The video about your stroke was one month ago?? And now you’re doing community theater for the first time??? Austin, you’re such an inspiration and I’m so glad your recovery is going as well as it is. Break a leg!
It's kind of fitting that you wanted to try for Wizard of Oz, but first needed a "new" heart. I have been doing community theater in the Boston area for 26 years, and it honestly has saved my life on numerous occasions.
"I had open heart surgery and then a stroke - I'm getting over it, no worries." - Some Monty Python energy with that one. Seriously though, as you point out, you are choosing what parts of your recovery we get to see but still, you seem to be doing a lot better. It's so great to see!
Man, even knowing that you had that stroke, I see absolutely no sign of it in you anymore. Amazing recovery, and thanks to a lot of hard work on your part, I'm sure!
As the director of the community theatre I regularly work with always says "his job is to make you look good, and your job is to make each other look good" It's a team effort! If you make a mistake, the others help to cover it up. Also, even though you've gone through the scenes a million times and know exactly how it's supposed to be, the audience does not. I've got loads of stories about things that have gone wrong on stage, mostly noticed mainly by the actors, and even if the audience does notice, it's part of the charm of live theatre
Hey Austin, just want to say that in my adult life you really have become one of my biggest inspirations to always want to challenge myself, always relishing in the trying regardless of the outcome. Break a leg, I know you’ll kill it.
I grew up acting in a lot of Shakespeare plays in a middle school/high school theater group, and one year I had the part of the page from the opening of "Taming of the Shrew". The play is kind of meta in that this particular role meant I got to sit in the audience the whole time and watch the play with everyone else. So I got a great view of when Petruchio threw himself on a bench and the bench broke. It remains one of my favorite memories because my fellow actors rocked the unexpected situation -- leaning into it as if it had been planned. I always admire when actors mess up or face unexpected challenges and recover in spite of it.
The first show is always the hardest and most nerve-wracking. But I found that once you are in costume it's easy to stay in character; once you hear your cue lines you can spout your own dialogue easily; once you are in amongst the other actors on stage blocking comes naturally; and the lights will mean you cannot see your audience beyond the first couple of row, so they will not distract you. The absolute best part is when you do a comedy and you can really manipulate a joke with adjusting comic timing throughout the run. You will love this, trust me. It's a thrill like no other.
Good for you! I so admire this. Took some drama classes, myself, but turns out I can't memorize pages of lines (high functioning Autistic, my mind works great, but in "another way."). My teacher loved my work in class, but she was cutting us a lot of slack on the memorization. I might have been able to do film, with cuts and retakes, but I prefer being behind the camera (was a photo journalist in state and county newspapers - even won a few awards). Turns out I'm also good at interviewing and writing (have a wall full of awards for that). And, further unnecessary storytelling here: my son took two classes of improv (and was amazing) and then went out and got A PAYING GIG in a show on a riverboat. His first acting job. Paying. I'm his parent, I know, but I think that's objectively impressive. So I am also impressed with your adventure.
Your son's story reminds me a little bit of a RUclipsr named Let Me Explain Studios and how she was a theater kid as well. Except, similar to with Austin, her drama teacher mostly hated her. And when she lost out on a role that she felt she'd not only acted the best out of her class but actually also looked the part (the teacher claimed she was too tall or something), she said screw it to acting for her school and instead got roles in her community theater while still in high school. Nothing more amazing than when a songbird is able to break out of the cage and fly.
My man, whatever else anyone says about your stage performance (break a leg), this one video is stupidly inspirational, and I thank you for that. Been watching you since you had subs in the 4 digit range, great to see you back at it!
I do community theatre in my area, it's a ton of fun. And bizarrely helpful with stroke recovery for some reason. I'm sure there's some study somewhere, but something about it helps people regain language and mental clarity. My local community theatre has two members who have suffered strokes and something about learning lines and blocking was really helpful.
Welcome to the Theatre World my good man. I am a carpenter in the field and yeah, it gets stressful real quick. Glad you chose to give it a shot. I hope you continue after this venture.
Community theatre is fun. Granted, I've only done it once, and the local community theatre I acted at (which sadly closed during covid and never reopened) was basically run entirely by an old lady and her two sisters (lovely old lady, mind you. Very good at getting the best performances from her cast). There were no workshops or call-backs, just one audition where you read lines to the director and she gives you some advice and you read some more lines and she calls you a week later to tell you what (if any) part you got. In my opinion, the funnest parts of theatre is when stuff goes wrong and you're forced to figure out how to shoehorn the important cues and dialogue into there somehow.
I just went to your show tonight (10/19/2024) and you were amazing! I came with my sister and you were absolutely fantastic! We were laughing the whole way through and it was a great experience. All the cast were great and you looked out the window and said "nothing" I thought I heard your voice peaking through 😅. I really appreciate getting to have seen you I have been a fan for years and actually was in your talking with strangers video. Anyways, thank you for a fabulous performance and I'm so glad you're feeling better❤
In 9th grade I played the same role in "Guys and Dolls." 🤓 Good on ya for grabbing your surgery/stroke recovery by the horns, and for further challenging yourself with this new endeavor. Break a (figurative) leg!
You're looking better with each video you shoot. I'm sure there's still some challenges we don't get to see on camera, but if I wasn't a follower who's seen that whole ordeal you been through, I'd have never guessed. At least on screen, you're back to your old self. Glad it's going well. :)
Austin, you're a huge inspiration. Let me say that the trick to acting is to remember what it's like to watch a play. I catch myself rooting for the actors and even when I notice mistakes I want them to succeed and I find it endearing. If you remember that, it's less scary to get up on the stage yourself.
Break a leg, Austin!! I did community theater throughout middle and high school and it was such a fun and rewarding experience. It's great to see you facing your fears and trying something new. I'm sure you'll do great!
I've done several shows for Community Theater. It can be pretty fun, though the time you have to put into it is alot. I never had stage fright (for some reason) and it didn't take me a long time to get into character, but I know some people deal with those issues. Me personally I could separate myself and the character so it wasn't a big deal of diving into another persona. On stage, the lighting is such you barely can see the audience and you've gone over your lines so much at that point that it's not too bad. Plus you know the story backwards and forward at that point so if you do mess up, either you or your cast can easily recover. People going to Community Theater aren't expecting you to be the greatest in the world, so they also are pretty forgiving. Unless the whole production is crap, I think you'll be okay.
Hey Austin, just wanna say that the work you've put into your recovery is amazing. You've put so much work in and it shows. I would have never suspected you had a stroke if I I hadn't known already. Thank you for working as had as you do, and thank you wven more for continuing to make videos. Good luck on the up comming plays and what ever you are working on next/currently. 🤗
It's awesome to see you getting back into, well, living life! Community theater is fantastic and you're exactly the kind of personality that people like to work with in it. Know that no matter how unprepared you feel leading up to it, you'll feel ready after tech week. Just don't push yourself too hard and save some energy for the performance!
Been a while since I heard "Dooblydoo" in the wild! DFTBA! Congrats on the show! Maybe don't break a leg, tho... you've already had a turbulent year...
The question the whole world is wondering about Austin: WHAT WILL HE DO NEXT!!! 👀 But seriously, man, it’s great that you’re finding hobbies outside of RUclips and I wish you all the best in your new endeavors 😊
I love theatre and have been doing it for as long as ive been able to talk. Hearing people's story and first impressions to theatre always brings an ear to ear grin to my face, there's something so magically perfect about live, especially community, theatre. The community, family aspect of it is truly the heart of life. I'm so glad youre recovering well and doing theatre, I'd love to see you live on stage some day.
Just commenting partially for the algorithm but also to say your dedication and talent is inspirational and it's so exciting to see you trying new things and telling us about them!
This is simply incredible! What healing powers reside within a human being not giving up is just outright unbelievable! So rewarding seeing you in this state now! Congrats, Austin!
I used to be involved in my own local community theatre, and while I have mixed feelings about my experiences during my involvement, it was/is probably the most important piece of my life during the “coming-of-age” years. I was also heavily involved in my high school’s drama department as well, and often did productions back to back! Theatre (especially live theatre, or even better IMMERSIVE theatre) is so important for a community, imho. Together we can tell beautiful stories, hear incredible music, watch the human spirit grow, and so much more. Cheers to your recovery and break a leg in this new endeavor!! Always wishing you well 😊
It's so cool to hear you getting into community theatre dude! It's such a fun and rewarding experience, I hope the season goes well! I have been part of a local community theatre in the capital of New Zealand for about a decade now, and my sister and I just directed our first children's production this year (ironically The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!). It's so crazy to think of how far we've come since we joined up, we started on stage of a kids' production and now we have directed one ourselves! I recommend trying out every role the theatre has to offer; acting, stage crew/management, lighting, sound, all of it! There's so much to learn from each role :)
Thank you Austin, seeing your videos about your heart surgery inspired me to do better and value my time more after my own recent (thankfully not serious) ER visit, thank you friend. Love your videos man!
As someone who's been doing theatre professionally and otherwise for a long time, these clips looks EXTREMELY polished for comminity theatre. Usually the funds and time just aren't there. Very cool they’ve got such a strong institution there.
I'm delighted to see how well your recovery has come along. I spent my later youth (highschool, college) and early-adulthood in community theater, though the last on-stage role I had was as a background chorus member in a production of G&S's "Patience" around 1983. I started out very awkward and shy; I credit the experience with making me more confident in my bearing and more able to speak to a large audience. In later years, I have been an on-and-off performer (amateur singer/songwriter, mostly Filk (the indigenous folk music of the Science Fiction and Fantasy fan community). On the other hand, other than 1 live stage performance at a Filk convention that I videotaped and posted on RUclips around 2006-2008 (of which there are two versions on my "channel"), I have never gotten up the nerve to do any sort of content for RUclips. (That performance wasn't done for RUclips, but someone asked me to post it to showcase the sign-language interpreter who was on stage with me.) A stroke in 2017 and two rounds of chemo (2018, 2022) kind of wiped out my public performing, but I've been working on getting back to a level where I can once again successfully perform in public. It's hard, but I am determined to be worth listening to again by the end of October, and perhaps start doing concerts and open-mics again by sometime next year. At 65, it's hard to get started again, but it's something I feel I have to do.
I work in professional theatre (in the costume department) and this video outlines precisely everything I love about live theatre. There’s no going back :) 💖 very proud to see someone stepping into it for the first time!!
It's fantastic to see you recovering so well and so quickly! I realize that an incredible amount of hard work and pain has been part of the process, so I also salute you for your perseverance!
Man, its so enjoyable watching you just enjoying life and doing random stuff. this year i got into debate sports and volleybal both never really done before and its always more fun then expected
so happy to see you well on thee road to recovery - and challenging yourself with new adventures. wish I could come & see you, but hmm - bit of a hike to get there (definitely would involve planes, not sure about trains, certainly automobiles). ha! I was just thinking of my own stints on stage as a kid, and (far more frequently) watching performances, at "the Little Theatre" in Te Aroha, Aotearoa/New Zealand in the 1970s & 1980s - then you said Springfield Little Theatre (hence, ha!) - (oh I'm sure there are an endless number of "little theatres' across the globe, just struck me as, well - 'ha!). break a leg! love & respect xx had to double check I remembered it right (we left Te Aroha when I was 16) - yip, still there, active - est in 1940s "The Te Aroha Dramatic Society has a Little Theatre but a huge history. For 75 years this vibrant organisation has been delivering a variety of live entertainment"
I auditioned for my first play (Into the Woods) when I was 13 and got one of the leads - Jack. It was an extremely difficult musical and everyone else in the cast were adults, but they were very supportive. It was a great experience, I learned a ton, and I'm so glad I did it! If you're still on the edge about community theater, give it a try. The scariest thing that can happen is you get the role. :)
I'm excited for you. Doing community theater was some of the best time in my life, not to mention one of the best growing and learning opportunities. Break a leg, my good man
DAMN! You're looking so fucking healthy after so little time. I am very impressed with your strength of will. I totally understand branching out after a near miss, very normal, but your recovery is just awesome. Love it. Keep it up dude. I'm here for the ride.
Austin- long-time subscriber and community college theatre professor/director here; so grateful you decided to take the time/risk to not only dive into this but to document(ish) the process! There's so much I could say here- but I'll boil it down to this: while one of the oldest art forms (one that has been continually diminished by new competitors for people's eyes and minds over the past couple of millennia), theatre remains one of the most powerful tools for creating better human beings- in the audience, onstage and behind the scenes. As you've put across in this vid, in a culture currently dominated by our over-edited, over-analyzed and reflected upon digital reality, the analog worlds that theatre creates force us to push anxiety (constantly looking forward) and depression (constantly looking backward) aside- and simply *be in the moment*. As with life in the 'real world', once the show opens, the show *must* go on. You can't redo it, you have no time to overthink it- you simply have to accept what has happened, build off of it, and move on. Not only that- but in a deeply polarized and overtly-opinionated culture, being involved with a show forces you to collaborate and bond with folks you might not choose to otherwise. Thereby creating something bigger than yourself with people you might not share the same perspective and beliefs with. Theatre is also, by its' nature, empathy training. The actors are literally putting themselves in someone else's shoes, and the audience cannot get much out of the experience if they don't at least subconsciously connect with both the characters and the actors playing those characters. Science proves it constantly for both children and adults- all forms of 'play' are actually training for adulthood- disguised as fun. Theatre kids (no matter the age) tend to be more confident, resilient, thoughtful, patient and collaborative- and the world can definitely use more of all of that these days. The point, in the end, isn't the 'quality' of the performance or production values- it's about bringing humans together in the same space to share something with each other. So congratulations on being a small part in that- and thank you for pushing that notion forward to us here in the digital realm. Fully grown theatre kids like myself see you and appreciate you for the effort and buy-in you're giving it.
The video about your stroke was one month ago?? And now you’re doing community theater for the first time??? Austin, you’re such an inspiration and I’m so glad your recovery is going as well as it is. Break a leg!
His luck is so rotten I wouldn't be too surprised if he did.
Heartily seconded.
He needs a robot leg to go with his robot heart.
It's kind of fitting that you wanted to try for Wizard of Oz, but first needed a "new" heart.
I have been doing community theater in the Boston area for 26 years, and it honestly has saved my life on numerous occasions.
Literally impossible to guess what Austin is going to start doing next.
So true
"I became a champion fly fisher"
I bet his next upload will be a video
It's so great
I dying to see his new projects😂
"I had open heart surgery and then a stroke - I'm getting over it, no worries." - Some Monty Python energy with that one.
Seriously though, as you point out, you are choosing what parts of your recovery we get to see but still, you seem to be doing a lot better. It's so great to see!
Tis only a flesh wound!
Man, even knowing that you had that stroke, I see absolutely no sign of it in you anymore. Amazing recovery, and thanks to a lot of hard work on your part, I'm sure!
@@Nvenom8. Honestly before he brought it up I was wondering if he recorded this before surgery because you cannot tell AT ALL
He can do retakes and edit. We see a 16 minute video, could've easily taken him 4-5 hours just to record
@@Zimoria oh absolutely, not denying that, just glad that he's doing well is all!
@@Zimoriatrue - still compared to that first video after…
The only thing I notice is his voice is ever-so-softer than before. It used to be a bit sharper.
As the director of the community theatre I regularly work with always says "his job is to make you look good, and your job is to make each other look good"
It's a team effort! If you make a mistake, the others help to cover it up.
Also, even though you've gone through the scenes a million times and know exactly how it's supposed to be, the audience does not. I've got loads of stories about things that have gone wrong on stage, mostly noticed mainly by the actors, and even if the audience does notice, it's part of the charm of live theatre
So happy to see how far you've come with your recovery!
Absolutely! Hope you keep being well, Austin.
It's amazing! Wishing Austin (and everyone) good health for the future!
Hey Austin, just want to say that in my adult life you really have become one of my biggest inspirations to always want to challenge myself, always relishing in the trying regardless of the outcome. Break a leg, I know you’ll kill it.
genuinely. if austin can keep pushing through everything, so can i. i hope he has some idea of the impact he’d had on people.
I grew up acting in a lot of Shakespeare plays in a middle school/high school theater group, and one year I had the part of the page from the opening of "Taming of the Shrew". The play is kind of meta in that this particular role meant I got to sit in the audience the whole time and watch the play with everyone else. So I got a great view of when Petruchio threw himself on a bench and the bench broke. It remains one of my favorite memories because my fellow actors rocked the unexpected situation -- leaning into it as if it had been planned. I always admire when actors mess up or face unexpected challenges and recover in spite of it.
Would like a update on the Superzeroes universe to know how everything is going along
You'll have one by the end of the month!
@@austinmcconnell Great! 😃👍
The first show is always the hardest and most nerve-wracking. But I found that once you are in costume it's easy to stay in character; once you hear your cue lines you can spout your own dialogue easily; once you are in amongst the other actors on stage blocking comes naturally; and the lights will mean you cannot see your audience beyond the first couple of row, so they will not distract you. The absolute best part is when you do a comedy and you can really manipulate a joke with adjusting comic timing throughout the run. You will love this, trust me. It's a thrill like no other.
That's funny, we in Czech Republic don't say "Break a leg", we say "Zlom vaz" which means "Break a neck".
For performances in American Sign Language you say "Break Fingers"
And in Germany we say ‘Hals- und Beinbruch’ which means: ‘broken neck and leg’
Bought a ticket for the 18th. Looking forward to seeing you in real life for the first time! Will be my first time attending a proper play.
I can’t explain it but theater acting is so right for you, if you said you’ve been doing it your whole life I wouldn’t question it.
Good for you! I so admire this. Took some drama classes, myself, but turns out I can't memorize pages of lines (high functioning Autistic, my mind works great, but in "another way."). My teacher loved my work in class, but she was cutting us a lot of slack on the memorization. I might have been able to do film, with cuts and retakes, but I prefer being behind the camera (was a photo journalist in state and county newspapers - even won a few awards). Turns out I'm also good at interviewing and writing (have a wall full of awards for that). And, further unnecessary storytelling here: my son took two classes of improv (and was amazing) and then went out and got A PAYING GIG in a show on a riverboat. His first acting job. Paying. I'm his parent, I know, but I think that's objectively impressive. So I am also impressed with your adventure.
Your son's story reminds me a little bit of a RUclipsr named Let Me Explain Studios and how she was a theater kid as well. Except, similar to with Austin, her drama teacher mostly hated her. And when she lost out on a role that she felt she'd not only acted the best out of her class but actually also looked the part (the teacher claimed she was too tall or something), she said screw it to acting for her school and instead got roles in her community theater while still in high school. Nothing more amazing than when a songbird is able to break out of the cage and fly.
My man, whatever else anyone says about your stage performance (break a leg), this one video is stupidly inspirational, and I thank you for that. Been watching you since you had subs in the 4 digit range, great to see you back at it!
Saw you in the show last night (Oct 19). I live around an hour from Springfield and go there often. You did amazing!
I do community theatre in my area, it's a ton of fun. And bizarrely helpful with stroke recovery for some reason. I'm sure there's some study somewhere, but something about it helps people regain language and mental clarity. My local community theatre has two members who have suffered strokes and something about learning lines and blocking was really helpful.
Looking forward to seeing this performance, Austin! My husband and I ordered our tickets today.
Welcome to the Theatre World my good man. I am a carpenter in the field and yeah, it gets stressful real quick. Glad you chose to give it a shot. I hope you continue after this venture.
Incredibly random, but it makes sense. Good for you Austin!
Community theatre is fun. Granted, I've only done it once, and the local community theatre I acted at (which sadly closed during covid and never reopened) was basically run entirely by an old lady and her two sisters (lovely old lady, mind you. Very good at getting the best performances from her cast). There were no workshops or call-backs, just one audition where you read lines to the director and she gives you some advice and you read some more lines and she calls you a week later to tell you what (if any) part you got. In my opinion, the funnest parts of theatre is when stuff goes wrong and you're forced to figure out how to shoehorn the important cues and dialogue into there somehow.
I just went to your show tonight (10/19/2024) and you were amazing! I came with my sister and you were absolutely fantastic! We were laughing the whole way through and it was a great experience. All the cast were great and you looked out the window and said "nothing" I thought I heard your voice peaking through 😅. I really appreciate getting to have seen you I have been a fan for years and actually was in your talking with strangers video. Anyways, thank you for a fabulous performance and I'm so glad you're feeling better❤
In 9th grade I played the same role in "Guys and Dolls." 🤓 Good on ya for grabbing your surgery/stroke recovery by the horns, and for further challenging yourself with this new endeavor. Break a (figurative) leg!
Austin: has a stroke
Also Austin: oh no! Anyways
And I'm the latest episode of, "Austin Couldn't Help Himself."
I can't get over how energetic and fun he seems.
Great to see you back happy and healthy.
You're looking better with each video you shoot. I'm sure there's still some challenges we don't get to see on camera, but if I wasn't a follower who's seen that whole ordeal you been through, I'd have never guessed. At least on screen, you're back to your old self. Glad it's going well. :)
Damn dude, looking and sounding good!
Austin, you're a huge inspiration. Let me say that the trick to acting is to remember what it's like to watch a play. I catch myself rooting for the actors and even when I notice mistakes I want them to succeed and I find it endearing. If you remember that, it's less scary to get up on the stage yourself.
This is awesome! Definitely wish I lived closer I’d come to the show to support!
Best of luck! But please don’t actually break a leg!
Break a leg, Austin!! I did community theater throughout middle and high school and it was such a fun and rewarding experience. It's great to see you facing your fears and trying something new. I'm sure you'll do great!
I've done several shows for Community Theater. It can be pretty fun, though the time you have to put into it is alot. I never had stage fright (for some reason) and it didn't take me a long time to get into character, but I know some people deal with those issues. Me personally I could separate myself and the character so it wasn't a big deal of diving into another persona. On stage, the lighting is such you barely can see the audience and you've gone over your lines so much at that point that it's not too bad. Plus you know the story backwards and forward at that point so if you do mess up, either you or your cast can easily recover. People going to Community Theater aren't expecting you to be the greatest in the world, so they also are pretty forgiving. Unless the whole production is crap, I think you'll be okay.
Just saw the show you were awesome my aunt is one of the other leads it was one the best shows I've seen at little theater
Dude, you’re just awesome. You just went for it. Love it.
I bought tickets to see this weeks ago for my birthday and now I know Austin is it? I think this may be the greatest birthday present ever.
Hey Austin, just wanna say that the work you've put into your recovery is amazing. You've put so much work in and it shows. I would have never suspected you had a stroke if I I hadn't known already. Thank you for working as had as you do, and thank you wven more for continuing to make videos. Good luck on the up comming plays and what ever you are working on next/currently. 🤗
I also have done springfield little theatre many times and am auditio ing for a show soon
I've actually been in and love this adaption of Murder on the Orient Express (I played Mrs. Hubbard!)! You will do a fantastic job as Bouc!
You look so good man, holy crap. I'm happy to get more videos out of you, but don't rush yourself! That said, the recovery looks absolutely great.
It's awesome to see you getting back into, well, living life! Community theater is fantastic and you're exactly the kind of personality that people like to work with in it. Know that no matter how unprepared you feel leading up to it, you'll feel ready after tech week. Just don't push yourself too hard and save some energy for the performance!
How exciting! I hope you have a lot of fun.
Austin, I am so incredibly proud of all you are doing and you taking on this new journey! Very inspirational! Truly.
Been a while since I heard "Dooblydoo" in the wild! DFTBA! Congrats on the show! Maybe don't break a leg, tho... you've already had a turbulent year...
I'm in Springfield! Been subscribed since LG15 days. I'll come see the show!
Yeah, that's the way to avoid stress. Do some theater.
Seriously, good luck Austin. 👍
Thank goodness you're getting better.
I need a Catman update, even if its "I have nothing new to show"
Tune in next week!
This video is seriously underrated and underwatched. Most inspirational stuff I've seen in a while!
The question the whole world is wondering about Austin: WHAT WILL HE DO NEXT!!! 👀
But seriously, man, it’s great that you’re finding hobbies outside of RUclips and I wish you all the best in your new endeavors 😊
I’m so glad to hear you’re feeling well enough to do community theater! 🎉
I hope you enjoy it, and don’t push yourself too hard.
Ohhhhh snap! Hope there are still some tix available because I'm gonna be in one of them audiences. 😊 Keep it up!
I love theatre and have been doing it for as long as ive been able to talk. Hearing people's story and first impressions to theatre always brings an ear to ear grin to my face, there's something so magically perfect about live, especially community, theatre. The community, family aspect of it is truly the heart of life. I'm so glad youre recovering well and doing theatre, I'd love to see you live on stage some day.
Just commenting partially for the algorithm but also to say your dedication and talent is inspirational and it's so exciting to see you trying new things and telling us about them!
I'm actually starring as Gonzalo in my college's production of The Tempest!! Good luck with Orient Express!
I'd buy a digital recording of the show if they do that!
This is simply incredible! What healing powers reside within a human being not giving up is just outright unbelievable!
So rewarding seeing you in this state now! Congrats, Austin!
You are a hero. Glad you are continuing to try new things.
Yay! 🎉 Super excited to see you’re feeling much better! I’m also a local, so I’ll definitely come see you at SLT!!
HE'S BACK!!!! So happy to see you back with a new video! This makes me so happy!!! Love that you are jumping back into things so quickly!
We love you Austin!
I used to be involved in my own local community theatre, and while I have mixed feelings about my experiences during my involvement, it was/is probably the most important piece of my life during the “coming-of-age” years. I was also heavily involved in my high school’s drama department as well, and often did productions back to back!
Theatre (especially live theatre, or even better IMMERSIVE theatre) is so important for a community, imho. Together we can tell beautiful stories, hear incredible music, watch the human spirit grow, and so much more.
Cheers to your recovery and break a leg in this new endeavor!! Always wishing you well 😊
Schools shows are even harder- the audience is willing to be mean to you afterwords 😭😭😭
Great way to keep the heart rate manageable, ey buddy? Best of luck on the performance friend!
Congrats on getting cast Austin! I live in Springfield so I'll for sure come and see the show!
I love seeing you getting better❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
It's so cool to hear you getting into community theatre dude! It's such a fun and rewarding experience, I hope the season goes well! I have been part of a local community theatre in the capital of New Zealand for about a decade now, and my sister and I just directed our first children's production this year (ironically The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!). It's so crazy to think of how far we've come since we joined up, we started on stage of a kids' production and now we have directed one ourselves! I recommend trying out every role the theatre has to offer; acting, stage crew/management, lighting, sound, all of it! There's so much to learn from each role :)
You sound so good! Keep on recovering!
Thank you Austin, seeing your videos about your heart surgery inspired me to do better and value my time more after my own recent (thankfully not serious) ER visit, thank you friend. Love your videos man!
Looking better already, Austin!
As someone who's been doing theatre professionally and otherwise for a long time, these clips looks EXTREMELY polished for comminity theatre. Usually the funds and time just aren't there. Very cool they’ve got such a strong institution there.
Awesome!
Thanks Austin!
I am glad to hear you are getting better.
At this point, Austin's completed 90% of life's side quests.
This is so great to hear! Glad you are back being creative Austin!
I'm delighted to see how well your recovery has come along.
I spent my later youth (highschool, college) and early-adulthood in community theater, though the last on-stage role I had was as a background chorus member in a production of G&S's "Patience" around 1983. I started out very awkward and shy; I credit the experience with making me more confident in my bearing and more able to speak to a large audience. In later years, I have been an on-and-off performer (amateur singer/songwriter, mostly Filk (the indigenous folk music of the Science Fiction and Fantasy fan community). On the other hand, other than 1 live stage performance at a Filk convention that I videotaped and posted on RUclips around 2006-2008 (of which there are two versions on my "channel"), I have never gotten up the nerve to do any sort of content for RUclips. (That performance wasn't done for RUclips, but someone asked me to post it to showcase the sign-language interpreter who was on stage with me.)
A stroke in 2017 and two rounds of chemo (2018, 2022) kind of wiped out my public performing, but I've been working on getting back to a level where I can once again successfully perform in public. It's hard, but I am determined to be worth listening to again by the end of October, and perhaps start doing concerts and open-mics again by sometime next year. At 65, it's hard to get started again, but it's something I feel I have to do.
I work in professional theatre (in the costume department) and this video outlines precisely everything I love about live theatre. There’s no going back :) 💖 very proud to see someone stepping into it for the first time!!
Lookin strong man ❤❤, hope you make a cinematic/theatrical work that would be studied for years
It's fantastic to see you recovering so well and so quickly! I realize that an incredible amount of hard work and pain has been part of the process, so I also salute you for your perseverance!
I am so so glad to see such a positive update on your life. Thanks for being inspiring!
Man, its so enjoyable watching you just enjoying life and doing random stuff. this year i got into debate sports and volleybal both never really done before and its always more fun then expected
Very cool. Thanks for sharing your journey!
so happy to see you well on thee road to recovery - and challenging yourself with new adventures. wish I could come & see you, but hmm - bit of a hike to get there (definitely would involve planes, not sure about trains, certainly automobiles).
ha! I was just thinking of my own stints on stage as a kid, and (far more frequently) watching performances, at "the Little Theatre" in Te Aroha, Aotearoa/New Zealand in the 1970s & 1980s - then you said Springfield Little Theatre (hence, ha!) - (oh I'm sure there are an endless number of "little theatres' across the globe, just struck me as, well - 'ha!). break a leg! love & respect xx
had to double check I remembered it right (we left Te Aroha when I was 16) - yip, still there, active - est in 1940s
"The Te Aroha Dramatic Society has a Little Theatre but a huge history. For 75 years this vibrant organisation has been delivering a variety of live entertainment"
God I’m glad he’s recovered because his videos are *so* good
Congrats! That sounds so fun. I did drama in high school and I’ve so long wished to return to that exhilarating, terrifying high.
Love this
I auditioned for my first play (Into the Woods) when I was 13 and got one of the leads - Jack. It was an extremely difficult musical and everyone else in the cast were adults, but they were very supportive. It was a great experience, I learned a ton, and I'm so glad I did it! If you're still on the edge about community theater, give it a try. The scariest thing that can happen is you get the role. :)
Awww, you said doobley-doo 🥰
Theatre is magical, enjoy your new journey in it!
Omg love this for you! What a king!!
Hi Austin!
Good luck.
I'm excited for you. Doing community theater was some of the best time in my life, not to mention one of the best growing and learning opportunities.
Break a leg, my good man
Congrats on getting cast!! Great work!
Also in Missouri here! I would make the trek down to Springfield, but will be doing my own production at the exact same time. Break a leg, Austin!
Break a leg my guy!
Chiming in to also voice that I'm so proud of you!! Community theater honestly sounds so fun.
DAMN! You're looking so fucking healthy after so little time. I am very impressed with your strength of will. I totally understand branching out after a near miss, very normal, but your recovery is just awesome. Love it. Keep it up dude. I'm here for the ride.
SLT did an amazingly scary production of Sweeney Todd back when I was living there.
Austin- long-time subscriber and community college theatre professor/director here; so grateful you decided to take the time/risk to not only dive into this but to document(ish) the process!
There's so much I could say here- but I'll boil it down to this: while one of the oldest art forms (one that has been continually diminished by new competitors for people's eyes and minds over the past couple of millennia), theatre remains one of the most powerful tools for creating better human beings- in the audience, onstage and behind the scenes.
As you've put across in this vid, in a culture currently dominated by our over-edited, over-analyzed and reflected upon digital reality, the analog worlds that theatre creates force us to push anxiety (constantly looking forward) and depression (constantly looking backward) aside- and simply *be in the moment*. As with life in the 'real world', once the show opens, the show *must* go on. You can't redo it, you have no time to overthink it- you simply have to accept what has happened, build off of it, and move on. Not only that- but in a deeply polarized and overtly-opinionated culture, being involved with a show forces you to collaborate and bond with folks you might not choose to otherwise. Thereby creating something bigger than yourself with people you might not share the same perspective and beliefs with.
Theatre is also, by its' nature, empathy training. The actors are literally putting themselves in someone else's shoes, and the audience cannot get much out of the experience if they don't at least subconsciously connect with both the characters and the actors playing those characters. Science proves it constantly for both children and adults- all forms of 'play' are actually training for adulthood- disguised as fun. Theatre kids (no matter the age) tend to be more confident, resilient, thoughtful, patient and collaborative- and the world can definitely use more of all of that these days. The point, in the end, isn't the 'quality' of the performance or production values- it's about bringing humans together in the same space to share something with each other. So congratulations on being a small part in that- and thank you for pushing that notion forward to us here in the digital realm. Fully grown theatre kids like myself see you and appreciate you for the effort and buy-in you're giving it.
It is great to see how well you seem to be recovering!