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

Lindsay, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Choosing between my marriage and my career was the biggest risk I ever took. During the pandemic, I, like so many artists, found myself unable to perform and had to take on work not in my chosen field. I was feeling a bit lost. I had felt like my career was on an upwards trajectory before 2020, and then everything shut down. On top of that, I tore my meniscus for the second time in February 2021, so I was even more dejected because now I was being told by doctors that I had to scale back on my stunt coordination work, which was the majority of the work I was being hired for at the time. I was about to give up on my performing career altogether when someone had mentioned to me that they had just started applying to graduate schools. I had thought about getting my master’s degree before, but I never thought I could afford it much less take that much time away from my career, Considering the timing of it all, I figured it wouldn’t be such a bad idea since we had no idea when the pandemic would end. Nobody could perform regularly anyways, so what did I have to lose? I came to my then fiance (now husband) and told him about my plan, and in solidarity he decided he was going to audition for schools as well. We spent the next six months planning our wedding, applying for schools, preparing audition materials, and gathering any information we could to prepare for our applications. We both ended up getting into multiple programs, but none of them were together or even in the same state. No matter what, we would either have to choose to live apart during the first year of our marriage or sacrifice one person’s education for the other. After many nights of weighing pros and cons, talks with our friends and family, and discussing what would be best for our career and relationship, we ultimately decided on both of us going to schools on opposite ends of the country. He attended the Shakespeare Theatre Company Academy at George Washington University, while I attended the short lived Oklahoma City University Screen Acting program in Los Angeles and London. While his program had a long standing reputation for prolific classical acting, mine was a brand new, experimental program with on the ground training in film and television production. There was a clear divide in what each of us was looking to explore, and there were no options for us to be in a joint program. Besides just choosing to be apart, the programs we were interested in were so specialized that even going to them was risky for our burgeoning careers. We ended up spending our birthdays, our first marriage anniversary, and most of our holidays apart. People would tell us all the time how insane we were for choosing to be apart, how there must be something wrong with our marriage, and how we were being selfish by putting our careers ahead of each other. Nobody understood why or how we could do this to each other. In reality, we were doing this for each other. We both wanted to open up more opportunities for ourselves to be able to pursue our careers and support one another. We didn’t want to hold each other back from our learning, and ultimately we made the right decision for us. Four years later, we are still happily together, pursuing our careers and putting each other first, just like we always have.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I got started in the industry as a baby, earning my first credits on a soap opera, “Another World”, and since then I’ve gone back and forth between stage and screen. I was lucky to grow up in New York City with so many opportunities within reach, and a great support system to push me to take them. After receiving my BFA, I continued to perform professionally, earning Equity Membership Candidacy, and teaching vocal and acting lessons in both New York and Los Angeles. I also worked on receiving certifications with the Society of American Fight Directors, eventually earning all 8 combat certifications and adding several other specialty weapons to my skillset. After graduating with my MA/MFA, I reinstated my SAG-AFTRA membership, upgraded to AEA status, and have been continuing to create and collaborate on new works in both film and stage. I am a multi-hyphenate creator. For me, that means I am a performer, writer, stunt/stage combat coordinator and director, educator, and full time jack of all trades. I’ve had amazing opportunities to step into so many different roles in front of the camera, onstage, and behind the table that I know not everyone has had the privilege to do. I create opportunities for other performers to find their voices alongside my own, open conversations, and bring stories that are by and for people who don’t always see their stories told. I am most proud of my devotion to creating new work, either through my own writing, or collaborating on other artist’s projects. No art is done alone, and the ability to be humble, professional, collaborative and receptive is a skillset that I strive to be everyday.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

Non-creatives tend not to understand that my career choice doesn’t come with a guarantee. My life is heavily influenced by luck and perseverance, not through work ethic. I could be the most talented person in the room, but two inches shorter than a casting director would like me to be. It doesn’t always matter how hard someone works, how many classes you attend, or even how many auditions one can go on. I choose to work hard, go to classes, and auditions, but there is no guarantee that I will get the job I want. I just do my best to set myself up for success, create my on work, and hope that I inspire another person. This can be the straw that breaks the camel’s back in some cases, but for me it just spurs me on more. One more rejection is just another step closer to a yes.

Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?

My immediate goal is to have my career support me and my family full time through my creative work. My long term goal is to create my own production company that supports a variety of ideas and voices, as well as gives back to my community at large. In Judaism we believe in “tikun olam” or repairing the world, and that is I want to do with my career, I want to repair the world by having people come together through the arts.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lindsayfabes.com
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/lindsay-fabes
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@lalalindsaysings

Image Credits
The headshots were photographed by Michael Kushner, and the photo with the weapons was photographed by Natural Expressions