Previously On…

It’s that magical time of year, when the sun beats down, when the water sparkles just a bit brighter, and when the reality competition show Big Brother becomes my entire personality.

And let me tell you, these weirdos are here to PLAY this season. You should count yourself lucky that I don’t spend the rest of this newsletter giving you a play-by-play of the last five weeks.

I used to be a big reality TV freak, but I’ve whittled down my viewing habits to this one show I’ve been watching since it premiered in 2000. I’ve watched it evolve from a bare-bones competition to a rapidly-evolving chess game, complete with signature game moves (“backdooring”), character archetypes (“comp beast”), and playbooks for success (“floating”). Every year I feel like most people do when they watch sports or bet on horses. And apart from my parents and a few people who had the courage to trust me when I recommended they watch it, it is all mine.

Upcoming Gigs

Hey guess what? After a months-long absence, it’s almost time for me to reenter the improv scene! COME SEE ME BE FUNNY WITH MY FRIENDS.

• Sunday, August 25th: Butt Gay, 7pm @ Dallas Comedy Club

• Monday, September 10th: Hot Dish, 8pm @ Four Day Weekend Dallas

• Saturday, September 14th: Black Tie Casual, 7pm @ Dallas Comedy Club

• Thursday, September 19th: Rodgers & Hammertime, 9:30pm @ Dallas Comedy Club

This scrappy little play SOLD OUT more than a week in advance. I’m racking my brain thinking of another time this has happened to a show I’ve worked on and I’m coming up empty.

Performing in this legendary melodrama has been a great experience. Making audiences laugh (and one kid cry) week after week makes me feel things I haven’t in years. This show pushed my physical limits, brought me new friends, and ingrained me in the history of one of my favorite franchises, no matter how light an imprint my presence makes. A hearty “huzzah” to the cast and crew, and everyone who managed to catch this round of shenanigans.

Recent Gigs

Since my last update I’ve provided additional voices for the following shows:

• Berserk of Gluttony, Episodes 1 & 3

• Bye Bye, Earth, Episode 1

• A Journey Through Another World: Raising Kids While Adventuring, Episode 5

• Wistoria: Wand and Sword, Episode 4

Featured Character: Sahara, Berserk of Gluttony

I play Sahara in the first two episodes of Berserk of Gluttony, a young orphan who is kidnapped by some real low-down scum.

Jeremy Inman has a knack for seeing things in actors that they don’t see themselves. I do not get cast as little girls, certainly not distressed victims of circumstance, and tapping into an underused part of my voice in such a high-stakes scenario was a welcome challenge. A huge thanks to Jeremy and our engineers Zack and Jamal for continuing to be incredible to work with.

Consume!

This show probably flew under your radar when it premiered in 2021. It’s hard to categorize, and therefore hard to market. The closest genre I can assign the story is “noir”, but its moments of broad comedy, pathos, and Kaufman-esque banter don’t fit neatly in that box. It’s a story about the masks we wear, the categories we create, and the grudges we give meaning to, in order to make it through the daily grind.

I’m rambling. The truth is I don’t want to tell you anything about this show. I want you to watch it, to see its web of coincidences and connections expand and complicate itself over twelve episode to culminate in one of the most heart-wrenching moments of meta narrative I can remember in anime.

Performance of the Week

I don’t think you can lose whether you watch Odd Taxi’s English dub or its original Japanese cast, but one thing I’ll say is that some LOVE went into this adaptation. The script is incredibly complicated, filled with references, puns, and gripes that the Bang! Zoom! team seamlessly brings to life for the American ear. This goes to show what can be done with a good amount of time, care, and talent.

I started thinking this show was special around episode four, titled “Tanaka’s Revolution”. The titular character, an office drone turned domestic terrorist, gets an entire episode in the spotlight and his English VA Aleks Le takes full advantage. Le knows exactly when to let the script speak for itself and when to give his deadpan delivery a hint more juice, turning an inner monologue that could have felt montone into a chilling tour-de-force.

Love One Another

Even though I love Big Brother to death, I think I would be a terrible competitor on the show.

Especially in the early stages, the players’ survival relies on how effectively they can gauge and match the vibe of the house’s social dynamics. Early evictees are chosen almost purely based on vibes. My past history with large groups of pretty people wouldn’t bode well for my chances.

While physical fitness isn’t a requirement, it certainly does help. My fitness is average at best.

Good players are adept at responding to conflict quickly and with conviction. I’m conflict averse, and not the best at persuasion.

Most importantly, the game forces you to spend every waking minute with people you don’t know without any reading or writing material. I would simply shrivel up and perish.

No, my destiny doesn’t lie as a competitor in the house. But maybe, one day, as a game master.

More to come.