We recently connected with Nicole Yost and have shared our conversation below.

Nicole, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

As a child, I thrived in theatre. I loved the thrill of applause as I took my bow on stage. I spent 13 years creating worlds through plays and musical theatre. After college, I felt I needed a ” big girl job” and after dabbling in several areas, I landed in education as a Montessori Guide for children PreK-6th grade. It’s amazing how when something is meant for you, there is nothing you can do to avoid it. After 15 + years in education, I went back to my first love, acting. Changing your career is a big risk but one I knew I had to follow.

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

I started in entertainment at 7 years old. When adults asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up it was always ” an actress!” My first screen name was “L.A.STAR2B”. If you knew me, that’s all I wanted to do. As you grow up, you often succumb to the opinions of other people in your life and for me that was getting a ” real job”. Teaching was the obvious choice for me, a nicely dressed Leo, with a big presense and a lot of spunk. Like Audrey Hepburn mixed with Tina Fey.

As time goes, life happens to you and sometimes it’s not the easy or fun times, it’s the hard things that change you. My son passed away as an infant. This upsets the natural order of things. In grieving and learning to live a new kind of life that comes with child loss I realized education was not where I was meant to be. It didn’t give me the energy I needed. Acting did.

Since then I have trained at 1st Team Actor’s Studio and have had extensive on-camera, voice over, scene study, improv and more. Now my focus is creating believable characters people can relate to. Not just with techniques that all actors learn, but with the real life experience that comes with age and living. Recently I was in lead in a short film called The Breakwater. The Breakwater centers around a woman (Laura) who goes to a light house to visit with the ghost of her son. Talk about a film that was meant for me. It’s only 12 minutes long but its impact is long lasting. It’s the kind of work I would love to be able to do more of. It’s raw and real.

I still keep with my educational roots. I enjoy working on children’s content such as audio books, voice over for animation. Any chance I get to act, I take it.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Having to experience every parent’s biggest fear, the loss of a child, forces you to look at yourself and your life in ways you never wanted to. After coming to the realization that my life would not be what I expected, I had to revaluate what was important. As a result of this unexpected life change, I am able to draw from my experience and bring a richer journey to all the characters I play.

A friend of mine, who is also an actor, once described learning from your struggles as ” failing forward” and I agree with that. I intend to ” fail forward” until I get all that is meant for me.

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

For me, I love when people tell me that I inspired them. Either to make a career change like I did, or to pursue their dreams. Stepping out of what is considered “normal” is hard to do. There is a lot of risk associated with that but a lot of reward too. Life is about living, so why not make it the best life possible? I mean we only get one after all.

I also love when my daughter hears my voice on something and asks ” Mommy! Is that you?” Especially when it’s not the way I typically sound. (Using an English accent for example, as we are from the gold ole Midwest.)

Contact Info:

• Instagram: n.marie.yost
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-yost-ny083/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=UxKqVq4bg2Q&feature=youtu.be

Image Credits
Headshots: Sharon Vetalice Photography Screen Shot (looking through the lighthouse window) The Breakwater (2023) Me and Ewan McGregor: NYC Comic Con 2023 Play photo: Hay Fever by Sir Noel Coward