When Reality Sets In....

I have a tendency to compare my summer last year to this summer and there is no comparison.  Last summer was so different.  God provided a job for me right away and completely provided for me financially so I could play all summer.   This summer God is providing in a different way.  He has provided new friends, a church home and two future roommates!  I realized that he is paving the way to set my life up here for a while.  How do I know this?  Well, I know because I am jobless and living in NYC indefinitely.   I turned in my resignation papers on Monday and I still don’t really know how I feel about it.  Of course, I cried big fat tears because a chapter in my life is officially closed but I’m sort of excited to find out what lies ahead. 

 Last week was a rollercoaster of a ride.  I walked around the city and went about my business with goosebumps most of the time. It started when I went to Hillsong and met Sarah while we were in the overflow room.  Hillsong now has seven services and for some reason 2:00 PM was the one I decided to go to.  When I got there I was so mad I was in the overflow room and just wanted to go home.   I wanted to be where all the action was but I knew I was there for a reason.   During the four minutes of meet and greet I met Sarah.  We are both from Texas and our stories of what brought us here are so similar it’s ridiculous!   I can clearly see the work of the Lord in my life and it just amazes me!  Last Tuesday I went to a connect group, a small group bible study and that’s where I met Megan.  It was sort of an instant connection and we got coffee the next morning and chatted for a really long time.  I also met two girls on Friday for dinner named Rebecca and Jessica.  We all met to talk about being roommates come September  1^st.   It’s a perfect situation.  We are all performers but in different areas, all Christians and we all want to live in the same general area.  So, we made it official and will be starting the search for apartments this week.  We were connected with each other by a mutual friend, Elizabeth.  Her and her husband reminds me so much of Greg and Rachel Ligon because they are so good at connecting people with the same needs.  I spent some time with them last weekend and they were so encouraging.  Elizabeth looked at me at one point and said “I don’t normally say this but I know you’re here for a specific reason.” I was definitely thankful for that statement because it’s always good to hear confirmation like that.  I also had the opportunity to talk to a professor at NYU about the Educational Theatre Masters.   If I do the Educational Theatre Masters without the teacher certification it will only take me one year to complete it.  That sounds pretty amazing and it’s at NYU!!!! I’m still looking at other programs just to make sure that Educational Theatre is the direction I want to go when it comes to getting my masters.

  I think Friday was one of the hardest days for me.  I found out that one of my high school choir directors, Joan Davis, passed away.  I was so sad about that because she was a beautiful woman who played a huge part in my love for music and passion for singing.  She encouraged me and didn’t let me get away with much.  Those teachers are always my favorite and she will for sure be missed.  On the same day I heard that Colleen Bohrmann was moving up to Central Office and would no longer be at Encino Park.  Talk about an emotional day!  When I heard the news about Colleen I just felt like, once again, confirmation that I am doing the right thing and supposed to be here.  Because, Colleen moved up I needed to resign ASAP so Cindy can have the full time music position for next year.  I knew I would end up resigning I just thought it would be in August instead of now.   In the midst of all the emotion and shock I was reminded of this verse "Remember not the former things, nor the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; do you not percieve it? I will make a way in the wilderness and a river in the dessert." Isaiah 43:18-19. 

Even though I’m jobless I do have a job lead.  I had an interview with a company called Education Through Music on Monday.  It’s a very interesting company.  Fifty percent of NY public schools do not have a music program in place so, ETM’s ultimate goal is to put teachers in the schools that don’t have music and try to get those principals to hire them on as “real teachers” with the NY department of education.  I think it’s a great company with a great purpose.   I would only work part time which would allow me to take classes, go to auditions or work a second job.  I think it sounds perfect!  Monday’s interview was only the first round though.  It was sort of an interesting interview, I felt like it was an audition actually.  There were seven of us in the interview and we all had to present a five minute mini-lesson for a specific grade level.  Everyone came from a different musical background so that made all the lessons very interesting.   I thought I would find out next week if I was “called back” for the second round of interviews but, I found out today before my acting class that I have a one on one interview with the Program Director next Wednesday at  2:00PM.  Yipee!!  My week is off to a great start and to make it even better I got to watch Roman Holiday in Bryant Park with my two new friends,  Megan and Sarah. 

 When reality sets in I will be praising my way through this journey.  I’m in NEW YORK CITY!!!!!  And I’m somewhere over the rainbow where dreams really do come true!   I know the Lord is control, he is my provider, he is my refuge in times of trouble and he will never leave me or forsake me or give me more than I can handle. 

Love,

The official New Yorker, for now, Miss Gulley in Manhattan

I don't remember where this was but it was an
awesome rooftop bar.  I had drinks with my Tango
partner Lawrence last weekend.  Don't worry, I haven't
seen him since. LOL

A little fact...this is my stop in what is known as
ACTORia.  

Waiting for the movie to start in Bryant Park

Moto...I suggest this place to anyone visiting!
I't in Brooklyn and it's AWESOME!

Yay for new friends.  On the left is Sarah from Texan
and on the right is Megan from Seattle.

Me and Elizabeth :)

The art of "doing"

To be a good actor you have to have a lively temperament, an able and limber body, and a voice. According to Mr. Charles Goforth, my Meisner teacher,  acting is "doing" truthfully under imaginary circumstances.  Well, it's a revision from Sanford Meisner who says acting is to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances.  The Meisner class  I started taking  this past week is fascinating.  As soon as the first class was over I was so intrigued and interested I went and bought the book called Sanford Meisner on Acting . I've already learned more than I could have imagined and it's only the first week.  Let me give you a recap of my first two classes.  
Class #1
Of course, I was seriously nervous about my first class because I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that I would have to do things I don't do or have never done.  I was okay with that and ready for an exciting three hours.  I met a girl in the class, named Athen, while I was sitting in the lobby waiting because I was early. She said that Charles is a great teacher and three hours goes by really quickly.  That was a relief to hear.  At precisely 1:30 our class began.  It was a small class of five ranging from 20 somethings to 40 somethings and consisted of two girls and three boys plus Charles.   He laid out his expectations and then we immediately began the most famous exercise in this training called the Repetition exercise.  This is where your partner makes an observation about you and you have to repeat it back and forth until the repetition naturally or organically changes in one of three ways. A simple change is the pronoun.  If my partner says "you look really young" I would say "I look really young."  Easy right?  Well, then the second change comes when the repetition just plain piles up.  Say my partner and I have repeated the same phrase at least 10 times back and forth, eventually one of us is going to say something to change it based on how we feel about what we are saying or the partners' reaction. The third change comes when you observe a behavior change from your partner.  I have just said to my partner "I am upsetting you"  my partner says "Yes you're upsetting me"  I would then say "Oh my gosh! I didn't mean to upset you."  I know, it doesn't really make sense and it is really hard to explain but the exercise is designed to make you have true, honest, real, naturally organic responses to what is happening.  Charles started the Repetition exercise with each one of us before we were left on our own and I have to say with him it was easy and natural.  I'm sure that's because he knows what he's doing.  After we were left on our own with a partner he would stop and correct us and tell us why our repetition didn't work or what could have been said etc.  He also made it very clear that the classroom was a safe place and there were no wrong answers.  I love that! After a good long practice with repetition we discussed as a class that giving an honest response in real life is not the norm but for an actor it means everything.  That's why when you're acting you're not pretending to be someone you're not, you're acting as you under imaginary circumstances.  That was a real eye opener for me. Charles said over and over in the first class "take in your partner" meaning what behaviors are you observing from him?  What does his body language say?  How is he responding to you?   If I'm honest, it's hard for me to read someone especially if I don't know them.  Charles summed up the class with the words "you can't think about what you're doing, you have to act on your impulses."  He gave us official partners and homework to practice the repetition with our new partner for at least forty-five minutes to an hour before Thursday. The first class was a breeze compared to the second one.  
Class #2
I did my homework with my partner named Afrim.  He is very nice and lives in Brooklyn and I felt way more comfortable doing the repetition with him outside of class instead of in class.  It just felt a bit freer and a little more forgiving because we both have not clearly grasped the concept yet.  On Thursday we had a complete class of eight.  Two more boys joined us and one more girl.  It created a whole new dynamic to our class that will definitely make the interactions way more interesting.  The classroom was set up a little bit different  and Charles acted more like a teacher.  He hid behind a desk in the corner instead of rolling around on his rolly chair like he did in the first class.  He was definitely down to business today and later I found that he does not put up with peoples little games.  Afrim and I were called up to do the Repetition excersice first and like last time Charles stopped us every now and then to ask "what are you getting from him?" "how are you feeling about that?  or say "Crystal, make a subjective observation to start," or  "Afrim, you're too mechanical, let her response land on you and take her in."  We were up there a good 15 minutes or longer just practicing.  I confessed to Charles that I see a behavior change from Afrim but have no idea how to put that into words. Once I confessed most of the other class members agreed with that statement when they were up there practicing too.  I found it very interesting to watch the others and I found it even more interesting to watch Charles.  I can always tell when he is going to start the repetition with someone because he literally looks you up and down and stares right into your eyes for a good three seconds and then says something like "you seem very pensive today," and the exercise begins. He literally takes you in.  The new students had to catch up very quickly but they seemed to pick it up very well.  I did observe that Athen will be the teachers pet and one of our new students (I wish I could remember his name) is going to drive me crazy because he is all over the place and asks questions that have already been answered.  Joseph, is older and he gets on my nerves too because he's a little bit full of himself and has the same exact expression every time his partner makes an observation to begin the exercise.  Everyone else is just as interesting but those three definitely stood out to me this week.  We were reminded during our class, once again, to take our partner in and stay in the moment because the unit of acting is a moment and we don't want to miss one.  He reminded us to act on our impulse and to treat the exercise as a reality.  Charles told us  another change that can come in the repetition is a point of view change and that the principle of acting is don't do anything until something makes you do it.  
By then end of class we had all practiced the repetition and Charles gave us another exercise to do that will help us read our partners behavior a little better.  It's called the Three Moment Exercise.  In this exercise you sit in a chair across from one another and ask a provocative question.  Your partner is supposed to repeat it and then you tell him what behavior came from that question.  So, my partner and I had to go first and I freaked out a little bit.  I am not a question asker normally and especially not provacative questions with someone I don't even know!  So, I squirmed in my chair for a good while and then looked over at Charles  and said "a provocative question? Like, do you have a list?"  He laughed as well as everyone else and then asked me the dirtiest question ever that I had to repeat!  This class is a whole new ballgame for me.  I'm so not used to those kinds of questions.  Then it was my turn to ask Afrim and I couldn't.  I had no questions...my mind was literally blank becasue I was so terrified! This is when I found out Charles isn't going to put up with anything because he looked at me really stern and said "Crystal, put your feet on the floor, get over the fact that you are not comfortable and do it!" So, I took a deep breath and asked the stupidest questions and then my turn was over. Whew, that was clearly not an easy task for me.
  Everyone else did not have a hard time with that exercise and I realized a few things in that moment.  First of all, I'm so used to getting my way and getting out of things and that's definitely not going to happen in this class.  Secondly, I am very reserved and have not had the same "life" experiences as the people in my class so that makes a huge difference.  Third, I'm gonna have to push through the fact that asking provacative questions makes me very, very uncomfortable.  I need a list...so if any of you have good questions to ask please share :)  Last but not least, this class is very good for me and the teacher is good for me as well.  I know I will grow, I will learn, I will be taken into unfamiliar territory and stretched to my limit.  I hope when it's all said and done I  will be a better actress and will be able to read people better.  I can't wait to see what this weeks classes hold.  


Love,
A very uncomfortable Meisner student,  Miss Gulley in Manhattan

It is FINISHED!!!!!

OMG  y'all, this project took me forever but my blasted portfolio is finally finished.  Take a look at it...just click on the link and it should take you there. Crystal Gulley's Portfolio.

In other news... this weekend I  signed up for a six week Meisner Intensive acting class and it starts tomorrow!  I am extremely nervous but so excited.  I think it's only going to be about 8 of us and if it's anything like the class I watched last summer it really will be intense and nerve racking and I will be put on the spot all time.  That's something I really hate.  Something else I really hate...I just found out I missed the Wizard of Oz playing in Bryant Park tonight!!! DANGET!!!!!!  I can't believe I missed that!  I saw that it was showing one day last week when I was sucked into the park but I have literally stayed home all day.  I am tired of walking around aimlessly so I took a break and I missed the dang show!!!  Oh well, coulda, shoulda, woulda  right?  Back to the Meisner class...It will totally take me out of my comfort zone so I'm sure it will be a great experience.  
This weekend was a nice and relaxing weekend full of walking, watching great performances, and talking to very interesting people. Friday morning I took a ballet class at Broadway Dance with a German, male instructor and I LOVED him!  I am still sore from his class today and I will be going back on Wednesday! That night I watched the Twelfth Night in Battery Park at Castle Clinton.  This was a very interesting production because the performers used the entire park for the show.  Our backdrop was Lady Liberty and we had to follow the performers through the park.  It was pretty cool and of course, as always, I loved it.  Saturday I met the instructor for my Meisner class.  He was very nice and said that his class was a good introduction to the technique and will steer me in the right direction.  That was very encouraging to me.  Then I wandered into Washington Square Park where I met an interesting fellow named Adam.  We literally spent the whole afternoon talking and made plans for drinks on a rooftop lounge Sunday Night.  After my long chat in Washington Square Park I ventured to Central Park to watch Tango dancing by the Shakespeare statue.  The group has free lessons on Saturday at 7:30 and I will be going to that lesson this week. I just hope I don't forget about it like I did The Wizard of Oz.  
Sunday morning I tried Redeemer Presbyterian on the West Side.  I got in contact with Clare's friend Elizabeth and she invited me to meet her there. Of course I accepted and I'm so glad.  I had the privilege of listening to Tim Keller preach.  He is so biblical and simple to follow.  I was definitely blessed by his teaching.  Elizabeth and her husband Jared are really great "connectors" to people around the city and really solid, Godly people.  I am gonna need them in my life.  After church I checked out the little farmers market and headed home.  Adam called me around 5ish and we met up for drinks on a hotel rooftop.  He is a very interesting fellow and I realized if I'm going to have conversations with New Yorker's I'm going to need to brush up on my politics.  He asked me all of these political questions and I really could not talk about them because I didn't know.  I claimed ignorance is bliss and then we had several awkward moments of silence because we clearly had nothing in common.  That made for a very interesting evening.  I was glad when I finally got home.  
Today, like I said earlier, I have stayed home all day!  It was very nice but guess what I did.  I totally brushed up on my politics.  I needed to know how I stood on all the political issues and I feel so good about doing that because now I can have a legit convo..at least I think I can.  I also contacted someone at NYU about the Educational Theatre Masters degree and will hopefully be meeting with them to talk about program options and I also set up a meeting with one of Janie Kolman's friends to talk about Children's theatre opportunities.  So, hopefully this week will be a very productive week and the ball get's rolling on a real job.  I can't stand the fact that I'm not working.  I sort of don't know how to sit still and do nothing.  I'm hoping and praying for good things.  

Lady Liberty, the setting for The Twelfth Night

Always something going on at the park.  This was a very interesting dance troupe in Washington Square Park.

The Arch in Washington Square Park

This fountain was refreshing for lots of people.
Washington Square Park

Love a girl who needs a job,
Miss Gulley in Manhattan