Daily Inspiration: Meet Durran Moreau

Today we’d like to introduce you to Durran Moreau.

Hi Durran, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My first two times on stage were in K5 and 5th grade. I can’t remember what the performance was in K5, however, the 5th-grade performance was me as Martin Luther King Jr. giving the “I Have A Dream” speech for our Black History program. Though they technically are, I don’t credit these as the start of acting. I started acting, or rather a version of acting, in the 8th grade.

I joined my middle school’s Speech and Debate team. I did this category called Solo Serious acting, fell in love with the scholastic activity, and continued on in high school. Their things got a lot more serious. Along with local and state competitions, I started traveling. I tried different performance categories (Poetry, Prose, and a combination of the to called Program Oral Interpretation) along with Solo Serious Acting (which became Dramatic Interpretation). I fell in love with the storytelling aspect of performance.

Around my junior year of high school (2016-2017), I realized I wanted to act professionally. I have a really close friend and fellow actress, Camara, who was working in professionally at the time, who I expressed my interest in professional theatre to. She told me about this training program for youth actors at a local theater in our hometown (Milwaukee), and I jumped at the opportunity.

I spent my senior year learning about the specifics of a professional theatre-making, which culminated in a full production at the end of the program. While a part of PTI (Professional Theater Institute), I got offered the opportunity to do my first paid-professional gig reading Stage Directions for the Milwaukee stop of the promotional tour for Cygnet Theatre’s 2018 production of Nathan Alan Davis’ The Wind And The Breeze. That summer, I made my professional stage debut in the world premiere of Kimberly Bellflower’s Lost Girl.

I started college in the fall of 2018 at Howard University as an Acting concentration, Theatre Arts major. There I had the opportunity to learn from entertainment giants. It’s at Howard that I was challenged to think about my work with intense specificity and deep emotional truth. In my junior year (2020-21), which coincided with the pandemic, I realized that I wanted to start my post-undergrad career in film. I graduated from the Chadwick A. Boseman College of Fine Arts in May of 2022 and relocated to Los Angeles that summer.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Deciding early on that I wanted to pursue a career in entertainment, choosing to go to school and study the arts, and moving across the country at 21 – I experience{d] a lot of growing moments in my personal life while I navigate establishing my career. Being aware of that duality has been paramount. Knowing when to focus on Durran as the person and come back to Durran the actor is critical. Self-care allows me to pour more intentionally into my work.

Recognizing what the past couple of years and what the next couple of years will be: learning opportunities. I always want to learn and grow in my artistry, so it’s important to set the solid foundation for a long-lasting career. Finding peace in that notion is a continual, ever-evolving journey.

Though through support from family, close friends, and the peace from my faith, the obstacles of a career in entertainment become less daunting.

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. I’m known for acting. I have a few regional theater and new media credits under my belt, and I’m working on expanding my artistry in the entertainment industry. I also have done a little bit of modeling for major brands.

I’m most proud of graduating college. It meant a lot to me to see obtaining my degree through. Education has always been important to me and I was fortunate enough to do it in space that offered me personal growth. As a young black theatre artist, I got to train in a truly unique space. One that I’m forever grateful for. I’m also a part of the generation who went to college in a pandemic, so graduating college held a very special meaning.

My commitment to the craft, work ethic, and personality set me apart from other actors. Anyone who meets me will attest that there is no one quite like me. In terms of acting, I find a unique trait or aspect to explore in each of my characters, and I commit to making stronger, more grounded choices every take, run, performance, project, etc. I also focus into my work with a specific intention and intensity. Acting allows me to explore different aspects of humanity, and part of artistic resolve is to always honor that. So I’m committed to putting in the work to honor that responsibility. And I’m more than determined to see my creative-goals through and then some.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
Best – the various cultures. Moving to LA has not only been a huge opportunity to learn and grow as an artist but also a person and a part of the community.

Least – traffic and rent prices.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.durranmoreau.space
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_durrrran/?hl=en
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/therealdurran_

Image Credits
Orange Headshots – Daniel Jacob Carkuff-Korey https://www.djcoreyphotography.com Rowing Blazers Shot- RaShad Oliver https://www.rashadoliver.com Group Shot- Puma We Are Legends Campaign Theatre Shot- Lost Girl Kimberly Bellflower/Milwaukee Repertory Theater Blue Background – Montana Monardes https://www.montanamonardes.com