We recently connected with Torianna Turnbow and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Torianna, thanks for joining us today. Was there an experience or lesson you learned at a previous job that’s benefited your career afterwards?

This isn’t one specific job, but the biggest thing I learned while I was in college.

I ended up at an undergrad that no one has ever heard of, especially in the arts world, and as we all know, the college name can hold weight in this business. While there, I was the first person in the history of the university to attempt a double major in dance and theatre. The first two years, I heard a lot of ‘this is impossible’ and ‘you’re going to drop one along the way.’ *Spoiler alert* I graduated in 4 years with a BFA in theatre and a BA in Dance!

In addition to all the academic demands, there is so much societal pressure on students to enjoy their college experience. People would say things like ‘it’s the best time of your life’, and I remember thinking ‘this is the best? Crap.’ Don’t get me wrong, I did love a lot of my college experience, but if I’m completely honest, a bunch of it really sucked. That period of finding who you are and building an independent being in the midst of two intense art programs had me all over the place. It’s really okay if college wasn’t the best time of your life. I spent a decent amount of those four years thinking, ‘I really hope this isn’t as good as it gets’. That time was filled with disappoints, frustrations, and questioning my life choices.

Although a lot was hard, it was a safe place for me to learn a lot about myself, how I function, and what I need to be successful. I am a fiercely independent, highly intelligent, highly capable (only recently been able to own those labels for myself, celebrate your wins!) woman, which means I don’t give up easily and I work extremely hard. But it also means that for most of my life, I have been bad at asking for help. As a young artist, I would prep my auditions alone, too shy to share my talents before a performance, too prideful to let myself fall on my face in front of other people. In college, I worked diligently to overcome these obstacles. I started forcing myself to ask for help. My professors had office hours, why wasn’t I using them? I saw leaps and bounds of improvement when I worked with others as opposed to alone. The thing I love most about art is collaboration, so it made sense that it would be imperative to my growth.

I learned how to stand up for myself. In high school, I took feedback mostly at face value without questioning. When I began working on research projects and performances in college, I questioned, dug deeper. I began to respectfully push back a bit on things that were important to me. This spilled over into my personal life. I dealt with a lot of health issues while in college, and I think we are all aware of what it is like to be dismissed or gaslit by a medical professional. I spoke up when I was in pain and was able to get the help I needed. I don’t hold things in in my close relationships, I address important issues, even if it might hurt my heart. I am proud of the way I am able to interact with those around me.

By studying two degrees where your physical self is held of high importance, I learned how to listen to my body. I remember there was a day when I was in a lot of pain and would have rather just sat in a lecture class than gone to an acting class where I would have to be up and moving around. But while warming up for class, I got to stretch out some of those areas of pain and give attention where I would’ve otherwise ignored. I left class feeling refreshed and pain-free. I can listen to my body and give it what it needs from day to day.

While I beat myself up for not choosing a ‘Big Name’ school, by my senior year I’d realized I’d gained more important things for my personal growth. So here’s my big, important lesson: It was, and always will be, more important for me to focus on building myself over my resume.

Torianna, 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 think I was always going to be an artist in some way, shape, or form. I began dancing at three years old after seeing my older cousin’s ballet recital. She stopped soon after, but I never did. I grew up creating shows and forcing my brother to be in them, while making our parents and their friends sit and watch. As a child, I was this weird combo of shy but brave: I would play a lead in the school musical, but I couldn’t order for myself at restaurants. I would give a speech in front of the whole school to run for elementary ASB, but hide behind my mom when meeting a new person. I grew up trying to marry the two ‘me’s’, forcing myself to be brave when I cared about something. I’ve realised that if it is something for myself, I may not have the courage, but other people fill me up with audacity. The summer before second grade, my family moved to Guatemala. It was there that I earned my first leading role in a musical, and also got to have an excellent visual art teacher. I fell in love with art in every form. There is a painter who works out of Antigua, Guatemala (under the name Tuc Tuc) whose style is reminiscent of the Impressionists, and his work has inspired much of my painting to this day (I paint for fun as a way to exercise a different aspect of my creativity that is low pressure and not for work). The time we spent in Guate with the most loving, open people and long, vibrant history will forever color my view of the world and impact roles that I take on.
My mother is a voice teacher, but for a period years I lied to myself, saying I hated singing and would not do it again. Then I saw a regional production of Janet Yates Vogt and Mark Friedman’s ‘Anne of Green Gables’ at Village Theatre and my world exploded. I fell madly in love and made my parents take me back to see it three more times. I began taking theatre classes (when they didn’t conflict with ballet) and would feel magic in my chest whenever I stepped into the theatre. Thus began another attempt to marry two selves, the dancing me and the acting me. Now, they do and should go hand in hand. But when you are a student, people get possessive and it becomes a balancing act that is often lonely. I discovered that in double-majoring in college in theatre and dance. I had to learn how to compromise and hone my focus. I had to shut out noise from people who try to make you feel guilty for prioritizing your own education.
While in undergrad, I realised I hadn’t gotten all the formal education I needed, so I began applying for graduate schools. Here was another plate to add to a hand I didn’t have, but I continued to be flexible, allowing fluidity in my approach to everything I wanted to do. I was fortunate enough to be accepted to London’s Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where I got to expand my worldview in every sense of the word. Living in another country gave me so much perspective as a young adult. I was there during the landmark election of 2020, where I was able to submit an absentee ballot after doing all my research on candidates and policies. Living in a different country than my own allowed me to take a step back and figure out what I really believe and care about, largely because people weren’t shouting their opinions in my face. Simply because it was not as vital to them because they don’t live here!
During the pandemic, I sheltered in place with my family in the Seattle area before making the crazy decision to move to LA. This was never a place that I pictured myself, but I haven’t looked back! Since moving here, I have been doing the usual actor thing: auditioning, taking classes, teaching, and auditioning some more. I fell in love with improv during my first class at UCB and it continues to be the bright spot in my week, and I have a wonderful scene study teacher called Claire Chubbuck who has helped me feel more connected to my work than any other class I’ve taken.
The quarter-life crisis is real, and I’m deep in it, but I’m going to keep chugging ahead while giving myself grace for my pace. I have to remind myself that this is all in pursuit of bringing honesty and hope into the world.

Have you ever had to pivot?

From my first term in grad school, I fell in love with London. I wanted to live there always. And low and behold, along came an opportunity to apply for a start-up visa. Essentially you had to come up with a business plan and present it to a panel at Royal Central School of Speech and Drama (my school), and if chosen, they would sponsor you for a new visa that would allow you to stay in the country and work. My friend and I built an excellent plan, refined our presentation, and were luck enough to be chosen. But the pandemic was still raging on. We thought, it has to let up soon, right? Then London’s lockdown got extended. And extended again. And again. The only businesses allowed to be open were supermarkets. It became impossible to find a job. And my living situation became unsafe. So I had to head back to the states. I was heartbroken (still am sometimes, if I’m being honest). I saw myself growing old in the UK, it was home to me. And here I was stuck in the US, unsure of what to do or where to go with the world in the state that it was. So I did what any normal person would do. I got in the car and drove. From Seattle to Pensacola, Florida, where my brother is in flight school for the Navy. While on the open road, I had a lot of time to think and sing and pray and talk to myself. And I heard the words Los Angeles. Very out of left field for me, I’ve always thought I would fit in better in New York or Chicago. But I said ‘okay, let’s trust this’. So I began making plans, and here I am, doing this interview in LA. It definitely hasn’t been sunshine and rainbows, but I trust that I am here for a reason, and I hold onto that on my hard days.

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

I have always known that my purpose on this earth is to share light. To touch the lives of the people I have the pleasure of coming in contact with. And that is the most important thing. I ask myself these questions when I work on new projects: Is this going to ask people to engage meaningfully with the world around them? Is this going to inspire people to take action against injustice? Is this going to teach people to have more empathy? Art is one of the most powerful tools we have on this planet, and I am grateful to be called to use it to change lives. I do this for the little girl who felt magic the first time she stepped into a theatre. That magic turned into a need so deep, she had to chase it, and that’s how she ended up on this path of storyteller.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.toriannaturnbow.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/torianna.turnbow/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/torianna-turnbow-b51751b6/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxQUbEn0U0DGxeIW_8uNK-Q
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@toriannasaurus

Image Credits
Chris Jon Photography, Michelle Pritchow Photography, Michael Tobin, Jamie Gallo