I want to give a shout out to my girl, Carla Thompson, known as @cwrite101 on Twitter and author of The Ride, her blog. I had mentioned how, deep down, I believe my voice isn't valid enough for me to say all that I wish to. She had this to say in reply:
Seriously, the temptation is always to look to the right or the left for validation even though we know we are more than enough.
She reminded me that I've allowed myself to lose focus on my truth and discovering the depths of what my truth is. With all sorts of outside influences are pressuring you, whether they be friends, family, money, media, debt, education, etc., it becomes increasingly difficult to hang on to your truth. When we become distracted and forget our own strength and our own voice, everything else we do decreases in it's effectiveness. Our impact dwindles.
Earlier this year, I was introduced to Mr. B. Scott, a YouTube legend, and for good reason! You never know what to expect from him. Sometimes he's totally outrageous and hysterically funny, other times, he is on it! When he feels the need to bring truth to all his love muffins, he tells it like it is and leaves you feeling so empowered. His dedication to being nobody else but himself and making his dreams reality is tremendous.
Please watch and be encouraged. Walk in your truth and step forward in faith!
Out of my desire to infect the creative community with the desire to pursue excellence and truth in our respective crafts, I'd like to share these little pearls of wisdom and inspiration that I stumble upon. When you are a creator with the desire to work as a professional in your craft, nearly everyday you ask yourself, "Why the hell do I want to do this?" I'm hoping these occasional droplets of inspiration will help you to stay committed to following your dreams.
A little background: Patsy Rodenburg is a renowned voice and acting coach throughout the world. In this video, recorded at the Michael Howard Studios here in my home city of New York, she is actually getting ready to speak about her book, The Second Circle (which I'm dying to get my hands on). She veers off topic for a moment before she begins to speak about what the Second Circle is, but what she has to say is extraordinarily powerful. Even if you're not an actor, I suggest you watch this video. I believe it speaks to all of us as creators.
Firstly, I've retired the Phriday Phace category and redubbed it as(dropping voice an octave)... Legendary! It's a phrase that my friends have grown to love on me and it's so befitting of things that I find particulary outstanding!
So You Think You Can Dance is, without a doubt, my favorite reality show, ever! It's entertaining, relevant and brings exposure to the best of dancers, choreographers and music. What I love most about So You Think You Can Dance are the opportunities to experience genuine masterpieces and storytelling.
I don't think it coincidental that I had the opportunity to watch the sheer brilliance of the dance captured above after rambling on about creating from your truth. While watching this piece with my sister, the both of us were absolutely enthralled by the choreography and the commitment demonstrated by these two artists on that stage.
Choreographed by Mia Michaels, I have one thing to say... Legendary!
Mia displays utter genius and commitment to telling the story of addiction in a manner that goes unrivaled. Her work is genuine, heartfelt and truthful. HUGE props to the dancers, Kayla and Kupono. Their performances are what made that dance work. The emotional journey I experienced merely watching that piece must be insignificant in comparison to the journey Mia took the pair on while they studied this piece.
With a style as abstract as Contemporary dance can be, the song selection (Gravity - Sara BareillesiTunes/Zune ) in conjunction with the collaboration of all three artists painted such perfect pictures. For you to feel nothing watching this dance, you must be dead inside.
P.S. Alysha will be saying "See you later!" to The After Party tonight. For the next five months she will be part of the upcoming Green Day musical American Idiot. Get it IN Ms. Umphress! I'll miss you!
Hey Pholks! Have you missed me? It has been a very eventful month for me and I'll update you all very soon!
In the video above, you'll have witnessed the blazing talent of Natalie Weiss singing Spark of Creation from Stephen Schwartz's incredible work, Children of Eden.
This post has double significance tonight. I'm introducing a new set of musings I'd like to call "Ponder and Prattle". These really are the not-so personal ramblings about which ever topic or event births an inspiration. Most importantly, I'd like to invite you all to feel free to respond! Prattle on about what ever thoughts are boiling away! Please be constructive and willing to push your growing edge. I will be moderating (not censoring) all conversations and will not condone behavior unbecoming of all you Phierce Pholks!
That said, allow me to get to what's caused my pondering today: the creative community getting back to telling their truth!
Today, the world celebrated the life of one of the greatest artists to ever walk this Earth: Mr. Michael Jackson. King of Pop. Entertainer extraordinaire. I'll admit, I wasn't Michael Jackson's number one fan, but I have enormous respect for him as an artist and as a human being. In spite of massive public criticism and personal drama, he pressed on, wholly devoted to his craft, his audience and his truth!
Even though Michael spent his entire life seeking out precisely what his truth was, no one can ever deny the presence of his dream of the world living harmoniously throughout his work. He sought to bring people together and did so with music and dance that was thought provoking, but fun and energetic. Watching the memorial coverage today, you'll see that he did just what he set out to do. People were coming together everywhere. All races, ages, demographics and cultures were represented. It truly was beautiful to see.
Michael also represented something more: dedication to improving his craft and learning all he could. A creative's learning never, ever ceases!
Many people I speak to say they feel as though mankind has reached the peak of its creativity, that everything's been done before. That statement infuriates me to a degree even I don't understand. The reason for that thinking is this: those blessed with the gift of creation have become so obsessed with being "the next big thing" that they've forgotten to create from a place of truth. Either that, or, those who begin their careers committed to telling the truth enjoy such success that it drowns out the voice that is sincere and honest.
I read and heard from many that there will never be another like Michael Jackson, and they are all absolutely correct! It is wrong for us to even expect that from anyone in this world, let alone go looking for it. Michael will continue to inspire generations of artists, but it is not possible for any of them to be Michael because they cannot be anyone else but themselves. I ardently believe that the man would be pleased to see that he inspired more people to dedicate themselves to be the best person they could be rather than trying to be just like him.
When the creative community learns to clear the dollar signs and diamonds out of their eyes, the world we'd be living in! Artists have been charged with a single task while they are on this Earth: to tell the truth with the gifts of expression they have been granted. We have the ability to being about change and healing to society in ways that no one else can.
Am I saying that it's wrong for us to desire tremendous success? Never! I know that I do. I am saying that it is wrong for us to get comfortable. We must continuously strive to learn more and be more in the next moment than we are in this one. When we do, the possibilities are limitless!
Get back to the basics Pholks! You are your own unique and valuable contribution to this world. The world needs you and your truth, not a carbon copy of those who've come before us. By moving forward, we honor their memory to a greater degree than dwelling in the past shall.
