Going Pro

In 2005, I "went pro" after my little sis had done the same. Her music degree was being wasted at the restaurant. Although I had been working professionally in entertainment part-time for many years, I couldn't give my professional self completely to performing, because I always had a bunch of other jobs and kept dabbling in free and low-paying theatre as well as directing, teaching and choreographing.

I was living & working in Anaheim, touring So. Cal w/ a children's company, doing 2 workshops in Santa Monica at the time, and I figured going pro was going to be a process:
Step 1: get a "regular job" in L.A.
Step 2: find an L.A. apartment
Step 3: get famous, remembering to wear sunglasses indoors & refer to everyone as "Babe."

Easy :)

Just kidding. I already knew how all that Hollywood stuff worked.

My "regular job" was at Trader Joe's. 10% Discount on healthy groceries, free food every now and then, good starting pay... yipee. Shifts started as early as 6am (if I remember correctly) and ended around midnight, so working around auditions would be cool.

I got a beautiful 2 bedroom apartment with two roommates on the West Side, which I couldn't reeeeally afford, but since the manager accidentally input Chris' yearly salary as his monthly income, we were in!

The famous thing..? yeah.. I'll letchya know when that happens... or I guess you'll knOw, 'cause... you know... But if the indoor sunglasses thing or the babe thing ever happens, you have my written consent to punch me in the face.

Anyway, after working at Trader Joe's for 3 weeks, they put me in charge of the coffee and tea aisle. No raise. Just responsibility. But... It was happening. In times past, at many different jobs, I had looked around to find myself half-way up a ladder which I had no interest climbing, and
*it*
*was*
*happening.*

One day (shortly after my 1st L.A. audition), in my new, completely bare apartment, with a U-Haul full of my stuff downstairs, I picked up the phone, took an 9 month contract as a Mainstage Performer with Disney Cruise Line, and quit Trader Joe's, the tour, and the workshops. After that, I went straight into a 7 month contract performing in Hong Kong. Then, Fiiiiiinally moved to L.A. again... again, but sorta for the first time. This time, I stayed for almost a year, and I still call it my home, although technically, it's... really not.

Since being back, I joined 3 unions, landed a TV series on BET, a guest spot on a CW series, 3 commercials, a print job, 5 web series, 2 short films, some studio work, started doin' stand-up comedy, and have been blessed with some really exciting stage work with awesome people. They say it's not possible, but I have been supporting myself in L.A. predominantly with theatrical jobs this year. I'm not bragging. What I'm saying is:

I'm not picky.

I don't have a manager telling me what jobs not to take. I mean, I'm not gonna do something I'm morally opposed to or anything, BUT I have had

* * * 3 different theme park jobs * * *

since bein' back in L.A: playing an African super-hero, a sassy Puerto Rican, and the Queen of New Orleans. I happily change out of my ridiculous costumes and march myself right to the bank to deposit my earnings... minus what I spent on churros.

I am eternally grateful for those gigs, and have a LOT of fun with them. But I'm thinkin' it might be time to take another step. I don't know if it's a 3000 mile step to New York where I'll have more opportunities to do stage work, or just the step of making a shift to more TV & film here in L.A. I'm never gonna stop doing theatre... But legit stage jobs in L.A. (although I have been blessed) are not generally the easiest things to come by.

It might be time to steer my career... away from the churros
...but then again... I really love churros... I really dunno...