"And the Artsie Goes to....."

Last night the Artsies (Richmond Theater Critics Circle Awards) took place. This is Richmond's answer to the Tony's. It was the 13th year, and it was a little different, as you can imagine, because of COVID-19. The show was pre-recorded and broadcast virtually, but they still kept the winners a secret until they were announced last night. In my 47 year career as an actor here in Richmond, I have been nominated twice, once for Best Supporting Actress in a Musical for Always, Patsy Cline, back in 2012 and this year for Best Actress in a Play for The Cake. The Artsies are always a big deal for us in the Richmond Theatre Community. We all get dressed up in our formal attire and gather in the Beautiful November Theater downtown, and have a huge party while also honoring some of our performers and companies in the process. It is also a fundraiser for the Theatre Artist Fund , an organization who helps actors financially who are in need. I, myself, have been the recipient of their generosity when I had my brain surgery back in 2015. Plug here: if you can donate at the link above, please do. Obviously, RONA, was a party pooper last night and made it that we could not gather as we have done for the past 12 years. I was very excited to be a nominee, and would have loved to have attended the gala as it has always been, and truth be told, I was having a little pity party for myself on Saturday, but I am no different than any other person this year who has had their plans ruined by this pandemic. It has been hard for so many of us, but I think the one thing that has gotten a lot of us through this weird, virtual world we have to adapt to, is the love and support of family and friends. Mine certainly made my evening extremely special! Rather than dress up in our fancy duds to sit in my living room, we all had matching black T-Shirts that said Team Terri - Artsies 2020, blinged up with rhinestones and bowtie (much more comfortable and NO HEELS!) We ate popcorn, and cupcakes and Carrot Cake, c'mon I was nominated for The Cake, I had to make one. That made my sister happy! She has been visiting from Florida, and it was so special to have her here to share this with me. My oldest was in via House Party from New York, and my youngest and her boyfriend were part of the Living Room Crowd. SHOUT OUT to the RTCC here for a wonderful, glitch-free, virtual awards ceremony. Everybody did great, and it clipped right along, something, let's face it, the in-person Artsies doesn't always do. Being in my living room, I didn't think I would be nervous, but, boy was I! When my category finally came around, I was holding my breath. When they announced that I won, I screamed and then I cried, and if I had had to give a speech live, I am not sure what would have come out. Our pre-recorded, in case we won speeches could only be 30 seconds, and it's impossible to say what you feel in that short time. Here is what I wanted to say. Bear with me. And hey, you're not sitting in the crowded theater, and you don't have to listen. Perk of writing this, no one gets to play me off. 

    Last year I got all dressed up and I was sandwiched in the crowd in the lobby, barely able to hear myself think for the roar of the crowd, waiting to go into the theater for the 2019 Artsies. (what I wouldn't give to be in that position right now.) I had just been cast as Della in The Cake at Richmond Triangle Players. We had not even begun rehearsals. Dawn Westbrook, the director of The Cake, walked through the doors into the lobby, and we were face-to-face. She hugged me and because of the noise, she said in my ear, "Next year you're going to be nominated." When you start rehearsals for a show with a director that has that much confidence in you, you can't help but succeed! Thank you to the RTCC for the nomination, and for the award. Thank you to Lucian and Phil at RTP for creating such an encouraging, loving, supportive and safe space to create and tell our stories. Thank you for continuing to tell the stories that need to be told with integrity and love. Thank you Dawn Westbrook for giving me the chance to play Della and pushing me as an actor to realize potential I didn't even know I had. Thank you to Nicole, my sweet Jen, that broke my heart every night when you cut Della out of your life. Thank you to Zakiyyah, my sparring partner. We knew we could make you mean! You were with me right out of the gate, and you set up everything beautifully! To Gordon, my sweet, wonderful Tim. I adore you! You were there making it safe for me in my most difficult moment of the play. You made me a better Della than I dreamed! To Darrin and Nora, our amazing crew, you rocked! Nora, a special shout out to you who when you were told you had to slather buttercream icing (shaving cream) all over my boobs each night, never batted an eye. You stayed calm during that very quick change and kept me that way! To Lauren who kept us organized and in line from day one. Who literally was there for every need down to tissues at rehearsal to wipe our tears. Our design teams created an amazing world to work in and feel like we lived there, thank you! I am so proud of this work, and thrilled to get this award, but as you can see, no one gets there alone! Last, but certainly not least by any means, thank you to Leah and Georgi, my biggest fans and my greatest legacy! Good night!

And just like that, another year gone.

2012 was a wonderful year for me. For one thing, I spent a good amount of the year working as a professional actor. I had a lot of firsts this year. In August, I moved my oldest daughter into college. That was a first for me, but also a first for my family as no one in our family has ever attended college before. I survived without too many tears, and she is flourishing there, and I am so proud. Last fall I was nominated for an RTCC award for my performance in "Always, Patsy Cline", another first and such an honor. And in November I had the opportunity to film a commercial for the VA Lottery, quite an experience. I celebrated 30 years with my senior class and was glad to reconnect with so many friends, and I achieved my 50 lb. mark in weight loss. Those were the big moments and so many others to make a really blessed 2012.
2013 will bring many things for me. I will reach year 50 in October, so I am sure this will be a huge year of reflection for me. I want to continue to shed pounds and keep exercising for my health because I want to be here for another 50 to watch my girls as they continue on the amazing path they're on to the fabulous women they are becoming with each passing day. I want to continue to act as it is my greatest gift I have to share, and I feel so alive when I'm on stage. I will begin the college search with my youngest, and exciting time for both of us. My oldest will turn 21 this year, and my youngest will begin her senior year in the fall. 2013 will be filled with milestones for my little family of three. I am ready to face them all because I have their love and support through everything. I cannot imagine what my life would be without them. Bring it on 2013, we're ready for you!

It's an honor just to be nominated!

When people hear those words, their first reaction is usually, "Yeah! Right!", but in my case, they really are true! Earlier this week the official word came out from the RTCC (Richmond Theater Critics Circle) of this years nominations for the "Artsies" as they've come to be called. The Artsies are the Richmond equivalent to Broadway's Tony Awards. Each October for the last 4 years, Richmond's theatre community shows up in their fanciest duds to celebrate the previous season with an awards ceremony. It is always a fun time, and as an actor I love getting dressed up and seeing all of my friends that I have worked with past and present. Best of all the money from ticket sales goes to the Richmond Theatre Artists Fund established to help those in the Richmond theatre community who fall on hard of times due to illness, injury, or extenuating circumstances. I'm always excited to see when the nominations come out, but this year I was particularly invested because I have spent the better part of 2012 involved with a wonderful show called "Always, Patsy Cline" produced by Barksdale and a re-mount under the Va-Rep banner. I play the character of "Louise Seger" a devoted fan of "Patsy Cline" played wonderfully by the fabulous Debra Wagoner. "Louise" is a character I could probably play for the rest of my life as long as I could walk. Every moment on stage has been pure joy for me! I am so proud of our little show and everyone involved! That feeling, and having the extreme luck to be working as an actor would be enough for me. I got my first paycheck as an actor at the age of 10. I have been doing this for almost 39 years. I'm not famous. I'm not a millionaire. I love it, and that's why I do it, and every once in a while something comes along, like this show, that makes all the running around and working a regular job all day and going to rehearsal for another 4 hours worth it. This show was one of those. So in that alone, I count myself extremely blessed! Then, this past Tuesday, I saw the link on Facebook to Dave Timberline's Theatre Blog announcing this year's nominees. As I read the list, I saw Debra's name first. So happy and proud! She works her ass off every night singing 27 songs in one show. Well deserved! then I get down to the Best Supporting Actress Category, and I see my name. I was floored and soooo happy. When you are proud of the work you put into a role, and the way a show comes together, it is so nice to see someone else say, "I like it too! Good job!" That's what the nomination says to me. 
There is a story about Dustin Hoffman and Laurence Olivier when they were working on the film, Marathon Man. Hoffman asked Olivier, "Why do we do this?" (acting) Olivier replied, "Look at me! Look at me! Look at me! Look at me!" That might not be every actor, but it's certainly this one. I enjoy being on stage in the spotlight. I like it when I deliver a line, and the audience laughs. I like taking a bow and hearing the applause. All of those things make it worth it for me, but just once in a while, it's nice to know that somebody "looked" at me and thought I did a good enough job to be recognized for it!