Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Abatemarco.
Tony, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Born in Brooklyn, NY to working class Italian parents, each of whom had only 8th grade educations. My mother died when I was 11. I was then raised by my older sister and her husband while my Dad acquired a new family. I was schooled (higher education) at Fordham U, Lincoln Center, Boston U School of Fine Arts, and after two years working in regional theatres of the Northeast including Arena Stage, the Folger Theatre, and Williamstown, returned to finish schooling in the Advanced Acting Program at the Juilliard School of Drama. Since the age of 14, my passion for theatre (acting, directing) and for writing (plays, short stories, poetry, lyrics) has never wavered. Upon graduating from Juilliard, I was hired to act at the Center Theatre Group’s Taper, Too here in LA, followed by the then LA Shakespeare Festival, both housed at the John Anson Ford. That summer (`78), I met the artist Dan McCleary, my life partner.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
Working as an artist has always been the way I breathe, the way I learn, the way I grow, adapt and change. There have been times when finding work proves challenging, but that has never stopped me from creating. When I’m not hired, I create my own work, which has been my salvation, whether as an actor, writer, director, or producer. Teaching has also been added to the mix, which is satisfying in that it not only allows me to help others but equips me with a constant source of refreshed knowledge. I have a solid work ethic, and I credit my father for instilling that in me. I have had moments of great professional opportunity and have a number of instances where I’ve had the privilege of working with artists and collaborators whose work I’ve always venerated. Those instances “raise the bar” both professionally and personally. Ironically, “success” when and if it came consistently challenged me on a deeper level than either “process” or “failure” ever did. I believe that has something to do with expectations, and of course, with ego. By my current age, I manage expectation and ego very well, which account for the best definition of success I can claim.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Beginning as an actor, with concentration on those skills both in school(s) – Boston Univ., Harvard (for Kabuki training), and Advanced Studies at Juilliard – I began to branch out into directing at age 26. Within four years, after founding a performance space in East Hollywood called Accident Theatre, my directing was being noticed in the press and by other producers & actors. Until the age of 39, I worked extensively as an actor and director, the latter most notably at Center Theatre Group/The Mark Taper and Taper, Too, the Pasadena Playhouse, and in a pre-Broadway tour and Broadway run of “Lucifer’s Child” starring Julie Harris. I also directed that same one-woman show for A&E TV. My career as the sole vs. co-authorship playwright began at 40 when I created a one-man show for myself – the award-winning FOUR FATHERS. Since then, I’ve written well over a dozen plays, four of which have been produced and published. My creative life is filled with these creative intersections, which I’m extremely proud of and fortunate.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
My secret passion is singing, and my single regret is that I waited so long to build some skills or the confidence needed to ‘go public’ with my voice. Also, I wish I had the patience to learn to play an instrument, but aside from the habit of writing, which I’ve become very diligent about, I’ve always relied too heavily on practice and rehearsal imposed by a given show, each with their own demands and deadlines.
Pricing:
- ACTION/ITEMS, The Collected Plays of Tony Abatemarco, published by fStop Books and available at amazon.com – $18.
- Private Coaching – Auditions or Voice: $175 per hour
Contact Info:
- Facebook: Tony Abatemarco
- Youtube: Actor’s Reel on YouTube
Image Credits:
Dennis Aspergis (headshot)
