The thought of performing on television seems to be a task for Hollywood giants, but a local group of actors accomplishes this feat with grandeur and finesse.
New this year, the PA Project is a local television station that showcases Albuquerque talent, said Bre Stephens, the creator of the show.
“It is not just a highlight of Albuquerque talent, but also a show for the world to see what we are doing,” she said. “It shows that if you want talent, here it is, and you don’t have to go to California to find it.”
The station features a dramatic sitcom “Tallon Lake,” followed by a Japanesque program called the “Y’Teki and Pei Pei Show,” and finishes with comedy skits, mock commercials and performances.
Joe Gallegos, PA Project spokesman, said anyone can audition.
“For upcoming actors and actors who have been performing for a long time it is a great experience,” he said. “I see a hands-on workshop of different people working together and producing something local that everyone can watch. I love the fact that it is homegrown.”
Yet Stephens is far from a side spectator in the whole process. Taking up the roles of creator, producer, director, editor and writer, Stephens is the glue that holds the project together, said Pamela Myers, an actress in the project.
“I’m in awe how Bre gets everything done,” she said. “It is amazing to me. I tell her that she is like the Energizer Bunny on crack.”
Myers said skits include slapstick, splashes of wit, farce and exaggeration, sort of like “Saturday Night Live.”
While the project is locally based, it’s broadcast in several other states, and Stephens said it aims to become world-known and syndicated with a company like FOX.
In spite of big ambitions, Gallegos said, the station does not intend to drop its roots as it ascends.
“As a whole, I think the PA Project is a really great idea, because it is through public access, which shows that it is really available to do,” he said.
Myers added that it’s a way for actors to get noticed “I have learned a whole lot doing this. It is very beneficial,” she said.
