We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Oluchi Nwokocha a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Oluchi, thanks for joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?

I knew I wanted to be an actor at an early age. I used to watch the hour long marathons of Law and Order: SVU when I was younger and I knew then and there that I wanted to tell impactful stories. I wanted to be on TV with Mariska Hargitay, Richard Belzer (RIP), and Christopher Meloni. I was gonna be an actor. The only problem was that I am Nigerian and in an Nigerian household there are only five suitable careers: Doctor, Lawyer, Engineer, Nurse, or Failure. So, if I didn’t want to be deemed as a failure I needed to pursue something that was in the top four careers. I chose Nurse. Only problem is I am trash at math and I don’t like blood so I would make a horrible nurse. Needless to say, nursing was only in my head and I never took any classes in college. I didn’t actually start pursuing acting until my sophomore year of college. I was considered a late bloomer. Most people start acting when they are 5 and are child actors. I was 18 and I had a lot to learn. Throughout my time as an actor, my parents have come around (finally) and I have experienced many triumphs and setbacks on my journey as an artist.

Oluchi, 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?

Growing up between the hyphenated identity of Nigerian and American is a unique experience that most first gen people can identify with when it comes to pursuing your dreams. There is the expectation of doing what is going to bring in money to help out your family back home, while also, living in a place that encourages you to pursue what makes you happy at all cost. Needless to say, there was a lot of internal conflict growing up. I decided very early on that I was gonna make money doing what I love. I was going to be a working artist. After college, I went to grad school at The University of Florida and received my MFA in Acting. Afterwards, I moved to New York where I was living paycheck to paycheck working multiple jobs in pursuit of “making it” in New York City. Well, after a year of pounding the pavement auditioning and networking, my day jobs were slowing down. It was summer and I didn’t have any more money to pay my rent or to enjoy being in NYC. I moved back home. I was devastated because I felt like I failed but my mom (who is amazing) said “by whose standards?” It was then I realized I was putting a lot of pressure on myself to fit into an arbitrary timeline when if you have big dreams and goals they are going to take time and it might not look like what you thought or how you expected it to unfold and that’s okay.

I work in prison with Red Ladder Theatre company teaching improv to incarcerated men and women. I am committed to giving folks who are incarcerated access to their creativity and giving them a voice through their art. I will be working on a documentary that highlights how theatre is helping shape the men and women we work with in prison as well as those who have been released.

I am a Professor at Miami University in Ohio and I teach acting, auditions, voice and movement, career prep and acting for the camera. My life experience up until this point has helped me show my students how to navigate the industry and to get creative with how you present yourself to the world. This industry can be unkind, difficult, selfish, and rewarding. There are incredible people in this field that want to make the world a better place through the art of storytelling. I am a working actor, Professor, writer, social justice advocate, and director. My path is unique to me and I am grateful for the journey that has led me here.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I think the pandemic showed us how important artists are to society. People were listening to podcasts, reading books, listening to audio books, watching tik toks, watching tv and movies. Artists were at the forefront of keeping people sane during that extremely difficult time. We deserve more respect for what we do and as a society it would be helpful if what we did wasn’t looked at as “cute” or not a “real job” because it is a job. It is a job that requires intense training and knowledge of the craft. Not everyone can do it. And it is not a lifestyle that is easy or glamourous.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

The lesson I had to unlearn is time. This industry is youth focused and is not kind to people who are older. It tells us that if we are older than 25 trying to pursue being an actor in particular to stop because there is no point. So, when I finished graduate school at 25, I thought I was behind. I was rushing to accomplish all of these big things before I turned 28. I thought I had to be on Broadway, have my own tv show, be in movies, have my own production company all before I turned 28. Lol. At 34, I feel like I am just getting started. Everyone’s journey is different and if we can understand that more deeply then we would know that the only thing we have to understand is how we want to spend our time versus feeling like we are running out of it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @loochluch

Image Credits

Mary Erickson
Jay Yamada
Jeff Sabo
Peter Merts