About Me
I started life as a piece of candy.
To be more precise, I started my life onstage as a Bon-Bon in a Pittsburgh Youth Ballet production of “The Nutcracker.” I loved it — the costumes, the lights, the giggles backstage (and the treats that Mother Ginger bribed us with every night). From Ballet, and with a little encouragement from my teacher who tried to explain I couldn’t sing through our warm-ups, I moved to musical theater. My love for the stage grew exponentially. Winter Holidays were soon filled with rehearsals for “A Christmas Carol” and “White Christmas.” I learned my time steps and paradiddles in tap, my battements and piqué turns in ballet, and serenaded my mother on our car rides to school with every show tune and Lady Gaga hit I had memorized.
When I was 8 years old, my mother entered me into a Shakespeare Monologue and Scene Contest. She handed me one of Rosalind’s monologues from As You Like It and we got to work. From that moment, I was hooked. In middle school, my acting coach at the time gave me one of Paulina’s biting monologues from The Winter’s Tale and I discovered how a speech written four centuries earlier could speak to my passions and concerns. It was the first time I remember completely diving into a text and falling in love with the story I was telling. Years later during my college auditions, I revisited my favorite monologue. It not only transformed me into the actor I am today, but took me from my home in Western Pennsylvania all the way to Sunny Los Angeles, where I was able to grow even more.
Since moving to L.A., I have had the amazing opportunity to expand my knowledge artistically while becoming involved in the lively community around me. At CalArts, I’ve been able to take classes in movement and acting styles I had never even heard of before. I have been presented with challenges to overcome, techniques that have enhanced my ability to perform, and lessons that will stay with me for the rest of my life. With CalArts’ emphasis on experimental creation, I have been able to implement new elements to my work that would have been completely foreign to me. My love for what I do continues to grow and multiply with each day, adapting and expanding as I am able to build my artistic community.
When I’m not transcribing my text into IPA, breaking down a scene, or in rehearsal, I find myself winding down by reconnecting to my roots. On any given Sunday in the fall, you can find me promptly placed in front of my TV with a plate full of Mrs. T’s Cheddar Pierogies, terrible towel in hand, as I sing the chorus of Styx’s “Renegade” while watching the Pittsburgh Steelers dominate the AFC North. Outside of football season, I spend my nights with my orange tabby, Heathcliff, watching reruns of Game of Thrones, RuPaul’s Drag Race, House of the Dragon, Arrested Development, or The L Word. On weekends, you can find me searching for my next vinyl or thrifted piece with a large iced oat milk latte in hand.
I believe in collaboration, creativity, and critical attention to any given text. I believe in the ability to create art freely amongst a community of like-minded people. Art and creativity know no bounds and have no limits. I look forward to being able to create together.