Friday, July 27th.
I have an 11 A.M. workshop with Owen Burke of UCBLA and Respecto Montalban fame, but I am up sort of early, and my stomach's still rumbling from whatever the hell I put inside of it last night, so I decide to go downtown and walk around by my lonesome for a bit. I go to Bagel Maven and grab a really nice bagel & shmear and coffee and walk around 30th & 8th. I stand in front of Madison Square Garden and watch people.
I find the UCB Training Center building. The elevator opens up right into the lobby, and the whole place is a lot nicer than you'd expect. I immediately walk right past Kevin Mullaney, and the couches in the lobby are filled with some young improv dudes talking shop. I feel like a tourist for sure, and do not want to really engage in conversation with anyone, I hit the john and go locate the classroom around the corner, sit and wait with a couple other dudes. A few others pour in, and then Owen strolls in right at 11. It ends up with only 8 of us in the class, 6 dudes and 2 chicks. There's a nice mix of experience and nuance, stage players and student players, patient and proactive. My scenework is alright, I realize its been over a year since I've been on the learning end in a class atmosphere, and at least 6 months since I've been coached. The class is a Harold workshop, & I wouldn't have taken it otherwise. Owen is a fine teacher, but I think the class is about 65% committed, so there's some real hesitation for the first half of the class. Eventually, we start doing full Harolds and break things down. I hear some of my own teachings coming out of Owen's mouth, and I realize that I have a pretty decent understanding of what scenes need in order to get them to where they need to be. Not only do I know what I need to do personally to get there, but I feel like I have a knack for identifying specific traits in others, too. (I'm still no Asaf, but hey, who is?)
Nick meets me outside right afterward, and we go grab a slice of pizza after a lot of deliberation on where to eat. We call Corey and go meet him in Brooklyn so we can walk over the Brooklyn Bridge. Along the very hot and very long walk from Park Slope to the bridge, we stop in some comic book / toy store and then Nick spots The Brooklyn Superhero Supply & we convince Corey to let us go in. It's a lot more elaborate than I expect, and there is a "portal" which reveals the relaxing and dapper tutoring center in the back. I am impressed. We trudge on, and my feet are blistering like crazy. I am not wearing socks, like the genius I am, so we take a detour into the Brooklyn Target, which is frankly quite scary. We hydrate and sock up and plow on. The bridge is great, and we stop up top to take some pictures.
Again, I am fascinated with bridges, and please notice how they have a bit of a theme throughout this trip. Corey is tired already, but has to go work at the theater, so Nick and I go to be really touristy in Times Square. 
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