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You may be wondering what my wish is this week (I hope!). Well, I'm sad to state that I don't have time for a proper wish this week; that is, a wish to learn something just because I love it and learning it will improve my playing.
The good news about being busy: I will not have to sleep under a bridge, or subsist solely on the yummy food that sometimes appears at my gigs (Monday was a great day for gig food: leftover corporate catering at my lobby gig, and hors d'oeuvres at a cabaret benefit in the evening). Also, I love what I do, so being busy makes me happy.
The bad news about being busy: no time for my own projects. This year I find myself working harder for less money. I love all my jobs, and am grateful to have them. They each have their own set of pros and cons, but the simple fact is that I have to work more hours for less money than last year or the year before.
Soon I will play for a friend who may be able to help me get some work on a Broadway show at some point down the line. I am probably 20th on the list of people to be considered, but it's still a good opportunity. So that's where my wish time is going this week. It needs to go there for the next few weeks as well, to be honest. I'm torn. I love my wish project, but (as the horse proverb makes clear) wishes don't pay the rent.
Last week, I was chatting with an actress who is a lifelong veteran of Broadway and the West End. She has been on the professional stage almost constantly since she was about six years old. She's a brilliant performer and a lovely person, but the economics of this business are reaching their tentacles even to people at her level. "This business can be so unforgiving," she said. "You have to invest so much time for opportunities that may never come through."
But what else can you do, if art is what you must do?
The good news about being busy: I will not have to sleep under a bridge, or subsist solely on the yummy food that sometimes appears at my gigs (Monday was a great day for gig food: leftover corporate catering at my lobby gig, and hors d'oeuvres at a cabaret benefit in the evening). Also, I love what I do, so being busy makes me happy.
The bad news about being busy: no time for my own projects. This year I find myself working harder for less money. I love all my jobs, and am grateful to have them. They each have their own set of pros and cons, but the simple fact is that I have to work more hours for less money than last year or the year before.
Soon I will play for a friend who may be able to help me get some work on a Broadway show at some point down the line. I am probably 20th on the list of people to be considered, but it's still a good opportunity. So that's where my wish time is going this week. It needs to go there for the next few weeks as well, to be honest. I'm torn. I love my wish project, but (as the horse proverb makes clear) wishes don't pay the rent.
Last week, I was chatting with an actress who is a lifelong veteran of Broadway and the West End. She has been on the professional stage almost constantly since she was about six years old. She's a brilliant performer and a lovely person, but the economics of this business are reaching their tentacles even to people at her level. "This business can be so unforgiving," she said. "You have to invest so much time for opportunities that may never come through."
But what else can you do, if art is what you must do?
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