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Simply Authentic...Your Soul Voice is Calling. Sneak Preview of Coming Attractions

Writer's picture: Kimberly GenlyKimberly Genly

Sneak Preview of Coming Attractions It feels like time to give my loyal subscribers and readers an update on the projects I’ve been working on, and a sneak preview of what’s coming! Project #1: For those of you who don’t follow my posts on Facebook, this first one may come as a surprise. It has surprised me! Several people have told me if I ever wrote a cookbook, they would buy it. Now I wish I could remember who those people were, because I’ve nearly completed one! I didn’t expect to take on this task right now, but there was such a feeling of momentum (I’ve learned to trust that feeling) behind the idea, I decided to run with it. The working title is Midwest Comfort Food: Recipes from a South Dakota Farmer’s Daughter. Please feel free to cast a vote yay or nay. My photographer and I have completed two of three food photography sessions, which has been an amazing process to observe and participate in. I personally prepared every dish Dana has photographed…without a sous chef. Yep, I’ve spent some time grocery shopping and in the kitchen! Dana calls the final results “food porn.” I’ll include some photos here for you to drool over.

Voila! Brunch: Bagels with cream cheese, tomato, olive and basil. Jalapeno egg casserole. Yogurt parfaits with raspberries. Lunch: Minestrone soup. Dinner: Beef burgundy with Cherry cream cheese dessert. I envision the finished product a glossy spiral bound paperback, slightly over 100 pages (5 ½ by 8 ½), filled with many of my favorite recipes. Several came from my mother, an excellent cook who taught me the fundamentals in our South Dakota farm kitchen. Perhaps best of all, the cookbook is a fundraiser for Salem Friends of Felines (www.salemfriendsoffelines.org), where I adopted my awesome cat, Lady Jane. This worthy cause will receive a percentage of every sale. I’ll let you know as soon as the first printing is done so if you like to cook you can buy a copy, get some great recipes, and help out the kitties of the Willamette Valley. Project #2: Authentic Expression Video Class. This is another exciting first. I have taught many classes and facilitated many workshops in my life, but this is the first on video! It’s such an affordable and convenient way for people to take a class, at their leisure, right in the comfort of their own home. I recently purchased one taught by Tosha Silver, author of Outrageous Openness, and I love it! Writing the class, with all the content already there and prepared, wasn’t a problem. Cutting it down to an hour and a half or less, however, was! And of course the first time filming something like this is as much an exercise in what not to do as anything else. But it was fun once I got past the initial nerves of being on camera under all those hot lights. It’s in the editing stages right now and I’ll let you know as soon as it’s completed. The final product should be slightly under an hour and a half total with eight different lessons and cost approximately $75. What a bargain! There is so much information jam-packed into this one class, I can’t wait to uncover what the tele-class and webinar off-spring will be – super exciting! Project #3: Authentic Performance: The Fundamentals of Acting. My first acting class will be this summer! Many of my best ideas (this is one) come to me on my Godwalks, a practice you will learn about in the Authentic Expression class. I’ve been on stage since 5th grade, have taken more acting classes than I can count, and recently completed my second Professional Actors Class with the lovely Nancy McDonald at Lakewood Theatre here in Lake Oswego. It was an amazing class and we all grew dramatically through this eight week term. Acting is an ongoing process…no matter how long you have done it, you never stop learning and growing. When I first started taking acting classes as an adult with Jo Dodge at the Pentacle Theatre, I kept coming back because it was “cheap therapy.” As a teacher, I will continue to be in shows as a performer, I will continue to be a student, and the process will continue to be “cheap therapy.” There is simply nothing like getting in touch with your emotions, in a safe environment, and allowing yourself to become vulnerable enough to express them while connecting with a character. That is what an acting class, with the right teacher, can do. Portland is a friendly place for actors, more laid back than LA or NY, and quite a bit of TV and film production work happens here. Acting teachers and coaches abound, along with wonderful organizations like PATA (Portland Area Theatre Alliance.) Which makes the fact I am so very clear on what I don’t do as an acting teacher so very cool. I don’t do Shakespeare. Go to Nancy McDonald or to Ashland or somewhere else for that. I love Shakespeare, but I do not teach Shakespearian acting. I do not teach how to get an agent or prepare for an audition. I can’t teach you how to act in front of a camera. I do it, but it’s not something I teach. What I do teach is how to learn to trust yourself enough (through some very specific tools and your own courage and bravery) to feel your way into authentic performance. You will learn more about your voice and how to use it on-stage, as I am a certified Transformational Voice Teacher. Classes will alternate between improvised scenes and scenes from a play you will work on with a scene partner throughout the class. The most important thing I can possibly convey…as a teacher, fellow actor, and lover of theatre and film…is to be present, with your emotions, and allow yourself to become both vulnerable and safe enough to share them. This takes courage. I admire the bravery of anyone who signs up! I’m leaning towards a space in downtown Lake Oswego, as it’s a relatively easy, traffic-free drive with ample underground parking. Probably on Saturday mornings for between eight and 12 weeks. I’ll let you know when all the details are in place – look for a June start time. I get the sense this class will be one of the most impactful things I’ve done, and I love it when I get that sense! Authentically Yours, Laura

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