2011 Year in Review

Another year has gone! I'm going to break this one into two parts, career and personal.

CAREER
The beginning of 2011 was "The Persian Quarter". This one ended up being quite the journey for me. It was one of my favorite theatrical experiences and it will be hard to top the place this one has in my heart. It began with a staged reading the year before, to the world premiere at Salt Lake Acting Company to being asked if I'd be interested in auditioning for the next production at Merrimack Rep. I found myself in New York at the callback this summer, and while that would be the end of my journey, I loved, appreciated and learned from every moment of all of it.


I was in a national magazine, and got to see it on opening day of "The Persian Quarter". How cool was that timing?


I modeled for Black Chandelier quite a bit this year, including a photo shoot for the website, a shoot to promote a runway show that took place in the summer, walking in the runway show in body paint and little else, and then a rooftop photo shoot with mannequins, boys, swords and daggers. It doesn't get cooler than that, people!


I modeled for OpieFoto (boudior) for the second time, this time it included a promo video that turned out beautifully.
http://opiefoto.com/boudoir/video

I walked in the SLC Fashion Stroll for designers Jordan Halversen and Danny Nappi and Misc Boutique.

I modeled for the cover of City Weekly for the first time.


I did my second SLAM with Plan-B theatre company and this one I especially enjoyed because I had such a hilarious piece written by Matthew Ivan Bennett.
It was so much fun that I wished there had been another opportunity to perform it. Or perhaps put this one on film in the future.


Had some great gigs through my agency, TMG.

Workshopped a couple projects with Plan - B.

Recorded a couple radio sketches with Matt Bennett and Jay Perry.

Did the Plan-B reading of "A Doll House"


Modeled Krista Nielson swimsuits in Fashion Night Out, runway at the Gallivan Center.




Modeled with my baby dog, Noodles for the upcoming Pinups for Pups calendar!

"A Man Enters". The world premiere of this play at SLAC went so well we even extended a week! I loved my cast and performing this piece, playing Dana who I liked to think of as a glamourous hippie.


I modeled for the cover of The Mix of the Salt Lake Tribune in beautiful dresses from Whimsy Boutique.






PERSONAL
The ten year anniversary of September 11th came this year, and I dealt with some feelings I'd been ignoring for quite some time. I also got to talk to one of my dearest friends who I rarely see anymore, but was with that night. I blogged it all.
http://beanerlarue.blogspot.com/2011/09/my-new-york-diaries-part-18-september.html

I saw old friends who I don't see much of now because we no longer live close by or life just gets in the way of getting together. I made new friends who became surprisingly close. I also grew closer with existing friends who I found have the ability to make my very soul happy. These are the people to keep connected to.

I had one of my favorite Halloweens ever. And by Halloween you know I don't just mean the day itself, but a total of three huge celebrations. 'Tis the season!


This also happened to be my year that I began down a new path of spirituality. Synchronicity led me to discovering Shirley MacLaine, reading "I'm Over All That", "The Camino", "The Pilgrimage", "Sage-ing while Age-ing", and "Many Lives, Many Masters". My life has significantly changed and is continuing to. For the first time in my whole life I have a spiritual path with a name (I never thought I'd want that). I've never felt more comfort or wanted to learn more about what I've only just begun to discover.

I have my first item for my bucket list. To walk The Camino. While I didn't get to this year, I am not concerned. I now know that "it is a privilege to be called to The Camino" and I am certain I'll find myself on it exactly when I'm supposed to be.

I branched out physically. Instead of just zumba I incorporated the gym itself. I never knew how much I'd love weights and machines and how much I need working out, for every aspect. Mental, emotional, physical, etc. It's all tied together and if I miss a couple of days the difference is huge.

We all know I have had my hair every color and every length over the last, well, nearly 15 years. But this year I found my favorite shade of red to date and have felt most like myself. Thank you, Steven Robertson!


I went shampoo free and decided to wash my hair significantly less. It simply doesn't need it. It's been nearly a month and so far, so good!
http://simplemom.net/how-to-clean-your-hair-without-shampoo/

I changed my skincare routine the end of the year. Thanks to Amanda Mahoney for letting me borrow "The Skin Type Solution" by Leslie Baumann, MD I learned I was still doing things wrong for my particular skin. I have struggled for years. Two rounds of accutane were expensive and hard on me. I try very hard with my sensitive skin to make it look as good as possible. But you can imagine my surprise after taking this test to learn that the current over the counter products I was using were exactly the opposite of what I should be using? I learned about new products I didn't even know existed, ordered them, and guess what? So far, so good. My dry skin has never looked better! I strongly recommend giving this book a try.

I went to NYC twice this year! I saw "Spider-Man" twice, "War Horse", "Godspell", and "Venus in Fur". How one person could see such incredible theatre all in the same year is beyond me. I feel so lucky to have seen each one of these. Each one was absolutely stunning and fantastic for many different reasons and I leave so inspired I could burst. "Venus in Fur" is my dream role. I need to play Vanda. Not just want, it's a need.

I also got to meet Reeve Carney, my biggest celebrity crush. A boy in band, a rockstar, cast as Peter Parker in a "Spider-Man" musical on Broadway? And he looks like that? If I made up what my ideal celeb crush would be and described his appearance, you'd have Reeve. And guess what? He's super freaking nice.


There were also a few scary family moments this year. With my uncle and my grandma, both on my moms side. It was an eye opener and a reminder for how much family matters.


The biggest lessons I have earned this year:
1.) Things will happen and you will feel nothing like you expected. It will be completely different from what you've imagined it to be like in your head.
2.) That timing can be ironic and you'll feel it's completely unfair and impossible but that everything is unfolding exactly as it should.
3.) No matter how old you are you still need your momma and your daddy.
4.) It's about what you do have, not what you don't have.
5.) If not now, when? You are never ready for profound life changes. But you don't always get to decide when things are going to happen.
6.) I heard the words accept and allow for the first time. Really heard them. It's life changing. I don't always remember this, but I'm learning and applying.
7.) It's okay to feel exactly how you feel about something, anything.
8.) We really are all one.
9.) We decide how time passes. Allocate your time. Use it wisely. Be in charge of your time, don't let time control you.
10.) Don't be in a hurry. Throw out the checklist. Life is long. There is so much more to go.
11.) We create our own reality.

Here's to a new year, the unknown adventures and learning that await us all!

Tweet me @DeenaMarie