something for you. All the time you spend focused on trying to move ahead in the industry, trying to grab, is time you’re not doing the work. Waiting for permission, waiting for help, waiting for understanding is not doing. You gotta knock it off."

Several things help me move forward.

• I don't have all the financial support needed to endow me with the uber-confidence needed to pursue my ridiculous ambitions. And yet support systems, whether they be a partner/spouse, family member, or (ride-or-die) friend, are paramount in achieving anything. No one achieves anything great without help. But I do have some support. I have a few pillars that I can lean on when my confidence is shot.

• Collaboration is fucking key. Doing things by yourself, in the grand scheme of things, albeit safe, is stupid. Supremely stupid. Sure, you won't disappoint others by failing them and they can't hurt you by not following through. But the depth and level of success you can attain by working with a group of contributors working and riffing off of one another's ideas is enough to make me run headfirst into a jazz jam session. (I think there's a metaphor in there. Go with it. I mean it!)

• Being a boss is cool. Rappers talk about it, CEOs talk about it, Presidents talk about it. But all jest aside, I'm super excited to make an impact. I'd rather embarrass myself in an attempt to make something that matters to me, and perhaps others, than being jealous of someone else who had the courage to go for it.

So with those tools in hand, I am putting my producer hat into the next gear. I'm working harder than ever, and it hurts. And? 

Save Ya Rep: Working in Repertory Theater

Working in repertory theater for the Houston Shakespeare Festival was an eye-opening experience. We worked on two very different shows at the same time, Antony & Cleopatra and As You Like It switching back and forth each day spending the first week of rehearsal on AYLI and the second on A&C. On our last day of tech, which is a beast in of itself, one of our directors mentioned it had technically only been our 14th day rehearsing that show. WTF!!!! Are you serious.

These two shows could not have been more different. To be honest, on the days when I know I am to frolic in the land of Egypt... although I'm done up to the I was so nervous. "Antony & Cleopatra" is an absolute beast. It was fun yet hard. With each new performance, as usual, I got more comfortable. Never in my life have I shown that much skin for that many people. I think I did alright. Whatcha think?

Yours Truly working it as Charmian in 'Antony & Cleopatra'

As for As You Like It. Boy did I love playing Phebe. What a firecracker! If I'm honest, I wasn't always quite sure why people were laughing at what I was doing but I'm sure that a part of it was  because of how much my Silvius and I were in contrast to one another but also because neither of us relinquished our overall objectives. (Ick. Actor speak. My apologies ya'll). But, I'm thinking... maybe it's not my business to know why the audience laughs, but just trust what I do. The director and my scene partners are taking care of it. If I just commit to my goal and point of view, I'm golden.

Me as Phebe really wanting some Ganymede. Ha

What working in repertory theater setting really helps me work on was on how well one must rehearse, how to be efficient with time, and how to juggle two things at once. Having to continually balance two realities, and commit to telling an honest and committed story was arduous and rewarding. Even the more established actors would comment on how out of practice there were in the repertory setting. It was such a wonderful exercise in time management, multi-tasking, and so much more. I'll be heading off to Milwaukee Repertory Theater to do much of the same. It'll be exhausting to say the least, but hey, get to act for a living, God willing. I couldn't be luckier.

Guest Blogger: @jesimieljenkins - Moving to LA - Part 1

Jesimiel and I met during the year I lived in Philadelphia working as an Education Fellow at the Wilma Theater, a Teaching Artist for Philadelphia Young Playwrights, and developing my craft as  a performer and writer. Jesimel recently moved to LA to pursue a career in TV hosting. When I remembered the fascinating discussions we had about being African American, intellectual, and creative, I thought he'd offer a fascinating perspective. Featured below is Part I of his journey to LA. He's brutally honest and I dig it. 

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I’m reading a remarkable book right now.  In fact, so remarkable that it seems to mirror my life at the moment.  It’s called The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson and could easily be hailed as the first major work of nonfiction concerning the Great Migration, the period between 1915 until 1970 when black families uprooted from the south to make new homes in urban areas of northern cities.  They were drawn by increased wages, a better quality of life, and mostly less discrimination.  Wilkerson chronicles the lives of three different families from the moment they left the south up until the book was completed.  The title is from a poem by Richard Wright:

I was leaving the South

To fling myself into the unknown…

I was taking a part of the South

To transplant in alien soil,

To see if it could grow differently,

If it could drink of new and cool rains,

Bend in strange winds,

Respond to the warmth of other suns

And, perhaps, to bloom.

I started reading this book before I decided to move to Los Angeles back in January.  I’d spent the last three years in Philadelphia working at an art museum and dispassionately auditioning for theatre roles here and there when something came along that I actually liked.  Much like the families in Wilkerson’s book, I was fed up. I felt that there was a glass ceiling for minority actors in such a small theatre market and my dreams were waiting for me somewhere up near Jupiter. I decided to move to Philadelphia with the hopes of padding my resume with good roles but after months of auditioning and being looked over for someone far worse than I and seeing lackluster and lifeless productions of wonderful pieces of theatre, I realized I was in bad soil.  So, after some soul-searching and after losing my dad in 2011, I decided to hitch a U-Haul to the back of my Nissan Rogue and traverse west for a new life, more opportunity, and more fertile soil. I needed the warmth of other suns.   

Side note: I totally had a nerd moment when I read that he'd been reading "Warmth of Other Suns" because the book was the basis for work I did in a class I took while in graduate school on self-generated work. Some of the best creative writing I've been able to do. 

To reach Jesimiel you can follow him on Twitter @jesimieljenkins or email him at jesimieljenkins@blallywood.com.

Guest Bloggers Are A-Comin'!!!!

Hey Guys

Although many of you believe in my inherent genius, I figure two heads are still better than one. Heck, three heads are better than one. There's a lot to be gained from having multiple voices and perspectives come in to conversation with one another. This dialogue allows us question our own beliefs and become more knowledge and aware about the subtle grey areas that represent our cultural consciousness. (Geez, I feel like I'm writing a pair. Ick). As such, in the vein of sharing what "Eaze Way Says," I decided to ask a few of my friends to do the same and become regular guest bloggers! They all have connection to the arts and/or entertainment industry, but they also have interests that extend far beyond my own. It's my belief that this collective sharing will offer some great fellowship and great support.

Writing A Monologue.... Why Try?!

So, my writing/editing session had to be rescheduled and THAT bummed me out. BUT since I know that continually creating work is imperative to my career success and overall trajectory, I am moving on to another new project in the mean time.

If you didn't know, actors, always have to audition. That's the real job, auditioning. If you can imagine constantly having to go on a job interview, sometimes 2 or 3 times in a day...actually don't. That's the annoying bit, especially for me because I just want to act, not clamor to get the chance to do it. But, one of the things that I have learned in my many years of auditioning is that one of the best ways to set myself up for success in an audition is to pick good material that resonates with me. It may speak to my personal experience or it may just scare/excite me in some way. Since I know me best....  why don't I just write with my own monologues? Why don't I! As my friend Mark Brown II told me

"Make the art that you want to make. Be critical later. Some ideas are great on paper and suck in life and some ideas aren't the best on paper but ROCK in real life."

So, my next project will come from that. My inspiration? Music that I love. To be honest, this idea started when I saw a quote from the infamous 1999 summer jam by Sisqo entitled "The Thong Song." You laugh now, but can you imagine a monologue that seriously dealt with the concept of the thong? Or a monologue where the protagonist IS a thong? HAHAHA. I'm cracking myself up just thinking about it.

It may be a tremendous failure, or... it could be my biggest piece of genius. So, let me know what your favorite songs are, and I might make a monologue based on your inspiration. I'm looking to make at least 1 good one but I'll write 10. And in case, if you've forgotten:

Episode 3 Has Arrived....

Today I am meeting with a mentor writer friend of mine to get some feedback on episodes I've written for my most recent webseries currently entitled "Siblings." (My family is secretly hoping they are(not) featured in it. LOL.

I'm so excited. I may or may not cry. I may or may not get defensive. I may or may not want to quit afterwards.


Yeah... that's a crock. I'm going to love every uncomfortable awesome moment of it. The part that's probably going to be the most annoying isn't that I'll have to make edits... I love edits. That part that's going to be the most annoying is that now I have to start working on my next project. Idea development never ends. You have to keep writing. There isn't one idea. It's not genius to just write one piece. Genius and excellence develop from a disciplined practice. We don't just have the MacBook... we have the iPad, the iPod, the... well you see where I am going with this. Keep working! guys

What Creative Types (Should) Do At Night

I find myself sitting through a bout of insomnia and arriving officially at the morning and realizing I have spent the entire night watching inspirational videos from people I admire. People like Ellen Degeneres, Oprah Winfrey and yes, Chelsea Handler. But, I also spent a LOT of time watching choreography videos on youtube. Granted, I doubt I'll ever dance behind to Beyonce on stage in a corps of female dancers (although... hey girl, I'm from H-Town, let's meet up!) But I still LOVE to dance. I really do! Something about music and movement coming together frees. It's amazing to see these people craft work for themselves that has the ability to transform someone's mood and inspire them. It's exciting and rather humbling to know that perhaps one day I can do that for another.

Of course, perhaps I should have spent the evening.... morning... twilight... whatever, writing or doing something more produc... active, I think it jumpstarted my day... or my all-nighter... whatever, you know what I mean. And since I'm prone to sharing these golden nuggets, here's a video I found particularly enjoyable. The dancers seem so happy, so talented, AND the editing for the clip was amazing. Looks like something gooberish that I would do. I'm gonna still something from it. I also need to take more editing classes or shadow more projects.

Signed
Goober or EazeWaySays

PS. These video is still a reminder that I need to go out and purchase... have a friend gift me Rosetta Stone : The French Edition.

Guillaume Lorentz - Beautiful People (Chris Brown) Exclusively Fun Time

Inspiration

I love this choreography. :D 

Empowering Yourself Through Entrepreneurship

I found this article Secrets of Start-Up Queens: How to Launch a Successful Business in Today’s Entrepreneurial Economy while I was on Buzzfeed today. The articles discusses the experiences of supermodel and business tycoon Iman and model and social media queen Coca Rocha. It struck a cord with me because I want to have longevity in my career and be more than just an actress. I want to have a platform and a voice. Here is a highlight from the article:

"Iman spoke of photoshoots early in her career, and the struggle to find makeup shades that matched her skin color. (Incidentally, the first time she wore makeup at all was on her first shoot.) So, years later with her supermodel status cemented, she decided to start her own eponymous makeup line targeted toward women of color. To be taken seriously as a businesswomen, though, she said she needed to “divorce herself from the [fashion] industry.”

I stopped going to fashion parties and networked not with fashion people but [with] business people. And I asked for help from executives. You will not believe, when you reach out and ask to be mentored by another female executive, how you will be uplifted.

Coco Rocha then told the audience she’d been peppering Iman with “entrepreneurial questions” in turn. While Iman branded a product she felt passionate about, Coco made herself the brand: “This is awkward because I’m listening to these ladies that are powerful businesswomen and I’m like uh… ME!”

She spoke of wanting to create a well-known persona in the same way the “old era” of supermodels did. She said, “I noticed that no-one knew much about me and no-one cared to know [either].” She cited social media as the way she’s created a personality to accompany the face. (As of writing, Rocha has 550,607 Twitter followers and 427,066 on Instagram. She recently wrote a “Why I Instagram” column for Vogue.)

[As a model] I had no way to have a voice — so in order to have a longer, more successful career, I started a blog. I wrote about nothing; I remember one post was about a bird named Tweety. And people were like, ‘Tweety’s so cool, he’s fantastic.’ I thought, ‘this is really awesome, I have an audience!’