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Rachel Shoshanna

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I promise I was trying to put up a post! I literally just spent three days trying to embed audio into an audition GRWM/how-to post, but had to give up in order to retain my sanity. Clearly, HTML and coding is not something towards which I am inclined.

That's okay though, because I am inclined to singing and dancing, which was helpful for my musical theatre showcase auditions this week. It was definitely stressful, and I spent a good 72 hours this week having yet another vocal identity crisis, but after talking to the music director and finally finding out what songs to bring in for the head of the department on Monday, I'm feeling really good about the whole thing. I wanted some more small group numbers and I only have one, but it's 'The Negative' from 'Waitress,' which I've already worked on before and love. The solos that they've given me to bring in are also great - 'A Cockeyed Optimist' from 'South Pacific,' the standard 'I'll Be Seeing You,' 'Here I Am' from 'Dirty Rotten Scoundrels,' 'A Fine, Fine Line' from 'Avenue Q,' and 'What Baking Can Do' from 'Waitress.' 

But by far the best part of this week was the dance audition we had on Wednesday. It was mostly for figuring out where each person in the group lies on the dance spectrum - mover, strong mover, and dancer. I'd qualify myself as a dancer, and there are a number of us in the group. But beyond that, the majority of our group are really strong movers, and we had a blast learning a jazz style combination from 'Elf,' and, for the people who wanted to tap (which again, was most of us), a really fun combo from 'Something Rotten.' The discovery that we were all pretty inclined towards dancing definitely inspired our director, because he keeps talking in vague terms about this cool, collaborative idea for the show that hasn't been done at our school before. 

As you might imagine, we're all very excited. I'll keep you updated as things are solidified and we get into rehearsals, but I think it's going be a really good show.

Much love,
Rachel Shoshanna
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Such was the name of my drama showcase, which played its final performance last night. It was an incredible weekend in which I made my NYC stage debut, and the five weeks of rehearsal leading up to it were some of the most difficult, but also unequivocally the most rewarding weeks of my time at this school. 

Our show centered around themes of identity and how interpersonal relationships interact with that identity. The name of the show came from the pregnant silences that would fall as people's struggles came into conflict. There were nine different scenes put up, and the two that I was in were from "Bad Jews," by Joshua Harmon, and "If I Forget," by Steven Levenson. 

My characters from the two scenes were very similar as far as the stock character went, but their personalities and how they dealt with their problems were so different from one another, and also from me, and that made figuring them out a real challenge. What helped was the people I was working with - all of them were so in it and so committed to figuring out the scenes and what made them work, that it made my job easier. 

All of our performances were great, but while we up there this week, we really learned the kind of difference an audience can make. We gave it our all every time, but audiences are also active participants in a theatre experience, and sometimes they don't hold up their end of the deal. When that happens, you just have to power through and stay in the moment. Other times, though, the audience is so thoroughly invested that the work is halfway done for you; you just get to go out there and enjoy the time to explore the people and moments you've spent so much time getting to know. 

Our final performance was that kind of performance. The audience was packed and our energy was high, and we just took the advice our director had been giving us for weeks which was - fuck it. Go out there and fuck it.

And fuck it, we did.


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I'm back after again, after a... two-month long hiatus? Maybe I just shouldn't have a blog.

No, but to be honest, I've had tons of post ideas and just no time and/or energy to write them. I've been super busy with my paying job (holiday season in retail can, in fact, be quite draining) and with my other job as assistant stage manager to a new play produced by Theatre 167 and happening at the West End Theater (in the Church of St. Paul and St. Andrew) on the Upper West Side.

It's a beautiful play called Mourning Sun, by playwright and actor Antu Yacob, about an Ethiopian girl named Biftu being forced into a child marriage and the physical and emotional scars it leaves her experiencing. Even with such a bleak premise, the show manages to convey a message of hope and perseverance, all intertwined with nuanced explorations of race, identity, female sexuality, and the immigrant experience. It's been a privilege to work on what I think is an extremely important production, and if you are in the New York area and have the chance, I would highly recommend going to see it. 

Though I guess I am biased.

Because I've spent so much time in the city these last few months, I've had time to explore new-ish parts of a city that I've known my whole life but never really took the time to appreciate in it's entirety until now. This is especially exciting to me now that I am (finally!!) moving into the city with one of my best friends since I was five in January. As a result I have a few general life favorites, in addition to my play, that have come as a result of walking around this amazing city with new eyes. 

In no particular order -


  • Duane Reade. Especially if you can find the ones with the huge beauty sections. In addition to affordable makeup, they carry more high end brands like Cargo and The Balm (their highlighters are seriously the BALM dot com. Ha.)
  • The Village, both of the East and West variety. Though vibe of the East Village is a little more my speed, the architecture of the West Village is beautiful, and the history is vitally important to the character of the neighborhood. Have some pictures from when I was walking around down there a few weeks ago:












At least the city of New York acknowledges her role in the Stonewall Riots!
(Ahem. Looking at you, Roland Emmerich/Hollywood.)


  • Amsterdam Avenue. Endless supply of delicious restaurants/bars, and some fun boutique-type stores. My favorite of favorites is Jacob's Pickles, because I love pickles. And comfort food. And good (wheat) beer. All of which they have in adundance. 
  • Any of the parks. Central Park is always a classic, but I also like getting a snack and sitting in Washington Square Park to people watch. 
  • The Guggenheim. I actually had never been there before, at least in my memory, until a few weeks ago when I went with my friend Celine and her friend Teresa. Not only is the actual building as impressive as it looks in pictures, but the artwork featured right now on the inside was like nothing I'd ever seen before. The exhibit is called Alberto Burri: The Trauma of Painting, and you should definitely take the time to go see it. It's there until January 6th, so hurry up!


  • Winter. This may sound silly, but New York really was just made for cold weather, hot drinks, and the holiday season. I may be Jewish, but it's hard not to get excited when you get to stumble on the Rockefeller Center tree being put up and see the build-up to the unveiling of the Saks Fifth Avenue windows. Snow might not be much of a thing here unless you're really lucky, but the atmosphere of the city at this time of the year is unparalleled for me.



Obviously this is open now. Hopefully my mom and I will take our
(mostly) annual visit to them soon!


Well that's it for today guys! It was kind of all over place, but it fits with my life right now, I guess. I've been doing a lot of reading recently, so up next is probably going to be a rundown/mini-reviews of my favorites that I've come across or revisited. Until next time!

Much love,
Rachel Shoshanna
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I've been away for a long time. It wasn't intentional, I promise - I was just very busy in a musical theatre intensive for two weeks, and then assistant stage managing a show while in an emotional slump for the week after that ended.

So this is kind of just a life update post, as well as some theatre recommendations. I hope that's okay!

From July 6th thru July 17th, I participated in the American Academy of Dramatic Arts' (AADA for short) Two Week Musical Theatre Intensive. It was easily one of the best, most fun, most exhausting two weeks of my life, and I kind of wish I could do it all over again. 

Over the course of those two weeks, the other thirteen students in the class and I took four classes - Vocal Technique, Song Interpretation, Jazz/Tap, and Acting Exercises - in which we worked on one song both vocally and storytelling-wise, learned part of the Ann Reinking choreography for All That Jazz (from Chicago), and focused on our improv skills and audition monologues. It was a lot, and it was hard at times, but I know I learned so much from the things we worked on, and so did my friends.

We all bonded really well, which was unsurprising. What was surprising was just how close we became so quickly, and how much we didn't want to leave each other. I'm fairly certain we're going to be in each others lives for a while, even though some of them live overseas. In fact, I'm going to Schmackary's with three of them tonight! 


Look at these gorgeous people!!
Sadly our time together in the program did have to end, and when I left I returned to work assistant stage managing for a beautiful new musical entitled "Rachel: The Musical." No, it's not about me - it's about Rachel Carson, the marine biologist and environmentalist who wrote Silent Spring, a book exposing the dangers of a pesticide used in the mid-1900s called DDT. It was the musical's world premiere at the Fresh Fruit Festival last Monday, and it had it's last performance in the festival on Saturday. But keep your eyes open - there was some low rumbling about a potential transfer, so if you want to see it you might have a chance!

I also have seen quite a bit of theatre in the last few weeks, so I'm just gonna go through what I saw and give a little overview and rating out of 5 stars. I'd definitely recommend seeing all of the shows though, if you can.

Les Misérables - It was actually the fourth time I'd seen this show, and the second time I'd seen this staging. I'm also not sure you really need a summary, so I'll just go ahead and rate it. 5/5 stars!

On The Town - Three sailors - Gabey, Chip, and Ozzie - have 24 hours off their ship to spend in New York City. They have a madcap adventure around town in their search for the beautiful Ivy Smith, Miss Turnstiles for the month of June, after Gabey sees her picture in the subway. Complete with great music and incredible choreography by Jerome Robbins, I'd give this one 5/5 stars as well!

It Shoulda Been You - Jenny is the wedding planner for her younger sister Rebecca's wedding, and she wants it to be absolutely perfect so her mother (played by the inimitable Tyne Daly) will stop picking on her for not having her life together (even though she does, thank you very much). Unfortunately, over the course of the wedding, some unexpected secrets come out and things do not go as Jenny planned. everything turns out fine in the end, it's a comedy! There were a couple songs in the show that probably weren't all that necessary, but I enjoyed this one the most out of everything i saw; I'd give it a 4.5/5 stars! - This closes August 9th, so go see it soon if it sounds like something you'd enjoy.

Avenue Q - The adult - very adult - version of Sesame Street. I don't think you need more than that. I feel like this show was so hyped up that I was expecting way more than I got. I definitely liked the show and had a good time, but I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. I have to give it a 3/5 stars.

The Wild Party - Queenie and Burr run an underground nightclub during the Prohibition era. When Burr rapes Queenie, she stages a party to get back at him, but the arrival of a Mr. Black sends her plans down a path she never intended. This was an Encores! production, which unfortunately means it only played a limited number of performances, but I'm hoping it gets transferred somewhere, because it was pretty incredible. The music is lush with gorgeous instrumentation and harmonies, and the acting and singing was stellar all around. My only problem with this production was that the plot felt a little thin at some points. I give it a 4/5 stars.

Significant Other - Twenty-something Jordan Berman (played by my boy Gideon Glick) slowly watches his friends all find love and get married, while he can't seem to find any guy that wants to love him the way he wants them to. I'd call this a dramedy, and it's only the show on this list that isn't a musical, but it might also be my favorite one. It's funny without being insensitive, serious without hitting you over the head, and heartfelt without being soppy. And for someone in her twenties and starting that part of her life, it definitely hit kind of close to home. 5/5 stars, for sure.

That's it, folks! I hope your summers are going well and you're finding worthwhile things to do with your time. I'll be back tomorrow with a post, I think. Not sure what it's going to be yet though.

Much love,
Rachel Shoshanna
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I was going to do a fashion post today, but I've been low-key sad all day and I'd like to just do a quick little post to reflect on what has been one of the best experiences of my college career.

If you know me in real life, you know that last weekend I wrapped up being in a production of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. I played Maria, serving maid to the Lady Olivia and plotter of great schemes with Sir Toby Belch and Sir Andrew Aguecheek. She is one of my favorite Shakespearean characters - funny and smart and a quick-thinker, and just a touch evil. (Well, I'd like to think of her as more vindictive.) Having the opportunity to play her, in my first real appearance in one of Billy Shakes' plays, was incredible, but honestly? More than half of this was due to my director and fellow cast-members. 

Everyone involved with this production was so supremely talented, and kind, and wonderful to get to know. Since rehearsals started at the end of February, I've managed to make a whole host of new close friends, and I wouldn't trade the experience for anything. Most everyone involved are also underclassmen.

I knew I would like my castmates, but I never expected to find people I would get along with this well or come to love so wholeheartedly, and it's sad for me to have to leave them after only knowing them for three months. I want to do more plays with them, I want to have more parties with them, and I want to be able to have more conversations with them, get to know them even better.

Alas, the fates would not have it be so. I still have a whole Senior Week to go until graduation, and most of these friends left either yesterday or today. But as sad as I am right now, I know that this isn't the last I'll talk to them or see them. We all have phones and Facebooks, and I definitely plan on visiting sometime next year. I'm actually going to try to be good about staying in touch with people for once. We'll be fine.

To my friends, I'm sure you're all sick of me getting emotional on you, but too bad. I hope you know how grateful I am to you and how much you make me smile. For now, our play is done, but this is definitely not the end.



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About me

Rachel. Actor/singer/dancer/writer. Music, fashion, and beauty lover. Trying something new here.

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