Hey beautiful people! It’s your girl, Alyssa 🙂
If you know me from the pre-college part of my life, you are probably shocked that I have chosen to pursue acting. I will not lie, I was at first too!
Growing up, I always had an active imagination. Constantly getting lost in daydreaming or playing pretend. I would watch Disney Channel and think to myself, I wish I could do that. However, I quickly remembered that I was terrified of talking in front of people.
Fast forward to my Junior year of high school. My home dance studio’s annual recital was quickly approaching. I was in the senior company at the time with four other girls.
One day, during our voice class, we were informed to begin preparing to become the lead characters in the upcoming show, Toy Box.
Now, all of us had been trained as dancers, but very few of us had little, if any, acting experience.
During this process, I felt all of the emotions; I am so excited! What if I forget my line? This is going to be so fun! I think I am going to be sick. That was EXHILARATING! Shoot! That is my cue! Can we do it again?
But most importantly, it gave me the confidence to go further.
Not too long after, I auditioned and was signed with South West Model and Talent Agency in Phoenix, AZ. Through my training there, I gained knowledge and experience of both the acting and modeling worlds.
After I graduated from the classes, I was asked to audition for a group to compete at a talent convention called the International Model and Talent Association (IMTA) in Los Angeles. And by the grace of God, I made it!
The next six months involved lots of training, memorizing lines, and getting prepared for the event that I knew could potentially change my life forever.
At IMTA, I met many very talented people, and most had much more experience than I did. A little discouraged, I decided that all I could do was my best. I prayed to God to show me a sign if acting was truly what I was meant to be doing.
I walked in late to David Vando’s, The 3 P’s of Auditioning seminar. I decided to sit in the back, not drawing any attention to myself or being a distraction. When he was done, he proceeded to ask if anybody would like to perform their monologue for him, and to my surprise, my hand shot up!
God must have been in the room that day. Out of all the talent in there, he called on me. First!
Working with David fueled my passion for acting and gave me the confidence I needed to keep moving forward.
Later that day, I was at his booth where he was selling books and shirts. He looked at me and instantaneously remembered me from the seminar and asked, “Are you here to audition for the scholarship?” and without thinking, I confidently replied, “Yes!”.
I completely freaked out internally because this guy does SHAKESPEARE. How was I supposed to go to his acting school when I could barely even read a page from Romeo and Juliet out loud in my freshman year English class?
Finally, I auditioned and was awarded a $10,000/year scholarship to the New York Film Academy. That was my sign.
Since then, I have completed the 2 Year Acting for Film Conservatory program at the New York Film Academy in New York City. While I was there, I met the most incredible and inspiring people. Some were hard on me, some nurtured me, but all have molded me into the actor I am today. For that, I am forever grateful.
