It has always been my
belief that if you want something badly enough, you go for it. Such is
the case with acting. Once it’s in your system, it’s like a virus - it
never leaves you. It may remain dormant at times, but once it kicks in
there’s no known antidote.
My first appearance
onstage was for a local PTA meeting at the Cunniff School in Watertown,
MA. I was 7 years old, and trying to sing the National Anthem with my
brother. He decided to let me know I was a bit off-key by landing a
healthy shot in my ribs with his elbow. That didn’t go over too well
with my mother. He may have had perfect pitch, but I suffered a sore
rib.
Many years later, I
studied voice at the Berklee School of Music in Boston under the
tutelage of the eccentric (but wonderful) Leonard Lane, with stops at
Northeastern University and the Actors Workshop along the way. I fell
in love with the stage at the tender age of fifteen. I had saved up my
pennies to attend a new musical, Georgy, based on the film, Georgy
Girl. As I sat in the balcony, I felt a rush of excitement as the
lights dimmed and the orchestra began to play. It was when I saw all
those actors strut their stuff across the stage, I knew that theatre
was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life.
Suddenly, I
was off and running to auditions and trying to do as many shows as I
possibly could. I had the pleasure of acting in such musicals as Mame
(my very first), Anything Goes, Carousel, Oklahoma, Man Of LaMancha,
Baby, and Company, to name a few. I then decided to move from Boston to
New York to fulfill that dream.
To help augment my
acting career, I took a 3-month crash course in radio and television
announcing with the now defunct Center for Media Arts in Manhattan. I
managed to find part-time work on various AM/FM stations in the NY area
as a DJ, and worked in radio sales for at least 7 years. WLIM in
Patchogue was my favorite. It allowed me to showcase my talents as the
producer of my own show, 'The Jazz Session', and to write my own copy.
In 1993, I decided to
take a long sabbatical from the theatre - ten years to be exact. I had
since moved back to Boston to find employment, and it was only when I
answered a newspaper ad in the fall of 2003 to attend an open call for
the movie Mystic River, that I realized how much I had missed acting. I
decided then and there to pursue my dream once again. Since then, I
have continued to work in independent and feature films as much as
possible, doing voiceovers and singing gigs as they come along. In this
business, you never know what opportunity will come up next!
My favorite
quote; 'If you plan to reach for the stars - start by standing on the
roof'!
