We're wrapping it up, folks. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Hello my sweet little angel beagles. Since the last time I updated you, I have been to Vancouver, Portland, Seattle, Eureka, San Francisco and Los Angeles. Ang gurrrrrl...I'm tired. But I look cute driving that bus. Let me tell you!! That's me with the rest of the crew. But alas, we are in our last week on The Brave Enough Tour. Like all awesome things, this tour has flown by way too fast. It feels like only yesterday I was boarding the bus in beautiful Trenton, New Jersey, thinking to myself,... Continue reading

I'm living the rockstar life. I literally cannot count the number of hotel rooms I've destroyed, nor the number of psychotropic drugs I've been taking. Actually... By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) I'm sitting in a park, along a river, in Kennewick, Washington. Well, that's not entirely true. I'm actually writing this on Wednesday and you're reading this on Friday. The likelihood is that I'm on a bus somewhere on the West Coast right now. Or the bus has been captured by Somali pirates - both are equally probable. But the point is that I'm half way through Sara Bareilles' Brave Enough... Continue reading

Day 1. Here we go. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Well, the funny thing is that I fell asleep in New York last night and woke up in Washington DC. How'd I do that, you ask. I'M ON A BUS!! I'm living on it for the next month. Jealous? I am officially on the road with Sara Bareilles on her solo acoustic tour, The Brave Enough Tour. I'm working as her merch guy - selling all sorts of excellent Sara Bareilles goodies which you can purchase here! We're running around the country for the next thirty days bringing joy to the... Continue reading

I'm hitting the road for five weeks to work for Sara Bareilles and I'm terrified...which is exactly why I have to do it. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) I'm afraid of a lot of things a lot of the time. I always have been. I'll admit that some of these fears are irrational - namely, my two greatest fears: Outerspace Dinosaurs I'm with it enough to know that a bunch of spaceship-driving triceratops are probably not going to fly to my little Washington Heights neighborhood and wreak havoc, but still, those two things - as seperate entities - scare the hell... Continue reading

It makes an "ass" out of "u" and "me'...or...don't look a gift horse in mouth. Fuck. I can't get my cliches down right. Screw it. Just don't compare yourself to other people. It's not a good look. (But seriously though, don't look a gift horse in the mouth.) What...? By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Can I be honest for a moment? Thanks. I've got a problem. It's a serious problem characterized by a need to examine my own life, accomplishments and artistic endeavors in comparison to those of my fellow artists. Some of the symptoms of this condition include a fiercely... Continue reading

Fear not! Broadway is not dead. It lives!!! I witnessed Fiona Shaw perform lifesaving, Broadway CPR just yesterday! By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) I'm not gonna be cute about this. I'm going to get right to the point. You must go see Fiona Shaw (AKA Harry Potter's mean old auntie) in The Testament of Mary at the Walter Kerr Theatre. I went on Wednesday night and had the most thrilling, transfixing experience. Without giving too much away, I'll tell you that the show is a 90 minute monologue in which Miss Shaw, portraying Mary, the mother of Jesus, tells the story... Continue reading

My lifelong, elusive quest to finally meet, fall in love with and marry a professional female bodybuilder By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Aaaaaah! Look how beautiful: One day. One day. I'M KIDDING! Take it easy. You know full well I've always wanted to marry a carny with eleven fingers. The real topic I'd like to address today is the new Broadway show, Hands On A Hardbody, which I saw this past Wednesday night. I'm not here to review it. I'm not a great critic and I kind of hate most contemporary critics anyway. I'm not that interested in joining that circle.... Continue reading

Am I Doing All I Can? By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Do you ever feel like you must not be doing enough? That's how I've been feeling this week. (Truth time: That's how I've been feeling for about thirty years.) A good friend of mine often says to me that life is about finding comfort in three major areas: Family Love Life Career Most of the time, they don't all line up just right. Maybe for a few years, a person's love life is really firing on all cylinders while his career is D.O.A and his family situation is struggling. Or... Continue reading

How I faced my fear of the camera. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) You know how I'm always telling you people how great you are, how you should pursue your dreams, how a life spent in the pursuit of a passion is better than a life spent doing something because it feels safe and how you should face your fears and in doing so, show them who's boss? Right...well... I don't always do that myself. In fact, sometimes when I'm scared of doing something I think, "Well, I'll just start that up next week." And then I don't actually ever start... Continue reading

There's power in not taking everything so seriously. I promise. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) When I moved to New York five years ago, I promised myself that I would do my level best to find a community of artists working on new and exciting projects. I'd join their ranks and call myself a member of the New York theatre family. That was the idea. It has not always been easy to make good on this promise. I've had a difficult time finding my way into the mysterious world of theatre here in the city, but there have been a few... Continue reading

But it's time to clear out the closet. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) When I was a kid, my mom used to make my siblings and I go through our closets and get rid of all of the things we no longer needed. About three times a year, we were given three large garbage bags. Bag one was dedicated to the things we wanted to keep. Bag two contained the items we were going to donate to Goodwill. Bag three ended up in the garbage. As a result of this tri-yearly binge-o-crap, I have pretty much zero sense of sentimentality. I... Continue reading

The show...not the gender. I realize how nasty that title sounds and I wouldn't want you to think that I hate an entire gender made up of billions of people across the globe. I mean...sometimes girls annoy me, like when they try on a dress and they're like, "Does this make my hips look big?" And you respond, "No, you look great." But then inevitably they insist, "You're wrong. I look super fat. I hate this dress. I have nothing to wear. I'm not going out. Just have fun without me." That's pretty annoying, but it hasn't led me to... Continue reading

You put that steering wheel down, young man! We are NOT turning this car around. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Really quickly, Van Morrison has captured my current emotional state, and I'd like him to explain. Mr. Morrison, if you please... For the last week or so, I've woken up feeling...well...kinda...um...BLAH. Not depressed. Not discouraged. Not downtrodden. Just...BLAH. Do you know that feeling? It's a weird space to be in because it doesn't stop me from doing the things I want and need to do, but on the other hand, it's definitely less than motivating. And because I'm nothing if not... Continue reading

My thoughts on a great man By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Here is a list of things I wanted to write about today: Men in New York who have no trouble at all wearing fur coats. The fact that I STILL can't get an appointment to audition for Elphaba. Beyonce's ridiculous, balls-to-the-wall-make-you-wanna-slap-yo-mama performance at The Super Bowl. But sometimes life has other plans for us. On Wednesday afternoon, around 5pm, I got a call from my dad informing me that my uncle - his older brother and dear friend of almost sixty years - had died very suddenly. So, if you'll... Continue reading

How to take it easy on yourself and still be the star you are. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) It's audition season here in New York City. It's a time when hungry young actors and actresses harness all of their creative drive and ambition and hit the audition scene, determined to book work. It also happens to be winter, which everyone knows is the most motivating time of year. In truth, audition season kinda sucks. And not to put too fine a point on it, but in statement of fact, auditioning sucks. Oh, and anyone who tells you otherwise - those... Continue reading

I actually meant, "yourself" as in, "myself." I wasn't actually telling you to get over yourself. I wouldn't dream of that. That would be totally rude and I don't want to alienate you before you've even started reading the blog post and also it's not really my style to tell people what to do...Actually, just read the blog. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Join the Jamaican bobsled team. Get more into Girls - the show, not the female of the human species. I tried getting into girls, as in women, but had little to no luck. Stop being so damn selfish.... Continue reading

And for that matter, so is feeling. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) I'm not sure what I think about that? If only I knew how to feel? I think I need to change my life. I feel like I don't think enough. Ever been there? If you're an actor living in New York City or if you're a person living, like...anywhere, then you've probably expressed a similar sentiment at some point in your life. Maybe even today. I spend a lot of time thinking and feeling. It's kind of my job. If I'm given a side to learn for an audition... Continue reading

A few wise words from Miss Hill By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Being a person is difficult. It's a journey that's full of immense challenges, disappointments, regrets, frustrations, but also overwhelming joy, laughter, friendship and love. It's on/off, up/down, high/low. It's enough to drive a person kind of nuts, right? I know it definitely gives me a run for my money, and I'm pretty broke so imagine how much I need that money. I'm going through some tough stuff right now. (Who isn't, Geoffrey? Who isn't.) Not sure about you, but when I feel like I've disappointed myself or someone else... Continue reading

It's time for me to start following my own advice. By Geoffrey Kidwell What do you think I should do about...? What would you do if...? How do you think I ought to...? Do you think I could...? Fill in the blank. We've all been there. Faced with a large - or most likely, small - conundrum, we turn to friends and mentors for advice. Seems a reasonable thing to do, right? I'd say so. In most cases, asking for someone else's opinion can provide an amount of perspective that one might not find on one's own. I get that.... Continue reading

What I might say if I ever have the chance By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Remember last week when I told you that I had begun working with The Artist’s Way? You don’t? You really ought to start taking ginko biloba. It’s only been seven days. I’m worried. Early onset memory loss is a serious issue. You may have Alzheimers or Menopause, which would be fucked up if you're a guy. Here, check out this Wikipedia page. Now back to me. I told you last week that I’m reading The Artist’s Way. It’s a twelve-week course on rediscovering your creativity. Anyway,... Continue reading

The Artist's Way that is By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) Remember that little confession I made to you last week? The one about my being a jealous SOB who should probably focus more on what he has and less on what he doesn't have? No. Okay, well click here for a little refresher. I'll wait... You back? Terrific. Anyway, last week's little post got me thinking. Why is it that I often feel so jealous of the successes of my peers? Why can't I just be happy for someone else without constantly feeling so sorry for myself? In order to answer... Continue reading

And it ain't cuz I eat a lot of vegetables. By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) My eyes are blue. Decidedly, actually, clearly blue. They've been that way my entire life. I was born with blonde hair. That disappeared. I was born with youthful, blemish-free skin. That disappeared. I was born with hope and the belief that the world was at my fingertips. That disappeared. (Only kinda...) But the blue eyes have always remained as a sort of calling card. Until... Well, recently I've noticed that the color of my eyes seems to be changing. It's subtle but it's definitely happening. I'll... Continue reading

Atually, I'm already here. Did you miss me? By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) After visiting four aiports, eating six in-flight meals (which weren't actually that bad...a-thank-you British Airways) and three long flights, I am back in the greatest country in the world: THE GOOD OLE U.S. OF A!! AMERICA! FUCK YA! But seriously, after having spent two weeks in Zimbabwe, I realize how fortunate I am to be living in the states. Now don't get me wrong, I'm not some flag-waving Amurican who thinks that America is god's gift to the universe. I have learned, however, that I, a middle-classs American... Continue reading

I'm heading to the Motherland By Geoffrey Kidwell (actor) As it turns out, I’m going to Africa on Sunday evening. Specifically, I’m going to Zimbabwe. This is going to be a major adventure for me. In fact, it’ll be the furthest trip I’ve ever taken and certainly the most adventurous. Sure, I did the requisite backpacking around Europe thing. I even lived abroad while in college. But this…this is a horse of a different color. This marks the first time I’ve ever endeavored to travel to a place I know basically nothing about. Well that’s not entirely true. I know... Continue reading