My father kept me from boy band superstardom (534 hits)
Category: Sound & MusicRating: 2 on 1 review (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Donne Fan (View user info) at 2004-07-26 14:08:50 EDT
In 1988 I was 8 years old and I was working as a model for an agency called Atlanta's Young Faces. I was not a model for them because I was such a devastatingly handsome 8 year old, in fact I was a model because I was somewhat awkward looking. I think I got so much work then because my ears were full grown but my head was significantly smaller than it is now. I also had teeth that were in various states of coming in and big spaced out freckles. I was not as chubby as the kid in "The Sandlot" but my cheeks were full and I was endearing and cute in that opie taylor kind of way.
I got my big break after my agent called my mom and told her about an audition. The first audition was really intimidating. There were tons of children milling about in a building that was kind of like a warehouse with a large cubicle walled waiting room. I guess it was a soundstage of some kind because there were lights and cameras in the main large room. We were ushered into different groups. We were taught little choreographed sequences and then asked to reproduce them. I remember a point at which we were supposed to hold up different cards and I thought it was awesome because some kids got their cards upside down or held up the wrong side. I also remember thinking the song really was pretty awful we were supposed to learn, but it was like childrens choir, or one of the many day camps I had attended so I played along and sang with a smile on my face (I wanted adults to like me).
I ended up getting a call back. My mom brought me to a different building and the inside was very similar to many of the commercial call backs. I was given a script to learn and act out, and I sat in the waiting room with my parents. I also noticed my mom was her usual calm self, and we both kind of people watched. Many of the parents seemed pretty freaked out, and a couple were absolute monsters. "Shanika what did I tell you about sucking your thumb! I will snatch your hand off your arm if you keep that up!" No wonder the poor girl I judged to be my age was still seeking solace from her thumb. Oh yikes...that had not been good for her teeth, as long as this was not a recasting for the beaver role in a live action Lady and the Tramp I do not think she is going to get the job.
A few kids were there with acting coaches. It was my experience that many of the kids with the acting coaches had parents who desperately wanted their child to succeed and were willing to pay anything for that, but the reason the child needed a coach was because they were fundamentally not cut out for acting. The worst were the whisper kids. We all knew kids like that from elementary school I am sure, the kid who was so shy that they would always answer in as few words as possible, never with energy or with voice raised, the kid whose voice always trailed off. "Wow candace I am so happy to be here with you and get to share this awesome song with our friends..." does not quite ring the same way when it is delivered in a soft monotone that trails off. They would withdraw further into their shells as their parent went into histrionics and the coach would look uncomfortable ("What am I paying you for!" I heard more than once) as the child mumbled and got to the verge of tears. I hope and pray that these kids parents had to pay for their therapy
I wish they had made kiddie prozac back then or paxil, because then these children would have had something to advertise.
After what seemed like forever to me (even more ADD at 8 than now) I was allowed to go back and talk to the producers. They had me sing so I sang the song they had for us, then they said, "Sing a song you like" and I belted out a song I had just been enjoying a lot at that point in my life, "Like A Rolling Stone" by Bob Dylan. I think my mom was surprised, but in my sheltered home I was allowed to listen to Fox 97, the oldies station, and I had taped that particular song. I am not sure what drama in Mrs. Doyle's homeroom had led to so much third grade angst but I sang "how does it feeeeel?" with all the emotion in my childish tenor I could muster.
Then we had the time where they asked questions. It was always my favorite time. I may have gotten remarks on my report card about disruptive behavior, but I saw a sheet one time at a commercial audition and they wrote "personality plus" about me. That was much better! I was not a spaz, not an ADD explosion of words and tics, I was just given extra personality. They asked me about school, about my family, stupid questions. In hindsight it makes sense that you can tell alot as a casting director about a kid if you just get them talking. When they asked about favorite toys, I launched into an explanation of the current battle between G.I. Joe who had recently added the U.S.S. Flagg aircraft carrier, and Cobra who was at a tactical disadvantage with the terror drome. They did not want to hear the entire explanation about the recent troubles with my introduction of some new recruits (yes after reading the file cards and buying new figures I would always worry that some of them would not get along with new guys, Leatherneck and Gung Ho always had a jealous rivalry over who could fight better without guns) and they thanked me very much for coming. I left and kept asking my mom "how did it go?" and she kept saying she thought it went fine. She said, "You were yourself, and that is what matters."
The call came from my agent (a nice lady from church who owned an agency and had gotten my parents to let my little brother and me model a few years before) that the casting director wanted me. I was going to be cast in the All New Mickey Mouse Club! I was soo happy. But then I heard all about it and my mom said we would have to wait until we consulted with my father. I practiced my M I C K E Y M O U S E song and dreamed of my stardom. The cast of that show included Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Keri Russell, Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera and me! Or so I thought...
To Be Continued
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Submitted by jme7551 (user info) at 2004-07-26 14:22:16 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
keep it coming