2018 has been a crazy year. A couple of weeks ago, I was feeling really down, because I felt like I hadn’t accomplished anything this year. Then I really started thinking about how my year has been, and what I’ve done this year, and I realized that even though I didn’t book as many jobs as I would have liked, I still did A LOT, and learned so much about myself as a person and a performer.

I was able to take the stage once in a Staged Reading, where I got to play Hamlet, and that was a BLAST. That group of ladies came together so quickly to mount a performance in the real spirit of “The Show Must Go On,” and I consider myself so lucky to have been a part of it.

I took several classes, including improv, Shakespeare, commercial acting, and voiceover. (Sidebar: It’s astounding to me how people can pay for a class and then just, NOT show up for it one week. Don’t waste your money, man!) In each of these classes, I overcame some self-imposed barriers to my own performances. I learned a lot about what holds me back, and what I need to learn to let go of. I learned what makes me tick, and what types of characters I most want to play. The biggest lesson I learned? — There is no “right” way. That’s the beautiful thing about Art! Ten people can look at the exact same thing, and each get something different out of it; each of them will find a different story, and none of them are wrong! They’re simply different. And I knew that, intellectually. But understanding something in your mind, and knowing it in your gut are two very different things.

I had a successful self-tape audition, and got to work on a new web-series.

I did some extra work on a popular Showtime series, and got to see the sun rise over Manhattan.

I did preliminary work and even shot a short scene for my own project, LadyBro.

I produced two – count ’em, TWO! – audiobooks, both of which are due for release in January 2019!

I did A LOT this year. Almost none of it was directly related to my real passion – theatre, but all of it was directly related to my own growth as a person. 2018 was really tough. I lost people I love, had to rearrange certain expectations, and was left feeling really low. But I know that 2019 will be a better year for me, because 2018 forced me to take a real look at myself, what I really want, and how to go about getting it.

So…thank you, 2018, for the life lessons. 2019, let’s see what you’ve got.