Often, those who tread off the beaten path are misunderstood or mischaracterized and so we asked folks from the community to reflect and tell us about the times they’ve been misunderstood or mischaracterized.

Steven Alan Green

Where do I begin on this one! Being misunderstood was probably the very reason I got into comedy at a very early age to begin with. When you can’t express yourself in the “real world” because you just can’t find the right words, your mind has to compensate, and with me, I’d always try and zoom out to get a clearer picture what’s really going on, which ultimately revealed a comic scenario. Read more>>

Roger Mason

I am a multi-hyphenate. I write, act, direct and produce – for theatre, television and film. In screenland, wearing several hats is the expected norm; however, in theatre – in the time in which I came into the business – students of the craft were encouraged to pick a discipline and focus on it. The problem was that I saw theatre as one holistic expression. It engaged my interdisciplinary understanding of storytelling, and the tools it took to develop creative work. Read more>>

Eva Constance

When you think of pursuing music as a recording artist, you don’t automatically think to examine your image and what you look like. I usually thought it was by the voice you have and the manor in which you act. I didn’t understand this while debuting into the music industry with my single “Selfish” back in 2020. Read more>>

Ashley Best

I consider myself to be a melting pot when it comes to writing songs. When putting together my album, “Something”, I put together a collection of all the different flavors of my musical tastes. When most folks look at me or a photo of myself, they see a cowboy hat, with a long beard and long hair and the instantly think “Outlaw Country Music”. Read more>>

Ruth Araujo

Costume Designers are constantly seen as walking closets on set, our job is reduced to buying clothes and dressing actors, our department is even incorrectly called wardrobe, a name that belittles our input to a narrative and the final frame audiences see on a screen. Read more>>

Alpha Fisher

Without a doubt, if someone has not heard me before, the assumption is that I do r&b, neo soul, or that I rap. True story, I brought my guitar to a gig once and the person who booked it said “Oh. You rap over guitar music? I’ve not seen a black person do that.” Read more>>

Caleb Silvers

When I said I was pursuing acting people thought I was joking. I wasn’t taken seriously. My mom was really the only one who believed in me. My dad told me to stop wasting my time and find a real job. I remember the day I finally got a lead role and then the movie showed in theaters. After the movie was over my dad came up to me and said he was proud of me. People started taking me more seriously. Read more>>

Mariana Grahl

One of the main challenges we have found, is to explain others that Latin Music is more than just salsa, cumbia or reggaeton. When we started El Chanclazo, we made our Mission to share our culture through music so on our performances, we like to talk about where a song is from, about the composers, or the music style. This is why we like to describe our style as “Bohemian Latin Music”. Today we get to perform music from different LatinAmerican and Hispanic countries and this is how we educate others about the beautiful and various styles that are a part of Latin Music. Read more>>

Nichole Nicolet

One recurring instance of being misunderstood or mischaracterized in my artistic journey often unfolds during markets. Many times, people mistakenly perceive my art as mere printing on pages, not realizing the intricate hand-drawn and painted nature of each piece. When I have the opportunity to correct this misconception, it’s truly remarkable to witness the shift in their understanding. Read more>>

The Chesapeake Mermaid

The Chesapeake Mermaid team has dedicated ourselves to crafting distinctive, educational programs rooted in our direct encounters with wildlife and habitats within our region, the Chesapeake Bay. Our commitment extends to tireless hours rescuing wildlife and rebuilding habitats, igniting our inspiration to bring to life storybooks, sets, characters, and performances through a blend of multimedia artistry. Everything we create stems from our firsthand experiences and we deliver a complete artistic performance. Read more>>

Rachelle Hinkley

Growing up I was considered the weird kid, and I was told that I’d grow out of it but I never really did. Read more>>

Ron Solemn

I think being mischaracterized or misunderstood has been a theme throughout my entire life. It’s the cliche, sensationalized persona to have in this generation, everyone claims they’re a loner or an outcast. In my experience, it hasn’t always been something to be proud of. I was the quiet kid with good grades, who turned into a depressed and anxious teen without much of a social life. Read more>>

Joshua Lozano

My whole life I have been misunderstood, I come from a long blood line or rebels and artists. Be it my moms father escaping nazi Germany as a small boy, my grandfather on my dads side turning down the family fortune and business to hop the Mexican border 17 times. The most prominent story of my family my great grandfather single handedly saving 20+ men in a concentration camp; where he and his team were “commissioned” to hand carve money plates for hitler to print his own money, he told his team of men to always make a small mistake to keep the project on going then hitler was finally killed. Read more>>