Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Ramona Rideout. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Ramona thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen?

By the grace of god and good people, I have been able to earn a full-time living from creative work. Out of college, I tried working in big box retail stores, and looking at the same four walls 5 days a week for 40 hours repulsed me. Now, don’t get me wrong, “your employment doesn’t define you.” – Wendell pierce. 5 years ago through a series of events the retail job and I parted ways. My best friend was working with a company called LTYC (leaders of tomorrow youth center) at the time I didn’t know that though, and for some reason, she called to check on me around the same time the job and I had parted ways. Asked me, “how are you doing?”, long-story-short I answered, “unemployed, but still acting.”. She said “Great, you’re no longer unemployed, I’ll see you Monday morning for an interview to be a teaching artist.”. I was floored with good emotions and couldn’t believe I was about to teach the youth how to “act”(portray characters realistically in an imaginary environment). It was so exciting to know that I now have a chance to help someone potentially follow their dreams. Needless to say, I’m still with this company to this day empowering and leading the youth in the arts, while still actively following my dreams. The company allows artists active in their craft the ability to still teach. With a lot of hard work and consistency, it’s possible to budget your income, if you live below your means you allow room for error and improvements. In the beginning, balancing everything was NOT easy. But over the years I figured out ways to improve time management, implement self-care, and compartmentalize work, family, home, and career. Prioritizing was very essential because it can get overwhelming. After you put your task in order of most important to least according to your health and well-being. Next is execution, give yourself grace when completing your task. Be clear and consistent, start over if needed but NEVER give up. Anything is possible when you put your mind to it. Everyone is exactly where they are supposed to be when they are supposed to be there. Trust the process.

Ramona, 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 professional actress who dedicates my spare time to educating youth. I empower and uplift the community through performance and teaching. I’m also a bicoastal acting coach, who created “ACTING WITH RAMONA, LLC”. a monthly workshop for artists. Through years of hard work and dedication, I’ve had the opportunity to work with HBO, Sony, Warner Brothers, and Macro to name a few. Most recently I was nominated for “Actress of the year” by the Baltimore scene and honored by LTYC and Carver communication for being a leading black woman in the community. Over the years I have received awards from the NAACP and the Northeast Theatre Festival for my stellar performances. In February of 2022, I was featured in “Voyage Baltimore” magazine. I have now completed an acting conservatory in NYC called The Acting Studio. I love sharing experiences and knowledge with future thespians for inspiration and motivation. I started acting in grade school. The passion came from watching tv, becoming captivated by the characters, and being enthralled with the stories. I imitated the characters I favored and memorized everyone’s lines from my favorite movies. The feeling of performing beautifully consumed me. I started to get more involved in the performing arts at school; ANYTHING that required performance had my name on the list! My first big production in high school sealed the deal for me. When I landed the role of the “scarecrow” in “THE WIZ” I felt the fire burning inside of me explode. Realizing that I could impact people in a positive way felt amazing! Invoking emotions in others, and taking them on a journey with storytelling by becoming characters fueled the creative fire I have inside. I knew This was what I was made for. As I grew in the craft of course I encountered obstacles and there was and still is so much to learn. Through my success, I wanted to help others! I want to provide resources and knowledge that were not available for me starting my journey. It’s enough food out here for everyone to eat, meaning I wanna see everyone win because we are NOT each other’s competition. We are unique individuals with different “roles” to play, it takes all types of characters to make up a story. With that being said my job is to give you the tools and techniques to achieve a vibrant and fulfilling career. I’m most proud of the environment filled with love and inclusivity, and most importantly we created it together and now we can build and open our doors when others are shut. There’s only one Ramona Rideout and there’s only one YOU! Let’s win together.

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

It sometimes feels like There are so many odds stacked against you from the start. When I was younger, people would always ask “what do you wanna be when you get older?” And when I would say “actress”, the follow-up questions of “what’s your plan B?” Etc. , etc. I used to feel like I had to answer that question with what people wanted to hear then I realized, that “Acting” was my plan A, B, and C. To achieve this ultimate goal of becoming a household name “Actress”, I had to learn the business inside and out. As a young adult, I started looking for any way to be close to acting. I had no idea what the actual process was of becoming an actress. So I started networking in college theater, and after that, I got into community theater, then I started performing at open mic nights, I worked for a production company as a production assistant. While participating in all these things I was submitting and attending countless auditions with so many “no’s” that I can’t count the number. I was looking for any avenue that may open a door in the direction of acting. I finally learned about casting networks! It was very hard at first because all google did was pull up unfamiliar sites and a lot of marketing kept finding its way into my email when I thought I had found an audition. It felt HOPELESS, my parents were doing the best they could to help me but they did not know the entertainment industry. By this time I had dealt with people false advertising trying to scam, asking for us to pay extreme amounts of money. NO ONE should be asking you to “pay” to be a part of their production. After years of networking, exposure, submitting, and waiting, After being a member of this casting site for over 2 years I believe, I finally got an email! The email was a casting call for a movie called “magic hour” at the time. I had never been in any big film productions or movies or anything like that at the time. My nerves shot through the roof but “what if it were a scam!?”. I didn’t know what to think, after consulting my parents and some close friends I submitted and just hoped for the best! I ended up getting a return email with instructions to confirm then another for a fitting. This was looking serious so I committed to going. Fast forward the process was astonishing to me. The space was huge, filled with clothing, makeup stations, offices, and lots of people moving around with walkie-talkies. I remember thinking to myself “I don’t know what MAGIC HOUR is, but this has to be a BIG production!”. After days of getting ready I get on set and the SET IS HUGE! On day one of filming, Wonder Woman (gal gadot) walked by me hanging on the shoulders of Steve Trevor (Chris pine). It was then I realized I had been cast background for “WW84”. It was a turning point for me, to realize that ANYTHING was possible! As long as you put your mind to it and never give up, there’s no way you can’t get further than you are now. No part is a small part! My best friend and I had a saying in high school saying “IDC if I’m GIRL WITH BUCKET in a movie, I’m gonna make it!”. I had made it! But I knew I had so much further to go! Then Covid hit and casting calls came to a complete standstill. So all this work for all these years, I along with the entire world was dealing with something we had NEVER seen before. How do you get into movies when you can’t audition? I knew I couldn’t give up. I had to figure out how to prepare for when the world opened back up. After taking master classes online with Richard Lawson, Kim Coleman, and a couple of other phenomenal artists. I was starting to believe where there’s a will, there’s a way. Since then I’ve worked with Sony, Macro, HBO, crackle, and many more. I’ve also had the opportunity to even do VO’s for a whole season on a major network. God is good. I even got the opportunity to complete an acting conservatory at “The Acting Studio” in New York City. I still encounter obstacles like everyone else and we all will have continuous obstacles but the key is to never give up! Success is hard, but so is failure. So I choose success.

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

Keep the energy up! As an artist, support is essential. The arts bring us joy in so many ways. It helps us express our values. The power of the arts wouldn’t exist without people wanting to be entertained. Storytelling and other forms of art have been used to carry history throughout time. The arts also are a fundamental component of a healthy community. It strengthens them socially, when you have a great experience or you see something entertaining, what’s the first thing you typically wanna do? Tell someone! The arts empower education on a tremendous level. Increased self-confidence and self-understanding, enhanced communication skills, and improved cognition. Being a teaching artist helped me to understand the importance of the arts in being involved in everything we do. Allowing artists to come and perform for youth is a support that benefits everyone. The arts can unify communities. Support looks different for everyone and it comes in many forms. Share your local artist’s work on any platform you know. Something as simple as a “share” may expose their message to someone who needed to hear it. Attend our shows, if you can’t attend and you’re able to, donate. Like and comment on posts, a “like” or “comment” adds the element of acknowledging, it helps to show appreciation for an artist’s work. A solid social media presence is an integral part of promotional efforts. Share any performance opportunities you know of with your local artist, word of mouth is one of the best sources of support. The creative environment thrives off of engagement so don’t be afraid to positively engage with artists and encourage them. We are humans first.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/Actingwithramona.llc
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/actingwithramona/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rrideout5yd

Image Credits
Blair Lashley Cara Jaye Elijah Davis