Can the long-distance thing work?

One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever gotten as an aspiring-to-be-aconsistently-working actor is to go where the work is. When I was in my 20s and 30s, I was privileged enough to be able to do that. I try to share this advice with young people planning to pursue any discipline in theatre. There are contacts and friends to be made and (very) good work to be done all over the country. Acting (or design, or directing, or playwriting) does not live and die in New York City or Los Angeles. Those behemoths of the industry will still be there when you decide it’s time to take a swing at them.

Now that I’m in my mid-40s, married with a young child, I find that I am, by and large, unable to follow that piece of advice. I’m still an actor, but I have obligations that keep me in one place. But—have you seen the new seasons being announced? But–preschool! But—acting is my thing, man! But…but…but…

As you may already be aware, the southcentral Pennsylvania area is teeming with theatres, big and small. You’re probably also aware that the south-central Pennsylvania area is humongous. So, what happens when you live in Chambersburg but one of your bucket list roles is happening in Hershey? You’re in Camp Hill but Ephrata has the show you’re on fire for? Do you try your best to forget that you ever saw the audition notice? Do you sigh longingly and secretly resent whoever gets that part? Or do you audition, and damn the torpedoes?

In my opinion, the decision to audition for and participate in a far-flung show boils down to this: you can only do what you can do. It’s so simple when I see it in print. However, what an ambitious actor can do sometimes doesn’t match up with what they think they can do. A 75-minute commute each way doesn’t seem like much to me if the role that’s on the table is Madame de Merteuil in Dangerous Liaisons, or Mrs. Walker in The Who’s Tommy. This is where I would have to take a breath and remind myself that road hypnosis is a REAL THING. And so are gas prices. And so is my odometer, which just rolled over the 100K mark. And babysitters also need to get paid. And the young sir’s preschool days are Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. And that I need to rest at some point each day.

(Honestly…I’d figure it out, somehow. If those two roles ever make themselves available to me, there is very little that would deter me from making it work.)

When you’re determined to make a longdistance showmance happen, here’s where another valuable piece of advice comes into play: know your worth. If a company is willing to meet you where you are right now, to make allowances for the real lives of the talent they want, well, that’s a company worth collaborating with, and the odds are good that your experience will be one to cherish. 7

Tara Herweg (she/her) is a native of Camp Hill, a former Core Company member of Gamut Theatre Group, and a huge fan of the Harrisburg theatre scene. Now she gets to call herself a writer, too (her 8-year-old self, Care Bears fanfic in hand, can hardly believe it)! She keeps herself busy working on her novel, watching horror movies, and raising her small human.