We recently connected with Tracey Beltrano and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Tracey thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with 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.

I have revisited the same “big risk taking” twice in my life now.

For context, I grew up in a small town in Ontario, Canada. Straight out of high school, I took the leap away from family and everything familiar culturally, to study acting at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in NYC. I remember feeling like I was thrust into a lot of firsts all at once. It was truly a lesson in resilience just to survive that first year in a big city while learning to take care of myself independently.

Around 2003 I moved back to Canada, which was supposed to be temporary, while I sorted out my US work visa. Circumstances changed and I ended up staying in Toronto for 20 years but I always had that sense of unfinished business in NYC.

In Toronto, I had established myself and felt somewhat settled but then, my US green card FINALLY got approved after 13 years!! I had to make the decision of whether or not I wanted to uproot my life and take a huge risk, or remain in Toronto where I had a pretty easy going lifestyle.

Well, I’m in NYC! It’s been nearly two years and the risk has definitely had it’s challenges, but I am so proud of myself for doing it. I have been working as an actor and definitely feel it was the right move for my career, but most importantly, that frustrating feeling of having unfinished business in the back of my mind is gone. I am actively doing exactly what I always wanted to do.

Tracey , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

When I was around 4 or 5, I remember my mom sitting on the edge of my bed and asking me if I wanted to study gymnastics or dancing. I remember saying, “gymnastics”, and the next day, I was enrolled in dance classes. I’m not sure why that decision was made, but my mom was wise to do it. I loved dancing and progressed through the years to incorporate many styles including: tap, jazz, ballet, lyrical and pointe.

I would travel and compete and it was an opportunity to learn work ethic, team work, dedication, and it sewed the seeds for a love of performance.

I vividly remember being in NYC for a dance competition when I was 11 and thinking to myself, “This is where I want to be.”

After 13 years of dance training, I started to look for other ways to pralay all my training into other opportunities. I remember a poster in my highschool for a local community theatre musical production. I auditioned, got cast, and the rest is history.

I fully committed to musical theatre at that point. It was a space where I could use my dance training and expand on other interests like singing and acting.

The natural evolution was to then beg my parents to let me consider applying to schools in NYC, to honor that little voice from years prior that just knew NYC was the place to be.

Luckily, I was accepted into The American Academy of Dramatic Arts where I graduated and became a Company member.

From there, it was all about continuing to get as much training as possible and as much variety as possible. I dedicated myself to on camera classes, audition technique classes, scene studies and improv at Second City Toronto.

Through the years I’ve managed to book several commercials, TV, film, and theater gigs.

I think the key to my success was staying curious about the work, meeting as many people as I could, forming meaningful relationships with folks in the industry and staying prepared for when the training would meet with luck and opportunity.

When I reflect on what I’m most proud of, it would be that I stuck it out. There have been many times when it would have been easier to give up and take the “Joe job” more seriously, but I just knew that I wouldn’t be happy. I prioritized what I wanted to do and surrounded myself with the support system to get there.
(And there may be a little bit of stubbornness mixed in there for good measure.)

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.

I think, and I can only speculate, that folks who make a steady, reliable income, must look at us like we have an aversion to the notion of stability. It’s a hard gig, we truly never know when our next booking will be, and we are constantly reinvesting what we earn back into our training, producing our own work, attending the theater, etc. I can see how it doesn’t seem like a wise business plan to folks on the outside!

Thing is, we are following our passion! We are doing the thing we dreamed of as kids. We dared to risk a traditional life and opted for a precarious one in hopes we could make a living at it one day.

I often tell family and friends that I’d rather be struggling while pursuing my dreams than thriving at a job I absolutely despise.

Make no mistake, many of us have many “side hustles”, jobs we do to carry us through the lean times. Quite frankly, they only make me a better actor. The more I can expose myself to anything new, not only do I build my skill set, but I also get to parse through the mechanics and psychology of other jobs and the people who do them. That’s what acting is all about really!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

What I find most rewarding is the ability to create, anytime I want. It is in my power to create something and put it out there into the world for people to see. I am not limited to waiting around for casting directors to call me in for auditions or to be cast. I can create my own work, and to me, that is just the most empowering aspect of what I do.

Everyone’s story is unique and is worth telling, and there is just so much fun in navigating the way in which you do tell that story. The possibilities are endless, especially since everyone’s phone has a pretty decent camera!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/traceybeltrano/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beltranotracey?mibextid=ZbWKwL

Image Credits

Diem Franke (headshot in pink sweater)

Greg Kanysicska (colorful photo with lingerie in the background)

Brett Heard (fists up in a light blue shirt)