Today we’d like to introduce you to Katie Lyons.
Hi Katie, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
As a child, my mom and Abuela would take me to castings. I was involved in the entertainment industry from a very young age, completing a few commercial jobs. I was too young to understand what was really going on; for me, it was just play. My mother took me out of acting because she didn’t want my education to be affected and decided to let me make the decision as an adult if I wanted to continue. Although I was involved in a few high school productions, it was not until my junior year of college that I decided to go full force with pursuing acting professionally. I was studying entertainment Management, I thought that there was a better chance of being a part of the entertainment industry by pursuing a career as an agent or manager rather than an actor. Maybe I wasn’t the kind of person to be in front of the camera. I’m a bit of a shy person. I was afraid of going full force toward something and failing. For fun, I decided to start acting in a few projects around campus. The first short film I did lit a spark of creativity inside me that I hadn’t felt in a long time. I realized that was what I had to chase and not settle for something in the ballpark. I began studying acting in a class. I completed a few more short films and a few feature films. From then, I landed an agent who helped me with booking commercials. This year, I also began pursuing stand-up comedy and have had the honor of performing shows in venues across Miami and New York. My most recent project just ended; I was in New York co-leading an off-Broadway play titled “Lost Again”. What keeps me going through this journey are the wonderful connections I’ve made. A lot of the friends I have made were the reason I was booked for the next project! The relationships forged through completing a project with a group of people is something special at the heart of why I continue.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
It has not been a smooth road. More like the Mario Kart rainbow road where you’re on a winning streak, and then you fall off the road entirely. By the time you get back on, you’re in last place. You get a callback and another callback, you finally get an email from casting, and you’ve been dropped. You just completed the most thrilling project of your life, and then you go home to find yourself exactly where you were before. You book a huge commercial just to not book anything for another 6 months after. You invite your whole friend group to your comedy show only to bomb because the mic was too muffled, and nobody could hear you. You get on an awesome show, only to be the last performer, and more than half the audience has already left. I’ve found that these moments come around more often than I care to admit. I am constantly reminding myself of why I am doing this in the first place. When you’re in the dumps all you can do is take the next step. If there are no auditions to work on, I’ll work on a piece for the class. If I don’t have any shows coming up, I’ll sit down and work on writing material. I try to remember that I can’t control everything, but there is always something I CAN do.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I am an actor and comedian. My recent film credits include Hideout, for which I was nominated for best actress at the First Glance Film Festival, and Precious for which I was nominated for best-supporting actress at the Orlando Independent Filmmakers festival. I have theatrical experience starring in a play off off-Broadway. I have been a company member in the sketch comedy groups The Egos and The Humor Mill Orlando. I am also a stand-up comedian who performs all over the Miami and NYC club circuit.
We’d love to hear about what you think about risk-taking.
Every risk that I have taken so far has been worth it. I have friends and even family members who worry for me about my path. Understandably so. I’ve heard it all ” what is your backup plan?” and “Only two percent of actors make a living.” Those kinds of ideas are to scare away the people who don’t want it enough. The level of work, it takes hours to get a reel together, taking on unpaid roles, working all week only to film all weekend, or working all day, to go to a long class or rehearsal at night. Many people do not want to risk doing all that, only to gain nothing. I’m not saying it’s the only way or even the right way. But I know for sure that I am willing to risk placing all the time and energy I have into this.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://kaitlinlillianlyon.wixsite.com/actor
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katielillianlyons/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katie.lyons.9847
Image Credits
Allison Mccoin
Paige Zauner
