Author Archives: thevsstudioblog

And now the end is hereAnd so I face that final curtainMy friend I’ll make it clearI’ll state my case, of which I’m certainI’ve lived a life that’s fullI traveled each and every highwayAnd more, much moreI did it, I did it my way -Frank Sinatra, “My Way” “If you want to go fast, goContinue reading “Our Way”

The actor/writer/director Austin Pendleton was recently interviewed on the excellent “Back To One” podcast which I highly recommend listening. In it, he talks craft and process and tells some amazing theatre history stories. One of which surrounds his acting in the very first production of “Fiddler On The Roof.” The legendary Jerome Robbins was theContinue reading “Fix 10 Things”

At the end of every hard-earned day people find some reason to believe. -lyrics from the song, “Reason To Believe” by Bruce Springsteen “If we want to feel an undying passion for our work, if we want to feel we are contributing to something bigger than ourselves, we all need to know our WHY.” -from theContinue reading “A Reason To”

“I will not avoid the tasks of today and charge them to tomorrow for I know that tomorrow never comes. Let me act now even though my actions may not bring happiness or success, for it is better to act and fail than not to act and flounder. Happiness, in truth, may not be the fruitContinue reading “Easier Said Than Done”

“I’m probably more personal when I’m acting than at any other time. More open, more direct. Because it allows me to be something that I can’t always feel comfortable with when I’m living my own life, you know? Because it’s make-believe.” -Phillip Seymour Hoffman I’m not exactly sure why this is, but the more personalContinue reading “Personalize! Personalize! Personalize!”

Nothing makes me happier than when someone tells me they were positively impacted by one of these posts. So you can imagine my level of joy when my good friend and active reader of this blog, Jason, aka “Sgt. Hulka”, (Can you guess the classic 80’s comedy reference?) emailed me a “guest blogger” post forContinue reading “Guest Post: “Mentorship””

Another post inspired by George Saunders excellent book “A Swim in a Pond in the Rain”… One reason Saunders focuses on the classic Russian writers in his class at Syracuse, besides their excellence of craft, is that they weren’t afraid to “ask the big questions.” There’s a weight and depth to their stories. They’re epicContinue reading “Ask The Big Questions”

“Years ago, on the phone with Bill Buford, then fiction editor of The New Yorker, enduring a series of painful edits, feeling a little insecure, I went fishing for a compliment: ‘But what do you like about the story?’ I whined. There was a long pause at the other end. And Bill said this: ‘Well,Continue reading “Make It Compelling”

A special shout to two friends and artists, Sasha Hawkes and Amy Marcs, who’ve formed Gladiolus Media, “a female owned production company that focuses on true and personal stories.” They met in our Vs. Studio Solo Performing and Writing Workshop taught by Paul Stein. For the last year or so in these workshops, they andContinue reading “Iron Skirt Stories”

“Let me tell you this, the older you do get the more rules they’re gonna try to get you to follow. You just gotta keep livin’ man, L-I-V-I-N.” -Wooderson as played by Matthew McConaghey in Richard Linklater’s film, Dazed And Confused Speaking of mantra’s, I think the Stoics would dig Wooderson’s “just keep livin’.” LikeContinue reading “Just Keep Lovin’”