alacartoona

Erin McGrane: Actress

The actress recently appeared in “Up in the Air,” a film that has generated tons of award-season buzz since its December release.

Her screen time totaled, oh, approximately 40 seconds, but her role as George Clooney’s former flame is nothing short of enviable.

“The hardest acting I’ve ever done was turning him down onscreen,” said McGrane, who stars in the Web series parody “Unreal Housewives of Kansas City” (on unrealhousewivesofkc.com) and who fronts cabaret band Alacartoona.

Yeah, yeah. More about Clooney, please?

“George is like he seems — gracious, funny, warm and drop-dead handsome,” she said. “What I found surprising is that he’s even funnier than you think. He clowns a lot and makes faces and had the whole set in stitches.”

So, what’s next for this high-riding heroine?

Another season of “Unreal Housewives,” a starring role in horror film “Nailbiter,” and a new stage show with her bandmates of Alacartoona.

“I’m challenging myself this year to stretch in terms of the types of projects I do and in my technical abilities.”

Home: I live in a house in the Brookside/Waldo area.

Pets: Nick and Nora are my sweetie cats, but I currently care for an elderly cat named Asia.

People: The KC artistic community is simply amazing. The talent pool is as deep as it is wide, and I am constantly impressed by the great people who choose to live and create here and the work they generate. As a cross-discipline performer, I love to collaborate with different artists, and creating new work here is about as good as it gets.

Organizations: SAG and AFTRA acting unions … but for fun, I love my girls group. We started out as a book club, but we decided to ditch that pretty quickly and just get together when we can. We don’t do it as often as we should — that’s for sure.

Gadget: I like my iPod and my little workhorse of a laptop.

Restaurant: There are so many great places to eat here that I love — from the first-class cuisine of Bluestem to wonderfully unique gems like Le Fou Frog and Domo, to neighborhood joints like Rudy’s Tenampa Taqueria and Waldo Pizza.There’s never any shortage of good food in KC.

Drink: Extra foamy 2 percent latte, not too hot, please.

Snack: Chocolate. Really, anything with sugar. I’m kind of a sugar hound.

Food: My favorite winter comfort foods are macaroni and cheese or pot roast with all the trimmings.

Athlete: Marcus Allen always seemed like a real gentleman.

Actor: Right now? George Clooney! Also I really love Ed Norton and Kevin Spacey. Favorite sassy actress: Myrna Loy.

Book: For a long time it was Siddhartha by Herman Hesse. I also really enjoy Tom Robbins, especially Even Cowgirls Get the Blues.

Video game: I just discovered “Rock Band,” and I’m now officially addicted.

Movie: It’s too hard to pick just one favorite movie, but I never tire of the classic “Thin Man” series from the 1930s.

Scent: A musky essential oil that I get from Temple Slug or Phoenix Herb Co.

Designer: Right now I’m completely in love with Sue Wong. However, I’ve been fortunate to have several local designers design dresses for me to wear as Ruby Falls in Alacartoona — props to Christel Highland of Pistol Threads, Laura McGrew of Tomboy Design, and De De Deville.

Shoes: Doc Marten 20-eyelet black leather lace-up boots.

Who cuts your hair? Ryon at Mood Swings salon in the Crossroads. She’s so talented!

Shampoo: Whatever is in my shower and was probably on sale.

Accessory: I was given two new pairs of earrings for Christmas from a friend who is way more style-savvy than me, and I love both of them.

Exercise: Dancing with friends to a hot band.

Albums: Joni Mitchell’s Blue and the Split Enz’s Time and Tide come to mind. Right now I’m listening to Sondre Lerche’s Faces Down.

Phoning or texting? No question: Texting for sure.

Facebook or Twitter? Facebook. I don’t Twitter. … I don’t think I could keep up.

Quote: “From this hour I ordain myself loos’d of limits and imaginary lines.” — Walt Whitman.

Vacation spot: Next on my vacation wish list is Prague and Budapest.

Motto: My motto is based on something my mom told me before she passed away: “Life is short — live it now. Don’t wait to do the things that make you happy, and stop doing things that don’t.” Live now — find joy!

link to article:

http://www.inkkc.com/node/16653