Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Nikki MacCallum. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Nikki, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?
I am extremely happy as a creative but the catch is, I do still have a “regular” job. Growing up my parents were extremely supportive of me wanting to pursue a career in the arts. They spent a lot of time driving me around to various auditions and theatrical activities. That said, one thing they were extremely adamant about was that they would not support me financially after college and that I would have to figure it out. Bummer! And we all know, NYC is not cheap. I went to NYU for musical theatre, so at the time, most of my friends were struggling actors who waited tables. One thing about me, I require a ton of sleep, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to work late nights at a restaurant or bar and still get up and audition the next day. My voice was also extremely sensitive to smoke, and when I moved to NYC, it was the time just before laws were passed that prohibited smoking in bars. And I figured if I wasn’t getting up for auditions and in good voice, what was the point of living in the expensive city that is New York? On my quest to figure out how I was going to support myself, I did what most of us did in 2006, I turned to Craigslist. I saw an ad that said “Actors Make Great Telemarketers!” and I applied and got the job which was at a legal recruiting firm. I was cold calling attorneys, used it as an opportunity to practice different accents, (British always got the best results!) and after about a week of being hung up on, I decided it wasn’t for me. When I quit, the owner of the company asked me how I felt about recruiting instead of telemarketing and I said I’d give it a go. I would call and talk to anyone, so I struck a deal with my new boss that I would work 40 hours a week at an hourly rate, but would have the flexility I needed to audition and it was understood that if I booked a gig, I’d leave. I worked for this company for a few years, auditioned regularly, booked a few shows, and my job was always waiting for me when my theatre contracts ended. From their perspective I was a hard working NYU grad who would work for very little money because all I wanted was audition flexibility, and for me, that flexibility was worth more than the paycheck. What I didn’t realize was that the type of legal recruiting I was doing was very niche – it was specific to legal technology. And because of that, I was able to build up a pretty robust recruiting network in this niche space. A few years later, another litigation technology (who knew this was a thing!?) company recruited me as they were interested in some of my relationships, and I used that as a bargaining tool, that I would take the job, bring my relationships, but I needed audition flexibility and more money. I’ve worked my way through my entire corporate career in this fashion and am now global Director of Talent Acquisition at a litigation technology company where I’ve worked the last five years. And we’re also in a remote working world which does provide even more flexibility for my art. For years, I’ve contemplated quitting my day job. For years I’ve had identity crisis and embarrassed even, that I have a day job because I feel on some levels it makes me “not a real creative.” I’ve been embarrassed to tell my artist peers that I have a day job because it means I’m not a real actress or standup, and embarrassed to tell my colleagues in corporate America about my creative pursuits because I don’t want my art to ever be referred to as “a hobby” or not be taken seriously. A friend of mine is a very talented writer, who used to work in corporate America, and quit to pursue art full time. A few years ago when I was focused on figuring out how to “quit my day job” I went to her and she gave me advice that really stuck with me. She said, “Having the extra 40 hours a week to dedicate to your art is huge. But a the same time, when I first quit, I spent most of those hours worrying about where my next pay check was going to come from, instead of writing new jokes. A steady income is a different type of flexibility.” And beyond that, I look back at my career, there are so many projects I’ve been able to fund for myself, and or pay teams that I’ve assembled for my projects, fairly, because of my day job. I’ve been able to make investments in my art like classes, and headshots, strong marketing materials, because of that day job. Over the 18 years I’ve lived in NYC, holding a corporate job to support my art, I have shot two films, been in countless musicals, written and had a book published (“Dry Run”), written an original musical that opened at the A.R.T.’s OBERON in Boston before having three other productions in New York, became a standup comedian and have consistently worked in New York comedy clubs as well as traveled the country performing standup. I’ve learned to write music and had a solo musical comedy show win the international United Solo Festival after a sold out limited engagement at Theatre Row off Broadway. There are some weeks I do not sleep. Just this week I was out doing standup comedy until about midnight a few nights in a row and was on calls for my job in corporate America straight through from 10-6. There are some weeks where I feel like I don’t have enough time for my art and I think about how much further I’d be along if I only had more time, but there are some weeks where I feel so lucky that I have the stability and means to support my art. And sometimes I make money from my art and that’s the best of both worlds! My path is very unique and for a long time I passed judgement on myself for not just waiting tables, but now I look back at the life I built, and I’m so glad I trusted my instincts. Again, sometimes I don’t sleep, but I think for now, I’ve got a pretty great deal.
Nikki, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I have identify crisis. My original love and trade is singing and musical theatre. I was the epitome of a “theatre kid” and artistically, there is nothing I love more than musicals. I performed throughout my childhood (often ate lunch alone in the chorus room) and was very lucky to go on to study musical theatre at NYU. I also even took a few piano classes to please my mom who was my piano teacher growing up. After college, I hit that audition circuit, and didn’t have as much luck as I’d hoped I would. I did some shows here and there, but I was not booking consistent work and after a national tour, took my equity card (joined the actors union) in 2008 during the financial crisis, which was, not smart. All of a sudden I was competing against actors who had seven Broadway shows on their resume for gigs, and I stopped getting call backs even, and became very disheartened. Right around that time, given the economy, there was a trend of actors “creating their own work” so I decided to follow suit. One of my best friends from college, Kelvin Moon Loh, said to me “if you want to put together a cabaret, I will direct it.” And the rest is history. We put together a cabaret about everyone’s favorite topic, dating in NYC, and titled it “Matchmaker Matchmaker, I’m Willing to Settle!” We mounted it at The Duplex in NYC, and wound up having some industry attend. One producer who loved the concept suggested that we should write the show into an original musical and find a composer to score it. Kelvin and I did just that. Together we wrote an original script for “Matchmaker Matchmaker I’m Willing to Settle!” and teamed up with composer/lyricist Brandon James Gwinn who wrote the score. Through a connection I had from one of my day jobs, ironically enough, we were able to premiere the show at A.R.T.’s OBERON and it immediately transferred to off-broadway at NYMF in New York. Not only did I help write it but I also got to perform in it! My experience with “Matchmaker…” made me realize I loved writing and that might be a more fulfilling path for me. As a creative, I love telling stories, I love creating, and when I’d audition, for starters I’d usually only get to sing 16 bars, and spent those 30 seconds trying to fit someone else’s mold. With writing I could create my own! So I took 8 years and wrote a book, “Dry Run.” After a significant amount of hustle, I was lucky enough to land a book deal and it was released in 2019. Around this time, I realized I missed performing, which is when I found standup comedy. I also got dumped, which is when a lot of us “try” standup comedy. But for me, it stuck. I was blown away by the fact that no matter how bad I was, I got five full minutes on stage. Quite a step up from 30 seconds! I threw myself into standup comedy as it was a perfect marriage of writing and performing. And most importantly, I got to create my own material. I was going to a ton of open mics, producing a bar show, barking in the village for stage time, and then the pandemic hit. During the pandemic, standup comedy was happening over zoom and it was needless to say, painful. I was living with my boyfriend at the time, who is also a comedian and musician. Before the pandemic he was pushing me to do musical comedy. But I didn’t even know where to begin. I’d hated playing the piano growing up, and I’d never written music. He even gifted me a keyboard for the holidays just before the pandemic so that I “no longer had an excuse to not play music at shows.” But during the pandemic, standup was so painful, I had a ton of time on my hands, so I tried to write music, something I never thought possible, but I discovered that I could. I started writing comedy songs, and started performing those over zoom instead of doing standup. A standup set during the pandemic when everyone was on mute, was torture. But something about doing music, if the laughs didn’t happen, I still had some dignity. After the pandemic, I started playing my songs live and writing comedy music is hands down my absolute favorite thing to do. It is a perfect marriage of everything I’ve ever loved – singing, music, writing, theatre, etc. And my musical comedy is what I want to be known for. It’s funny, over the last few years, things have started to come full circle. I’ve been acting pretty heavily again, shot a couple of films, did a workshop of a new musical, etc. I’ve been writing a ton of standup, I’ve been working pretty consistently as a comic. But nothing gets me going more than writing and performing my original musical comedy. Please check me out at @nikkimacncheese! I even took a social media class as a Millennial to try to keep up!
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
Go see art. As artists, we’re all telling stories and the two best things society can do for artists are to make us feel heard, and to financially support so that we can keep doing our art.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
It sounds so cliche, but impacting others. My goal as an artist has always been, to make others feel less alone. One of the best feelings in the world is being able to make someone laugh after they’ve had a bad day.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.nikki-maccallum.com
- Instagram: @nikkimacncheese
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nikkimacncheese
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikkimaccallum
- Twitter: @Nikkimacncheese
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7sPUCiy6OtMl8bI6CLP_koK2v1QxyovL
Image Credits
Mindy Tucker (photographed my initial headshot with the keyboard and mustard background, and the headshot of me in the studded denim jacket)