Please meet Victoria. She is an extremely busy lady. She is an actress, producer, director and she runs her own theatre company.
We had the chance to chat with her recently. Please check out the Q & A below:
As a child, did you want to be an actor or did it fall into place through other activities?
I was watching all of my favorite TV show characters go on these crazy adventures, and I wanted to do that too. It kind of fell into place that I could imagine myself on these different adventures and others could watch and go along for the ride. I was four or five at the time, and other suggestions always cane by, but this always stuck.
Who inspired you to follow your dream to pursue acting?
I don’t know if there was any one person. There were a lot of books, for sure. I had drama teachers and dance teachers that helped along the way…. The narrator from Joseph and the amazing Technicolor Dream Coat. I saw that when I was about ten and went “yup, I wanna be her.”
What challenges have you faced in the entertainment industry?
Oh god, so many. But that’s part of the journey!
Producing work to make work for yourself, make a name for yourself, then fighting popular opinion that you are a producer instead of a director or actor… currently I am discovering how my ADD affects my work in the studio, and there’s a whole controversy on that– for example, in theatre school we are taught that we have to take as many redirects as possible, especially in an audition. If we ask too many questions on that we are seen as distancing ourselves from the work instead of getting vulnerable, taking risks and jumping in. If I go into an audition and tell them that I can only take one note at a time, I won’t get hired. A lot of people are just learning what that is, and learning how to talk about it. It can get frustrating at times– like, should I be telling potential employers that I work with this as a disability? Or do I wait until after I am hired? Will this prevent me from being hired in my profession? I say this, and there are a lot more people than me dealing with these questions on an even larger degree than I am. I’ve come this far without it. This would certainly help my process, but I already have a boat-load of privilege to be able to talk about it, ask these questions, and not have it recognized right away.
Letting go of control in the studio gets to be a challenge when you have to really assert yourself outside of it, in the real world. That one comes up from time to time.
What has been your most rewarding experience?
Connecting with audiences after a show. Every time. I ran and performed in the Shakespeare-In-Hospitals Program for so long, and you gain so much experience and so many anecdotes and stories that really stand as testament to the impact that your work can have on people. It started with the hospital program, but in so many other shows too– I did a fringe show in 2015 where someone in the audience passed out and we had to stop the show. All three of us made sure that she was taken care of, then we had to pick back up where we left off with twice the energy to keep it going. After the show an audience member came up to me and said that they appreciated how we picked back up and how much we took care of them as an audience.
What is your favourite type of character to play?
Characters with brothers are easy for me. I love my brother so much, and I am so proud of him for everything he has done in his life. You wanna talk about easy access points, any character that has a brother is a piece of cake for me.
I think that playing a lover is also fun and terrifying for me. There’s that freedom to put yourself out there and know that the next scripted moment says it’s accepted, but that doesn’t take the risk away, because if you and your scene partner are really invested, that next scripted moment means nothing compared to what is actually happening on stage or on camera.
What market do you currently work in? Are there other areas you would like to work?
Everywhere. I run a theatre company, I audition, I just finished a web series, I audition…whatever market takes me at whatever point in my life, I go.
What advice would you give to someone new trying to make it in the acting industry?
Oh wow.
Men: be super kind to every artist you meet. If someone opposes your vision, make the time to talk about it, either before set or in rehearsal, just….be very kind. You can still be bold while being kind.
Not Men: there is still a long road ahead. But there is still a lot of opportunity for good Take care of the hurt, and keep your heart open to the future.
What fuels your passion?
I started a theatre company to get myself into the industry. Then everyone knew me as a director. Then everyone knew me as a producer. Then I felt some pressure and push (and still do) to stay there. I didn’t stay there. I won’t.
What is something about you that most people would never guess?
I am super observant. I see a lot more than people realize, which is different from most of the characters I play. And I usually don’t say anything about it for a long time, to give people space, deal with a situation, etc. , But I am finding more and more that it’s better to just say it.
If you were to do it all over again, would you do things exactly the same? Do you have any regrets? Successes that make you proud?
There are definitely some things that I would likely do differently. But also, I look at the path I have taken and know that if anything was altered to “gain more success” or whatever, then I wouldn’t have the confidence or street smarts that I have now, and I certainly wouldn’t be as humble about it. I needed to learn certain lessons to be who I am today and I am ok with that.
I am definitely proud of putting my work out there at 22. I wasn’t ready for a lot, but it started the conversation, and I don’t ever feel like I stopped. Every time I have gone and done something in this industry with the mindset of “I don’t care what they think, it’s not about them” is when I have taken the serious risk and furthered my career. I am trying to push myself towards that more and more.
Upcoming Show:
