Today we’d like to introduce you to Jodi Fleisher.
Jodi , we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I moved to LA by myself in 1999 after graduating college with a degree in Theatre. I stayed with distant cousins and got a job working nightshift at Jerry’s Deli in Westwood before finding my own studio in Mid Wilshire. I got an internship working for a talent manager that I had met at our college showcase and she in turn got me auditions. I also self submitted to everything I could and got cast in a Shakespeare play in Pasadena while taking acting classes in Hollywood. It was scary but exciting. I rollerbladed all over Hollywood- before the Grove or Hollywood Highland were built.
Then I used my stage combat skills to get hired at Swordplay fencing studios, performing at parties and teaching basic fencing. In acting class I was assigned “After the Fall” (after backing out of a cruise contract to play Rizzo). I bought a cheap blonde wig and spent 12 weeks studying and transforming into Marilyn Monroe- trying to find who she really was. I got good at it. So when I saw an opening at Universal Studios for a Marilyn Monroe Impersonator I went. I was embarrassed for my acting teacher to know I was working at a theme park. But I loved it and got even better so I started doing corporate events on my own until it replaced my Universal Studios income and I quit after 5 years there. I never fit in well with corporate structures and rules. I am more of a free agent. I did end up going on that cruise doing 42nd Street- and loved the traveling and the performing but hated the corporate rules and barbaric class system. I came back to Hollywood and my part time job as a face character. All the while I hustled always for film and TV roles. But I never had the right agent to get consistent auditions.
I suppose I took a slight pause to become a MOM, put my Equity card on hold after years of working to attain it. No one wanted to hire a Pregnant actor. At my baby shower, My commercial agent- who had become a dear friend, offered for me to share her job with her once she went on maternity. I didn’t really want to but I felt I needed a stay at home job with a nursing baby so I gave it a try. And it suited me. I like helping other actors get auditions. But I took a 10 year hiatus from Theater. Long commutes to rehearsals in Long Beach were not as possible with a nursing baby, though I did pump milk while driving between the set of a Lana Del Rey Movie and a Marilyn Gig at a quincenera and back to set. I brought my baby girl with me to San Diego for Gigs with my Mom to watch her while I performed. It’s been a wild ride and motherhood proved quite stressful.
I played Marilyn as my side job for 20 years until I turned 40 and had 2 kids and felt I needed to retire my wig. I didn’t want to be judged for my larger body from birthing two kids or the age I had developed on my face. Right after Covid, I was dying to do theater again, so I begged my local Community Theater to throw me into “Mamma Mia”- I had missed the audition- and they let me in with only videos and my resume. This restarted my passion for Theater and my confidence in myself that led to a new manager and finally booking TV roles again. Now I try to do it all! It’s not easy but I have tried hard to find balance, and sleep and yes, Prozac. Thank God for Prozac. I stay active with my local Theater, helping so many of my local actor friends get an agent, and performing myself in about 1 show a year if I have time, while singing in my Temple choir, and shuttling my kids to their rehearsals, tap lessons and Mitzvah prep. Money is always tight. and sometimes so are tempers. I am grateful my husband now works from home and we work as a team to get everything done and still find time to pursue our passions, even if we can’t afford a real vacation, or to spay the cat yet. My life is always hectic but the exciting part is I never know what lies around the corner and what exciting job I could book next, all while trying to support other actors and my family. I have appearances in 2 big TV shows coming out in 2026 and my dream is to have more recurring roles. I will never stop trying, I will never stop dreaming and I will never stop performing. It’s in my bones. It gives me purpose and meaning to my life. I believe everyone has gifts they are meant to share and this is mine.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It has never been smooth. I dealt with so much fear, stress, doubt, depression, and pain. It’s all been a voyage learning how to manage my own emotions, how to say no, how to allow myself rest and forgiveness and how to forgive others for hurting me too. Last summer I played Ursula in The Little mermaid, all while processing my dog’s death, my Dad’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis, gaining Guardianship of him with my brothers, and a whole lot of personal drama and strife while struggling with my kids mental well being at the same time in a scary world. I was having daily anxiety attacks and spent a year trying to figure out the right balance of vitamins and meds for my own health- while limping through a torn ACL and then later my Meniscus. This summer- I allowed myself a break to fix my knee and rest so I can be whole again. I am grateful my boss who has always supported my dreams and didn’t give up on me- when she almost fired me and I almost quit- and she has seen me grow and change and evolve so much in the past 10 years.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I could never narrow down what specialty to focus on as a performer. I wanted to do it all, and I have done a little of everything. My Theater career has ranged from Comedy farce & Romantic drama, to Shakespeare & Greek Theater. Traditional musicals to Rock Operahs and Classic shows with music. I never did a lot of Improv (as a troupe)- cold improv scares me- structured improv is my Jam- I have done a lot of that as Marilyn and other characters at live events. When people ask me what they can see me in, well that spans also from animation, Voice over, Commercials, TV, Film, Music Videos, Infomercials. I am one of those unknown working class actors struggling to get by but full of hopes and dreams and certainty that I will. I have always been a late bloomer. I have always had a mix of vulnerability & self doubt mixed with intense confidence and strength that sometimes confuses actors when they first meet me. I have always had powerful sensuality about me, a natural sense of comedy and quirk, and a knack for playing very scary villains or Romantic leads. I am flawed but I have been striving for years to not seek validation from others, to trust my own choices while being open to feedback and collaboration. I love working off other actors so much more than by myself. But I can’t resist a great torch song moment. I love disappearing into unrecognizable characters or other periods or places. I love to escape to a world of fantasy. I love a good challenge. I love to grow. I really love when people tell me my performance effected them.
What matters most to you? Why?
Making a difference, Sharing my gifts and brightening the world with what I have to offer, all while growing as a human being and learning all I can along the way. I strive to evolve Spiritually and be a good person while not sacrificing my own light. Raising children who have something to offer the world, helping others, being a good friend, wife, artist and human. I love animals and hope to see a more peaceful world one day. I stand up loudly for what I believe in and this may make me enemies but truth is crucial to me. Sometimes I talk way too much and sometimes I can’t find the words at all. I am a work in progress and will always seek adventure in one way or another.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: JodiFleisher17
- Facebook: https://Facebook.com/JodiTFleisher
- Other: https://Imdb.me/Jodifleisher
Image Credits
Photographer- Eduardo Arteaga, MiaPhotoArt, Burbank Picture Company
