1. You seem like such a confident person. Were you always this way? Is there anything that you do in times of insecurities to help boost your confidence?

Well I was def. shy in high school growing up, silly but shy. I think when i moved to New York and gained my confidence. I became a people person and I knew how to get people to like me. Its the hustle in New York that made my like that. And some things that help me stay confident and motivated are having few amazing friends that believe in me no matter what, having my goals written out and pasted on my fridge that I see everyday, and when I have an amazing audition for a role and I don’t get it that motivates me to go even harder for the next one.

2. Now that you are a star, do you find dating difficult? What has changed from before to now?

Well dating is always difficult in New York haha, everyone seems to be busy with something. But now it hasn’t changed too much, other than I get asked all kinds of questions on social media lol.

3. What has working with Lee Daniels been like? What about Queen Latifah?

Man I could write a book on how amazing that opportunity was. Lee is amazing and I thank him for this opportunity and he knows what he wants and will def pick up the phone and tell you want he wants which is great. Queen is still amazing still down to earth, speaks to every and anyone on set. She is just like an angel to work with very giving as an actor and person on and off set.

4. You are fairly new to acting and started off with a bang as far as what you have booked, how does that feel?

Well truthfully its an amazing feeling and I’m very fortunate, but its also scary because now I have to put out work on future projects that is even better. So I always have to outdo myself and never stay stagnant. So growth in my acting is what Im focused on now for my next role so I’m ready.

5. What is some advice you would give to other actors beginning their careers in America today?

I wil say study study study, take classes learn as much as you can. You don’t need a degree in acting to be a good actor. No one can teach you how to be emotional you either got it or you don’t. You have to learn how to be honest and thats very hard for actors sometimes, even me. The key is to get good before you get famous. You want to be ready when that phone rings.

6. What are your goals for the future?

Well future goals as of now are, winning that leading role Academy Award, then buying a vacation home in Capetown, South Africa because I love it there. Then making enough money to have my bills paid, help my family out and giving money back in someway.

7. What projects do you have coming out that we can look forward to?

I have two short films that I did with an amazing director Daniel McCabe coming out. One of them stars me and fellow actor Joseph Sikora and he can be seen playing Tommy on Power. He is a beast of an actor and its a really awesome futuristic, dystopian ScyFy movie.

8. We know that you are a photographer, how do you balance that and acting?

Its tough sometimes, but I try to do my photography on the weekend when I’m usually free. And I have amazing friends that love to assist me when I shoot my big editorials and things. But when I’m studying for a role or shooting a show or movie I stop everything to focus on that.

9. Is there a dream acting job or actor you want to work with?

Well any acting job I get is a dream job , you have to think of it that way. And Of couse I love Denzel and Sidney Poitier, but I def would love to share the screen with Denzel.

10. What else do you love to do in your spare time if you are not acting or taking pictures as a photographer?

Well my two hobbies I would say now are I love love watching scary movies like even the really bad or really gory ones. Its like my little dark fantasy I literally make all my friends watch them with me haha. And I also have a thing for recreational softball leagues in New York, I played on about 4 teams this spring and I loved it.

Photographer: Mark Veltman
Actor: Justin Mcmanus @justinmarcelmcmanus
Wardrobe Stylist: Mike Stallings @mikestallingny

Tune Obsessed: Meet Tash, America’s newest music sensation who is Australian born

Tash, aka Tash Palmer is an Australian born singer/songwriter/musician discovered on Instagram by a multi-platinum record producer & songwriter Mark J. Feist  (Celine Dion).  While she may have some from the land of hashtags, comments and likes, Tash comes from a musical family: her mother is a guitar teacher and her father a bass player. With all that music around her, it was only natural that Tash started playing guitar and songwriting at an early age. Tash writes most of her lyric and melodies herself. #obsessed. 

Q: How would you describe your music?
A: I think the best way to describe my music is a cross between pop and RnB with an old school feel.

Q: What made you want to start doing music?
A: Growing up surrounded by a musical family definitely inspired me to start music, in particular my mother. She is a songstress herself and hearing her writing her own music influenced me to do the same.

Q: Your upcoming EP is being released, what are your songs about?
A: Each song has its own story I guess. “Softly”, “Lil Love Song” and “Wise” talk about love / lust and feeling uncertain about relationships. “I Don’t Like Parties” is about wanting to leave a party and be alone with someone, and “Worried” was written about a genuine concern I had for someone I knew who was making a lot of bad decisions.

Q: Where do you find your inspiration to create your music?
A:I get a lot of inspiration from daydreaming. I also find inspiration from the things that people say. I even sometimes write phrases from conversation in my notes when people aren’t looking hahaha.

Q: On your Instagram, it says that you are based in Sydney and LA. What would be something that your LA fans may not know about Sydney?
A: Something they may not know about Sydney is that we don’t all talk in bogan Australian accents and eat shrimp on barbecues. Only some of us do.

Q: Do you think there’s a difference in the music scene between Sydney and Los Angles?
A: There’s definitely a huge difference in the music scene in Sydney.

Q: If so, how do you think it differs?
A: What’s popular and on heavy rotation on the radio stations in LA is far more diverse, urban and rhythmic whilst Sydney (and pretty much everywhere else in Australia) has quite a limited range of genres that get played on radio. We do have a station called triple J though, which plays a lot of indie, underground music. Sometimes I listen to it and end up discovering some really cool things.

Q: What’s your biggest dream as a musician?
A: my biggest aspirations as a musician would be to work and collaborate with other artists, play more shows, tour with other artists and basically sustain a long and successful career as a writer. I wouldn’t want to be doing anything else.

Q: If you could pick any artist in the world to work with, who would it be?
A: I’d love to work with Billie Eilish, and also her brother Finneas. They’re both amazing writers and I look up to them a lot.

Vulkan Magazine asked creator and accomplished choreographer Lindsley Allen about her new show Cherry Boom Boom: American Woman: A Rock n’ Roll a Go-Go. The show is quickly becoming a fan favorite and soon to be nationwide hit! Here is what she had to say!

Vulkan: How did you get the idea and vision for “Cherry Boom Boom”? 
Lindsley Allen: CBB has evolved over the years and continues to evolve with each incarnation but the original vision has always stemmed from bringing my two favorite worlds together dance and theatricality… and of course, set to an unforgettable soundtrack. 

V: On your website you state that “Cherry Boom Boom” isn’t a burlesque show but “Burlesque-inspired,” what would you say is the difference?
LA: CBB is really a live dance theatrical production but it got labeled as “burlesque” because people need to categorize it and it since it has a sexy style to it audiences can relate to the word “burlesque” to describe it.  I say it’s “burlesque-inspired” because it has sensuality at it’s core but it’s so much more, it also includes specialty acts, themes and a theatrical flow to the show. You go on a journey, an experience… it’s immersive in every sense so I guess you could say it’s modern day “burlesque”.

V: How did you go about finding each song for each scene in the show?
LA: The music is everything! It all starts there. It’s tricky because it has to be right for the moment in the journey but it also has to move me from the inside out. 

V: Tell me about the “Boom Boom” effect”?
LA: A Bold Unapologetic Sensual 21st Century Woman 

V: How do you wish to empower other women with “Cherry Boom Boom”?
LA: It’s my best compliment that women love the show, if not as much as men, more so… they leave feeling empowered, celebrated and inspired to embrace themselves and their sensuality. 

V: “Cherry Boom Boom” had its residency on the Las Vegas Strip before starting in Los Angeles, how does the dance scene differ in LA and Las Vegas? 
LA: CBB originated in LA and then we went to Vegas… so I got to bring that LA grit, style and fierceness to the Vegas dance scene (Robin Leach said “Vegas has never seen dance like this before”) and in turn, I was introduced to the most brilliant specialty acts and performances artists…the combination of the two was a like a gold mine for a choreographer/creative director, it was magic!

V: You had the show at Harvelle’s and the Sayers club, is there another venue you’d love to showcase at?
LA: Oh, yes! We definitely have targeted venues for 2019. The venue’s architecture and setting is very important and must support the show. I like keeping the venue intimate and immersive like a “cabaret theaters” but with a cutting edge to them. We are in talks with Faena Theater in Miami and looking venues cities like Nashville, New York and Paris. 

For upcoming shows and updates, please visit www.cherryboomboom.com

At the young age of fourteen-years-old actor, Taj Cross is someone who can capture an audience through his personality and skills that surpass his age. Starring in the upcoming new Hulu original scripted series “PEN15” premiering Friday Feb. 8th Taj plays Sam, a young student going through all the awkward experiences of middle school. Casted as a male lead alongside Pen15’s show leads Maya Erskine (“Insecure”) and Ann Knonkle (“Rosewood”), Taj is sure to stand out in many ways than one!

Vulkan: Tell us about PEN15. What role do you play and what can we expect from the show?
Taj: Pen15 is a show about the two leads, Anna Konkle and Maya Erskine. In real life they’re adults and they play themselves as 13-year-olds, trying to find popularity and trying to fit in and be “cool”. My character is Sam, based off one of the writers, named Sam Zvibleman and he is a lovable, semi D-bag who has a “dork” posse that ends up making some questionable decisions.

Vulkan: Did you get the innuendo of the title when you first saw the script?
Taj: When I first saw it, I actually didn’t understand it. I finally understood it when I was going out for my last audition for it. I was studying my script and I took a look at the lines and peaked at the title and instead of the word PEN15 that I’ve been reading it this whole time, the “P” “E” “N” “1” “5” just formed into the word “penis”. So I’m super confused for five seconds…I was thinking “Did they send me the wrong audition, am I going out for something I don’t know about?” Then I just realized it was just a teenage joke that’s really funny.

Vulkan: Tell us about your favorite scene filming?
Taj: My favorite scene is probably my first day on set. My first day on set was a scene in a car and it was SO HOT outside. After every take, we had to roll down the windows because we were all sweating so much. That was my favorite scene because I got to improv with Maya and Anna and they were just so nice and loving.

Vulkan: Tell us about your worst experience filming?
Taj: I did. It was actually another car scene. We were driving around and the scene itself was so cool. I was holding back from laughing, improvising. The thing that was bad about it was I had to pee SO bad. I was holding it in. I was sitting there so uncomfortably, and I didn’t want to make a fuss to the director. I was hoping “OMG. Please tell me this is the last take, tell me this is the last take so we can turn around”.

Vulkan: What did you like most about being on set?
Taj: The best part about being on set was hanging out with actors and actresses especially Dylan Gage who plays Gabe on the show. He was such a cool person. He was like funny. After every scene, we would just go into our little waiting room and find something to entertain us and we would do that until we went back on.

Vulkan: This is essentially your first role. Did anyone on set give you any pointers.
Taj: I actually did not get any pointers or suggestions. There were just all super welcoming and super nice. I liked how they were very comfortable with me even though it was my first job.

Vulkan: How was it putting yourself in character.
Taj: It was actually really easy. What I did do to prepare for this role: all I had to do was step up my douchiness a little bit and step down my coolness and Sam is born.

Vulkan: Tell us something people may not know about you?
Taj: I recently started painting. I paint whatever comes to my mind. I’m thinking my next painting is going to be a question mark with drips on the side. So very random.

Vulkan: Do you think the show will go into season 2? Is there a cliffhanger or anything we should expect from the end of season 1 that we can look forward to?
Taj: Well I don’t think I can give you a direct spoiler or Hulu would get mad at me. I would get in trouble for that. It is based off of 13-year-olds, most of the people there are 7th graders / 13-year-olds and being once a 13-year-old myself, we usually make a lot of mistakes. A lot of things come up and will just have to see when the show comes out.

Photos courtesy of @muziqfiend

Vulkan Mag was treated with attendance to the Special 20 Year Anniversary of 10 THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU. And while that was in a treat in itself, we were lucky enough to be given access to Samskara: an immersive art exhibit featuring various artworks including that of artist Android Jones. As we were escorted through the art installations, we experienced and viewed great colorful and innovative pieces both equally original as they were intricate in design. A colorful mix of art pieces, sounds, and installations the dome that housed the artwork appealed to all senses, providing a unique experience to all guests.

In another dome, the event housed the special 20th-anniversary screening of the film. Presented by 10TIHAU ultra fan Kory Davis, aka @moviedude18, the screening was followed by a celebrity-filled panel and 90s-themed after party as well as a performance by “Letters by Cleo” members Kay Hanley & Michael Eisenstein. While cast members of the film made the event extra special, the event highlighted and brought awareness to Autism and local charity Bringing Light to Autism.

The Q & A included Larisa Oleynik “Bianca”, Andrew Keegan “Joey Donner”, Joseph-Gordon Levitt “Cameron James,” and while we were expecting to have David Krumholtz attend, he left a video recording for audiences to enjoy. Other panelists included writers Kirsten “Kiwi” Smith, Karen McCullah as well as producers Andrew Lazar and Mark Irwin. It was intriguing listening to the cast reminisce and discuss the fun times at Stadium high and an iconic film that brought together such a great cast that included Julia Stiles, Gabrielle Union, Allison Janney, and the late Heath Ledger.

While we thoroughly enjoyed the screening and tour of the hidden gem in the arts dirstrct, Wisdome is the perfect place for a first date, an inspirational point for the artist at heart or the perfect photo opp for the everday millennial looking for the next Instagram Post.

The venue and all of its domes have become the perfect venue for music performances, film premieres, immersive art experiences are more!

Catch up with all their activities online at https://wisdome.la/ They are open Thursdays – Sunday from 11am.

Denicola Enterprises, along with ScholasTICS Tourette Supporters and Southern California Tourette Association, is putting on their annual Team Up for Tourette’s Red Carpet Brunch & Fundraiser on June 9th. The event will be held at Preux & Proper in Downtown Los Angeles from 12-5PM. The founder of Denicola Enterprises and producer of the event, Devin Denicola, took the time to speak with me about the charity event as well as its beginning.

Devin began with explaining his past with Tourette’s. “I was diagnosed with Tourette’s when I was seven years old. It was fairly new back then. Not many people knew what it was so everything was trial and error with medications, treatments, things like that. I was on over thirty different medications from age seven to age nineteen or twenty. With these medications came many side effects from severe weight gain, seizures, lack of sleep, depression, a whole bunch of things that kids shouldn’t have to go through. After many years of going through everything, I was finally able to find a medication that helped me out. [It] gave me a 180 degree turn in the right direction. Since then, I’ve been focusing on trying to figure out a way that I can help other people with Tourette’s.” He described to me how, considering his history with the condition, he has a clear understanding of not only the experience of someone with Tourette’s, but of the toll it takes on caretakers as well. Denicola kept this in mind when working out the logistics of the event, stating how the day and time of the brunch makes it more accessible to working caretakers.

Denicola stressed the importance of acknowledging Tourette’s as more than how it is typically portrayed. “A lot of people think Tourette’s is just a simple twitch or jerk, but it can be extremely severe. I’ve seen kids that have gone to the emergency room from hitting themselves so hard against the wall or punching the wall and breaking a wrist or actually punching family members because they can’t help it.” For Denicola, the spreading of this acknowledgement is just as important as the funds raised. “The whole goal is not just to raise money for these charities, but awareness. The main goal is to inform and educate.”

During our conversation, Denicola expressed how word of mouth is the best way to spread this information. This being said, we can all do our part to share informed knowledge with others, increasing awareness. In addition, you may also attend the event, or similar ones, to show your support. For tickets to the Red Carpet Brunch & Fundraiser:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/5th-annual-team-up-for-tourettes-red-carpet-brunch-tickets-59875080979

By Mercedes Banwart