Morgan Elizabeth Cox

I just wanted to post a quick update. A couple weeks ago I decided to make a dramatic change with my hair, and I got bangs! It really made a huge difference. Amazing what covering up a forehead will do. Of course, since I like the new look so much, I am pretty sure I will keep it going as long as I can, but I am certainly willing to change it for a job or agency. With that said, it was clear to me that I needed to get some quick, nice, affordable shots done with the new hair. I sent out some emails to a few names I had gotten of local photographers. I am pretty picky with the quality of the pictures, but I am also on a budget, sooo…I finally came across a wonderful professional photographer, and he agreed to shoot me for a very, very minimal price. We did the shoot last Tuesday, in his amazing studio loft space, and I should be seeing the proofs this coming week. Keep checking back for pictures of the new Morgan!

As I mentioned in a previous entry, I was asked to have my picture taken for the BendFilm ad campaign. I think I mentioned this earlier, they are doing sillhouettes, with a bold color background. We shot with this wonderful photographer, Steve Tague, and they had the final proposal ready a few days later…and I was told that my shot will be the cover of the guide! Even though it is just my outline, I still think it’s pretty awesome. Can’t wait to post the pics when I get the copies.

The BendFilm commercial shoot is apparently happening this Friday morning. Keep you posted on that one, too. It has been kind of all over the place, as far as scheduling the shoot, but I am looking forward to it.

Speaking of on camera work…I finally got a rough cut of a mockumentary I worked on with my MFA classmate, Corey Sorenson (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2123271/), and it is fantastic! So funny. I was extremely anxious to see how it would look, since it was basically a no budget situation, but everyone was so on board that it ended up working out! We have submitted it to The BendFilm Festival and we’ll see if it makes the cut, but regardless, it is a great piece of work. Those of you who know me, know that I have a comedian side to me that I love to showcase, and this is going to be a wonderful bit of work for my reel. Speaking of the reel, I also got a copy of a movie I shot with a Temple Film School student, before I left Philly. It is a dramatic piece, and I am the lead, and above anything else, I am really excited about how my performance turned out. This was another awesome surprise. The combination of work I have to put my reel together is exactly what I want right now. It shows me in all sorts of different looks, styles of performance, and doesn’t everyone want a variety of skills shown? That’s what I got! My next step is finding a good film buff to help me put together the reel, again, for free or minimal pay. Not too worried, I actually have met quite a few filmies with this internship and hopefully that will provide some good contacts.

This past Monday I was in Ashland, Oregon, auditioning for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, which I have been looking forward to. Ran into a few familiar faces in the waiting room, and had a great audition. They can always be better, but as far as choosing the right pieces, I think I did. More importantly, I really enjoy my pieces. The two directors in the room were very responsive, chatted with me a bit after I finished, asked me some questions regarding my Equity status…and I got a “Nicely done, Morgan. Very nicely done.” I’ll take that. Judging from the appointment list, they had quite a few people to see. All I can do is be happy with the work I did and the response I got, and wait and see.

BendFilm (where I am currently interning) is shooting a new ad campaign to promote the Festival, which happens in mid October, and I was lucky enough to be one of the models for the poster! They are doing outlines, so you will not be able to tell it is me, specifically, unless you know me, but they are going to look quite cool and I can’t wait to post a picture of the final product. The commercial shoot was postponed and is currently tba. Check back in a week or so for details on that one.

Last, but most certainly not least, mailings. I am now ready to start organizing my materials and getting these mailings sent out to LA. Lots of people don’t invest in the mailings, but for me, I have had some good results…ie; actual agency interviews/interest. Let’s hope a few agencies like the pics and give me a call. Hey, gotta put time into this stuff, right? Right.

I wanted to let everyone know that I am on my way to a full recovery from the whole appendix debacle, and other than being very frustrated with the fact that I am unable to run. At all. For at least two more weeks, I am feeling pretty good! It is quite an adjustment going from six miles a day, six to seven days a week, to…nothing. Okay, enough about that. On to the stuff that actually belongs on my professional Web site: Auditions! Okay, I got a phone call this afternoon for a commercial audition, in Portland, on Monday. It worked out quite nicely, because I am in Portland through Monday for BendFilm’s (www.bendfilm.org) screening of “The Breast Cancer Diaries,” (www.thebreastcancerdiaries.com). It is a casting for one non-speaking role, and one speaking. You know, classic middle/upper class woman. I just took a look at the sides and they are short and sweet. Pretty fun, actually! It’s for a show of homes called “Street of Dreams,” which is something they do each year, in the Portland area. Looking forward to it. Here’s to booking it! And I really have to get cracking on a Shakespeare monologue for OSF…

Well, it is my birthday today and I am in the hospital. Yes. The hospital. Yesterday morning my appendix ruptured and they had to perform surgery, and as a result of the rupture, there was an infection, so now I am stuck in the hospital, eating chicken broth(which I actually like, but by now I want a big plate of cheesy pasta). I am glad it’s all getting taken care of, but this did conflict with my scheduled shoot with RAGE Productions, for the BendFilm commercial. There will be more opportunities. Apparently they are rescheduling most of the shoot for Tuesday, but I don’t think I will be able to do the whole harness in front of the green screen thing. Oregon Shakespeare Festival is still on! August 11th, here we come:) Oh yes, and good thoughts for being up and about to audition for Salem Rep. on August 3rd!

Okay, so there was a web host problem yesterday, and I apologize to those of you who tried to check out the site. The problem is fixed (obviously, if you are reading this).

On to business. I received an email from Oregon Shakespeare Festival (http://www.osfashland.org/index.aspx) a few days ago, inviting me to attend their 2009 season auditions. OSF is a place that holds quite a few memories for me. In high school, I would take a spring break trip to Ashland, and check out two or three shows, over a long weekend. This is where I saw my first dramatic production, “Death of a Salesman.” It was amazing. I was in awe of these people on stage, in front of me, who were able to capture true emotion, and convey it with such sincerity. It was the first time I cried during a live performance and I will never forget it. Needless to say, I am looking forward to doing some monologues for the casting directors, and possibly getting called back for a specific show. The audition is not until August 11th. I’ve got to work on some of my Shakespeare!

On the other side of this whole acting thing, the film/television side, there are some fun things going on. I went to a casting call at RAGE Productions this afternoon and had a great time! RAGE is a Bend based, full service production house and they have been around since 1994. Here is the website, if you want to check them out (definitely worth taking a look): http://www.rageproductions.com/rageproductions/ . The casting call was for a local commercial spot, as well as booking for a BendFilm Festival commercial (BendFilm is where I am currently working). The casting director asked me how I would feel about being in the BendFilm commercial, and of course, I am all for it! They are going to take some shots in front of a green screen, and I will be in a harness, pulled upward…cool, huh?! They will insert the shots into some scenes outside in the park and downtown. I will be doing this on Friday(uh hem, also my birthday). Should be an experience. I’ll wait and see if I booked the other commercial shoot. Let’s hope so! Now they know who I am, and I will be on file for future projects and it seems like they always have something going on. More updates to come…!

This evening I got a phone call from Salem Repertory Theatre (http://www.salemrep.org/), in Salem, Oregon. They attended the PATA auditions two weeks ago, and are currently casting a February production of “Rabbit Hole,” and they called me in to read for the role of Izzy. I am very, very excited! “Rabbit Hole,” written by David Lindsay-Abaire, has gotten so much attention, especially since it was on Broadway, with Cynthia Nixon, who got rave reviews for her performance as Becca. My callback is August 3rd. We’ll be reading sides…and I am really looking forward to it. Of course, I wish I were a bit older, so I could be considered for Becca, but then again, the day I am actually old enough to play Becca, I will be wishing I could read for Izzy. Ha. The way it goes. The outcome of this audition won’t be for a while, but here’s hoping for more callbacks! Those PATA auditions were the best thing I could have done right now. More specifically, being focused and prepared for them was the best thing I could have done right now. Gotta always remember to exercise those skills.

Well, I am pleased to say that I received a letter in the mail today, calling me back for “The Hobbit” at Northwest Children’s Theatre (http://nwcts.org/html/home.php). Now, this is a theatre that does shows which are “family friendly,” they have a very good reputation and have been around a long time. For those of you who are familiar with Pennsylvania theatre, NWCT is similar to People’s Light and Theatre Company.  I am excited! The show is not until May, and it runs for the entire month, pretty much. The callbacks are TBA. I’m looking forward to it. Hey, sparking interest is almost as good as getting the part, but of course getting the part is really what it’s all about. We’ll see…

Well, this weekend was successful and exhausting, but I am certainly not complaining. I had my comedy audition, with Curious Productions on Saturday, from 1-3pm and it was a blast! There were about twenty of us called in, pretty good balance between men and women. Always nice to see an even split for comedy auditions. Everyone was funny. Literally. The audition was held in a brand new, beautiful space they have in Northeast Portland. They gave us a brief description of what the plans were for the space, and it just sounded awesome. Add to the fact that these people were very positive and filled with supportive energy, which put everyone in a good mood. Very important for improv and ensemble work, in general. Later Saturday evening, they gave me a call and asked me to come in for a callback on Sunday, from 3-4:30pm. Very good news. The callback was fantastic. Saw some familiar faces from the day before, and some new ones. We did some improvised scenes, musical improv, as well as cold readings of various Second City scenes. Way too much fun. As I was leaving, they called me aside and asked me what my availability was for the week…which I took as a positive sign.

My Profile Theatre callback was a good time. I got there a little early, and was able to read a bit before my scheduled time, which is always nice. I was hoping I would get to read with the guy at my initial audition, because he was fantastic, but they had a few different people called in for this round. My scene partner was pretty good, and the scene is just great, in general. We read through the scene and were given a bit of specific direction, and got to go through it again. That is actually my favorite part; taking the direction. Hard to not have a good time with this scene. If nothing else, I am sure I made a positive impression and hopefully I will get called in for other shows. A very busy, but productive and exciting weekend.

Good news! So, my auditions this weekend were a success. The PATA audition was on Saturday. On Sunday I got an email from a Portland director who saw my audition and had some wonderful things to say, as well as offered me two complimentary tickets to see the theater company’s August show. I am definitely looking forward to that. And this morning I got an invite for a production company general audition this weekend. They call themselves Curious Productions(http://www.curiouscomedy.org/about). Very excited about possibly doing some improv, meeting funny people and seeing what happens. Feedback on an audition is not something you get very often, so I was pleasantly surprised to have made such a positive impression.

My Profile Theatre (http://www.profiletheatre.org/) audition was so much fun. No monologue, just sides for “Rowena,” in “Biloxi Blues.” The guy I read with was great, very reminiscent of Matthew Broderick in the role. I left the audition feeling good about what I was able to do, and apparently they agreed! I received a call last night from the theater, calling me back next Monday, for the same role. Regardless of the outcome, what a fantastic way to introduce myself to the Portland theater community. Success! Updates to follow…

Well, I am looking forward to the two auditions I have this weekend. The first is for Portland Theatre Alliance, and it is a general audition for all theaters in Portland, Oregon. I applied for a slot a while ago, and got one. I thought since I have been an East Coaster for the past five years, it might be a great way to introduce myself to the community. In combination with the mailing I did two months ago, it certainly can’t hurt. Sunday I have an audition for The Profile Theatre, in Portland (a result of my mailing, thankyouverymuch). I am called in for the role of Rowena in “Biloxi Blues.” Very excited to prepare and read some sides. It has been a while. Visit me next week for an update on how these went. Love to all.