The Well-Rounded Actor

Playing a starring role on social media with Jenna Leigh Miller, actress / branding coach

Social media is a double edged sword. It can be a total mind fuck  but also open your world to a lot of awesome people and help you grow your acting career and other endeavors that can make you a lot of money. On today's episode, I'm talking to one of the amazing humans that came into my life because of Instagram. Jenna Leigh Miller is an actress, theater and branding coach and social media manager. She's based in New York city and has helped hundreds of actors around the world pursue careers in the theater industry. Jenna is determined to educate all artists who want to make their Broadway dreams come true. She helps you find the perfect audition material prep for callbacks gain exposure on social media and ultimately light a fire under your ass that will have you booked in no time. She's here to help solve problems. Personally, I love Jenna because she's hilarious, creative, super hardworking, and truly is a champion for the arts. She loves musical theater and Broadway, and more importantly loves her fellow performers.  She's a huge believer that artists need to support fellow artists and together we can all raise each other up. She's also a fantastic example of a young actor who early on understood that having a location independent business was key for financial and mental bandwidth as a working musical theater performer.On today's episode, Jenna shares how she turned a shitty COVID situation, including three canceled contracts into the beginnings of building a social media empire. > We also talk about what it really takes to start experiencing freedom from a side business.> Her top three tips for actors who want to strategically use social media to grow their acting career. > The number one thing that will hold you back from kicking ass on Instagram. > And the biggest lesson Jenna keeps learning and relearning. So if you're ready to start having more fun, being less perfect and playing on a bigger stage on social media. You definitely want to tune in to this conversation with Jenna Lee millerFOLLOW JENNAWebsiteFACEBOOKINSTAGRAMYOUTUBE 

Breaking Rules and Owning Your Work with Kristen Henry King

Have you ever felt frustrated by the lack of control you have in your acting career? You work hard, self tape like a boss, submit submit submit and then...nothing.Or you might be booking work but it's still not reliable enough. And what if you have something come up in your life that’s a setback for your acting career and you are trying to figure out how to navigate it all and wondering how much to reveal about what's going on. My guest today gets all of this. She's been a working actor for years with an impressive resume to reflect her hard work. Kristen Henry King has appeared on shows including NCIS:LA, S.W.A.T, and Station 19 and has also played the comic relief in shows like How I Met Your Mother, Community, and in a recurring role on Jane the Virgin. Kristen also happens to be a songbird, graduating from NYU with a Bachelors in Classical Vocal Performance.  She makes it her business to truly take on her character from what they wear, to their viewpoint about life.Despite her impressive acting resume, Kristen is a huge advocate for writing and producing your own work because she feels it's the key to really having financial and creative control. So she's on a mission to help her fellow performers learn how to do this, as well as navigate the ins and outs and ups and downs of this crazy industry. Kristen is also a mom of two young daughters with a third on the way and has overcome an uphill battle with multiple sclerosis. She considers it her duty to be an inspiration and voice for others who may not have a voice and offer her services to those who need it most. So on today's episode, you'll learn:> How sometimes going off script can pay off big> Why you need to be acting every single day and not just waiting for auditions> How something you see as a flaw could be your biggest acting asset > How her battle with M.S. changed the way she approaches her acting> And why you need to be constantly thinking about monetizingKristin is a powerhouse, a bit of a rule breaker and has so much good stuff to share to help you book more, create more and make more.FOLLOW KRISTENCheck out Kristen on YouTubeGrab her free ebook:  THE ARTIST'S GUIDE TO BECOMING A WORKING ACTORFollow Kristen on IGJOIN THE PODCAST EMAIL LIST Be the the first to know about new episodes, featured guests and get  other juicy content designed to help you become today's triple threat directly to your inbox.  I may serve up some occasional Sondheim lyrics but promise not to spam you. >>> Click here to join.

Finding What is Yours to Say with Mike Ganino, Speaking + Storytelling Coach

Everyone has a story to tell. As actors we're used to telling other people's stories, bringing someone else's words to life. But how do you tell YOUR story? And how do you use it to boost your brand, own the stage, or build an acting career or other business that the world can't stop talking about. My guest today is obsessed with this. Mike Ganino  is a storytelling and communication expert who hosts the Mike Drop Moment podcast.  He teaches storytelling presence and public speaking to some of the biggest names and brands.  Given that he loves helping people shine on stage, it's no surprise that Mike's story is rooted in acting and improv. So whether you're a business owner, actor, public speaker, or all of the above, tune in tot discover: > The outdated rules of public speaking that hold people back online and onstage> How everyone has a currency and why you need to share yours > What you need to figure out when you're looking at a scene for an audition or crafting the perfect speech> Why you don't need to focus on sharing plot or heroics with your audience  > Why you need to be careful about who you take notes fromConnect with Mike:Website: www.mikeganino.comIG: @mikeganinoFree storytelling guide & training videoJOIN THE PODCAST EMAIL LIST Be the the first to know about new episodes, featured guests and get  other juicy content designed to help you become today's triple threat directly to your inbox.  I may serve up some occasional Sondheim lyrics but promise not to spam you. >>> Click here to join.

Managing your mental health on stage and off with Avi Vodnoy Wolf, Psychotherapist & Theatre Artist

When you Google mental health for actors, almost a hundred million results pop up. But when you really look at them closely on the first few pages, you notice that there's a lot about the problem. especially articles published in the UK and Australia. BUT there isn't a whole lot of information available about the causes or possible solutions. When it comes to the unique professional challenges that actors experience both onstage and behind the scenes, it begs the question:Why aren't we giving actors the skills and professional resources to navigate this in a healthy way?My guest today thinks this all needs to change and as leading the way.  Avi Vodnoy Wolf (they/them) is a transmasculine non-binary psychotherapist and theater artist who has spent the last decade researching the psychological impact it has on actors to portray traumatized circumstances and emotions. Their business is EQ Mental Health, which provides coaching to individual actors to help them navigate roles that are emotionally taxing in healthy, sustainable ways. Avi also works as a mental health consultant for theaters and films when the work involves psychologically rigorous themes  by teaching the actor skills for managing and coming out of the emotions of the role when they're off stage. In this episode we discuss: How your body doesn't know the difference between an acted emotion or a real one and how this can take a tollHow we can better equip actors onstage and off for the mental health rigors that acting takes The systemic issues pertaining to mental health challenges for performersWhy the age old expression "The show must go on" is rooted in systems of oppressionHow and why actors need boundariesFollow Avi on IG @offstage.equilibriumLearn more about Avi's work at EQ Mental HealthJOIN THE PODCAST EMAIL LIST Be the the first to know about new episodes, featured guests and get  other juicy content designed to help you become today's triple threat directly to your inbox.  I may serve up some occasional Sondheim lyrics but promise not to spam you. >>> Click here to join.

The unexpected way I went viral on IG

On this solo episode, I share  how I accidentally went viral on IG this week and what I learned from the experience. I also dive into why showing up as yourself can be so challenging for actors and performing artists and why getting trolled on social can actually be a sign of progress.Check out the viral IG reel here.JOIN THE PODCAST EMAIL LIST Be the the first to know about new episodes, featured guests and get  other juicy content designed to help you become today's triple threat directly to your inbox.  I may serve up some occasional Sondheim lyrics but promise not to spam you. >>> Click here to join.