ANthony Ramirez, AKA Lacy – Bartender Extraordinair.
Aili Venho, AKA Mary, AKA Angel – feigns innocence while using everyone to get ahead
Alexander Casasnvas, AKA “what was to become Memphis” as he put it
AC: Look how sexy you look in this pic! I love it! CV: I look fat
Natalia Peguero, AKA Queen still hopes dreams of a better world outside can come true
That’s such a Nathaly face!
Passing on the wisdom from actor to the character
Julio Matos, director, and Rommel Tolentino, actor
Nathaly Lopez, AKA ChiChi, hooker – somewhat larger than life.
NL: Probably talking s***
Greer Samuels, AKA Jojo, a hustler: You gotta use what you got to get what you want
I’m so hungry for a taste of you
Roman Urbanski, AKA Fleetwood: I look like a dead-beat husband in the pic… oh wait I am
Chris: “I was wondering if anyone noticed what i was doing” Norma: “awesome”
It says here i been laid by over fifteen thousand men
I’m sick of waitin’ while some bastard looks me over, standing there deciding, yes or no
It’s not the Brady Bunch back home
He’s no good, but I’m no good without him
It’s my way or the highway!
Someday ill be going back to Puerto Rico then my life is going to be grand; All i’m gonna do all day is stare out at the ocean and my back will hardly ever leave the sand.
Remember all the times when times were bad you were the only friend i ever really had
Eighteen chairs are standing on the stage in two rows in a semi-circle. There is a yellow post-it with a name on each chair. Most of the cast, director, choreographer, stage manager, assistant stage manager, and the pianist are inside. Someone brought snacks and refreshments. Actors are late. Queen is late.
Giggles, voices, whispers, humming fill the theater/classroom. AC, NL and a few others form a small circle on the side. They hum, resonate, and gradually raise and lower their hands to guide their voices. Continue reading “The lives in “The Life””
For the past year I have been penetrating the wonderful world of acting. The further I go the more I learn what one-of-a-kind place it is. Actors are artists, artists with specific believes, dreams, goals, values, understanding of the world, hopes, and even sense of humor. As different as they are they are all united by some invisible force that drives them forward, that defeats set backs, that overlooks rejections and very low income prospects.
And absolutely nothing brings people together as much and as closely as being part of a cast of a show or a play. They are brought together for hours at a time, day after day, week after week, sometimes month after month and even year after year. They are forced to reexamine themselves, to reexamine each other, to reevaluate their principles and values together. They are forced to open themselves up to their fellow actors, become vulnerable. They are forced to build new relationships, strong relationships, real relationships between each other. They become part of a new and separate from all others world. It affects not only their characters, but the actors themselves and all of this stays with them long after the show is over, often throughout their whole life.
I want to explore this world for one of the shows that is in rehearsals right now. It is a musical called “The Life” and it will premier in the beginning of December, which gives me an opportunity to follow this group throughout the process till the grand finale. As an acting student and a friend of many of the actors in the cast of the show I believe I have the ticket for this ride. But because I am not in the shows it will let me concentrate on them individually and as a group without being affected by my role in the play and will let me see the big picture.
I already have the permission of the Director of the show and an OK from some of the actors in the show that I had a chance to talk to. I hope to create a window into the world of theater as well as learn from this experience.
A family takes a stroll while all businesses bearing Jewish names are closed.
An older boy confidently walks forward while the girl tries to attract his attention with something she’s saying.
One of the many families spending the time together
Aren, 13, and Zaly, 14; cousins
“We eat and sleep”
Three young boys take a stroll on a Saturday afternoon, unsupervised.
THe only bright spot I saw the whole day
Saturday.
Few white clouds grace the blue sky and bright yellow sun caresses the cheeks. But the air no longer has the careless warmth of summer. Winter begins to fight for what righteously will be hers in acouple of months and my fingertips can already feel the icy touch.
I get off the subway in the middle of a new untouchable world. My camera is ready, I see a great subject and bring the viewer to my eye. All I see is darkness. I start laughing inside thinking that I forgot to remove the lens cap, again. I bring my camera down and I see a big round hat floating in front of me and blocking the view. The man says something I don’t understand, but his face and tone don’t need translation. I quickly turn and head in a different direction.
That was refreshing. I definitely need to change my tactic. I no longer point my camera where it doesn’t belong. I am using the maximum zoom. I make no eye contact with my subject right before or after I take a photograph. I find myself extremely interested in architecture of the neighborhood, pretending that I am taking photographs of the streets and building, rather than people.
As I proceed I see parents cover their children’s faces, I see families cross the streets, I notice the curious, yet unsure look on the faces of children playing alone: they are curious about a newcomer with a camera, but they don’t know if they are allowed to approach or if they should go away.
As I walk the streets I see a couple of teenagers having a discussion in the middle of the street. I gather myself and point my camera at them. I see one of them notice me, I am almost ready to put the camera down when I see a smile appear on his face and a hand rise in a wave instead of a block. They approach, they pose for me, they are curious. I am afraid to invade their world too much, but it is them that won’t let me go. My friendly informers, I call them. Aren, 13, with blonde hair and blue eyes, and Zaly, 14, brunette with hazel eyes, tell me they are cousins. They both grew-up here and like it very much except for the garbage. “It is not so clean” Aren tells me. They both go to school and are fond of sports. Aren is on his school’s baseball team and Zaly is on the basketball team.
They tell me that Saturday is bad day for me to come shoot their neighborhood – the streets are empty. (As I look around I can only imagine what this neighborhood looks like when streets are not empty.) They tell me that on Saturday they are not allowed to make phone calls, to drive, to smoke, to light a fire, though they are allowed to take from an already existing fire, and are not allowed to turn on the lights. Well, Aren tells me that progress took care of the last part – they just put timers on the night before and lights turn on automatically.
They point out a Sukkah to me. It is a sort of a summer house, a construction outside of one’s home (or on the balcony as I noticed later) that they put up during the holiday of Sukkot. What do you do inside, I ask. We eat and sleep, tells me Aren. He also tells me where I can find some of the best, wealthiest and most decorated sukkah’s in the neighborhood. I later realize that he meant the inside, a place where I am definitely not welcome.
A woman appears at the door across the street and says something to my new friends. Aren quickly explains that his mom made dessert and he has to go, but her face and tone do not spell dessert to me. Both boys quickly go back to their houses without saying good bye.
And I am back to being an unwelcome outsider. I hear happy voices, laughter and joyous singing coming from inside the houses and sukkah’s, but I don’t see any of that in the faces I meet along the way.
As my little invasion into this world comes to an end, I leave with a sense of awe and respect, and a little fear.
