The Spirited Actor - Daphne Maxwell Reid

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello, and welcome to the Spirited Actor Podcast with me
Tracy Moore. I was a casting director for film and
TV and commercials for over thirty years. I transition to
a celebrity acting coach after I cast a film New
Jersey Drive with executive producers Spike Lee and director Nick Thomas.
I audition every rapper from Biggie's Balls to Tupac, and

(00:24):
I realized that rappers and musical artists they needed help
transitioning to acting. My clients consist of musical artists from
Buster Rhymes to Eve, Missy Elliott, Angela Ye from The
Breakfast Club, and Vanessa Simmons, to name a few. I
also coach sports stars and host as well. I feel

(00:45):
I have the best of both worlds. As a casting director,
I know exactly what they're looking for, and as an
acting coach, I can coach you to be remembered in
that room. Now. I know. I know actors want to
get the job. I get that, but being remembered by
casting director that is powerful. Meditation of the day life

(01:06):
has two rules. Rule number one, never quit. Rule number
two always remember. Rule number one, Duke Ellington, no matter
how hard it gets, never give up. You should always
keep the vision of your dreams clearly embedded in your mind.

(01:28):
When things do appear bleak, just know it's a test.
You can get through it, and you will survive. I
have had my share of chaos, but looking back now,
I can honestly say I made it. It's not over,
but at least I know that, somehow or another, I

(01:48):
will continue to persevere. Today I will strive to be
a winner. Welcome to the Spirited Actor Podcast with me
Tray see More. I don't even know how to begin
this introduction because, aside from being a phenomenally talented human being, actress,

(02:15):
executive producer, just creative, overall creative being, she is a dynamic,
spectacular Every adjective that I can think of that talks
about empowerment and beauty and just graciousness and elegance. I
want to introduce Mrs Daphne Maxwell read. Ladies and gentlemen,

(02:40):
put your hands together for Miss Daphne read Yes you are,
Yes you are, and I'm gonna have to look through it.
No you are. I'm gonna have to look through with
the sarris um and get some more adjectives, because um,
it doesn't it really doesn't touch upon who you are.

(03:02):
And I feel so incredibly blessed to have this opportunity
to have a conversation with you and for other actors
to be able to embrace this conversation and your words
of wisdom, your experience, just everything everything that you embody. Well,
thank you. I just pleased to be asked to share. Well,

(03:25):
We're gonna start at the beginning. That's where I want
to start. And like I said, you know, this is
a conversation. Um, you know, I this is a platform
for me to continue to educate and inspire actors on
their journey and knowing the truths about the journey, not
what they heard from Actor B who messed it up

(03:47):
and you know became telephone now Okay, okay, so um, yes,
So I wanted to start at the beginning. Um, what
was your inspiration to um enter into the entertainment business?

(04:08):
I really didn't try to im. In high school, I
was playing with a group called the Group Theater Workshop
in New York was led by Robert's Hook. Oh yeah,
Kevin Hoo. Yeah. The Group Theater Workshop became the Negro

(04:30):
Ensemble Company right after I left WOW. I was working
with folks back then who were teaching me to do
improvisation and creation and and presence and being and and
how to deliver a line. And this is a high school.

(04:50):
But I thought, hey, this is a fun thing to
do on Saturday. It was in the sixties, and in
the sixties there were not a lot of examples of
black women who make a living acting. I had Diane Carol,
I said, uh, Diana Sans. I had a couple of

(05:11):
people that I could look to, but they were working hard.
I wasn't as talented as Diana stands because she could
sing and she was gorgeous. And I said, well, let
me go to school and use my head, and you know,
this is fun. So I never considered it as a career.

(05:32):
Then when I got to university, I was out in
Chicago at Northwestern and went through a discovery of myself
there and realized that I was a black woman for sure.
In New York, you don't know, but everybody's everything. You
don't call uh somebody who is Latino. You don't call

(05:54):
them either Puerto Rican or Cuban because they may be
the other and they may cut you true. You just
don't distinguish. A New York was such um a homogeneous place.
I mean there were people of all colors, races, countries.
It was a wonderful place to grow up and be

(06:15):
exposed to the actual world. UM So when I got
to Chicago, it was quite different. They were blastings and
they were white things, and they didn't kind of mixed together.
So I had a lot of challenges in um just
dealing with being a black woman in a place that

(06:37):
they didn't want me, which was very different for me.
And I realized that I have the strength that my
mother gave me, the responsibility to myself that my mother
gave me, and the courage that comes from somewhere deep
inside of me to understand that these people just for

(07:00):
a prince, they didn't know me. I guess it was
time to let them know who I was. So I
went about living my life and got discovered by my
junior high school teacher in New York who submitted me
to something called seventeen Magazines Real Girl Issue, and it

(07:23):
was an issue where they took girls who had achieved
things in high school and put them in one issue.
And this is when seventeen magazine was large format, I
mean it was like it was And I got selected
because I was a merit scholarship winner, and I modeled

(07:46):
for the first time, and I said, you mean you
just won't to want me stand here and smile. That
picture became a full page in seventeen magazine Wow, and
was one by Eileen Ford, who was one of model

(08:07):
agencies in New York for models. Yeah, I became a
Ford model and a special bookings because I didn't live
in New York. I was in Chicago, so I would
slide back and forth to New York. Now, this is
gonna hurt your heart. I could slide round trip to

(08:29):
New York, from New York to Chicago and bath for god,
Oh my god, that definitely hurts the heart. Go to work,
make fifty bucks an hour, and go back to school.

(08:49):
And did you have to in that fifty bucks? Did
they take out that percentage already or did Were you
able to come home with fifty bucks? Oh? I worked
a couple of went and I came home with whatever.
I came home more than I had when I was
a scholarships It was all just spending changed to me

(09:12):
and um so that was my life in college, right,
went back and forth to New York and did editorial modeling.
I was never telling them to be the runway girls
or anything like that. So I did editorial modeling and
one day I went back to New York. I had
a kind of a mentor back there named Amy Green,

(09:36):
and she would book me on things and call me
and say, Okay, come shoot this and come shoot that,
and you know, I'd go in there the same day
I go back to school. I came one day and
she said, Okay, put this red jacket on now, just
a little back scar and some lip gloss. Who your Harold,
just side, don't worry about it. Sit on the window there.

(09:57):
And I sat on a window. A guy, Amen, he
might have shot well fifteen shots. She said, Okay, that's
that's good. Okay, go back to school. And I got
back on the plane and went back to school. That
October of nineteen sixty nine, I was walking by the
newsstand and I saw my face on the cover of

(10:18):
Glamor magazine. Wow. And I was the first black African
American girl on the cover of Glamor. Back It was like,
what a delight I'm playing. I'm still just playing. I'm

(10:38):
studying in Syrian deside and architecture. I've met the love
of my life. I'm gonna get married. So I got married,
and um commuted for the last year in school, but
continues to model after I got out of school. Right now, Yah,

(10:59):
wonder in the sixties. Okay, you juggle a lot. I
am impressed. Family just chet setting back and forth, back
and forth. While yeah, it was fun in school, like
I mean, you know, it says a lot about your character. Well,

(11:19):
I had a lot of fun, and um, I just
modeled and modeled and modeled. And then when I got
out of school, Uh, I was really not interested in
getting a job as an interior designer. I kept modeling
with the Chicago groups and started doing commercial and I

(11:41):
was hanging out with people who did commercials all the
time and voice over talent and stuff. What is that?
Let me see that? So they would show me and
take me to a studio and I said, oh, I
could do this now. Did you feel that there was
um and coming from a world of model where you
have no words, but you still have to sell that

(12:03):
product or that piece of garment, right, did you feel
that How was the transition going from no words to
now incorporating words and building a character even in a commercial.
I've been talking all my life. Okay, was no big deal.

(12:29):
Okay show them that. Okay, I can do that. It
was all O j T. It was just on the job.
When I was on the job, I was paying attention
to what everybody was doing. I wanted to know what
the lightning guy was doing because he was making me
look better. And I was wondering what the focus puller

(12:51):
was doing, and he was making me in focus. So
I knew positioning, I knew hitting my light, delivery of
he's a cad. In the group theater workshop, I learned
how to deliver lines and how to make a point
and what to emphasize. And when I started the voiceover

(13:13):
stuff in Chicago, I was it was suggested that I
just take magazine articles and read them out loud in
the mirror and see if I could sell myself on
what it was doing and kind of get a flow going,
find your center. So that's what I did, and I
happened to be good at it, so I kept doing

(13:35):
it and they kept paying me. Then Robert this is
man named Robert Conrad came to Chicago and we just
lost Robert come. He was the man who I would
say discovered me. He put me in a television series

(13:59):
he was shooting in Chicago called The Duke, and he
put me in as a regular and he wrote me
in r audition for some part, and my agents as well,
you didn't get that, and then she said, oh, you're
in the script that just came through. It's all handwritten
in here. Wow. Henry was looking out for me. He

(14:22):
saw something in me, and he just gloaned on it.
So I did The Duke couple of episodes in Chicago.
I think we did maybe six or seven episodes, and
then that was over, and I went back to modeling
and mothering and and trying to keep a marriage together
that was falling apart because my husband was falling apart.

(14:44):
And finally decided, Okay, this marriage is not gonna laugh.
I got to go, and I left Chicago and moved
out to l A, not knowing hardly anybody. I had
a girlfriend out there who was a lawyer, and I said,
can I come out here and stay with you for

(15:04):
a week and see if I can make this go?
She said sure, sure, sure you can come, sleep on
the couch. I got out there, and the first person
I called, of course, was Robert Conrad, because he was
out another show called a man called Sloan. He said,
where are you. I'm in l A. He said, come
down to the studio. I went down. I was in

(15:27):
the episode that was up next. My god, oh my god,
that's excellent with me in that episode, and um, it
was a great part. I got an agent the first
week I was in l A h and started working.
That is very rare. Ladies and gentlemen, and that's very rare.

(15:48):
I am blessed. I understand this. It was not my
effort got me where I was. It was the stars aligning,
people seeing something in me, and b B being able
to uphold what they thought I could do. That's beautiful.
So I was very, very blessed and still just getting

(16:10):
to the point where can I make a living out
of this? Right right? L A was in l A.
But it was the seventies. It was the seventies and
the early eighties, and it was a time where they
were looking for black girls to kind of get into position.

(16:35):
They couldn't be too light, they couldn't be too dark.
They had to be just the right flavor for them,
and they would slide them in and there were little
opportunities that came up and I was working my butt off.
I did things like Hill Street, Blue and McCormick and whatever,

(16:56):
so many little shows. A knowes that we're going on.
I had a great career and I met We met Tim.
I had known him in Chicagocau. We had worked together,
but he didn't do nothing for me. But should we
recording this? Yeah? Right it, he knows it. They're the

(17:29):
best together. Oh yeah, we've had a wonderful We just
celebrated our forties Valentine Stadium. That's beautiful. Yeah. We met
in January and have been together ever since. I love it.
That's beautiful. I got to work with him. I met

(17:52):
the guys when he was on w k RP. When
you're dating somebody and you go to their show, you
meet the crew, you meet the writers, you meet the directors,
you meet everybody, and hey, they put me in w KRP.
Two shows that then they move on to a show
called Simon and Simon, and then writers says, Okay, we're

(18:14):
gonna write you in here. Tim's and the UD in
this too. So that's how my career progressed. It wasn't
me beaten down doors and saying I gotta do this.
I gotta do this. My heart says, I gotta do this.
It was I'm blessed with opportunities, and to take advantage
of these opportunities to the fullest, I have to be prepared.

(18:38):
So I stayed in shape. I just spent my downtime
doing things that I loved, which is what I encourage
actors to do. Find something you love with which you
can eat, m and and and love that while you're

(18:58):
waiting to be choke to. Because an actor has to
wait to be chosen, and unless you are creating your
own projects, you have to wait to be chosen. Wow,
that's I'm going to reiterate that during the show. Way
to be chosen, um, because you're absolutely right, and and

(19:21):
the preparation is, you know, if you believe and know
that there is a role out there for you, and
when that role presents itself, you are ready for that.
And I'm like you said in the downtime, that's where
the preparation begins, and that's where you're constantly nurturing that
your talent um. You know, my generation. I know all

(19:45):
of your body of work and have enjoyed you from
Afar and then when I met you, it was like
oh my god, one of my favorite actresses in the
Hawaii world. Um for real, so oh my. And when
you said Simon and Simon like your face immediately popped
up in a show in like an episode. I just remember.

(20:07):
So Um. And then you know there's that generation. You know,
you have been blessed to go through several generations of
you know, consistent work, which is rare in this entertainment business. Um.
So when you got to the Fresh Prince of bel
Air on VIV you know, we go to talk about

(20:29):
this story. You have to tell yes, you have to
tell this generation and beyond tell us how that transition happened. Okay,
we had been working on a bunch of shows in
l A, my husband and I. We did Sister Sister,
we did canceled um not to later Yeah, um, right

(21:00):
when we finished Shrank's Place, we got picked up Snoops.
That's the show we got as a payback for canceling.
Frank's Place. Never kind of held onto their talent, and
we did CBS shows for many years, and then we
had deals with CBS. Tim created shows for CBS. So

(21:23):
we did Snoops and we were exhausted and we decided
we're moving out of l A. And we're going to
Virginia because they just elected the first black governor in
the United States, so something must be happening back there.
And Tim is from Virginia and was supporting the governor

(21:45):
for his run. So as soon as he got elected,
we bought a farm back in Virginia. We said, okay,
time up. Work for the ten years really hard, and
we're gonna slow down. So we did that. Right before
we left, I got an audition call um, we want
you to come and there's a role for a mother

(22:08):
and uh, it has to do with a young rap star.
And I said, wait, wait, wait, wait, no, no, no,
I'm not doing no rap stuff. Sorry, So I said, no,
thank you. I didn't go to the audition, but they
told me about the project and I said, nah, this
is not for me. I'm at the farm, my new

(22:28):
farm in Virginia, just playing away, having a grand time.
That ball and oh what a cute show. This is
that little fresh prince thing. They were talking about, what
a cute show. So I'm looking at it. Huh. I said, well,

(22:49):
I didn't do that, and I'm going on about my
business Virginia. Three years later, three I guess it's all
and they said they're having an audition for the first
Prince of bel Air. I said, before I hang up
the phone, I'm I'm getting a play tickets. Okay. And

(23:10):
I came back to l A. And it took two
weeks of auditioning. I auditioned probably five times, and every
time I went back to a call back, there were
women there that I had never seen in my life.
And I kept going back, Oh good, I can go back,
and I kept going back, and then finally said, okay,

(23:31):
now tomorrow you go to the network. I said, oh, okay,
I get to the network call back. There are three
of us, totally different people, but I got already hit
it off with James Avery, who I and our auditions
were always fun and delightful and and we had a chemistry.

(23:56):
So I was confident, but I didn't know what they
were looking for, so I was not overconfident. After I
read for the network, I went home and I guess
I prayed and Tim without in l A with me
that time, and we just sat around. We said, okay,

(24:19):
we'll find out tomorrow. And tomorrow was the longest getting
It was eight o'clock in the morning. It was ten
o'clock in the morning and no phone had wrong. Finally,
about ten thirty that morning they called and said, you

(24:39):
got it. And it was also the first television show
that I had done. And I've been working in television
good ten to twelve years. That was the first time
I had done it before a live audience. It was
going to be wow w W k rps. The episodes

(25:03):
that we shot were a lot of film based. They
were kind of offset doing film based, so I really
hadn't worked before live audience. I was like in New
York and high school. But you had um your theater
training now, right, basic theater training. Yeah, but when you

(25:28):
start on this time, you don't know. Yah. You have
to learn how to wait for the last. Right. You
can't just keep talking right and talk over it. You
can't talk over the last. You gotta let it breathe.

(25:48):
During rehearsal. We have the writers who supposedly laugh, but
they laugh at anything, right, Okay. True. I was welcome
at Fresh Prints as if I had been in television
for forty years and was queen of whatever. I mean.

(26:09):
They treated me with such respect and such that's great. It.
I was greeted with dozens of red roses in my
room with me and welcomed me. It was really really wonderful,
and after the first scene I settled in so and

(26:30):
it became very comfortable to do when you know, that's
really great to know that you know, you were welcome
because the transition, you know, was unorthodox. So this is
so to speak, right, I mean in television world, because
I don't know, and I tried to remember this, but

(26:51):
did anybody address it? Like, you know, I just feel like, um,
we were given the information was going to be a
cast change. Did it happened? And then it was like, okay,
well we're just all gonna believe that you were on
VIV now, Like it was just you know, did it
feel like that on the set? It just felt like

(27:13):
I had been there the whole time. Wow, They did
address it, and it's one of my favorite episodes, which
is my favorite. Yeah, in the kitchen with Dandy, Jeff
comes and brings it a present for the baby, and
this is my first scene first day, and he brings

(27:36):
the present, called him the wrong name, correct, right, And
he looked at me and he said, you know, you
should look different since you had that bag. And we
broke the fourth wall, looked right into the camera and
just shrug and went on. There was never mentioned again. Yeah.
I thought that was brilliant the way you guys addressed it. Yeah,

(27:58):
I bravo. Um, you know, I told you that twenty
eight minutes was going to fly by, and they just
gave me the five minute morning signal. Yes, I'm telling
you so, I already knew. Listen, we're gonna we are
coming back because we're going to fast forward. We're going
to address the this audience of actors need to hear

(28:23):
the history, need to hear the journey, the perseverance, like
you know, just the pearls of wisdom that you have
blessed them with in these twenty five minutes that have
flown by so far. UM. So I do want to
extend in invitation and have you back so that you know,

(28:44):
we can even delve into character development because um, one
of the shows that I was a part of, Eve
Show in the beginning, I did the pilot and at
that point I had decided it as an acting coach
that I wanted to settle back in New York and
I have been on the road between even Buster for like,

(29:07):
um six years, So when I found out that you
were JT Jason George's mom, oh my god, I wanted
to come back. I was like, man, if I had
no Dafty was gonna be on that show like party.
So I want to talk about that because we didn't
even talk about that. There's just so much of your

(29:27):
work that um is important for actors to know and
to embrace and and hear these stories. Um. You know
at a time where I love where you said that
you know actors, you, um, you will be chosen. You know,
um you you you want to be chosen and so,

(29:49):
but there's also other entities. There's a studio we need
to talk about. So I am going to invite you
back on the show dapty. I love it, okay, So
I am going to check the calendar. I so appreciate
love your time and all of your energy this morning. Um,
I I could talk to you all day like it

(30:11):
really was. I'm serious being around you. But you have
such a spirit that I just admire so greatly and
have always admired. They mentioned your name and I just
light up. I said, oh, yes, that's just just on it. Oh,
thank you. I got little teas growing in by you.

(30:33):
I appreciate, oh always always like you know, um my
first the first show I ever had. You were on
that show as well, So I appreciate love your support.
And I know the actors, all of the actors listening
and my studio family in here, they're walking away with
some jewels, so they're excited that you're coming back. Excellent, excellent.

(30:56):
So you have a wonderful day, and thank you so much.
Tell t m I said, Hi, give him a hug. Okay,
and we're going to be back with Class in Session
on the Spirited Actor Podcast with me Tracy Bore. Welcome
to the Spirited Actor Podcast with me Tracy Moore, and

(31:18):
we are at one of my favorite segments, Class in Session,
lean A Motto and Melissa Capri Hey, give it up
him Hey, thank you. And also I do want to
mention that I do have a book called The Spirited
Actor Principles for a Successful Audition and it can be
purchased Actor's House dot com, I mean author's House, I

(31:42):
apologize author's House dot com and also Barnes and Noble Amazon.
I wrote this for you, This is for you. This
is my gift to actors. Okay, so check it out
all the gen Thank you, and I'll sign it for
those of you who are some ascribed to the Spirited
Actor podcast on I Heart Radio, I will sign your book. Okay, incentive, Okay,

(32:08):
class in session. So we have a scene um and um.
You know how we do. I'm going to read everything
the slug line action and um. Our ladies here are
going to portray the characters are merry and miss wise
interior um, and we're gonna start right there. Okay, excuse me,

(32:33):
Interior Child. Psychiatrists office day. Mary looks worse than ever.
Her hair and clothing are disastrous. She rocks somewhat anxiously
on the edge of her seat, like a desperate salesman
looking to close a deal. Abuse. Yes, Ms Johnson, Abuse,

(32:58):
there's no drugs in my No drugs because Precious No
damn well, woopa asked Bright Blue. If she brings some
drugs and I am referring to inappropriate acts of a
physical and sexual nature involving Precious, Why don't you just
say that that? Okay? When did it first start? Yes?

(33:20):
According to Precious files, she's had two children by your boyfriend.
The late Carl Kenwood Jones, was also her father. You've
been calling her, saying that you want to be reunited
with your daughter and grandson, and then you want them
to come home. Well, I think you'd better explained just
what happened in that home. Precious weights nervously well. Precious

(33:46):
belong at home because I'm a good mother. She had everything,
and then told her that pink and white baby carriage,
little pink booty socks, dresses everything I put on her, pink. Precious,
she's so smiling and healthy. They don't go by. I
don't throw up her wheels in the air. I take

(34:08):
her up and down a hundred twenty fifth street. I mean,
Carl loved Precious. I dreamed of the day we was gonna,
you know, get married, get get housed, with grass colored
TVs all in the rooms. Precious that she was born
by the same time Miss west Sun that got killed
even him, don't don't your precious, Precious looks at a loss.

(34:30):
He borne some summertime at the same time as you.
I was born in November. As far as I know,
that's right, my little scorpio child, scorpios crafty, and I
ain't say they lied, just you can't always trust them.
Precious looks embarrassed beyond embarrassment. Ms Johnson. When did the

(34:54):
abuse happen? How often? Where? And when? When you first
aware of what was going on? When? I don't know
when it starts when I remember it, she's still little. Yeah,
round three? Maybe I give her bottle. I still got

(35:18):
milk in my precesses, but but not from her, but
from car sucking. Give him titty precious bottle. Hygiene you know,
mm hmm excuse me, h huh. You mentioned something about
hygiene in connection with this. Wise can't go on. I

(35:39):
bottled her to him. Bottom are better for kids, sanitary.
But I never get dried up because Carl always on me.
It's like that, you know, child man, the woman got
got both. What you're gonna do? We're in bed. I

(36:00):
put it on one side of me, on the pillow.
Call on the other side of me. This is Wise
looks as if she's stopped breathing. I think that was
the day it started. So you on me? Then did
he reached over the precious? It's like, call what you're doing?
He said, shut your big gass up. It's good for her.

(36:21):
I say, stop it. Carl, I want him on me.
I never wanted him to heard her. I didn't want
him doing anything to her. I wanted my man for myself,
to text me up for my child, me me, God,
damn it. So yeah, you can't blame me for this.
Ship happened in the Precious on me. I love Carl,

(36:43):
I loved him. He her daddy, but he was my man.
Mary can't help but to shoot a look of anger
at Precious, while miss Wise pauses to regain her composure. See,
this is a very very I want to plug both
of you, guys. This is a very difficult scene. For

(37:04):
those of you who don't know this scene. It's from
a film Precious. Um. There is abuse, um of the
highest levels. I can't even comprehend a child going through this.
And that was one of my questions with you, because

(37:24):
I'll address both of you. But um, lean, as a psychiatrist,
you're supposed to be neutral and clearly in the actions.
Excuse me, it's stated she's floored. That tells us something
about your disposition. Um. Miss Wise can't go on. Miss

(37:48):
Wise looks as if she stopped breathing this situation. And
I'm sure you've been around a lot of situations in
this you know this is your job. Right, this sounds
like you've never had this experience. So where do you
where do you search to get this type of experience

(38:10):
with this? I definitely how do you imagination? Because for
it to be this extreme, Um, And I just pictured,
you know, if it was, um, like I pictured my
little sister if I was younger, and when she was younger,
and like I, I I had a hard time even
like fathoming three years old, like just the size of

(38:35):
a baby at three years old. Um. But yeah, it's
so it's so extreme that like the only thing I
can pull from his imagination or how to create it
because I have not experienced or nerve seen it. So
and then there are maybe references of films like, um,

(38:55):
you know, we're talking about abuse, so they play enough
every Saturday on Bravo, you know Jennifer Lopez's films. Maybe
they're films like that in reference to where women were
being abused. It's a very difficult subject. I mean I
can't imagine, you know, being in a film, and I
know that we're acting, but the truth of this is
that this young girl is being abused in the same

(39:17):
bed with her mom and her abuser. So for you, um,
ju Lisa, Um, how do you prepare for a world
like this where you have no experience and you also
have a child? Yeah? Um, I mean I definitely as
a cool read, it's like going through and I was like,
oh wait, all of this is happening. Okay, cool, But
like if I was to do research and stuff on it, Um,

(39:39):
I have to make sure that you don't judge the character,
because you can't play a character and judge it at
the same time. So coming from the respective of an
abused woman, I have to think about, well, she had trauma,
and what are her traumas and what are her triggers
and going through all of that, it's like, okay, well,
how did she justify her actions or where did she
even feel us to fight in them? Like I just

(40:01):
try to put myself in the mind frame of the person,
and what are her surroundings and what were the stakes
Like if she didn't allow this to happen, would she
be out in the street or you know, like so
none of it makes it right, but it's like trying
to make sure that like I just put myself in
their shoes as opposed to like judging your from the outside,
because you can judge anyone's situation from the outside and

(40:22):
you have no clue what's happening on the inside if
you don't exactly know, not that this would ever happen
in my life, but you don't know what would happen
or how you react when certain things come up. So
and and your past plays a role, your fears play
a role, like your stakes, all that plays a role.
So Yeah, when I'm like, if I was reading for
the first time, as you always say, the first time

(40:43):
you go through, yeah, I'd be floored because of everything
that's happening, and I think about my child and what
would happen. But then I have to flip the table
and think about, Okay, where is she coming from? What
are the stakes for her? So and I like that
statement that you don't judge, then you can't todge the
character you don't know the story behind it, right. Um,

(41:05):
And in this particular case, you definitely were abused and
molested as the mom sum that happened in your past.
But I still think that out of all the situations
that you have had over your career, you've never had this,
And that's why it was important for the writer to
write she is floored to let us know the impact,

(41:27):
and then there's kind of a nonchalant sort of way
in which you kind of like have made this the
new normal and acceptable quote unquote, which is really sick
with you. Right. Yeah. I think about UM when I
was you know, I was just reading this when I
was on Way here. But we had when you had

(41:48):
um uh. Derek Bernard on the show, he talked about it,
like the reminder about UM serving like the relationships like
in the you know, in our work. So I was trying,
even me as a therapist and a psychologist, I was trying,
I'm sorry, psychologist, I was trying to UM. I was
almost trying to like give her the benefit of the doubt,

(42:09):
like before, like I feel like my mind's already made up.
I'm protective of precious, like it's such such a special case.
But I feel like like I feel like I was
trying to like fight to listen to her because I'm like,
it's it's so irrational that, like you said, like she's
got to like I feel like she's got to be
coming from something, you know what I mean. So I

(42:30):
was really trying to not uh, to not judge her
character and like hear her even though my mind was
made up. But I'm like, but I was trying to
hear her instead of just UM coming from like a
defensive standpoint, which is good because actually is a part
of listening. So she was giving you that breathing space
as well. So another thing that I wanted you to

(42:51):
add lean about, um, your preparation. What was that that? Um?
If I had time to prepare for this, I would
try to go to shelters or um, you know, homes
or centers for women who have been abused to like
really get a sense of the truth of it, because
I wouldn't want to play a caricature in a val
like this. Excellent, So observation, homework, research, all of that

(43:12):
stuff is about the preparation. And then of course you
know you need time. So I applaud these ladies because
this is all a code read so they are literally
getting it just as I'm getting it as well. Okay,
so this time, let's read it again. I'm not going
to read any action and we are just really focusing
on building these characters. Okay, whenever you guys are ready abuse, yes,

(43:38):
m Johnston abuse. There's no drugs in my house. No
drugs because precious no damn well, I WoT her as
bright blue. If she brings some drugs in my house,
I am referring to inappropriate acts of physical and sexual
abuse involving Precious. Did you just say that? Okay? Okay?

(43:59):
When the disc h h When did it start? Yes?
According to Precious as Files, she's had two children by
your boyfriend, the late Carl came with Jones. It's also
her father. You have been calling her saying you want
to be reunited with your daughter and grandson and that

(44:20):
you want them to come home. Well, I think you
better explain just what happened in that home. Well, I
the Precious belong at home because I'm a good mother.
She had everything and told that pink and white baby carriage,

(44:42):
little pink booty sucks dresses. Everything I put on up
pink pascius. She's so smiling and healthy. They didn't go
by that. I didn't throw whole wheels up in the air.
I take up and down huncheons with the fifth Street.
I mean Carl love as I dreamed of a day
he was gonna, you know, getting married, get get housed

(45:06):
with grass called TV in all the rooms. Presents she
born at the same time. It's West Sun that got killed.
You remember him, don't you, precious? He born summertime, same
time as you. I was born in November as far
as I know. Yeah, that's right. Let us scorpion. Child

(45:27):
Scorpio is crafty. Look, I ain't saying they lie. They
just no, you can't always trust them. It's Johnston. When
did the abuse happen? How often and where? And when
were you first aware of this? Even going on? When?

(45:50):
I don't know when it starts. When when I remember it,
she still little and maybe around three. I give her
a bottle. I still got milk in my breasts, sayes,
but but not from hub from from Carl sucking. I
give him titty, precious bottle and hygiene. You know, excuse

(46:15):
me you you mentioned something about the hygiene in connection
with I brittled her titty him bottle more better for kids, sanitary.
I never get dried up. It's Carl always on me.
It's like that, you know, child man. The woman got

(46:36):
both what you're gonna do? We in bed, so I
put on one side of me on a pillow, call
on the other side of me. I think that's the
day it started. So he on me. Then he reached
over the precious. I said, call, what you're doing? He said,

(46:58):
to set your big gass up. It's good for her, say,
I say, stop it. Call. I want him on me.
I never wanted him to hearn uh, and I didn't
want him doing anything now huh. I wanted my man
for myself, sex me up on my child. Hey God,
damn it. See you can't blame me for all that

(47:21):
ship the precious happened the on me. I love Carl,
I loved him her daddy, but he was my man
and seem wow, very very powerful. Um My wishes that
our our audience was able to pick up the tension

(47:41):
the relationship. Just you know, um this was a really
really deep scene. Give it up for a Lien and Julisa,
thank you. Wow wow brings it. You know we need
to pick me up energy in here. I have some
pick me up. I have some love. If you're looking
for love, if you are looking for love, you're gonna

(48:04):
love this book, The Spirited Actor Principles for a Successful
Audition by Me Tracy Moore and I share some insights
and tips and love. So stay tuned as we leave
class and session and we're going right into give love.
Thank you give love when you have done all you can,

(48:28):
when you have prayed and whatever your religious belief, when
you have fallen to your knees and ask God to
help you, when you have no other resource, when you
have nowhere else to go, stop breathe and give it
to God. Your plan doesn't provide the relief and the

(48:50):
comfort of God's plan. Relax, It's already taken care of.
Thank you for joining us on the Spirited Actor podcast.
Pass with Me, Tracy Moore. I look forward to our
next Spirited podcast. Thank you,