Actorcast

For episode 090 of Actorcast, we are joined by Randy Mulder. I've had the opportunity to train and work with Randy and I thought it essential to have him on the show to talk about playback theatre. He talk about what playback theatre is, why it's so great for community building, and how actors can benefit from awareness about playback.

You can learn more about Village Playback Theatre and the NY School of Playback Theatre by visiting the following links:

https://www.villageplaybacktheatre.org/

https://www.nyspt.org/

https://www.facebook.com/VillagePlaybackTheatre/

Randy Mulder is the artistic director and co-founder of Village Playback Theatre in New York City. As an applied theatre company, VPT has performed in diverse settings, from homeless shelters to Lincoln Center. Under his leadership, the company has performed throughout metro New York, many parts of the U.S., and overseas. He has led performances and workshops in schools and universities, corporations, government agencies, social services, prisons, professional conferences, psychiatric hospitals, and several shows in traditional theatres. Randy is co-director and trainer of the New York School of Playback Theatre, which attracts students from all around the world. He is a faculty member at Kansas State University School of Music, Theatre, and Dance, where he teaches drama therapy graduate students. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in music (vocal performance) and a Masters in drama therapy.

In this episode of Actorcast, we are discussing Applied Acting! More commonly known as Applied Theatre/Improv, Applied Acting is a wonderful career path for actors who can teach others from other industries their craft and how it applies to their work specifically. We talk about some of the skills that are easily transferrable from acting to other industries and why these skills are so important today.

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com and @patrick.mcandrew

For episode 088 of Actorcast, we talk about social media. I know I have a love/hate relationship with social media and it's important, as actors, that we find a way to use it that works best for us. In this episode, we talk about different ways to create content, why you must enjoy the process, and what to do if you are not feeling compelled to make content.

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com and @patrick.mcandrew

For episode 087 of Actorcast we are joined by my friend, actor and singer, Luisa Tascone! Luisa is such a wonderful person. I had the opportunity to meet her through my time at the Neighborhood Playhouse and was excited to have her on the show to share her story of training and working in the industry. We talk about what inspired her to pursue this career, why she enjoyed her training at the Neighborhood Playhouse so much, as well as her experience working in the United States as an Australian.

To keep up with all of Luisa's work, be sure to follow her @luisatascone and visit her website at www.luisatascone.com.

Luisa Tascone (AEA, MEAA) is an Italian Australian actor and singer trained in the Meisner technique and contemporary and classical singing. She is an alumni of the world-renowned acting school The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in NYC. Recent credits include lead actor in the short films ‘Through Fault’ (awarded Best Australian Short Film at PRIDE Film Festival), ‘Blue Belt’ (awarded Best Youth Short Film at St Kilda Film Festival) and ‘The Keys’ (awarded Best Short Horror at Bloody Mirror Film Festival). Luisa has also performed Off-Broadway in the premiere musical production of ‘Oceanborn’ (part of the Rave Theatre Festival produced by multi-award winning Broadway Producer Ken Davenport) and appeared in commercials for some of Australia’s highest-ranking businesses including Fox Footy, Medibank, Commbank and Chemist Warehouse. Recently she co-founded a new Melbourne theatre company Mi Casa Theatre (@micasa_theatre) and performed in their first production‘Tales from the Vault’ in April 2022.

For episode 086 of Actorcast and the season 5 premiere, we are joined by Todd Susman. I had the opportunity to train with Todd Susman at the Neighborhood Playhouse and he is just a wealth of knowledge when it comes to acting and the entertainment industry. In our conversation we discuss everything from preparation, auditioning, decision making, imperfections, and much more.

You can learn more about Todd by visiting https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0839881/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0_tt_1_nm_7_q_TOdd%2520Susman

Todd Susman has been a professional actor since 1969.  He’s been a regular in six television series and a recurring character in fifteen or more, including five years recurring as “Officer Shifflett,” the town cop in “Newhart.” Todd has done twenty-two television pilots, myriad movies made for TV, and performed in countless episodic television shows, voice-overs, and on-camera commercials.  He was the “Public Address Announcer” in the TV series “MASH” for eight years, and the “Man From Mitsubishi” for another eight years on radio.  Todd starred as “Wilbur Turnblad” in "Hairspray" on Broadway.  He recurred as Jason Biggs’s father in “Orange Is The New Black,” and recently filmed episodes of “Blue Bloods,” “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt,” “The Good Fight,” “For Life,” and “Bull.”  Todd worked with Denzel Washington in “The Taking Of Pelham 123” and Al Pacino in “You Don’t Know Jack.”  For the past ten years, Todd has added writing plays, teaching and coaching to his repertoire.  

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com.

For episode 085 of Actorcast, and our final episode of the Minisode Series, we talk about the importance of trusting yourself as an actor. There are so many unknowns in this industry and so much that is out of our control. Because of this, it is crucial that we maintain perspective on things, that we enjoy the process, and focus on becoming the best actor we can be and why that matters to us.

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com.

For this episode of Actorcast, we are talking about the importance of simplifying your acting. As actors, it is often tempting to over complicate things. We need to do all of the research, analyze every last detail of our character, and dissect every one of our lines. But this often leads to us loosing focus and forgetting what really matters: being in the moment of the scene. Prep work is important, but it's also important to leave it behind you when it comes time to perform.

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com.

For episode 083 of Actorcast, we talk about ten great books for actors. There are so many great books out there that it was hard to narrow it down to ten (and I, in fact, include two honorable mentions, so it's actually twelve books). We give a brief overview of each book and why you need to go out and get them.

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Doing background work as an actor is an excellent way to learn about how a professional TV or film set operates. In episode 082 of Actorcast, as part of our Minisode Series, we are talking all things background work. We talk about the benefits of doing it, what to get out of it, and what it's not.

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For episode 081 of Actorcast, we talk about the different ways that you can find an agent or manager. It is often a confusing pursuit, but we discuss three main ways that you can at least begin the conversation with them: cold submissions, referrals, and having them see your work.

Follow my work at https://patrick-mcandrew.com.