INSIDE ADLR WITH 'token gringa' LAURA L. WATSON

Today we spend time getting to know our token 'gringa', Laura L. Watson, who is a familiar face to the Rose Marine theatre having been seen onstage recently in the American Classics production of A View From The Bridge. Laura interestingly enough is playing a Christian missionary in The Fifth Sun and has actually in her own life been a missionary! Hear her fascinating story!

Production Name:     The Fifth Sun

Actor’s Name :           Laura L. Watson

Character Name:      Anne Dunn, the nun

·       Born & Raised:   I was born in Oklahoma City and raised in Southwest Fort Worth. I consider myself a Texan because I was just a few weeks old when I got here. I learned to walk and talk here, so I’m a Texan.

·       Education:  I graduated from Southwest High School here in Fort Worth, then went to the University of North Texas in Denton, and after spending several years overseas, I came back and spent a summer at Circle in the Square Conservatory in NYC. I recently signed up to study online with Coursera classes (www.coursera.org). I continue my acting training with Arthur Morton as my private acting and voice coach, Don Shook acting/scene study, and classical singing with SallyPage Stuck.

·       Degree: I hold B.A.s in History, Theater and Journalism from the University of North Texas.

·       Zodiac Sign: I don’t know. Oct. 2

·       Any Siblings: I have one biological sister, and I was “adopted” while living overseas, so I have 3 brothers in China, and one brother and one sister in Romania.

·       Audition Song:  I sing “Down in the Valley”, a folk song, for most of my auditions that request a song. It’s the lullaby my Daddy sings to me. Other selections include “Don’t You Know God’s Always Loved You”, “Let’s Misbehave”, “Moonglow”, and “On My Own”. I rarely audition for musicals.

·       Audition Monologue: I have 15 monologues I can use at any time, but my favorite go to one is Billie from Women of Manhattan by John Patrick Shanley “I want to be in a movie.”

·       First Play/Musical You Ever Saw:   I vaguely remember seeing the Wizard of Oz at Casa Manana when I was about 4. The roof of the house flew above me, and I’ve been sold on live theater ever since.

·       Something you’re REALLY bad at: Punctuality. But I ALWAYS call, text, or email so you don’t wonder where I am. And yes, I’m working on it.

·       Did you have any particular mentors or inspirations when first starting out? My sister Brittney who said “Just do it already!” and then drove me to my first audition when I was 26 years old.

·       Must See TV Show:  I currently watch Criminal Minds every day on ION. I stayed up until 3 and 4 in the morning every night of the Olympics. But, without a doubt, if I could only have one TV series to watch ever, it would be Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

·       Why you work in theatre:  I want to tell stories worth telling well in a way that glorifies God and makes a difference in the world. I strongly believe in theater for social, political, and spiritual change.

·       First Role:  I was the fourth Baby Bumble Bee in the Kindergarden recital, then Helen Keller in Miracle Worker in my 4^th Grade class play, and my first professional gig was as Lampito in Lysistrata with Fight Boy Theater in Denton, Texas.

·       Favorite Play:  Oh geez…

·       Pop Culture Guilty Pleasure:  My pop culture guilty pleasure is Facebook.

·       Favorite sport/team/player: I have three sports I follow religiously (and I follow EVERYTHING during the Olympic Games. Been an Olympic junkie since 1996.) Figure Skating- Michelle Kwan. Baseball-Nolan Ryan Gymnastics- Kerri Strug (the girl who landed on one foot after tearing her achilles tendon on the first vault to win gold in 1996.)

·       First Stage Kiss:  The first kiss in front of other people (not during a game of truth or dare) was in scene study class at UNT. I kissed Lamar Brown as Hal in a scene from Proof. He tasted like cherry lip gloss. I am, to this date, the only girl he has ever kissed. He just leaned over my shoulder and said “Or will ever.”  The first time I was paid to kiss someone else I kissed Rey Torres as Juanito in 24 Hours of Love at MBS Productions.

·       Pre Show Rituals:  I do an extensive one hour physical and vocal warm up before most other people arrive, and then I spend about 30 minutes on hair and makeup. I put my costume on during the curtain speech because that last minute RUSH to finish gets me all excited.

·       Special Skills: My special skills are I speak 5 languages, I do a variety of voices and accents, and I am willing to learn ANYTHING. (Very, very sad I have to wait until November to go to circus school like the Mayan gods did. I mean- CIRCUS SCHOOL!)

·       MAC or PC: PC.

·       "I'll never understand why…" : I’ll never understand why people get on the toll roads, whose speed limit is 70, and drive less than 70. We are PAYING for the PRIVILEDGE of driving faster. MOVE.

·       Any Theatre Superstitions:  No superstitions, but if I know someone has a superstition, I try to honor it. (Break a leg, no reviews in the theater, calling it the Scottish play, etc.) I will say that I never read a review until the show closes, which is more about keeping my focus on my director’s wishes than a superstition.

·       Worst Costume Ever: Worse costume ever? One word: corset.

·       Favorite Post Show Meal:  CUPCAKES. I must eat cake after a show.

·       Favorite liquid refreshment (adult or other): Dublin Doctor Pepper made with real sugar cane and/or Jamba Juice peach pleasure smoothie with added blueberries. I’ve been known to drink a Cape Cod now and then. I can also put away flavored Smirnof at an impressive rate.

·       Favorite ice cream : Cookies and Cream Ice Cream from Braum’s or Blue Bell. If I must, I’ll settle for a Butterfinger Blizzard from DQ.

·       Biggest On Stage Mishap:  Once, during some fight choreography in a rather violent scene, my wig came off. Not the greatest story, but I felt like I had ruined the scene. Best stage mishap I’ve ever seen- they were doing a version of Romeo and Juliet in college, and as the leads touched swords, one of the swords randomly shattered all over the stage. (There was an imperfection in the metal and the sword crumbled.) All the actors and the audience froze, until the actor whose sword had shattered turned to the guard standing next to him and said, “My good man, wilst thou lend me your sword?”

·       Worst job you ever had: The hardest job I ever had was teaching Spanish-speaking Special Ed (special needs students newly arrived from Mexico) in a Title One Elementary School. 

·       Last Good Movie You Saw: I don’t make it to the movies very often…

·       How you got your Equity card: I will get my Equity card with hard work and a move to NYC!

·       Something you are incredibly proud of: I am super proud of the fact that I can pay my bills doing the work I love most.

·       Words of advice for aspiring performers: My advice to aspiring performers is shut up and learn from your teachers, don’t EVER quit, and if you want it as a job, then treat it as a job and not as a hobby.

·       Career you would want if not a performer: Well, my dream since I was a child is to be an Olympian, and I’m working as an actor to support this dream. (Sport is still to be determined- I just want to be in the Olympics.) I also work as a writer, Director, author, swim teacher, and missionary.

·       Three things you can't live without: Three things I can’t live without are hot showers, chocolate, and Facebook. And 8-10 hours of sleep every night.

·       Best way to beat the North Texas Heat : The only way to survive a Texas summer is to do the hokie pokie in the swimming pool to the delight of the children and adults around you. (I teach swim lessons every summer because it gives me joy.  If I am ever able, I would gladly offer them free of charge, but until then, I keep my prices reasonable!)

·       Best thing about Fort Worth & the North Side:  The best thing about Fort Worth is that we’re NOT Dallas! Seriously, though, we have the best culture, the friendliest people, and way better traffic. I’ve lived all over the world, and I have CHOSEN to live in Fort Worth, Texas, so believe me when I say it’s the best city in the world.