In the past year of the 半岛体育 feature series, How Did I Get Here, actors, directors, designers, musicians, and others who work on and off the stage to create the magic that is live theatre shared their journeys to Broadway.
These diverse artists also offered much hard-earned advice鈥攖ips for those starting out in the
business and words of wisdom they would have offered their younger
selves. Read some of their advice below, and click here for the full series of interviews.
Stage manager Christopher Kee Anaya-Gorman:
Listen to learn. Those who listen to learn will better understand what is needed to move forward and resolve. Network! Send that email. Say hi to that person on the street or when
the opportunity presents itself. If you don鈥檛, someone else will.
Actor Laura Benanti:
There鈥檚 enough to go around. Someone else鈥檚 success isn鈥檛 your failure.
Actor Sierra Boggess:
Keep 鈥渢he work鈥� up. There is no 鈥渁rriving鈥� and then stopping. Our achievements and goals are simply that. Then the world keeps going, so we gotta keep going, too! Finding that you never stop improving your craft and never stop practicing is really important to your survival as an artist! And to know that the world is looking for your voice. Imitation is great to find places in your range you didn't think were possible. But then make it your own. The world wants what you have to give! You are enough as you are, and the rest is icing on the cake!
Musician Elena Bonomo:
I
would tell my younger self to keep doing what you're doing, because
everything is going to be okay. If we all spent a little less time
worrying and a little more time being present, we'd enjoy the ride a lot
more. It's not just about reaching the finish line because... It's
never-ending, especially if you want to keep growing. It's all about the
journey!
Vocal coach Gigi Buffington:
Where are doors opening to you in your life? Pay
attention to those openings. How do you want to live your life day to
day? There is no one way to do anything. Tune into your own unique self.
If your life becomes one of despair and misery, chances are, you are
not in sync with your unique nature. Align yourself. Breathe. Be
present. If you have an intuition, an impulse, act on it.
Lighting designer Isabella Byrd:
I wish to find some reinvention of the phrase
鈥淔ake it tell you make it.鈥� I know I subscribed to this ethos in some
ways, but I also regret not asking more clarifying questions when I was
younger. I pretended to understand things I didn鈥檛, and I think I may
have been able to make larger creative leaps had I illuminated a few
more things. I ask more questions now.
Don鈥檛 work for assholes. (Or once you see they are, don鈥檛 work for them again.) Life is too short!
Set and costume designer Bunny Christie:
Be prepared for the long haul. Be on time. Don鈥檛 take on too many things at once. Take holidays. Re-charge. Be brave.
Actor Jordan Dobson:
Don鈥檛 put career before real life. Live an authentic life, and it will lead to the career opportunities that you鈥檙e actually meant for. We don鈥檛 have long on this earth, and our lives should not revolve around Broadway.
Music director Dominic Fallacaro:
Relationships are really everything, and not in a
transactional, network-y kind of way. Building friendships and a wide
list of collaborators mean that you don鈥檛 shoulder the life of a
creative on your own. You can help with other鈥檚 success, and they, in
turn, can lift you up as well. 鈥淎 rising tide lifts all boats鈥� is
definitely something I return to as a touchstone in the life of the
arts. Root for your friends, and they root for you!
Actor Hawley Gould:
Present-tense-ness is a prerequisite for fun. There is simply nobody better to be than yourself. The rest is still unwritten.
Actor Nathan Lee Graham:
Here鈥檚 some advice. Stay healthy in every way. It is truly the only way to actualize your full performing potential. And, remember, show business is not set up for you to fail. It鈥檚 set up for you to quit! No one wants you to fail鈥攊f you鈥檙e winning baby, everybody鈥檚 winning! But one less person to have to do deal with鈥ell, is one less person. So don鈥檛
quit. Unless 鈥測ou鈥� want to.
Sound designer Kai Harada:
I
think one of the best pieces of advice I received at the tender age
of 19 was, "Shut up and listen." There's an obvious double-entendre there, of course! But it's true鈥攐ne of Tony Meola's
top mixers pulled me aside one day to share that piece of advice when I
was talking too much, and it stuck. When you're young, you do think you
know more than you do鈥攎aybe you even have a degree or two to show for
it鈥攂ut really, there's so much that can be learned by simply listening
and observing. Know the time to ask questions. Know when to shut up.
Know that this a grueling industry and the hours are long and the time
can be extremely stressful. So if there's something you'd rather do鈥攇o do that instead鈥攂ut if you can put up with all of the stressors and
do what you really love to do, you can be one of the luckiest people in
the world.
Scenic and costume designer Tim Hatley:
Listen
to people. Look at what is going on around you. Be a sponge and absorb
as much as you can. Believe in yourself and keep your seatbelt fastened,
as being a theatre designer is not an easy ride.
Director Michael Herwitz:
I spent a lot of time waiting for someone who I
perceived to have more power than me to pick me out of the crowd and put
me on the path to success. Lots of internships, lots of coffee dates.
And while I gained a ton from mentors, teachers, and people further
along, my greatest resources are my friends鈥攎y peers. No one is coming
down from on high to scoop you up. It鈥檚 the people to your right and
left who are your greatest resource. They are going to pull you up, and
it鈥檚 your job to pull them up, too. Lateral mentorship is the most
important form of mentorship, I think.
Actor Brian d'Arcy James:
It's a marathon, so take your time, and don't forget to stretch. Also, a watched pot never boils. Don't fixate on something that didn't happen鈥攖ake a walk, read a book, look the other way, and then get back to the pursuit.
Actor Nikki M. James:
Say 鈥渢hank you鈥� more, for both the good and the hard experiences. Each of these moments will become a part of your foundation.
Casting director Geoff Josselson:
It鈥檚
so hard to see the bigger picture when you are young. Not to be clich茅,
but I always try to remind myself (and others) that it鈥檚 a marathon,
not a sprint, and to focus on where you are. Everyone's journey is their
own. I'm proud that I was able to carve my own successful path, and it
doesn't look like anyone else's.
Actor Adam Kantor:
You are enough. It may sound cheesy, but it鈥檚 so
true. Your weirdness, your quirks, and perhaps even your greatest
sources of shame are deeply worthy of excavation and celebration.
Actor Bianca Leigh:
Lie about having waitress experience. Look at
auditions as building blocks, not job interviews. Stick with it, one
tape at a time, and the casting directors will get to know you, which is
far more important than being perfect on a tape. Learn how to carry a
tune even if you are not a singer, per se.
Stage Manager Danielle Ranno:
Don鈥檛
take yourself too seriously. Laugh! Have fun every day! Do not think
that you have to mold yourself for the job. When a production manager or
PSM is interviewing you for a spot on the team, they want to see what
you can bring to the table. They already know you have the basic skills
or else you would not have made it to the interview. Do not be afraid to
be your true, authentic self. They want to see your personality and how
it would fit with the rest of the team. We all have weaknesses鈥� don鈥檛
be afraid to share them. Oh, and always have a joke in your back pocket鈥�
It may be the thing that gets you past the finish line!
Actor Jelani Remy:
No doesn鈥檛 mean no, it means not right now. Ask questions. If you stay ready, you don鈥檛 have to get ready.
Video and projection designer Finn Ross:
Don鈥檛 take no for an answer; believe in yourself, even when it feels impossible, an idea or an opportunity will present itself. Take all opportunities you can get your hands on. Learn to collaborate with and listen to your colleagues. And don鈥檛 work all the time. Take breaks鈥攊t鈥檚 good for the creative mind to step away. Also, don鈥檛 feel you only have to work in theatre; there are so many avenues for a video designer, be it rock and pop, installation, or events, etc. Try it all.
Actor Paulo Szot:
Learn
more! More instruments, more languages, more coachings, more of
everything. But I wouldn鈥檛 change a thing. I value every step, every
stumble, failures and achievements.
Costume designer Paul Tazewell:
If I could talk to my younger self and encourage
myself as I was starting out, I would stress showing up with confidence
and the importance of taking up more space and attention in a room, by
allowing my voice to be heard as loudly as possible. I have learned in
my years in this industry that nothing comes from being small and quiet.
All comes from being present and making that presence known.
Actor Michael Urie:
I think it鈥檚 impossible for one not to compare themselves or their careers to others, but it really is silly to do so. No two artists have ever had the same trajectory. There鈥檚 no one right or wrong way to do this crazy business, and we all spend too much time worrying about how we compare when there鈥檚 just no real way to compare.
