Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Adrián Genesius Barrón. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alright, Adrián Genesius thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
I truly realized I wanted to be an actor around 6th grade, when I found out that actors got to skip class during performance weeks, and I wanted nothing more than to get out of math class. But once the novelty of skipping class subsided, and I stepped out on that stage for the first time: with the lights beaming down on me, the audience waiting with baited breath, that’s when I realized that there was no place on Earth I would rather be.
Adrián Genesius, 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 am a proud first generation Chicano (Mexican – American) actor, theatre director, and voice-over artist based out of Burbank.
My acting work has an emphasis in Shakespeare and classical texts, but I have had the good fortune of being in all types of theatrical works, including a recent resurgence of my own personal love for the field of musical theatre, with some film work thrown in as well. Theatre has always been my calling, and the LA theatre community has opened its arms to me, and I am happy to call it home.
As a director, I love working collaboratively on abstract theatre, but welcome the challenge of directing a more styled piece. It was my honor and priviledge to Assistant Direct a production of the musical Zanna Don’t with Conundrum Theatre Company, and I’m currently in the process of co-directing a piece for Hollywood Fringe, and couldn’t be more excited to be able to finally work on this project.
Finally, as a voice-over artist, my passion for voice acting came my love of video games and anime, and thus I want to impart the same feelings, emotions, and stories that shaped my childhood onto the next generation, as I truly believe that voice acting is a wonderful, complex, and profound form of art and deserves its place in the realm of acting.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
My goal and dream is and has always been two-fold: to make a living as a working voice-actor to build up to the true goal of starting my own Shakespeare company that is primarily geared to a Latin audience.
As the child of Mexican immigrants, it is my honor, privilege, and most importantly my responsibility, to bring my cultural heritage to the forefront of everything that I do, especially in my art. I have struggled against the powers that be throughout my artistic journey, as I aim to show that the distinct perspective I bring to the table needs to be shared. My experiences and perspective, while being unique to me, have the potential to allow someone who grew up in a similar set of circumstances to me to see themselves and their own stories reflected and celebrated, whether it be in-person, on-screen, or through other media, like I did when I decided to become an artist. It is also not only those within the creative field that offer resistance: the most pushback I have received in my artistic development oftentimes came from the members of my own cultural community. Art, and by extension artistic careers, while highly valued and celebrated as a form of expression, were not and still oftentimes are not seen as a worthwhile investment of my time, and as a viable career path even less so. My goal is to break down and dismantle these preconceived notions and stereotypes and show that not only is an artistic career viable, but moreover it is attainable, even to those with less than ideal starting circumstances.
I am so fortunate to be a part of the various communities that I exist in. I want to do everything I can to give back to my communities for giving me the opportunities that have led me to this point.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
An actor’s goal is simple: tell a story magnificently to an audience. Shakespeare tells us, “Suit the action to the word, the word to the action […] as ’twere, the mirror up to nature… (Hamlet, Act III, Scene ii).
The most rewarding aspect of being an actor to me is being able to tell stories to people, and hopefully get an emotional response from them. I decided to pursue theatre because I was once told a story by a performer, and the feelings that coursed through my body stuck with me, and I have been pursing that feeling ever since. If I can instill the same sense of wonder and awe into just one person when they view a performance, watch something I direct, or hear my voice coming through their screens, and they come to tell me about it, that’s when I’ll know that I will have made it as an artist. The reward for my art is more art being made.
Contact Info:
- Website: agbacting.com
- Instagram: @adrian_barron6298
Image Credits
@annamtendler @iahbearproductions @kendyl.jpeg @ronnievibez @artistic_journeys @conundrumtheatreco