Why I‘ll Never Make It

Actors have been returning to the stage this summer as some regional theaters have returned to normal with live audiences. That, of course, has brought in a fresh wind of auditions. So, it is with great pleasure and excitement that I welcome you to the third annual Audition Stories here on the podcast. The last time these audition episodes were on the podcast was a month before the Covid shutdown...

For the past week I have been doing a deep dive into podcasting at a yearly conference called Podcast Movement. It's a place where podcasters like me can learn how to make better episodes, conduct riveting interviews, sincerely engage with listeners, and figure out ways to make my podcast both sustainable and profitable. The goal is to give you and future listeners even more reasons to come back w...

Last year I started releasing bonus episodes to those who supported this podcast on a monthly basis. Well, this is one of those special episodes with Kristen Hetzel. I brought along the co-hosts of Olympic podcast Keep the Flame Alive. Jill and Allison ask questions which bring a different perspective to my conversation with this silver and bronze medal duathlete. They ask about Team USA, correlat...

As the Olympics head into their second week, it’s been a great reminder of the lessons we as artists can learn from these Olympians. Remember the episode with Sally Wilfert? She reminded us singers how we are small muscle athletes. And anyone who’s been through a tech rehearsal process knows what a marathon can feel like and striving to reach the finish line. Mindset and mental health are also so...

When it comes to theater we all know Broadway and the big lights of New York City. There’s also organizations like the public or playwrights horizons that present notable off Broadway productions as well. But for the most part stage work is done by small to midsize theaters across the country some bring in equity Actors but a lot of them don’t. They are simply gathering together actors, directors,...

During this past year as Covid wrecked the theater scene, ending so many shows and seasons, Andrew Lloyd Webber was doing his best to bring musicals back to the West End. And in much the same way, although for very different reasons, it was Lloyd Webber in the 1980s who was bringing the modern musical theater to Germany and the rest of Europe with grand spectacles like Cats. At that time Sabine Kv...

Communication and interacting with each other through words is really at the heart of what it means to connect and relate to other people. This is even more clear as actors and writers in the way that we tell stories and share experiences. Clear and understandable communication is a vital part of the performing arts. We do this through dance, visual media, physical gestures, and other ways, but mo...

in many ways today’s episode is almost a masterclass from beginning to end in how to bridge the gap between being artist and an entrepreneur. Ashley Danyew is a musician and educator who shares how she has had to branch out in many different directions to build both an enjoyable and sustainable career.  Sign up for the monthly WINMI Newsletter.  Even before the pandemic, the life of any artist was...

Well, here we are at the third and final installment of my young artist series. And it could be argued that I’ve saved the most prolific artist for last. As both a performer and writer, Joshua Turchin has crammed a lot of experience into his very young career. Whether it’s on stage at the Hollywood bowl or a national tour OR composing his own award-winning musical OR Music directing his weekly cab...

When it comes to actors, we really are part of a family and community with one another, and no matter how long or how short a time we’ve been in this business, there’s always something we can learn from each other. I mean that's really the basis of this podcast, and today’s guest is a perfect example of this. Sign up for the monthly WINMI Newsletter.  For the most part Chloe Noelle is just your av...

Being a coach and leading master classes has been something I truly enjoyed doing. Imparting my experience and insights to students and watching them have those a-ha moments and discovering something new about themselves or their own skills and talents. But sometimes it’s good to flip that around and ask those just starting out their career what THEY have learned so far and where THEY see not only...

In this past year, as most actors and artists were forced to stay at home, we found new ways to keep creating. The most obvious is the explosion of zoom readings and productions of both new and existing works. Others discovered this medium of podcasting, and in just one year the number of podcasts doubled. But in today’s episode, in honor of Pride Month, I’m talking with two women who set out to e...

This week I'm sharing a conversation I had on another podcast called Blatantly Honest. At the end of this episode I also talk about the recent survey and the need for a reassessment of WINMI Podcast. Makaila Nichols is the founder of the Blatantly Honest Foundation. She is also a national speaker, podcaster, and best-selling author of Blatantly Honest: Normal Teen, Abnormal Life. In her book, she...

Last week on the podcast I spoke with an acting teacher (Terry Knickerbocker) about techniques and the creative process for us actors. Well, this week a publicist will guide us through the business side of our profession, and how best to promote and grow our careers, not letting others and especially ourselves stand in our way.  Join or Donate to WINMI - whyillnevermakeit.com Back in March 2021 I...

The last time a couple came on the podcast was way back in Season 1. And on today's episode Evelyn LeBel and her fiancé Chris Stepanek join me to discuss their different roles backstage, why unions are so important, and how networking is the name of the game in finding work. Give your feedback in the 2021 Listener Survey. This Broadway dresser and Master Technician would have been married last yea...

Give your feedback in the 2021 Listener Survey. Ever since I became WINMI's sole host and producer, I have wanted to have an acting teacher on this podcast. Well, it certainly took long enough, but that time has finally come. Terry Knickerbocker has been guiding students for almost 30 years, having trained and taught with William Esper, one of the most respected protégés of Sanford Meisner. And Th...

As you and I certainly know there is so much more to Theater then just what happens on stage. There are those behind the scenes and backstage, contributing just as much to the production of any show. The next four episodes will be focusing on this important work and how we as Actors can collaborate with them. Today’s guest is not only an actress but has worked as a dresser in more than 20 Broadway...

It’s really no big secret that having children involved in the performing arts can have a major impact on them in school and out of school. Well, today’s guests are training some of these young artists in a fine arts conservatory down in Miami, Florida called MoonAmie Productions. Monica Rosell and Priscilla Blanco join me to discuss their important work and the creative home they provide their st...

In the last episode we learned the importance of producing our own work as actors. Well today's guest, Joel B. New, will show us that just because you build it doesn't mean people will come. After the hard work of creating, then comes the daunting task of producing and promoting it, getting others to take notice and support that work. Learn how Joel found unique ways to get the word out on one of...

At one point or another there is a lesson that all actors have to learn, and this past year has driven home that lesson even more so, and that is the need to create our own work. Today’s guest, Ashley Kate Adams, Not only added producing to her already sizable acting resume, but she put all of her thoughts and lessons learned into a new book called Be Your Own Producer.  #BYOP - https://amzn.to/3w...

On today’s podcast journalist Marcus Scott shares his love of telling stories and how he suddenly found himself writing musicals.  Sign up for the WINMI Newsletter  Real life writing, that’s really the best way to describe the kind of work Marcus does. It’s something of the moment. It's meaningful, insightful, and true to the experiences that Marcus knows firsthand or has researched down to a minu...

While natural talent certainly plays a part in the capabilities of any actor to perform, there’s one skill that has to be learned and nurtured for any actor to really make it in this business, and in part two of my conversation with Joyce Hshieh, she talks about this all important ability to learn and memorize lines.  As an actor she struggled with memorizing lines, but as a trivia enthusiast she...

Almost every actor would seize upon the opportunity to be in a big TV show. But even with a BFA in acting and conservatory theater training, none of it had really prepared Joyce Hshieh for one of the biggest roles of her life, Becoming a three day champion on the game show jeopardy. Sign up for the WINMI Newsletter.  In part one of my conversation with Joyce, we talk about her theater training and...

On December 23, 2020, Broadway and musical theater lost one of its most beautifully talented leading ladies, Rebecca Luker. In the second half of my conversation with Sally Wilfert, we talk about their close friendship and the last project of Rebecca’s life, a duo album called All the Girls.  We also touch on what made her such a unique and special individual who touched the lives of so many. We a...

Sally Wilfert is a Broadway actress and an amazing vocalist who understands the rigors and demands of performing at the top of her game. In part one of my conversation with Sally, she and I discuss the difficulties, injuries, and self-doubts she’s endured.  Sign up for the WINMI Newsletter.  Unlike other jobs like accounting, engineering, or even medicine, singing is uniquely personal, expressing...