It's been a busy three weeks since I last updated you... so let me finish off with where I ended the last Connection. 

The ghost tour went very well...  We did 4 nights and other than the fact that it was very cold on the last two nights and I strained my voice slightly, it was a totally positive experience.

Then I had 3 nights of shooting for the State of Florida Department of Health project.  It was great and I worked with a teleprompter for the first time.  The shoot was Monday through Wednesday... Dinner with Kendall at our favorite Japanese restaurant on Thursday and then on Friday it was back on the road for auditions.

Auditions past and future...

I had an audition already scheduled on Saturday the 24th with Prather Entertainment Group.  They are the group that operates the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre in Fort Myers, the Broadway Palm West in Arizona and the Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre in PA.  Those avid readers of the Jef Canter Connection will remember that I tried to meet with the producer for this theatre when I went to Naples a while back.  Well they were having local auditions for the King and I and they agreed to see me for other shows as well (including Ring of Fire).  A few days before I was to go I sent out an email blast to some of the theatres that I've been targeting to work for.

I got an email back from The Golden Apple Dinner Theatre (an EMC theatre in Sarasota) and the production coordinator told me they were having auditions in December for Li'l Abner.  I told her that I was going to be passing through on my way to auditions in Fort Myers and she offered to set up an audition for me with the owner of the theatre.  This meant that I needed to drive down early to meet him on Friday the 23rd.  The Golden Apple is one of the theatres that follows me on Twitter and I follow them back so I felt this "special" audition was a direct result of the fact that they had been following my career on twitter... had seen my tweets about auditions and website updates as well as viewing my updates on my YouTube Channel.

I showed up on time for my audition and was lead into the theatre.  They are currently not doing a musical, so the piano was up on the second level and behind a curtain and after discussing my music with the music director, he took his place at the piano and I took my place front and center.  I started in on my first piece and half way through realized I was totally lost and couldn't hear the piano nor could my acompanist hear me... we tried to start again... still no good... So the owner asked me to go stand near the curtain so we could hear each other and the rest of the audition went very well. 

We had a nice talk afterward and he said that there were lots of things that I could do in "Li'l Abner" and that he would keep me on his list for that.  We talked about playing guitar, and that he knew people that looked for that skill locally from time to time... and he also knew Joyce Piven, who I took a scene study class with when I was living in Chicago.  They will not be making casting decisions until after they hold the December auditions, but I hope to hear from them mid to late December.  If cast, the show rehearses February 10th and would run through the first weekend of April.

I then drove to Fort Meyers and went to see Dirty Rotten Scoundrels at the Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre (where I would be auditioning the following day).  I had a great time and I went back to the hotel and prepared myself for auditions the next day.  Because this theatre group operates three different theatres, they will sometimes produce the same show in the same season at different theatres at different times.  The King and I, which they were holding local auditions for, is one of those shows.  It is being produced from early February through early April in Florida and then again in Pensylvania from June through August.  Because of this, they often will try to get alumni from previous runs of the show to come back to do it to cut down on the amount of "new learning" that needs to be done on the show. 

I was planning on doing a showtune and then brought my guitar to do a Johnny Cash song to show my abilities for Ring of Fire.  While I was waiting to audition, Paul Bernier, the producer who I auditioned for 2 years ago at FPTA came in (he is not the producer I was to audition for that day) and I said hello to him and asked if he remembered me.  He remembered my name, but the weight loss was kind of throwing him, so I showed him my old headshot and then he remembered.  He asked when I was going to be singing for Brian and said that he wanted to sit in on the audition.

When I went in, it was in a group of about 10 high school and college age kids... Brian had them all go first and then had me get up on stage.  The first song went great... it's the best that anyone had ever played it for me... then I grabbed my guitar and he asked what Johnny Cash song I was going to sing... and I said... " 'Hurt', and hopefully it won't..."  but the first chord I played was horribly out of tune because my guitar case had detuned my highest E string... I quickly tuned up and played the song...  For those of you who don't know it... it's the least country of all the songs in the show... (that's why I like it!)  When I finished, Brian asked if I could play something a little upbeat to show him a faster country style... so I busted into Folsum Prison Blues and I had given them everything they needed to see.

They wanted me to stay and dance (and I was very glad I'd taken some ballet this fall, it's helped me a lot) and to read for two roles in the King and I... Captain Orton and Sir Edward (these two roles are done by one actor in their production).  I read with Paul reading opposite of me and then came down to have a talk with Brian.  He said that he has me in his file for Ring of Fire (whiceh would rehears and run from April through June) and that he needed to see who of the alumni were coming back to do the King and I before he made casting decisions.  As I was thanking everyone for the auditions, Paul said to me that if I come down to do Ring of Fire, that he will be doing a kid's show at the same time and would love to have me be a part of that too.

In following up with Brian after auditions, I have learned that they have the actor who is playing those two roles coming back for the Fort Meyers show, but not for the PA show... and he should know by mid to late November, who is coming back for Ring of Fire and that he would also keep me in mind for the PA production of the King and I.

(upcoming auditions)

I am looking at auditioning for Universal Studios and a live action performance that will be part of the new Harry Potter experience on November 15th in Orlando... this would be more like a job than a "show" and I would possibly consider it because it would get me to the part of Florida that has more theatre auditions going on...

I've requested a time slot for an audition on 12/6 at the Barter Threatre in Abingdon, VA for their 2010 season and for their Resident Company... (EMC theatre)

I've also got an audition scheduled for 12/12 at North Carolina Theatre in Raleigh for the Full Monty and Cinderella... They are an EMC theatre too and I've been emailing back and forth with the producer a bit and she told me that she's a Seminole too... (no bonus points for singing the Fight Song for my audition, I already asked)

New Booking...

Ben Gunter, who has music directed me in Birdie, Guys and Dolls and Singin' in the Rain, called me one night recently and said the he was putting together a few scenes from A Midsummer Night's Dream for an event on 11/14 and wanted me to play Bottom the Weaver... he then asked Kendall to play Puck and so in two weeks we'll be getting paid to perform Shakespeare... 

Also, the spot that I did with Kristen Rowell, and her son's Charlie and Thomas, for the North Florida Fair has started airing.  A copy is up on the producer's website and you can see it here...

I hope to have booking news for where I'll be going in the spring in the next few weeks....