out of this world

Sometimes I wonder how I ended up doing what I'm doing. The choice to be an actress, an artist, a writer, a wanderer - to lead a generally un-practical and uncertain life can often feel entirely arbitrary. I frequently find myself wondering - why couldn't I have become a veterinarian or something? I was good at science. I like animals. Is it too late? Should I change my mind about this whole thing? I'm not griping about the difficulties of an artist's life - all paths have their bumps in the road. I'm simply musing on why it is that I am where I am. I am not a person who believes in "destiny" or what is "meant to be." I was a good student - there were a lot of things I could have done if I'd wanted to. But I didn't. I decided to come to Hollywood where every other pretty girl is trying to get her face "in pictures." And beyond that - I don't really know why I love to act. It is a superficial business in many ways and I occasionally become concerned that I am in it for all the wrong reasons - ego, validation, because I think it will make people like me (which we know, of course, isn't really the case)...

But despite all of this, I do what feels right. I keep working. And sometimes, the validation comes not in the form of "You were so great!" but in the form of "Yes, I am supposed to be doing this. This is good for me." And when it feels right - I don't care why I'm doing it because it makes me feel like I can do anything. And that's the best feeling in the world.

I recently wrapped on my first feature film, Off World, and that is just the way this production made me feel. Playing the track-star, serious student, generally badass Shelly who confronts all kinds of mysterious dangers when her spaceship crash lands on an unknown planet was just right for me. I never thought of sci-fi/horror as a genre I'm particularly suited to. I never thought I'd find myself running through the woods from a monster at 1 in the morning wearing motorcycle pants (and five layers underneath them to fight the unbearable cold...in vain). Much less did I think I'd enjoy it. Yet, I did.
And it is just those kind of surprises that makes this journey a satisfying one.

The director, Emmett Callinan, hopes to have the film completed by the summer. I'll post updates as they come. Here are a couple photos in the meantime:

new year, new project, new adventures

Well. Somehow another year has passed. It always seems to come as a shock.

2009 included some very exciting theater projects for me (The Echo One Acts, Doomsday Kiss!, 1001 Arabian Nights of the Living Dead, and NIBBLER) as well as the formation of my relationship with Origin Talent. I also shot two spec commercials, a webisode, an independent pilot, and some other little fun tidbits along the way. I've encountered aliens, been an 8 year old boy, kissed some very handsome men, and traveled to the future. Acting is awesome.

One of my major goals and hopes for 2010 is to progress my on-camera acting career and I'm starting off with a bang! Starting tomorrow (!!) I am embarking on a two week adventure filming the independent sci-fi/horror feature Off World. I play Shelly - a tough, independent, all around badass lady who knows how to handle herself in some tricky situations. Off World follows 6 college-aged kids in the future when their spring break plans don't go exactly as hoped... (won't give away more than that...). I am so excited (and a bit nervous!) to be working in a medium that is still relatively new to me and in a genre that is not the most familiar territory. I'll let you know how it goes...

Cheers to an intense 2010!

oh. and.

check this out: http://www.theatreofnote.com/Nibbler.htm

actorly friends! sign up for the Nibbler fundraiser at NOTE on September 30th: a candid conversation about casting with April Webster, Scott David, Erica Silverman and Kirsten Vangsness. Info is on the page above.

we start rehearsals next Monday and I can't wait to get to the nibbling.
that sounded dirty. which isn't altogether inappropriate for my role...

it's coming...

it breathes in the dark...just waiting for the right moment to attack...no one knows quite what it looks like...but everyone knows... that it nibbles...

dun dun dun!

NIBBLER
by Ken Urban
directed by Mark Seldis

coming to Theatre of NOTE on November 6th!

I am overjoyed to announce that I have been cast as Hayley in this delightful, strange, and very funny coming of age tale at one of my favorite theaters in Los Angeles (and one of my artistic homes).

Stay tuned for details...

EVERYTHING WILL BE DIFFERENT

oh man oh man what a dunce I am for making this such a last minute announcement.

TONIGHT, July 27th, I am in a public reading of EVERYTHING WILL BE DIFFERENT a brief history of Helen of Troy by Mark Schultz with the Echo Theater Company

7:30pm at the Electric Lodge in Venice (1416 Electric Ave 90291)

with:
Hugo Armstrong
Josh Brener
Alana Dietze
David Giuntoli
Liza Lapira
Ethan Phillips

directed by John Lawler

I cannot begin to say how much I love this play. I play Charlotte, a 15 year old girl who has lost her mother and is doing a very bad job of filling that empty space. Schultz's writing is astonishingly smart and easy to play in. This play breaks my heart, cracks me up, and makes me very, very uncomfortable. Dark and dirty and provocative. Gotta love that.

please come out if you can!

1001 Arabian Nights of the Living Dead

I am returning to the critically acclaimed Occidental Children's Theater troupe for my second season after a one year hiatus!

"Occidental Childrens Theater's rambunctious charm hasn't faded a whit. Now in its 12th summer, the company is still one of L.A.'s little gems, an acrobatic outdoor theater romp presented with imagination and whiz-bang physicality" said Lynne Heffley of the Los Angeles Times in reference to my first season's show - The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Rogers.

This year is sure to be another rollicking good time with "Anansi and the Hungry Turtle" (West Africa), "Daughter and Stepdaughter" (Russia), "The Terrible Leak" (Japan) and of course our title story, 1001 Arabian Nights of the Living Dead from Eagle Rock, CA.

This six-person ensemble uses an improv-based process to bring these stories to life (and we get in great shape tumbling and leaping and carrying each other around while we're at it). This year I play a bunny, the daughter in "Daughter and Stepdaughter," a thief, and a genie.

Performances are Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 10 AM
now through August 22nd
in the Hillside Amphitheater at Occidental College
1600 Campus Rd.
Los Angeles, CA 90041

Tickets are $10 adults
$7 children 2-12
call (323) 259-2922 for more information or to reserve tickets.
or visit: http://departments.oxy.edu/theater/Oxy_childrens_theater.html

hope to see you there!

Doomsday Kiss!

I recently appeared in Doomsday Kiss! - a co-production with REPO Division and the Bootleg Theater. I played two roles in the evening of four pieces: Juliet in Eva Anderson's Fun Days at Sea and Tommy in Wesley Walker's The Classroom. Here is some of what the critics had to say:

"Adrian A. Cruz directs solid performers Alana Dietze, Ben Messmer..."

“Wesley Walker’s hysterically devastating The Classroom (is) all some of us might need to die happy....Jacqueline Wright... Lily Holleman...and Dietze keep rock steady as they hurl surprise after surprise at us – which is, we now realize, just what we’ve been waiting for”
--Jennie Webb, Backstage West

“Anderson has developed wonderful characters for her short play, especially her female leads. Dietze has the most sympathetic character in the piece, and she handles the job effortlessly” – Mike Buzzelli, EyeSpyLA

“Doomsday Kiss is…always impeccably performed” – Frederik Sisa, The Front Page Online