Job: Actor
Education: BFA in acting from Marymount Manhattan College in New York.
Current Work: I'm performing with Theatre Pro Rata in "Marisol" and I'm in rehearsal for a show with Hardcover Theater. The shows are for small stipends. And I'm a preschool teacher at a synagogue in Minneapolis. That's the job I use to pay the bills.
How did you first get into acting? My brother auditioned for a play at the local children's theater when I was about 8 or 9 years old, and that was the first time I ever auditioned for anything. Before that, I would make my family watch me in the living room while I did shows for them. It's always sort of been there, but it was finally channeled into something productive when I was about 9 years old. I've just always been into it and always loved it. It's one of the only things I know how to do and it feels good. It speaks to my soul, that's the most rewarding thing about it.
How did you come to Minnesota? I went to school in New York and I wanted to be a small fish in a smaller pond to begin my career. I wanted to find a smaller market to build up my résumé and get some experience under my belt. My uncle lives here and mentioned how prolific theater is around this area, and he was totally right. I've been working consistently since I got here, so I've been doing a lot more than my friends starting out in New York.
What's your favorite thing about acting? The exploration of a world that isn't mine, being a part of a different experience that I don't live day-to-day. "Marisol" is an apocalyptic world, so that's a totally different experience than my life. It's like getting to know another person, getting to know your character.
What's unique about you as an actor and what are some of your strengths? I think the biggest thing that's going for me with the million other people who are trying to make it as an actor is that I have a trump card. It's what we call "soft ethnic" in the business. I have olive skin tone and dark features. In this region, I stand out in an audition.
The character who I play now is Puerto Rican, and in the next show I will be playing an Egyptian queen. When I first got here I was playing four or five different Muslim women and I also played Mother Teresa. I can play a range of different ethnicities and pull it off with the way I look.
What's hard about your job? It's not a stable job. You have to live and fly by the seat of your pants. I've got until February scheduled out somewhat. And from then on, what's next? I have no idea.
HILARY BRUECK
