While many of my singer friends traveled to other states and countries to participate in summer festivals, I opted to stay in NYC for the rest of the summer to continue working at church, take weekly voice lessons with my teacher, and attend Meisner-based acting classes at the Acting Studio - NY on W 54th St.
At the acting studio, students "learn fundamental acting principles through a step-by-step progression of exercises that develop his/her ability to work organically, and to create truthful and expressive behavior in acting." I believed that a non-musical approach would be exactly what I needed to further my training, and I ended up loving the process! I even made the decision to enroll in the studio's two-year evening acting program, which begins in September. I can't wait to learn more about the craft, gain a greater awareness of my instincts, and apply these tools to my singing.
In recent weeks, I have been putting a lot of attention on an exciting new project: offering voice lessons to the parishioners of St. John the Baptist Roman Catholic Church, in Jersey City, NJ, where I have been the cantor for the past two years. Aside from gaining more one-on-one teaching experience, I'm hoping to help enhance our community's spiritual involvement through singing. The ultimate goal is to build a choir that would sing for weekly masses. I put a notice in the church bulletin last week, and already have three regular students who have been a joy to teach!
As summer turns to fall, I look forward to the excitement of being a substitute teacher in the public school system, performing new roles (more on that in my next post), and cooler weather in NYC!
