Transition

Oh...good times. I'm back into that awkward transitional phase of being an actor. Ya know, the part when you are out of work and you haven't got another job lined up yet? Yeah, it's that time of the year.

I've got a couple possible things in the works but who knows what will happen. It's a bit odd to sit here and realize just how much my life has changed over the past 5 months alone. I do miss London. I really loved that city and I really loved LAMDA. This past week was the first week of the 2-year program at LAMDA. It's odd to think about all of the people that I would have met and been close to. But, that's not my life, that's not what I chose, so I have to get over that.

I'm sure at some point this year, something will happen telling me that I've made the right choice to stay here. I just don't know how soon...or how long. I do know what has been happening so far has been very promising and very exciting.

Not Just ER Anymore

I am really fascinated by the age of television that we're living in right now. I know, that's probably the lamest sentence I've written of this blog. It makes me sound like I've never seen the sun or done anything but lie around on my ass all day. On the contrary I lie around on my ass all night after my rehearsal/shows and watch some good 'ole TiVO.

I think we have HBO, Showtime, and other major cable networks to thank for the sudden major shift in network TV. Expectations are changing. Ever since shows like Sex In The City and The Sopranos came out, network television has been forced to advance not only in concept and creativity, but in production values as well.

This fall season looks incredible. And I say that as an excited actor, not from the view of "some television obsessed freak" (line from lunch). Sure reality television is still there and always will be, but TV dramas have come back at full force. So many shows on television right now are ridiculously filmic in their production values. I also feel that creators aren't afraid to create a concept or story that really can't go much further than 2 or 3 seasons if it were to last. It's okay to set up the idea of an "expanded miniseries" and you see it in shows like the new "Kidnapped." The way we watch television is changing. I think it's remarkable.

It's exciting for an actor because A.) It means more work and B.) It means better material. Seriously though, just look at Lost. I mean the writers for that show are beyond brilliant. I got frustrated with the show this past year not knowing how much the show had been thought through. And yet, I'm still totally hooked. I can't stop watching and I even bought season 2 on DVD to re-watch before the new season starts. I have been amazed at how much, in fact, the show actually is thought through. I recognized clues and hints in the start of the season that I would never have realized were there before. It really is an exceptional show. It is always full of suspense, always emotional, and always original. I can only hope those actors have an idea on how lucky they are to be on that show.

My message to the world? Watch more TV dramas...less American idol. It's good stuff.

Lunch is going well. Two more performances this weekend and then I am out of work once more. Let's see how long it takes me to find another job this time...no really...we can make it a game or something.

Dear Diary

A funny moment that continues to happen is that people are continually "revealing" to me that they read my blog. Hi Shawn!

Why the quotation marks? Well...Because every time someone tells me that they read my blog, it's like a confession. They sort of tip-toe around the situation, careful not to get killed by...me...?

For the record: I would not have named my blog Matt Doyle, nor mentioned the professional work I was doing, nor set the URL as mattdoyleweb.blogspot.com...if I wanted to keep it private. Blogs are hardly private...but this one is pretty much meant to be a big glowing stamp of public goodness, so read away! We live in the age of google. Nowadays when we meet a person...we google them. I have no problem with a person finding my blog. I guess it's sort of the new way of shaking hands. Creepy? Yeah, but what isn't creepy when it comes to how we're living now. Myspace anyone?

I am constantly surprised at the growing blog community though. I think people enjoy writing blogs because it's a way to share thoughts rather than keep them locked up in a little journal by your night stand. My problem with regular journals is this: If no one's ever gonna see it...then who the hell am I writing it for? I really don't have the patience to write only for the whole nostalgia thing of reading the journal entries in 5 years and thinking..."wow."

Things are good right now. I'm letting my body and voice rest after a week of rockalicious spazzing. I didn't do a damn thing today. At all! It was incredible. But I miss my cast and crew! Is that weird? Perhaps, but I really love the people involved in this production. I mean really though, just look at them. Kelly is having a field day with her hair.

Press!

Broadway world posted photos of the NYMF concert at Virgin records. My photos are at the top of the page. Check them out!

http://broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=12202

You can also see a rather good review for the show at NYtheatre.com

http://www.nytheatre.com/nytheatre/N06rev_01.htm

Come and Get It!!

So, the big day is just a step away.

"Lunch" is going up on Wednesday night at the New York Musical Theatre Festival.

We are performing in the 45th street theatre, between 8th and 9th ave.

This is not a show to be missed. It is a riot and quite possibly one of the craziest roles I have ever had the pleasure to perform.

A brief re-cap:

"Lunch" is a punk/rock musical about 8th grade love. The cast is played by adults and the script is very funny. I play "Mophead", the shaggy haired punk-rocker who fronts the garage band that performs at lunch. The character is a lot of fun, completely outrageous, and very different from anything I've done in the past. The New York Musical Theatre Festival showcases dozens of new musicals every year. In only three years it has launched several shows off-broadway including "Title of Show", and "Altar Boyz". Some of the performers in the festival's shows last year included Anthony Raap (RENT) and Kelly O'hara (The Light in The Piazza).

The performance dates for Lunch ARE:

Wed, Sep. 13th 8:00 PM
Fri, Sep. 15th 8:00 PM
Sat, Sep. 16th 1:00 PM
Wed, Sep. 20th 8:00 PM
Sat, Sep. 23rd 1:00 PM
Sun, Sep. 24th 1:00 PM
@ The 45th Street Theatre Between 8th and 9th Ave.

For tickets and information, visit NYMF.org and click on shows and events. Go to Lunch in the menu and get yourself a ticket! It's only 20 bucks. ;)

Hope to see some of you there!

Sorry I have been a bit absent lately...I'll have more entries soon.

Under The Weather

It's incredible how colds just seem to sneak up on you. I was so healthy this entire summer. I really have not been very ill since I was performing at LAMDA in January. That's a damn good record for an actor and an even better one for myself! I did get a bit sick during "Butcherhouse", which I ignored. But last night, I was hit with a full-blown, god awful, head cold. I was fine in the morning, had the sniffles during the day, and then was struck with a fever by night.

I can't stand actors who arrive late or simply don't show up at all. I think it's the biggest sign of disrespect. On my first day of "Lunch" I was about five minutes late and I almost passed out. I couldn't believe it...There was no excuse other than the fact that I spent 15 minutes trying to find Nola studios when I was literally standing in front of the building (haha, there was no sign!). Anyone who knows my track record knows that those five minutes almost killed me. And as far as not showing up? Unless you're vomiting as you walk up the stairs (and that vomit isn't from a hangover) you need to get your ass into that rehearsal room. It's a strict policy but Jesus...you are letting so many people down if you don't show up. Suddenly, anything and everything planned has to change, lines have to be read, and invisible people have to be talked to.

Oh man, enough preaching...Anyway, I was the dizziest person in the world when I showed up for rehearsal tonight. On top of that I had chugged a grande coffee from starbucks (something I never, ever, ever do) to wake me up. So I was jittery and I had this goofy, space-case smile on my face the entire time. By the end of rehearsal I was burning up and thought my head was going to float off of my shoulders. It was time to go home.

Still, I was happy with the work that was accomplished tonight. Not just by me, but the rest of the cast as well. The rest of the week we will continue to explore, tighten, and then polish the play before we open on Wednesday. It's going to be insane. I have no idea what's going to happen. We shall see!

I am glad that I'm getting sick now instead of during my performances. However, let's hope that this head-cold doesn't become one of my famous chest-colds...then it's bye bye to that rocker-esque high B I gotta hit.

These Streets

Cross the border into the big bad world
where it takes you 'bout an hour just to cross the road
just to stumble across another poor old soul from
the dreary old lanes to the high-street madness
I fight with my brain to believe my eyes
and it's harder than you think to believe this sadness
that creeps up my spine and haunts me through the night
and life is good and the girls are gorgeuos
suddenly the air smells much greener now
and I'm wondering 'round with a half pack of cigarettes
searching for the change that I've lost somehow

These streets have too many names for me
I'm used to Glenfield road and spending my time down in quay
I'll get used to this eventually
I know, I know

where'd the days go? When all we did was play
And the stress that we were under wasn't stress at all
just a run and a jump into a harmless fall from
walking by a high-rise to a landmark square
you see millions of people with millions of cares
And I struggle to the train to make my way home
I look at the people as they sit there alone

Life is good, and the sun is shining
Everybody flirts to their ideal place
And the children all smile as a boat shuffles by them
Trying to pretend that they've got some space

These streets have too many names for me
I'm used to Glenfield road and spending my time down in quay
I'll get used to this eventually
I know, I know

- Paolo Nutini

Paolo Nutini is only 19 years old and is already starting to explode into the UK's music scene. Expect to see a lot of great things from this kid.

Back to the Sea

I had an incredible weekend. Which is nice because...I don't think I've ever had an "incredible" Labor Day weekend.

I went up to Beverly Massachusetts to visit my friend Katie Rayle and see the show she was performing in at Northshore Musical Theatre. I had no idea that Northshore was in Beverly until I went to get driving directions. The thing is, until I was about 8, I grew up in Manchester Mass, the town right next to Beverly.

First off, I'd like to take this moment to say how incredible I think my friend Katie is. She is one of the most beautiful dancers I've watched in a long time. She has grace and technique, but her presence is astonishing. She really lights up the stage and showed me how much skill it actually takes to be in the ensemble. Blending and creating an environment while staying present and active...isn't as easy as it sounds. It was the ensemble and the talented dancers like Katie that drew me into the show far more than some of the principals. I loved meeting Katie's friends, staying in their housing, and looking in on their little regional-theatre-for-a-month world. It was a great experience.

However, another incredible experience for me this weekend was going to Manchester for the first time in nearly 12 years. I drove by my old house twice while I was trying to find it. I couldn't get over how much smaller it all looked. I remembered the road being wider and the house being taller. It was actually very surreal.

Manchester is a seaside town that looks like something out of Moby Dick. It's gorgeous. As soon as I drove into the town center, I was taken back to a completely different lifetime. I didn't feel like I had gone back in time, I felt like I had gone to another life entirely. The life my siblings and I shared with my parents in Manchester was so different from anything we experienced anywhere after that. We have moved around a lot, but nothing is more distinct and separate than our time spent in Massachusetts. Perhaps it’s because it was the most innocent time for all of us. My siblings and I were all so young and spent nearly every day on the beach. My mother was new to marriage and motherhood. And my father was just starting out in advertising and still refers to that time as the most creative time of his life.

I drove down to the beach and just walked out to the surf. I stood dead center of the beach that had once seemed so much larger to me. It was a surprisingly emotional experience for me. The scents, the sounds, and just the feeling of being there brought me to a most comforting place. I felt more "at-home" than I have felt in years. While I stood on the beach, I became very sad that we had ever left the town. I wondered what I would have been like if I had stayed, practically living in that sand until I was 18. But, as I began to drive away from Manchester, I was reminded of how far everyone in my family has come. Change has been good for all of us...moving on has been important. I won't ever know what my life would have been like had I stayed in that little Nantucket-esque village. It isn't a life that I was meant to live...but, that doesn't mean it's not still apart of me. The best thing about standing out on that beach this morning was re-discovering a part of my life that I thought I had completely forgotten...and then realizing that it had never gone away.

I think Manchester By The Sea will be well worth the 3-hour drive.

Farewell to a Great Entertainer

I love Steve Irwin. I used to watch the Crocodile Hunter all the time and I thought he was incredible. He knew how to mix over-the-top entertainment with education. It was exactly the kind of show that you would want to flip to on the animal planet when you were channel surfing. Despite his odd Baby-in-the-croc-cage moment, I thought he was a good entertainer and he clearly worked hard at what he did.

I was so sad to learn tonight that Steve Irwin was killed scuba diving in the Great Barrier Reef. He was killed by a stingray. The stingray barbed the entertainer in the chest after being startled. Fatal accidents from stingrays are completely and utterly unheard of. It's amazing to think that after all of his time with incredibly dangerous animals like crocodiles and poisonous snakes, a typically harmless animal killed Steve Irwin. I'm an avid scuba diver and I've dived on the Great Barrier Reef myself and never once thought of the stingrays as being dangerous. At most, a person could end up with a bacterial infection on their leg from a sting. Irwin was shooting a new documentary on the Great Barrier Reef.

He and his wife have always promoted animal and environmental conservation. I have always admired their efforts to make people more aware of environmental issues. I can only assume the documentary was going to have a lot to do with the depletion of the Great Barrier Reef and the species that have suffered.

I am so sad for Steve Irwin’s wife and children. It's a terrible thing to see a man who had so many good intentions die at such an early age. Steve Irwin was 44.