I’m excited to share my interview with Emeline Phinney, who is from Dalton, and pursuing her dreams as an actor in New York. She is a very talented actor whom I’m sure you will enjoy learning more about in our chat. Emeline shares with me who inspired her to become an actor and the joys and challenges of acting.
Introducing Emeline…
What do you love about your life right now?
I have so much to love about my life right now. I recently got a new day job that gives me way more freedom to audition. I have a great apartment with AC that I’m very thankful for in the hot weather. I am about to celebrate my one-year anniversary with my amazing boyfriend. I have a niece who I see pictures of every day, and she is growing up to be adorable and strong! Also, I turn 30 this year, which feels crazy, but I’m actually looking forward to it and feel like I’ve earned it.
You’re part of a very talented family here in Dalton. You are sharing your gift of acting and living your dream as an actor in New York. How are you adjusting to living in the Big Apple?
I adjusted pretty well to the city; I think. It may sound egotistical, but I’ve always been pretty adventurous. I moved a few times for college, including dropping out of one so I could go on a national tour, and then I moved to Cardiff, Wales, during the pandemic to attend grad school. I’d been living in Atlanta before moving to NYC. It’s not similar to anywhere I’ve ever lived before, but I’ve gotten used to it. I will say, I lucked out on a great apartment in Brooklyn with great roommates, and that made the transition loads easier.
Was there a particular actor or play that inspired you to become an actor?
So many. I grew up watching a lot of British television and movies, so people like Judi Dench, Helen Mirren, Dawn French, Julie Andrews, and Carey Mulligan were my idols. I also watched old movies, so I wanted to be like Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Hepburn, and Judy Garland. When I lived in the UK, I was told by many people that I looked like a young Goldie Hawn, and I fell down a very fulfilling rabbit hole of discovering her. However, in the grand scheme, it was probably my parents that inspired me to become an actor. They met doing The Sound of Music, where she played Maria and he played the Captain, and I watched them in almost every community theatre show they did or directed when I was a kid. They’re both fantastic at understanding style, so they can be great comedians, with loads of camp and character, or give deeply naturalistic performances that feel completely real.
You were in A Christmas Carol, which is one of my all-time favorite plays and films. You played Mrs.Cratchett on a national tour of this play. What was it like touring nationally?
It was so fun and full of learning opportunities. It was a brief tour, which I think is the safest way to do touring for the first time. I think in total, I was gone for, like, two months, but I learned a lot about myself and my craft.
What did you enjoy about playing the role of Mrs. Cratchett?
Acting is fun, and I know you would agree with me on that. Please share with me the joys of acting and the challenges that come with it.
I do love acting! I think the great joy of acting is that it’s a team sport. Even if you’ve got a monologue in a play, even if you’re just doing a monologue for an audition, the play and the circumstances are your teammates. That, I think, is also the great challenge of acting: it can feel incredibly solitary, but it never is and should never be treated as such.
Is there any advice you would give to someone who wants to pursue acting as a career? Additionally, what would you have liked to have known before you embarked on this journey?
You have to be a self-starter. You cannot wait for things to come to you. I am always at my best when I’m signing myself up for auditions, sending emails to companies for auditions, sending my agent emails about an audition I want, etc. I despise when I feel like it’s out of my hands, because it never is. If you were a musician, your instrument would be your business, but you’re an actor, so you and all you bring to the table are your business, and you can manage it more than you realize. I had a difficult time in college, and my mom would always tell me to look up auditions and email out of curiosity. And you know what? I got my first two professional jobs that way. My advice would also be to be kind and courteous to everyone. It’s a small business, and everyone remembers you. Don’t be a jerk, be the best teammate ever.
Do you have a favorite play that you’ve performed in?
I have three answers to this. My favorite community theatre show I ever did was Young Frankenstein at the Artistic Civic Theatre, directed by my mom. I played Elizabeth Benning and, not only did I adore the role, it was an absolute princess track. I had three great songs, three great costumes, and got to make the audience laugh every time I was on stage. My second answer is playing Nick Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by my sister, Meg Phinney, at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She started the UTC Shakespeare Co. where students do staged readings to learn about Shakespeare, and I had the honor of being in the inaugural one in January 2020. I rarely get the chance to be completely ridiculous and silly, but Meg trusted me and gave me loads of freedom to be the silliest I have ever been on any stage, anywhere. My final answer is twofold (so kind of sneaking in a fourth). The summer of 2019, I understudied two roles in the southeastern premiere of Ride the Cyclone at the Alliance Theatre (my second professional job ever) and originated the role of Catherine in Oh Righteous God And Sinful Me by Linsey Watkins at the North Carolina Women’s Theatre Festival. I have always dreamed of doing new works, and this felt like the most epic summer of getting to do something I’d only dreamed of.
Failure is an inevitable part of our lives and our journey, and success sometimes follows it. We can learn from them as well as grow. Do you have a favorite failure?
It’s not really a failure, but a culmination of failures that led to a good thing. I have ADHD and didn’t know until I was 23. I was still in school (I transferred undergraduate schools twice) and was fortunate enough to have a counselor at the time who begged me to get tested. She had a hunch and was right. I’d failed, like, three math classes at that point because I genuinely just needed extra time. My diagnosis meant I got more time on homework and tests, and I could calm down and focus. Because of this, I passed my classes and graduated with my BA, but I also learned how to advocate for myself.
Who are your biggest supporters?
If you could have a gigantic billboard anywhere with any message on it, what would you want to convey to millions? What would it say and why?
In this divisive time, I think we’ve forgotten about advocacy for the less fortunate. Every day feels as though another lifeline for those in need or another necessary research is being shuttered for the sake of the great dollar bill. I’d quote Anne Frank: “No one has ever become poor by giving.” That’s a reminder that I think is worth seeing.
Describe yourself in one word.
Emeline, this is one of my favorite parts of the interview. Tell me three fun facts about you.
I love ending the chat with a quote. Do you have a favorite quote or saying that has inspired and motivated you in your life, which you’d like to share with my readers?