I’m really excited about the program. Living on the east coast, I wasn’t really aware of it. (Their showcase is just in Los Angeles and I gather that most of the graduates stay there—and why not?) I was more aware of UCLA as a film school.

But they kindly offered to fly me out for a tour after I was admitted, and I was blown away by the talent of the students, the quality of the instruction (srsly… I sat in some absolutely incredible acting classes), and how nice and welcoming everyone was.

So. I’m bidding farewell to the East Coast, and, for the most part, bidding farewell to life as a working actor (there won’t be any time for it amid what I’m told is a very intense schedule. Except for summers.)

This www.matthewwrather.com site and mailing list will probably become much less of a brochure site/blog for my acting career and more of a lifestream aggregating the various things I do all around the internet. (Here’s the prototype.) I hope you’ll stay subscribed to the RSS feed or mailing list, which will probably be updated a little more often. I hope you’ll stay in touch. And if you happen to be in the LA area, I hope you’ll stop by!

The cast is led by Glenn Seven Allen as Batteaux, who sings, dances, and acts with grand finesse.… Standouts include…Matthew Wrather, who, in addition to dancing, is a featured pianist in a couple of numbers.

Only two more chances to see me in the show–check out the main post for details.

I spent the weekend before last in Fall River, MA, home of several Korean War vintage U.S. Navy ships, including the destroyer USS Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. I was there to shoot a flashback/dream sequence for The Raft, an independent short film directed by Robert Jones.

The movie stars Ed Asner (!) as a grandfather who tells his grandson about a particular incident in WWII. The grandson then imagines the incident as his grandfather has told it, but with himself in his grandfather’s role as Captain. New Haven friends and NHTC regulars Peter Chenot and Christian Shaboo were in the scene with me, and we had more bonding experiences than we’d ever imagined—or wanted—as we stayed awake for two 6pm–6am working “days”, explored Newport, RI (I’d never been) during the downtime, and drove home to New Haven at 5am on a Tuesday.

Here are a few more pictures (click for larger versions):

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