We were lucky to catch up with Christina Palacios recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Christina thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

It’s funny, because the answer to this question is that someone else knew before me that I wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally….my girl scout leader!

I’m 9 years old, walking out of the troop 539 meeting, down the hall, and all my friends from school are all lined up waiting to get into some room. What are you guys doing here, I asked. “Oh, we’re auditioning for Peter Pan.” Why?! I thought and walked away….

The next week, I’m walking into the troop 539 meeting and everyone is lined up looking at a list on the board…

“What are you guys doing?”

“It’s the cast list for Peter Pan…”

Oh cool, I thought.

The next thing she says is “AND YOU’RE PETER PAN!”

Why would I want to be in something that my friends had to compete to get into…nope, not for me. Patricia, the girl scout leader said, well, if Cathy (my best friend) is Captain Hook, you can play with her as Peter Pan.

YES! Easy. If Cathy is doing it, then I will def do it.

I can remember the exact feeling I had on that very first performance where I was fighting Cathy (aka Captain Hook, with the cardboard sword wrapped in tin foil that my mother and I made) AT THE SAME TIME while saying these powerful words that I interpret in the way that uniquely channels through me… was PURE BLISS. I couldn’t believe this alive feeling I had, the ease, the joy, the collaboration….was a REAL thing.

I knew at that moment. I am an actor for life.

(Thank you Patricia!!!) Sometimes, others can see us before we even know ourselves.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a Spanish American and Cherokee actress. You can see me recently in the Allstate commercial “Promposal.” My TV debut as a guest star on Criminal Minds (CBS), in addition to Good Trouble (Freeform), American Housewife (ABC) and Transparent (Amazon.)

I lived in Europe as a child and travelled everywhere.

I had a tri-cultural lifestyle–

My dad from Tennessee with his strong southern drawl, my mom with her strong Spanish accent from Spain, and living in Germany….I loved having this mix. It made for lots of fun with accents, languages, in this mixing pot of diverse characters and behaviors. It fueled my need to express myself, and the need for comedy!

Like my girl scout leader, I’ve had the support of others who saw the actor in me. I’ve been lucky and I believe that gratitude is the core source of that.

I’m unique in that I’m a UK trained actress who worked in the London theatre, working alongside other Brits and being the one American to win the scholarship to attend drama school in London. My fave role was playing Sylvia in The Women. That’s a brilliant comedy. I love comedy so much. I think my world travels, meeting different people has given me a lot to play with and my imagination is vivid! My acting teacher calls me “Mercurial.” (yes, I had to look it up, too…….”someone whose mood or behavior is changeable and unpredictable, who is clever, lively, and quick,”

I love the artistic collaboration of being on set. Whenever I get there, my heart feels at home, “ahhhh, HERE are my people!” The gifted, courageous, creative heart filled souls who come to play and tell stories. Stories we need to share, and as the pandemic showed us, stories are what humanity needs to thrive.

My other mentor, acclaimed director Peter Craze from RADA said to me when I was questioning do I do this professionally, looked me straight in the eye and said “Christina, you are one of the most courageous actors I have ever met, you must do this professionally.”

Feel free to ask me to speak Spanish with a British accent, it’s very entertaining.

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

I love it when people come up to me and tell me I helped them see themselves, and they learned about themselves to better their lives. That I can touch, move and inspire others is the best gift of all. I never know what my work as an actor, portraying this person, I never know how it will be interpreted. My job is to tell the truth. I love finding the truth of a person. And sometimes, as most often, it’s complicated. Human beings are fascinating and my job is to portray that back to you. And in that you see yourself. Or not.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

As the SAG AFTRA and WGA strikes are showing us, pay us creatives a working wage to sustain a secure lifestyle so we can continue to collaborate with other gifted creatives to tell stories.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @iamchristinapalacios
• Other: www.imdb.me/christinapalacios