Biography

[on "Bonnie Parker" stage play] I realized immediately that if I'm there, they (the audience) will follow. During performances, you can hear a pin drop, dead silence and sometimes I'd wonder if they were sleeping or sneaked out or if they cared. What I found is the audience is into her just as deeply as I am; it's very intense.

Shedding of myself at the beginning of the journey was fearsome, because her journey is so disturbing and terrible. The first time I performed the piece, I was absolutely petrified. What made performing this piece easier was to remind myself it's about Bonnie, tell her story. That belief pushed me way beyond my comfort zones as an actress, and I realized that when all barriers are dropped and there is complete truth to the character, there is no fear of any thing or anyone. It didn't matter if the NY Times Theatre critic was in the audience or a manager or a CBS scout or my mother. I am so into what is going on with my character and her passage I'm not concerned about whether the audience is with me or not.

The frustrations have been performing in a space where the theatre isn't exactly sound proof and I'd find myself competing with a band across the street or choir practice down the hall in a smaller theatre, or at a dinner theatre in a couple of restaurants, the clanging of dishes--things I have no control over. But what I do have control over is myself and my performance, so in these type of situations I'd become more intense and pull the audience in even closer. It was excellent training dealing with these challenges. I've worked with actors that can't handle distractions well and that is not a good thing, you must have that laser-eyed focus and allow nothing to get in your way, not a cough, or talking or music or anything. Take control of the room and keep your wits about you.

The lies. I have sifted through many, many books to find out there are only a few written that were faithful to the truth and tell the story without a personal agenda or media hype.

For me, it's about the overall story: The downward spiral of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. The task ahead, writing a one-woman show and performing it was daunting and very ambitious for any actress. Up to this point, I had never really considered myself a true writer.