Hello Beautiful People,
Farah Alvin has been making her mark on the theater scene since the age of ten. As a teenager, she was awarded the Los Angeles Music Center Spotlight Award for Pop/Musical Theater Vocals, the first ever NFAA YoungARTS Level One Award for Pop Vocals, and was named a Presidential Scholar in the Arts by the White House Commission for Presidential Scholars for which she sang for President Bill Clinton at the Kennedy Center. She has done award winning work at NYMF, in the productions Date of a Lifetime and The Tenth Floor. Her Broadway credits include: Grease!, Saturday Night Fever, The Look of Love: The Music of Burt Bacharach and Hal David, the Tony Award wining revivial of Nine, and Madison Square Garden’s A Christmas Carol. Off-Broadway credits includeI Love You Because, Cam Jansen and If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and Other Story Books for TheatreworksUSA, and Jewish Repertory Theater’s revival of Kuni-Leml. There’s little that this lovely lady cannot do, and I’m so happy that she was able to participate in this Q&A Series! Friends, meet Farah Alvin…
TWT: You began your performance career at the age of ten. What is the best advice you could offer to young performers and their parents?
FA: My parents were both visual artists and made their living in the arts. They knew how important it was for me to study and work hard at my artistic pursuits and I was encouraged to take those ventures as seriously as my school work. I was only able to begin a professional career because I grew up in Los Angeles and had access to that kind of opportunity. But honestly, I was just as happy doing community theater as I was professional work. The best advice I can offer is don’t be in a hurry. Age and experience allow you to become a better artist. With few exceptions, starting young is not a guarantee of success as an adult, regardless of talent. Take your arts studies seriously, practice, perform when you can, but don’t worry about “making it” until your adult. You don’t really get a head start by starting to work young. It all evens out eventually.
TWT: In 2009, you received a Drama Desk Nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Musical for your portrayal of Missy Miller in The Marvelous Wonderettes. What went through your mind when you heard of your nomination?
FA: I was shocked. I had already left The Marvelous Wonderettes to move on and do other work. I was actually in a car on my way to Boston to begin rehearsals for a new show when my friend Kirsten Wyatt called me screaming. I remember saying, “Are you sure?” and she assured me she was reading it off the internet at that moment. The Drama Desk recognizes Broadway and Off-Broadway in the same category so it’s sort of a coup for an Off-Broadway actor to get the nomination. I felt very validated and recognized and I felt proud of the work I’d done. I loved playing Missy and I felt lucky that was the performance that was honored.
TWT: Of all the roles you have played, is there one in particular that is closest to your heart?
FA: I love originating roles, being able to be a part of the creative process. And I feel especially close to the ladies I’ve created. But I really LOVED playing Mother in Ragtime. I just think that show is perfectly written and it’s such a special role. It was the last thing my father saw me do onstage so it holds an important place in my heart.
TWT: What advice would you give to the high school student who is looking to pursue a career in theater?
FA: High school is a great time to get your feet wet in the theater. Audition for everything. If you don’t get in to a show, don’t let that stop you. Keep trying, keep practicing. We learn by doing in the theater so the more you can be involved on any level, the more you will learn. If you’re already a drama geek and feel certain that this is what you want to do, look into colleges and conservatories that have strong programs and lots of alumni living in New York. If you want to work in the theater, you have to come to New York. It’s like being in Washington DC for politics. You must be where the action is. Many colleges offer a showcase for agents and casting directors in New York upon graduation and this is incredibly helpful for getting professional doors to open once you move here. But the most important thing I can suggest is, if you wish to be a career actor – not a star who burns bright and fast, not famous for a brief period of time but a person who makes their living, pays their bills doing the thing they love everyday – become a well-rounded person. That means if you think you have other interests, pursue them. They will make you a better actor. Learn, read, explore. Avoid having tunnel vision about your acting career. It will keep you sane and make you a more interesting human being.
TWT: If you were not an actress and a songwriter, what career do you think you would have? Do you think that music and theatre would still be a significant part of your life, even if your profession were different?
FA: I actually have another profession. About 4 years ago, I went to school for nutrition and now I have a supplementary career doing holistic wellness counseling. I absolutely love it. I am so happy I have both things in my life. But yes, if for some reason my nutrition career became a greater focus, I think I would always be a performer. It’s too much fun for me to ever not do.
TWT: In today’s economy, arts programs in schools are being cut. What reasons would you give a politician for preserving the arts?
FA: An arts education is the greatest asset any student can have. I can’t spout off numbers about how well students do in other academic categories by having an arts education though I know they exist. But my experience has taught me this: I have learned more math by learning to sight-read music, I have learned about history from every period piece of theater I’ve ever done, I have read great literature because of contemporary shows I’ve done based on those books. People in the technical aspects of theater – costuming, lighting, set design – use geometry and algebra every day. And guess what? It’s MORE FUN than anything anyone could teach me any other way. The arts are like a secret weapon for teachers, a trick to get your students to LOVE the things you’re trying to teach them. The discipline and the respect for others that an arts education engenders translates in all aspects of professional life. The American education system is foolish to cut arts funding. When we figure this out and allow children to explore academia through the filter of an art they are excited about, we will really see an advance in our academic accomplishments.
TWT: Just for fun, what sound do you hate?
FA: I have VERY sensitive ears. I hate high-pitched squeals like from the brakes on a truck or sometimes from a refrigerator or other electric equipment. I lose my mind.
TWT: Just for fun, what sound do you love?
FA: I love an authentic little kid laugh. There’s nothing so satisfying as hearing a real, hearty laugh from a little kid. My favorite!
TWT: Just for fun, if you had to pick three movies to watch for the rest of your life, what would they be?
FA: Tough one. Annie Hall has been a favorite for years and remains repeatedly watchable. I love the movie Gosford Park and have always wished to watch it again and again so I can fully understand the upstairs/downstairs relationships. And, for low-brow value, Ghostbusters. It never gets old.
TWT: Who is/was your greatest teacher?
FA: I have had so many wonderful teachers and mentors. Because I started so young in my profession, I feel that nearly everyone who helped foster my talents was an important teacher to me. But I’d have to say the person who had the greatest impact on me was my voice teacher of more than fifteen years, Marianne Challis who passed away suddenly this year. Marianne was a mentor and a teacher. She helped me understand the technical aspects of my voice like no one before or since. She was creative in her approach to teaching me. She understood the uniqueness of my instrument and treated it accordingly. The one-on-one relationship that an artist has with a master teacher is totally unique. Shaping and understanding your voice is intimate and vulnerable and important and Marianne knew when to be gentle and when to deliver tough love. She absolutely transformed my voice from a girl’s to a woman’s. I am forever indebted to her and so sad that she is gone. I am so fortunate to have had her guidance for so many years.
Thank you, Farah!
Live, Love, Learn,