Craig

Who I've been ... Who I am ... Who I may become ... I may not have been born in a trunk at the Princess Theater in Pocatello, Idaho. (Although I did have a relative on my father's side who, I'm told, toured as a singer with a big band in the forties.) However, it seemed that from the start that I was meant to be an actor. It all started about a week after Valentine's Day 1965. (I have no choice but to admit to my age on MySpace!) My parents had yet to settle on a name for me, and as I was supposed to be a Valentine's baby, I was already late. (This should come as no surprise to those who know me.) My mother had wanted to name me "Christian," but my Dad wasn't to keen on it. Already overdue, and I had no name! Well, my mother was watching a movie when I made it know that I was ready for my close up, thank you very much Mr. DeMille. Somehow, amidst the pain of contractions, my mother had the thought that the name of one of the actors in the movie would be a good name for me. So, I ended up being named after the late actor Craig Stevens.Now, my mother likes to tell the story that she knew I was going to be an actor when I was little because I used to give recitals and "one man shows" in our garage. I would never call my mother a liar, but I have absolutely no recollection of doing this. Besides, our garage collapsed under the weight of a snow storm when I was four or five. I think she has me confused with a character from A Chorus Line. But I can't complain if my mother has an inaccurate memory or two about me, for she introduced me to one of the most important things in my life: music. I don't think I was more than three years old when she bought me my first portable phonograph. (yes, a phonograph--vinyl records!!) I took to it right away and proceeded to wear out record after record. I went through two or three copies of The Wizard of Oz (BIG surprise there!); I knew the score to Fiddler on the Roof probably before I knew my ABC's; and I have a distinct memory of listening to "Pink Elephants on Parade" from Dumbo with all the lights turned off, save for the funky, psychedelic lights that came from that record player. To this day, I almost always have music playing.Music turned out to be a saving grace in my life as not only did I grow up in a typical dysfunctional middle-class American family, but I grew up the only kid in my neighborhood. I ended up going to preschool not because both my parents worked or because it was thought that it would put me on the fast track to Harvard or Yale. I was enrolled in preschool so I that could interact with other kids. Well, since I wasn't used to people my own age, I didn't know how to "play well with others," and I came to prefer just listening to my records. And as I listened, I started making up stories about the songs, or stories that the songs could fit into. I may have been socially inept, but I was developing one hell of an imagination, which would come into good use.Music also pointed me toward acting. When I was very little, I wanted to be an astronaut. I wanted to walk on the moon and travel through the stars. That idea went out the window when I started school and found out how good at science you had to be. I went to a grade school, though, that put on a musical every spring. Not little kids shows, mind you, but Broadway musicals like My Fair Lady, Camelot and Oklahoma! The Catholic parochial school I went to (yes, I grew up Catholic, but that's another story ...) taught grades one through eight, and late every winter, we would all gather in the school gym/auditorium to see the film version of the show that would go up that spring. When I was in first grade, the movie they showed was The King and I, and I loved the music so much that I had to be in the show. I auditioned, and was cast as one of the king's numerous children. (Of course, I now suspect that anyone who tried out was cast!) Every year after, I would be in the chorus of whatever show they were doing, and I learned that when you were on stage, even in rehearsal, you were able to pretend to be someone else, which was a pretty good deal when your own life wasn't particularly interesting or happy."The chorus boy hasn't learned the lines you'd like to hear...." But after seven years, the spear-carrying thing started to get tired. The last show we did before I went on to high school was Fiddler on the Roof. Everyone assumed that this popular kid was going to get the lead, but I wanted it so badly. After all, I had been able to sing the whole score since I was three! So, imagine everyone's surprise (mine included) when it was announced that I would play Tevye the dairyman. I know that it sounds kind of lame: "He's going on about getting the lead in his junior high show! What a loser!" But if you ask any actor, most will tell you that it was when they got their first leading role as a kid that they were sure that acting was what they wanted to do. It was that way for me. I knew the moment the curtain came down on that first performance that this "theatre thing" was what I was going to do for the rest of my life.In high school, I was actively involved in the drama club--yes, I was a theatre fag--doing all the spring musicals, playing supporting roles, and again playing Tevye in the senior class production of Fiddler. Then I went to college, where I learned that Shakespeare was actually cool. But the money ran out after two years, and a bad relationship and other personal crap that I won't bore you with made me lose my enthusiasm, so I quit. I got a job in the "real world," made some decent money, travelled to some wonderful places (what's new, Buenos Aires?) and didn't give another thought to theatre or singing. For a little while, anyway....Then I saw an announcement for auditions for the musical Evita. I had fallen in love with this show when I was in high school, and had promised myself that if I ever had the opportunity to be in it, I would audition, beg, plead ... whatever it took. Now, a promise is a promise, even if it's to one's self, so I knew I had to audition. I also knew that there was no way, considering how long it had been since I had performed, that I would be cast. But I was cast, and it remains one of my favorite theatrical experiences, doing that amazing show and meeting many wonderful people who are still in my life today.After Evita, I threw myself back into things and auditioned for any and everything. I was a chorus boy, a supporting player, and occasionally a leading actor in shows throughout the greater Boston area for several years. (One of my all-time favorite roles was "The Cowardly Lion" in The Wizard of Oz -- one of the most fun shows I've ever done.)I have also went back to my first love, music. I started seriously training my voice, and for two and a half years, Michael Joseph, co-artistic director of The Company Theatre helped me rebuild my voice, which had gone to pot because of neglect and a nasty nicotine habit. When Michael's duties at the theatre forced him to stop teaching privately, I was extremely lucky to find Dr. Leslie Goldberg. It took me over a year, but it was worth the wait. Having worked with her for nearly four years, I got my voice into the best shape it had ever been. I even started singing in "concert" (well, sort of), for local groups and the occasional religious service (eh, they were gigs). I even developed my own program, singing the songs that I loved, even if they were songs I "shouldn't" be singing. What made this project more exciting for me was that I arranged several of the pieces, performed a new song written by my friend, Kurt Gombar (AKA Kurt St. D ), and even wrote one of the songs myself.That's something else I've loved doing since I was fourteen or so - writing, especially musicals. The song of mine I sang in recital (or concert, or whatever it was) is from a musical I've been working on since 1994. I'm still working on it (as well as other ideas), but I'm also still excited about it. It's a show that focuses on the lives and loves of a group of gay men, and I think it's funny and touching and, if I do say so myself (and I do), very melodic.Seven years ago, I finally decided to take the plunge, take a risk and move to New York City. And while I'm not starring on Broadway (or playing supporting roles off-Broadway, or carrying spears off-off-Broadway) and while I'm not singing in cabaret clubs or seeing any of my writings performed -- YET! -- I don't regret coming here. Besides all the wonderful people I've met (including some very dear friends), and the fantastic theatre and music I've experienced, and even the tragedy I've witnessed, NYC has made me the man I am today. "I know I am better and braver and surer, too." I believe in myself; I'm more confident in myself (especially when it comes to men) and I truly like myself. It was a long and sometimes treacherous road, but here I am.And who will I become? God only knows, but if He's taking suggestions, I'll be a working actor/singer/composer/playwright. I will be someone's devoted lover, possibly (hopefully) someone's loving and supportive father, and better son, brother, and friend. I will still be hopeful. And I will always be that little boy enchanted by the music pouring out of the phonograph. Which Queer as Folk character are you?
You are Brian Kinney. "The stud of Liberty Avenue," you do what you want, when you want. Your motto is "no apologies, no regrets" and you live life to the fullest, even if it means stepping on the feelings of others to get your way. Despite this however, you do love those who deserve it, although you have strange ways of showing it. You can't do anything halfway, and believe people should get what they deserve, no more, no less.
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Quizilla | Join| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab CodeI swear this is how the quiz came out!! I thought I'd be Emmett or Ted!!, Oh, well ... maybe I'll get laid more! Which Will and Grace Character Are You?
You're Karen Walker! You married for money, and you enjoy every extravagant moment of it. You love liquor and prescription pills, and make hilarious judgmental comments about your best friends. Keep it up!
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Quizilla | Join| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code^^This should surprise no one!^^ Which Patti LuPone character are you?
You are Eva Peron from "Evita." You'd prostitute yourself if it would help you.
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Quizilla | Join| Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code^^Nor should this.^^