Not unlike many casting directors, I started my professional life in the industry as an actor, first on stage, professionally, and then in Television and Film. Those experiences have informed how I approach my work as a casting director, teacher and audition coach.
After attending Arizona State University on an acting scholarship, I furthered my training at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in Pasadena, and previous to moving to Los Angeles, I traveled the country as a regional actor, working with notable theatre companies including The Seattle Rep, ACT, Seattle Children’s Theatre, The California Shakespeare Festival and The Arizona Theatre Company. At the time, I didn’t have an overwhelming desire to move to LA, as many of my fellow actors did. I wanted to build my career as an actor in the theatre first, which is why, to this day, I have such respect and affection for actors who trained for the theatre and worked in Regional Houses all over the country. Some of the finest actors I ever worked with were unsung and underpaid but incredibly talented stage actors. We did it not for the money, but because we loved what we did. It was really that simple. But it was when I moved to Los Angeles, became a member of Theater West, and studied with the with the celebrated Casting Director, author and acting coach Michael Shurtleff, that I gained new admiration and respect for film and television acting and it’s very different approach to the audition process. It was in Michael’s class that I grew to trust my work not only as an actor, but also as an “auditioner” for film and television. It was also at that time that I gained a true appreciation and respect for the Art of Casting, which, at the time, I knew very little about. I had directed theatre and loved the collaborative interaction between actor and director and so, over time , without too much kicking and screaming, the ground eventually shifted under my feet, (infamous Southern California earthquakes notwithstanding) and I found myself firmly planted in a brave new world in which I could combine my love for directing, acting and actors by fully embracing a completely new, yet somehow familiar profession; that of a casting director.
It is with 20 years in the casting profession, working with most of the major studios and networks on numerous television series and features, most recently with MGM as in house casting director and executive, that I seek to share my insights, experiences and unique knowledge of the acting and casting professional so that I can help actors in their journey to fully realize the great potential that is within the grasp of any true aspiring artist.
