Today we’d like to introduce you to Allie McCarthy.
Hi Allie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I am originally from Oakdale, Minnesota. My love for the performing arts started when I was 3 years old dancing competition line. My family would always joke about how I used to take over the stage and “announce” to my fellow dancers the steps out loud. The song would be going, and you’d hear me even if you were seated all the way in the back of the theater shouting “Shuffle step. Shuffle step. Shuffle hop toe step.” Not sure if I did that because I like to hear myself talk or because I wanted to make sure my peers knew the routine even though we learned and practiced that choreo months in advance. From there, I auditioned for a community theatre show and booked one of the leads. I then went on to attend one of the only two performing arts schools in Minnesota and began to find my own work in small indie films/commercials/local theatre outside of the school.
By junior year, I was often leaving school for periods of time to do outside projects I had gotten myself and started saving for my move to Los Angeles whilst finishing my high school degree. I became my own manager and learned how to navigate “branding” myself at an early age because my parents taught me that things will never be handed to me. I had to work hard and not expect anything in return. I then moved into an artist commune when I was 18 with 38 other people all in one house in East LA. I lived in a “pod” and shared a room with seven other girls. It was nice to meet people from all different backgrounds while focusing solely on refining my craft and navigating a new city. Because I skipped college and went straight into it, I was exclusively around artists and friends between 6 to 15 years older than me, and that aged me pretty fast, getting all that life experience and wisdom from people of all different backgrounds. I was nonstop climbing and trying to always get the next best agent or check off a never-ending to-do list. It wasn’t until COVID when I was finally forced me to sit back and look at who I really am and what this acting itch inside me really means. It then became less about the do list and more about the types of stories I wanted to tell. I learned that I am adventurous, deep, intuitive, sensitive, chaotic AF and I have a lot more to offer than I thought. I learned the key to life is simply listening and staying open to whatever’s right in front of you.
After a much-needed break that was quarantine, I was cast as Max in Secret Cinemas Stranger Things Drive Into Experience. We put on a show 10-15 times a night for around 700 cars each night!!! We were the longest-running show in the world during Covid. We were open from August 2019-June 2020. Never got shut down once. The Stranger Things Experience then went on to expand to New York and San Fransisco, but I stayed in LA grinding out gigs between being on a web series for kids, doing music videos, more commercials, and a few more short films. I realized you kind of have to do it all out here. I went viral on Tiktok a few times, made comedy skits on my own, tried and failed at standup comedy (will revisit that later in the game), assistant directed a few films for my good friend Olivia Brown and just kept auditioning and auditioning and auditioning.
I just finished a movie called Blossom for BET Plus (streaming now) and flew out to Texas to film a movie called “Rear View Mirrors”. I’ve found the edgier and/or goofier roles are my favorite because it leaves me plenty of room to play. I rarely like to stay inside the box.
After lots of rejection, a few wins, LOTS, and LOTS of lessons, I know now that what I am on is a mission to explore the depths of my own being as well as experience the depths of others. I am now in this business for the craft; everything else is just extra. I’ve never given a **** what people think of me, but I am thankful for every trial thrown my way and every lesson yet to come because it gives me the opportunity to relate even more to the rest of the world, and then I get to share what I learned with others when they see my vulnerability translate to the screen.
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 most certainly has not been a smooth road. Becoming an artist takes a lot of courage and skin thicker than Megan the Stallion’s booty. I have been waiting tables on and off between gigs since I was 16, and I once got fired from a serving job over calling out so I could shoot a SAG film over the weekend. The production then failed to pay me after the shoot, and shortly after that, the talk of the writer’s strike slowed the industry down, so I was in a pool of debt, applying to every job I could in order to stay out in LA. I also used to dye my hair bright blonde every other month, and one time I booked a film and didn’t have the time (or money) to go to the salon, so I had to do it myself, and HUGE chunks of my hair started falling out and I had bald spots for months. Thank god for the hair and makeup queens giving me wigs and extensions for the shoots following that (un)natural disaster. Other than my hair looking like blonde Chucky, my struggles have been just a few car break-ins, a (way more than a few) parking tickets, and your daily dose of rejection from casting. I’ve been through a lot more, but I’m not one to trauma bond on the first interview, so we’ll keep it at that. I’m always able to keep my head up and power through the struggles. And I’m expecting a whole lot more struggle. A whole new level of struggle. But struggle builds character, and it makes the wins that much more worth it. It’s like Beyonce said, “Power’s not given to you; you have to take it.”
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I do mainly comedy. Comedy is my home base in this industry. Comedy takes rhythm, and I’m not one to miss a beat. You will always see me doing comedic sketches with other creatives both professionally and just for the hell of it. That being said, doing drama has challenged me to dive into my inner psyche and get comfortable with sitting in my emotions and being vulnerable. I also love horror. I could make people crap their pants any day of the year. I would love to play someone possessed. Climbing on a ceiling (like the mom in hereditary) is my dream.
What makes you happy?
It’s the little things that make me happy. It’s belting the same ten songs randomly throughout the day and the people around me joining in. It’s sitting in a nice warm hot tub, drinking a Modelo under the stars. It’s opening the door of the dryer and seeing my retainer fall out after I thought I had lost it for a week. It’s going to my favorite vegan restaurant in LA and clapping when the food comes then crying when I take the first bite because it’s so good. Just like the Disney movie Soul, yes I’m out here chasing my dreams but once I get there, then what? It’s all about the little things in your day-to-day that are going to make you happy, not a singular achievement or hustling yourself into the ground, even if it’s for something you love.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsalliemccarthy/?igshid=MjEwN2IyYWYwYw%3D%3D
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjt3kKTO2k2xcPirQ1xdf5Q
