Chapter 21: A New Job
Poverty continued to plague the young girl. Although she wasn’t starving, she was still poor. Seeing things she wanted to buy but couldn’t afford, seeing food she wanted to eat but could only swallow her saliva, this feeling was quite unpleasant. Yu Linna desperately wanted to find a well-paying job to overcome this crisis.
As rent day approached, along with overdue utility bills, Yu Linna felt a headache coming on. How could she solve this problem? Borrowing money was out of the question; she didn’t know if she could even pay it back. More importantly, she had no one to borrow from.
“Sigh…”
Another day, once again awakened by poverty. Seeing her friend Nangong Ying getting closer and closer to her dream, the distance between them growing wider, Yu Linna felt uneasy. She also wanted to find something to do, preferably a decent job.
She somehow recalled her experience as an extra. Since that lucky break, Yu Linna hadn’t had any such fortunate events. Could such a windfall happen again?
But opportunities were earned, so Yu Linna still wanted to try her luck. She called Huang Jinglin, inquiring about extra work. At first, Huang Jinglin was truly impatient. She was so busy every day; how could she care about a talentless vase? But remembering that her friend Chen Xi had recommended this girl as an extra, even she, a discerning host, paid attention to her because of her friend.
Indeed, by her standards, Yu Linna absolutely didn’t meet them. She had no talent, only a pretty face, nothing else. Huang Jinglin definitely looked down on her.
But Chen Xi did have a point; this girl’s appearance was suitable for being on camera. After all, she had experience in the industry; giving young people a chance wasn’t a bad thing.
“Alright, I have a job for you. Go act in a play. The Grand Theater is short-staffed; you can try out there.”
“Thank you so much!”
No matter what, this was an opportunity! An opportunity Yu Linna actively sought!
As long as she could earn more money, what did it matter if she appeared on stage more often? She was a gold digger; there was nothing wrong with earning money. And she was also a person with dreams; there was nothing wrong with pursuing them. She was striving for her dreams.
Yu Linna got ready early and went out wearing a black tracksuit, her tacky outfit begging for ridicule. If not for her attractive appearance, her dreadful fashion sense would have been a disaster. But Yu Linna didn’t have the money to buy new clothes, so this outfit was understandable.
Following the address Huang Jinglin gave her, the girl transferred buses and subways several times, traveling for over an hour before finally arriving at the Grand Theater. Located in a bustling district in the city center, surrounded by skyscrapers, the glass reflections mirrored the vehicles on the road. Even during the day, the advertisement lights were eye-catching. Under the overpass, pedestrians formed a picturesque scene.
Standing among the bustling crowd, the girl seemed out of place, like a resident of another world, struggling to find her direction, unable to find her place.
She took a deep breath and entered the Grand Theater, led by the staff to the rehearsal area.
The Grand Theater in the city center had always been the top choice for theatergoers. Every week, new stage plays and dramas were performed, attracting theater enthusiasts, mostly in their forties and fifties. With the development of the film industry, few young people went to the theater. After all, for young people, excitement was the priority.
Yu Linna’s introduction here was also out of necessity. The theater was indeed short-staffed. Without recruiting more people, it would be difficult to stage the plays. After entering through the back door, Yu Linna followed the staff inside, changed into her costume, and went on stage without any makeup.
“This is Xiao Yu, our new member. Starting today, she’ll be rehearsing with everyone. For next week’s performance, please work hard!”
The person in charge briefly introduced Yu Linna, had her join the group, and then prepared for rehearsal. This was Yu Linna’s first time performing in a play, and she was a bit nervous. But for this promising job, she forced herself to calm down.
“Welcome to the Happy Fries family! I’m Shen Wenwen, an actress at this theater. I hope you can adapt to life here quickly.”
“Hello, I’m Mario, you can call me Brother Ma.”
“I’m Ai Xiansen.”
The members of this drama troupe were all adults, working professionals, completely different from a high school kid like her. Moreover, the main members were all graduates of professional acting academies, formal actors. They probably gave up on the film and television industry and turned to theater because their acting careers weren’t going well.
Yu Linna had a good first impression of these people. At least they weren’t indifferent to her like Huang Jinglin. Although everyone knew she got in through the back door, they didn’t exclude her, accepting her with a friendly attitude. This eased the nervous girl’s anxiety.
“Little Yu, have you acted before?”
“N-no… I only had one opportunity as a featured extra, appearing on screen for a few seconds.”
“So, zero experience? Then you’re in danger. Acting isn’t as simple as you think. But we can teach you gradually. Acting is something that requires accumulation.”
When it came to acting, Yu Linna had absolutely no experience. Playing a compelling character was quite difficult. Since she was starting from scratch, she might as well start from the beginning.
Happy Fries was a drama troupe that had been performing at the Grand Theater for a long time, gaining some fame in the city. Their plays were always excellent, often hilarious and thought-provoking. Coincidentally, their contract with the Grand Theater was about to expire, meaning they might soon leave this theater and move elsewhere.
Digressing a bit, Yu Linna had at least gotten an opportunity to act here. But she knew nothing about acting, didn’t know how to perform. The script they gave her this time was about match-fixing, a comedy by theater standards. However, it also contained thought-provoking elements. Of course, the most appealing aspect of this script was the comedic scenes.
The play mainly told the story of a match-fixing male protagonist and a female reporter dedicated to exposing him. The story was clichéd, nothing surprising. But it emphasized comedic performance, and the actors’ coordination was crucial.
“Alright, let’s start rehearsing. Newcomer, get ready, it’s your turn!”
“Yes!”
After calming down, Yu Linna walked onto the stage as instructed. Her assigned role was Shen Wenwen’s sidekick, the assistant to the female reporter, who was the female lead. When the female lead confronted the male lead, she was responsible for causing trouble in the background, but her attempts at helping only made things worse, leading to a series of comedic situations.
Acting in a comedy was much more difficult than a drama. Comedy required high-level acting skills. As a newcomer, could Yu Linna handle such a role? Although uneasy, she was determined to do it. This was a hard-earned opportunity, and by seizing it, she could get one step closer to catching up with Nangong Ying!
After rehearsal began, Shen Wenwen, playing the female lead, was outstanding. She perfectly grasped the comedic timing, her acting skills effortless and much better than many young actors in the entertainment industry. It was strange that someone with such good acting skills would condescend to perform in a play.
Mario, playing the scumbag male lead, although not as good as Shen Wenwen, was also stable, without any major mistakes. He handled the comedic scenes with ease.
However, when it was Yu Linna’s turn to rehearse, problems arose.
As mentioned earlier, Yu Linna was acting for the first time and didn’t understand many things. You couldn’t expect someone without professional training to play a role well. Yu Linna’s lines were recited like an elementary school student reading a textbook, stiff and emotionless. More importantly, despite being a comedy, her performance was incredibly awkward, worse than a drama.
“Stop, stop, stop, again! Xiao Yu, your expressions aren’t right! You need to be more engaged, let go of your inhibitions, and fully immerse yourself in the role! Again!”
After being scolded, Yu Linna felt ashamed, but for the sake of the rehearsal, she still tried her best to play her role. After all, this was a hard-earned opportunity; she didn’t want to let it slip away.
Despite Shen Wenwen’s personal guidance, her performance didn’t improve at all, remaining painfully awkward. Even the other actors were helpless. They were acting seriously, while Yu Linna seemed like she was deliberately trying to sabotage the play.
After all, she got in through the back door and naturally knew nothing about acting. How could she perform well? The only thing commendable about her was her appearance. Not to mention, her physical attributes were indeed advantageous. If she were on stage, the audience would naturally be drawn to her, creating a good visual effect.
But plays weren’t about looks. If the overall story wasn’t good, it wouldn’t attract anyone.
A day passed without much progress. After rehearsal, the person in charge was practically fuming. This Yu Linna was like a dead pig, not a single decent performance all day.
“Sister Shen, is Xiao Yu’s situation really okay?”
Ai Xiansen was worried about the newcomer. According to what he heard, this little girl got in through the back door and had no acting experience. So, she couldn’t possibly give a stunning performance. She was no different from a complete novice.
As the pillar of the drama troupe, Shen Wenwen naturally knew the importance of acting skills to the overall play. Without solid acting, only having good looks was useless.
“That child… to be frank, her acting is completely devoid of spirit, no feeling at all. Although she’s trying hard to get into character, no matter how she acts, it’s still just her. It doesn’t feel like she’s playing the character from the script.”
Shen Wenwen hit the nail on the head, showing no mercy. She naturally knew about Yu Linna’s situation and didn’t intend to sugarcoat it. After all, she was just stating facts.
“So, Sister Shen, what do you mean?”
“Although it’s not nice to say, but her stiff performance really makes me feel that she’s not suitable to be an actress.”
She said what no one else had dared to say.
All along, many people said Yu Linna had great looks, suitable for the entertainment industry. And Shen Wenwen was the first person to say that Yu Linna wasn’t suitable to be an actress.
Whether it was true or not, no one could have predicted.
Leave a Reply