| An Actor’s Success Story |
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| Written by Julie Garson | |||||
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Or, How I Learned to Give Up on Live Theatre and Embrace Television If I had to define myself in the simplest possible terms, I would say, I am an actor and I am an observant Jew. As with any conflicting identities, reconciling the two can be extremely difficult. This story ends happily; about a month ago when I was hired for my first professional acting job. But the story, and the struggle begin about a decade into my past, and one state to the north. Despite years of acting and being cast in such varying roles as Vashti, Tziporah and Angel #2, I did not begin to take acting seriously until middle school when I started studying theatre at McCarter Theatre in Princeton, New Jersey. Like most children my age, I was going through the typical middle school transitions, one of which was coming to realize what was important to me, what was more than a hobby, and what I might want to pursue or years to come. I had it all figured out; I wanted to be a Shakespearean actor and an astronaut. My parents, being their rational selves wanted me to continue with my Jewish education. Practically a Jewish school was my only option because I was Shomer Shabbat and would not want to participate in a school theatre program that would include performances on Shabbat. We settled on Akiba Hebrew Academy, left Princeton, New Jersey behind and moved to Merion, Pennsylvania. At Akiba, I sang and danced my way through four musicals. I teetered on three inch heels and survived a French maid costume. I co-chaired drama club and chaired Shakespeare club. Like most kids my age, I did not realize how lucky I was. My providence continued in college at the University of Pennsylvania where there was already a well-established Jewish theatre group, the redundantly named Teatron Jewish Theatre. I wanted more opportunities but each time I auditioned the casting director would ask if there was anyway I would consider performing on the Sabbath. Each time I said no, and each time I was not cast. Teatron was my only option for a successful combination of theater and observant Judaism and thus I devoted myself entirely to it. Actors and other theatre folk often talk about working in service of the theatre gods. I wanted to be an actor but continue to serve my own G-d. As I became more involved, I began to see that Jewish theatre could be a way to communicate about important issues both Jewish and secular and that playwrights such as Neil Simon and Israel Horowitz excelled at doing so while still writing brilliant comedy. During my senior year Teatron selected “The Diary of Anne Frank,” and I was cast as Margot Frank. Tackling a real piece of Jewish history combined with the responsibility one feels in representing real people made the show an interesting and important challenge and I was proud for it to be my final show with Teatron. Still, part of growing up means making difficult decisions. After graduating I was no longer in a Jewish haven, and acting opportunities were rarer and much more competitive. Though I searched, I never found a Jewish theater group that suited my needs. They say for good reason that when one door closes, another opens, which is how I went from being a struggling actor, to the Oval Office. I was hired for one day, one glorious day, as a background actor on The West Wing, my favorite television show. Playing a teacher watching kids on the playground may not have been my most challenging role. But I could not have felt prouder when I signed my one day contract. I had succeeded in becoming a professional actor, if only for a day, I’d learned to take opportunities as they came, and I learned that with some sacrifices, it is possible to work hard as an actor, but to do it only six days a week.
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