CMU School of Drama


Wednesday, October 16, 2013

On Being a Little Person

A Bunch of Dumb Show: I have been attempting to be a professional actress for the past 3 years and my mom will probably tell you I have been attempting to be a professional actress my entire life. I cannot remember a time in my life when I did not want to be on a stage or in front of a camera. I have been performing in plays and musicals since I could speak. I attended a small Liberal Arts school in Michigan where I earned a degree in Theatre. I was in plays and musicals while in school and I earned none of my roles by simply being small and not one show I was in even made mention of it. I have lived in Los Angeles for almost two years and let me be one of the millions to tell you…it is not easy. Not only am I attempting to break into an impossible industry, but I am trying to do it with what some may consider a huge disadvantage. For decades, little people have not been taken seriously and we still continue to not be. As an actress, I am presented with maybe 2% of the “real” auditions that my average height actress friends are presented with.

1 comment:

april said...

Okay, so I completely understand where this person is coming from, I know and agree that there is often a lot of discrimination in many work places. Honestly though, I think they either need to just get over it or stand up for themselves, not just write an article about it. There are tons of people out there with all sorts of different challenges in life that make getting work (or getting fair work) rather difficult and sometimes impossible, and even when they do manage to get the job they are not treated the same as someone with out their challenges would be. This is a rather common occurrence and it happens with anything from being a certain sex, to having an accent, to having a disability. You can't just complain about it, you need to actually get out there and make it happen for yourself and make the appropriate sacrifices, and stand up to those that deserve it.