LOVE Now or Never

This is my last blog for the year, I want to say thank you for reading my blog.  And taking the time to get to know me better.  I will be sharing with you my year in a few scattered words. My hope is that after I've shared you will share your year with me.


     I have learned so much this past year.  I've made what I believe are smart choices with my career.  I've learned to follow my instincts.

I've met new people.  I've strengthened my friendships. Some friendships have taken a few steps back.  I hope they will come back at some point soon, down the road.

My beliefs have gotten stronger.  I know what I stand for now: animals, natural beauty, inner beauty and passion.  Is there anything else?

I have conquered some of my fears.  I have found courage to stand up to them.

I find intriguing that the things I've revisited take a different meaning now.  I understand lots of things much differently, better.

I've learned to pay attention to "thoughts", they have so much power over our lives.  We indeed build what we think.

As an actor it is a different story to come from a happy place in order to share, than from a place of hurt. I am not using my emotions to be the character. I am borrowing those emotions and not reliving a dreadful experience.  I'm more in the moment.

My wish for you in the new year is to LOVE, now, today, not tomorrow.

Remember to share in the comment section below.

Sincerely,

JC

The "C" Words; Choice & Commitment

I had the great pleasure to perform a stage reading for "Sabado Mornings," written by George Corbin & Directed by Melvin Ishamel Johnson, developed at the Robey Playwrights Workshop.  The performance was on December 11th, 2015, at the Moments Theatre in Los Angeles at 7 pm.  In this two character play I was one of the leads.  I couldn't have asked for anything better.  

A Stage Reading is done when the production team, in this case the writer and director, take time to get feedback for their work.  They get actors to read the play to audience members and ask for feedback on what works and what doesn't. 

With "Sabado Mornings" there was one rehearsal which included the Writer and Director.  They went over stage cues and the rest was left up to the actors.  I needed to make CHOICES.  

What are CHOICES: As an actor you must make choices.  These choices have to make sense.  They can be bold, but must pertain to the plot of the play.  For example, for the character of Rosa, I made the choice that she would speak with a Mexican accent because throughout the play the playwright sprinkled in Spanish words.  I gave Rosa a big personality.  She needed to have it to keep the dialogue flowing.  She was a talker, inquisitive. She asked a lot of questions.  I gave her some childlike traits. She laughed a lot and wore her heart on her sleeve. 

Choices once made have to have your COMMITMENT.  You must commit to your choices and believe in them so that your audience will believe in them too.  If at any point you are hazy about your choices, the audience will feel your uncertainty.  

The reading followed with an open discussion.   

The audience was asked for their opinion about the play.  A lady in the audience commented that my character seemed "too young" to be partnered with Eddie the male lead because he was a 50 year old man who  ends up having a love affair with Rosa.  She mentioned that perhaps the role of Rosa needed to be recast with an older woman.   She felt that Rosa seemed too young to have this type of love affair.  

The moderator then asked the actors about their opinions.  I mentioned I enjoyed the play enough to follow it all the way to the end because the characters were so interesting, they weren't boring.  But I did feel I had to address the topic brought up by the audience member.  It was a valid point.  The role did describe Rosa as 45 years old.  And I am a bit younger.  I was quite aware of this issue.  But I had made my choice to commit.  I only had one week, one rehearsal.   I needed to carry the beat of the play, keep it up, keep people from getting bored.   I chose to make her youthful because she had to show passion and excitement for the little things.  Rosa was also very happy to talk to anyone that will listen to her long enough.    

I felt my choices were valid, they were based on fact.  I stuck with them and I was happy with my performance.  Of course, there is always room for improvement.  I felt perhaps the lady in the audience was focusing on my age instead of my performance which might mean that as an actor I wasn't doing my job.  My goal is always to have everyone in their seats relating to my character and listen to what my character has to say.  

What have we learned today?  

An actor must make choices and commit to them.  And, there is always room for improvement.  

I welcome any questions you may have. 

jc

Life & Happiness: You Have to Work At It Everyday

Life: You Have to Work At It Everyday

Happiness, it is something that doesn't come easily.  Some of us have to work at it everyday.

We have to make ourselves smile now and then. Not because of some "condition" but because life has its ups and its downs.  (which is something we all must accept).  There'll be some good times and some bad times.  Life, like everything else has its evolution, life and death.  

With everything that is happening in the world today, we still have to smile everyday.  We have to keep a "level head".  I'm not saying to deny all your bad moments.  No.  It is very important to acknowledge moments of sadness. We are all made of flesh and blood and we do bleed.

But, once you've acknowledged your sad moments and let out those emotions -you've cried or hugged it out, or whatever your thing is.  Mine is; I become a recluse, I stay in, and analyze.

Anyway, back to the subject at hand, Life/Happiness. We have to bring forth a smile until we believe we are happy and we begin to feel we are happy and then we can love instead of hate.

Even through the rough times we may have, Smile, Hug, Love.  That is how we heal. ..
So start working at it everyday.   jc

Always Look Your Best

I disliked so much when I was at a dinner party and as part of the conversation it is revealed  that I am an actress.  Automatically, people are like "Act".  Or if I they find out I sing, they are like "SING."  Right then and there they want me to bust out in song and dance like if I was a toy.  I was insulted.  I was also very timid.  I was raised very humble and showing off was not part of my up bringing.

Today, it's a different story,  I find joy when people ask me this. And at the drop of a dime, if someone asks me to sing, I will sing.  If someone asks me to Act, I will recite the monologue that comes to mind. I am no longer shy about my talent.  In fact I look forward to the opportunity.

I have found as an actor you always have to be ready.  You always have to be in an attitude of success yet approachable.  You don't know who is watching or who knows who. Or when the opportunity will appear.

Two weeks ago I was invited to an event.  I thought I would show up, say hello to the people that needed to see me. And I would quickly exit. I would stay there one hour tops.  When I arrived I was met with an opportunity I couldn't refuse. I was asked to cohost the event.  Get on stage and do what I do best, be me.  Luckily I looked great and I felt confident enough.  I was ready. The evening was a success.

Later the individual who asked me to cohost let me know.  The reason he asked me to co-host was because I looked really good and he could not let that go to waste.

Let me tell you I was happy regardless of the reason.  It gave me an opportunity to get in front of head of studios and my peers.  I was ready.  I was dressed and all I needed was the opportunity.

So my friends, always looks your best.  Always have a magic trick ready to go.  I will pay off I guarantee.

Work Smarter Not Harder!

In my blog dated August, 21st,  I talk about applying a new strategy to work.  Of course I'm particularly speaking about Acting.  But, honestly, my advice can be applied to any career.

You can't just let your agent do all the work.  As an actor you need to get out there and find work and meet people.  Most Actors first begin to submit on casting sites; Actors Access, LA Casting, Frontier, Backstage,  The People Network.  That is what I was doing, submitting day in and day out to these casting sites.  It took time and the return was minimal.

 My New Strategy is to meet with Casting Directors and attend their workshops.  Along the way I've been privileged to meet also Writers and Producers.  Thus far I've submitted my first script to a well known  production company (I'll go in detail on another blog),  and I'll be shooting an episode for the web series, "Love and Consequences".  Today I followed through with writing a letter recommended to me, to the head of a production company in New York.  We share the same passion in that we enjoy working in both film and theatre and I look forward to working with them.  I'm happy to share with you that I've also  just received a recognition of my talents from City of Los Angeles and a commendation from La Comision de Fiestas Patrias Ecuatorianas. For my contribution during the Ecuadorian Festival.

Thus far my strategy is working, though it's still in its early stages.

Now it's your turn.  Try implementing a new strategy toward your goals.  You will know that it's working when you start experiencing results.

You are always welcome to share with me your strategy!

Sincerely,

JC
www.jccadena.com

Can Visualization help with Stage Fright?

Ever since I can remember I sang.  I was in singing competitions.  I was in choir through elementary and high school.  I also was in the madrigals group.  I started a 4 girl harmony group.  We were asked to perform in my high school and host events.

In between high school and moving to LA, I had a debilitating experience.  I didn't win a contest I thought I was sure to win.  To you it may seem trivial but to me it was the end of the world.

I went from feeling at home on stage to having stage fright.  I stopped singing completely.  All of a sudden the thought of being on stage scared me to death. I went through this period in my life not knowing if I would ever get over it.  I stopped performing all together.

When I moved to LA, being around so much art and music, I got the performing bug again.  I didn't have a lot of money so I couldn't pay an expert to fix my stage fright.   I didn't know how I would be able to conquer this great fear.

What helped me was visualization. I must have read it somewhere, I can't remember now.

I would visualize myself walking through an imaginary door and magically it would sprinkle star dust on my head as I walked through that door. When I was on stage I would visualize feeling confident and at home.  I did this over and over. I would do it before I went to bed so I would keep this image in my subconscious.  I would fall asleep to this image.  As I'm describing it to you, I see it in my head and it creates a happy feeling in me still today.

Visualization is a great way to get you through fears, especially stage fright. Do it when you have no distractions.  Extracting myself from the state of fear to visualizing an image of power and success has been a great tool for me.  Your visualization doesn't have to be like mine.  You can imagine an experience specifically to your needs.

Now, there is another important tool that goes along with visualization.  You have to push yourself to be on stage. Look for opportunities that will put you where you want to be.  This is the only way to see that it works.

I still visualize today to reach bigger goals, bigger awards.

If you have any questions I invite you to send me a message.

Happy Visualizing.

JC

Working on My Vacation

If you have been following my adventures you know I was planning to take a vacation.
There was some question about when I would be able to do it.  It so happens my sister asked me to
come visit her the last week of September.  I did. This was perfect timing.

 I wasn't booking.  I needed to think about my new strategy.  I needed a little bit of a break.

I was raised in Virginia so I went home for vacation.  I spent time with family.  The entire week
I was there, it rained.  Except for the last two days of my stay.  I really wanted to take a look
at the Washington Monument, but the rain kept me in to remote areas.  I spent some quality time
with my niece, got into some arts and crafts stuff.

In acting before you go on vacation.  You must tell your Agent your "Book Out Dates", meaning the

dates you will be out of town.  When you tell him this he won't submit you for jobs during the time you are gone.  It's important to communicate with your agent so he doesn't book you on something big and you are not around. When submitting to casting sites pay attention to the audition date and shoot date. This way you are not submitting on dates you are not available.   I eased up a bit on the casting sites; Frontier, Actors Access, LA Casting.

Before I left I attended a reading group.  A reading group is when  actors get together and read a play, in oder to practice and stay current with playwrights.  It was really fun.  I hope to work with these folks again.

What I'm trying to tell you is.  That being is an artist takes effort.  As an Artist that is your business.  Owning your own business takes a lot of effort even when you are on vacation.  On my vacation  I couldn't stop all together.  I took this time to reach out to some influential people in the industry and ask them to remember me.  I want to work.  I want to be the greatest ever.
Good Luck on your journey.

A big prayer to all those folks at the Bahamas after hurricane Juanquin.  Prayers and well wishes go out to you.