We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nessa Amherst. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nessa below.

Nessa, appreciate you joining us today. One of the toughest things about progressing in your creative career is that there are almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?

I joined the Actors Equity Association in November 2022 through the Open Access program, which allows actors to show proof of working professionally to join the union. I joined after working on an Equity contract as an understudy, and I was over the moon to join!

I didn’t count on how my work dried up after consistently working as a non-union actor and all the growing pains of joining the union. It significantly doesn’t help when you see your fellow actors seemingly thriving with getting roles or opportunities that I’ve always wanted to be a part of, but now I can’t since I’m a union member.

Even though you’re known in the community for your work and the shows you’ve done over the years, you’re virtually unknown to the Equity theater houses, and you have to start from the bottom and work your way up to getting roles. Getting your foot in the door takes a LOT of auditions, submissions, and networking, and that’s not always easy, even without a global pandemic fouling things up. And there’s figuring out what showcases your talents on your resume to get you noticed. As an actor who did a lot of virtual theatre during the pandemic, I’m receiving many conflicting messages about whether or not virtual theatre is real theatre in the eyes of the industry. Some say no, others say yes. It’s so confusing! And then there’s wondering if you’ve just made the biggest mistake of your life by joining the union too soon, and your career is over, and you can never get work again…

Plenty of growing pains come with being a new member of Actors Equity, and it eats at your self-confidence. Not to mention playing the comparison game against yourself and basing your success on how well everyone else seems to be doing. That’s the worst! But the one thing I’ve discovered is how important reaching out to fellow actors and being vulnerable about your journey can make a difference. You may never know who’s seeing your journey and how much your authenticity means to someone who may also be struggling like you are.

Another big problem many of us in the theatre industry are dealing with is how to regain our footing after being shuttered for over two years. We’ve seen many prestigious organizations and companies making promises for change that benefit everyone. However, we’re still seeing so much of the same status quo and power in place for a paycheck. While I agree that the theatre is still a business, there is still so much work to be done to make the arts more accessible for everyone, and that includes making sure diverse voices are in the room and onstage, and not just for the sake of saying that the organization and company are diverse like it says in their mission. There’s no harm in taking risks, doing something out of the box, and inviting new people into the room, including consistently using new talent and trusting in their capabilities to carry a show successfully. Not everything has to rely on the number of zeros on a check or the dollar signs to deem a show or a season successful!

I hope that as an actor and a writer, I can continue to find ways to use my voice to highlight these issues in a way that informs, encourages, and inspires change in an industry that needs an overhaul to work for ALL voices, not just the louder ones in the room.

Nessa, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I grew up in an abusive household, where my father and older mentally, emotionally, and physically abused me for much of my life. I didn’t have a safe outlet for my feelings and being away from the pain. Even as I was singing in my church and choirs, they didn’t bring me as much joy as I thought they would because I saw it as a duty to sing to please others and not get myself pleasure. I officially got the acting bug in sixth grade after I transferred schools when my mom found an opportunity for me to be in the children’s chorus of a local high school production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

The experience was a game-changer for me: I got to rehearse with other talented kids, learn about tech week, and perform in front of an audience. It was an exciting time when I felt so free and alive onstage, and that’s when I knew I couldn’t see myself doing anything else but acting.

Over 20 years later, and many ups and downs, bumps in the road, growing pains, lessons learned, and everything included, I’m a professional actor and writer in the Washington, DC, area. I do primarily theatre, but I’ve also done some film and voiceover. Some organizations I’ve had the chance to perform with over the years include the Kennedy Center, 1st Stage, Rorschach Theatre, A Theater in the Dark, Sweet Tea Shakespeare, JaYo Théâtre, Barefoot Shakespeare Company, and Transformation Theatre.

One of my proudest moments happened last June when I made my NYC acting debut with National Queer Theater in their Criminal Queerness Festival, and I got to perform at the Lincoln Center. Who’d think that I’d make an NYC debut like that?! It’s a moment I will treasure, and I’m excited to see where opportunities like that will lead me. I hope to continue to make a splash in NYC, the DC/MD/VA region, and beyond.

Another thing about me that’s so important is that I enjoy writing, and I have a blog on my website (www.nessaamherst.com) that has my reflections on life, my career, and the things that make us who we are. I have three rules for my posts: be kind, be transparent, and be sincere. I can’t guarantee I will follow all three rules for my posts, but you can bet they will be present in some shape or form! Some topics I like to write about are the ups and downs of my acting journey, my love of Disney films, and how we are all connected as human beings.

An original monologue I wrote called Define “Black” is now published in an anthology called 08:46: Fresh Perspectives, and it’s one of over 90 monologues that describes being black in these current times in the United States. I appreciated how this monologue is not a monolith of being black. I hope people understand that being individual black matters and not always following the crowd or how society often stereotypes us out of fear, hate, and anger. You can find this fantastic anthology on Amazon to purchase.

I hope that my acting career and writings make a difference in this industry, especially with the craving for authenticity from artists whose voices aren’t always heard in the din.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

One of the things I love the best about live theatre is the audience – how they respond (or not respond) gives us the energy to bring the best performance night after night, and it’s not always the same. That sounds like madness, but trust me, it’s excellent!

The times when I finish a performance and come out to greet the audience and hear them say encouraging things like “You were fantastic” or “Your story moved me” is a reward in itself. Actors don’t get enough encouragement and support in this industry, and it truly takes a village to put a show together, both onstage and behind the scenes. Not seeing or hearing from others tell you that what you performed or wrote impacted them positively or changed their perspective can be depressing at times.

I find it incredibly heartwarming when a performance truly moves an audience member, and they’re not just saying it because it’s what’s expected. Something we’ve done onstage moved them, struck a nerve, or even made their day much brighter. Theatre has the power to show us how valuable empathy can be, even if we’ve nothing in common with one another.

What makes the praise and appreciation all the better? When your family and friends are just as moved and overjoyed by your performance, and how much of a difference it made in their lives by showing them how much joy being an actor and writer can be. You can’t go through life without a support system!

Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?

Being an actor and a writer is a mental and emotional challenge you experience regularly, in more ways than you realize.

We get to bare ourselves to the people we hope to work with on a project in auditions and callbacks, whether we know them very well or if they’re total strangers. And 99% of the time, we get rejected on projects we believe are right for (or not necessarily suitable for). The constant string of rejections has a way of getting into your head and heart, no matter how strong you think you are.

We often get asked by our loved ones or total strangers if we’re currently working on a project, if they’ve seen you in something they are well aware of lately, or even if you’ve thought of a plan B in case this career doesn’t work out. This also harms your mental and emotional health, almost to the point where you get tired of repeating yourself and believing you’re disappointing others by not being where you want to be so that they can proudly brag about their famous actor child making it big and being successful.

We often wonder if we’ve made the biggest mistake of our lives by pursuing a demanding profession – whether that’s in auditioning, the long rehearsals, time away from loved ones, joining the union, or even where we live – and how much it can potentially damage relationships from people who may never understand why being an actor matters, especially in this day and age.

We go through plenty of dry spells that lead to a lot of doubt and anger, and we look for anything or anyone other than ourselves to blame to have an excuse to keep going. Or, at times, we struggle with so many back-to-back-to-back rejections in a row it causes us to reach a breaking point and wonder why we bother trying when all we’re going to get is no. And it gets worse when a flood of other bad things comes our way – a family emergency, losing loved ones, being terminated from your day job, or other disappointments that seem too much to handle.

We struggle with maintaining positivity in our career when we see others thriving, even going faster than we are, and wonder if we’ll ever reach that level of success or get the things they have or why we didn’t get what they have.

But the worst part about this profession?

Your loved ones, those who support you the most, may not always be there to see you shine at your brightest on stage or when you’re struggling to get a single audition. And when more important things, like an engagement, wedding, graduation, birth announcement, new job, or something else take precedence, you feel more alone than ever and unsure if your profession as an actor matters in the grand scheme.

Every time I hit rock bottom, the sting of rejection hurts a little bit more. And I thought having a full suit of armor would protect me from all of the pain and negativity, but it only showed me that I’m susceptible and feel deeply. And it can have a powerful impact on your mental and emotional health. Being an actor is not easy – you must consistently work on ways to take care of yourself and ensure you’re not drowning in the comparison game or staying on the ground forever.

Sometimes when you’re hurting the most, all of the encouragement in the world may not always be the answer, especially when you’ve been banking on a project to work out for you. And there’s shame in not being okay – you’re expected to bounce back quickly and keep going. It doesn’t always work that way, especially for us sensitive folk! We should be allowed to feel all the emotions, be okay with not being okay, and admit that we’re struggling mentally and emotionally as actors.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.nessaamherst.com
• Instagram: @nessaamherst
• Other: 08:46: Fresh Perspectives purchase link: https://www.amazon.com/Perspectives-New-World-Theatre-Publishing/dp/B095G5JYL3/ref=sr_1_1?crid=PC9VINM37RLO&keywords=08%3A46+fresh+perspectives&qid=1686456311&sprefix=08+46+fresh+perspectives%2Caps%2C84&sr=8-1

Image Credits
Matt Simpkins, Sachyn Mital, Ryan Maxwell