May 8, 2015

Sneak Peek of Dan Sullivan’s TCG ‘Spotlight On’ Interview!

May 8th, 2015

Dan Sullivan (Photo Credit: Joan Marcus)

Theatre Communications Group (TCG) has a great in-depth interview with JERSEY BOYS Las Vegas’ “Tommy DeVito,” Dan Sullivan! Check out an excerpt below.

TCG: When was the moment that you decided to become a professional theatre actor?

Daniel Sullivan: There was no moment— there is only a constant struggle for the next gig. Let’s be real here: I am lucky. Right now. But success is fleeting. This year, for example, I am performing a lead role in the Las Vegas company of Jersey Boys and my first play, Prospect High: Brooklyn, was funded by TCG and published by Roundabout. Last year, however, I had months of unemployment and no health insurance. There is no actual deciding to be a professional actor. There is, instead, only deciding to never stop trying.

I decided to try every day to become a professional actor after seeing the first national tour of Starlight Express in 1990. That show had emotive passion, beautiful melodies, a tight storyline, contemporary design, and it was all wrapped up in a slick Broadway package. While I realize there is a place for raw and simple theatrical production, it was the slick packaging of that tour that made me want to be a part of the professional community.

Growing up in Rhode Island, national tours and regional theatres were my window into the world of professional theatre. The first-class energy of tours passing through the Providence Performing Arts Center hypnotized me, and the intensity of Trinity Rep company members convinced me they were heroic. When I learned a bit more about how the profession works, and the difficulty of booking a job, the resident company at Trinity Rep became representative of the pinnacle of success. The versatility of Trinity’s long-time members (Timothy Crowe, Fred Sullivan, Jr., Anne Scurria, Bob Colonna, etc.) made them the most impressive professional actors I’ve ever seen and the ones I continue to aspire to be like.

Click HERE to read the entire interview with Dan.

2 Comments »

  1. What a marvelous interview of a wonderful, down-to-earth, and talented actor, not to mention a gifted author (“Places, Please!”). I’m thrilled for his success.

    Comment by Howard — May 11, 2015 @ 7:20 am

  2. I’ve had the pleasure of seeing Dan in the Las Vegas production of Jersey Boys in his Tommy Devito role on more than one occasion. His performance blew me away! He almost steals the show. Off-stage he is genuinely friendly, welcoming, and down-to-earth. The fact that he transforms so convincingly into Tommy speaks to what a talented actor Dan is!

    Comment by Linda Bradley — May 11, 2015 @ 11:05 pm

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