How to Get Away with Murder

Behzad Dabu on That One Audition with Alyshia Ochse

Behzad Dabu
Behzad Dabu 1920 960 Alyshia Ochse

Behzad Dabu is an actor, writer, and producer. He grew up in Syracuse, NY and got his BFA in Acting from Columbia College Chicago. With a passion for working with playwrights and new play development, he originated the role of ‘Amit’ in “Samsara” at Victory Gardens Theatre, for which he was nominated for a Jeff Award – Best Actor. He also originated the role of ‘Abe’ in the Pulitzer Prize-winning and Tony-nominated play, “Disgraced” which he performed at American Theatre Company, Goodman Theatre, Berkeley Repertory, Seattle Repertory, and the Mark Taper Forum at Center Theatre Group.

On screen, you can see him as ‘Simon Drake’ on How To Get Away With Murder on ABC,  as ‘Amir’ on the Showtime series The Chi, on Disney’s The Lion Guard, and many more. Behzad is the Director of Acting for the HillmanGrad Mentorship Lab, an instructor at The Last Acting Studio, and an adjunct professor in the theatre department at Columbia College Chicago where he leads their Semester in LA program.

Behzad strives to be a strong advocate for social justice and equality, particularly in regards to representation in the arts and media; and is a founding member of The Chicago Inclusion Project, which seeks to level the playing field and provide resources in the arts for people of color, women, LGBTQ, and people with disabilities.

Resources

GUEST LINKS:
THAT ONE AUDITION’S LINKS:

For exclusive content surrounding this and all podcast episodes, sign up for our amazing newsletter at AlyshiaOchse.com. And don’t forget to snap and post a photo while listening to the show and tag me: @alyshiaochse & @thatoneaudition

EPISODE CREDITS:
  • WRITER: Erin McCluskey
  • WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings
  • ASSISTANT: Elle Powell
  • SOCIAL OUTREACH: Alara Ceri
Nick Gonzalez on That One Audition with Alyshia Ochse

Nick Gonzalez
Nick Gonzalez 1920 960 Alyshia Ochse

Nicholas González burst onto the Hollywood scene after a critically acclaimed 3 season turn as Alex Santiago in Showtime’s Resurrection Boulevard. He very quickly began to amass credits both in TV and film.

Best known for his portrayal of the charming and exacting Dr. Neil Melendez in ABC’s global hit, “The Good Doctor”, Texas native and Stanford graduate, Nicholas Gonzalez, is no to stranger to audiences who recognize him from a dense resume of some of TV’s hottest shows. He can currently be seen starring as ‘Capt. Levi Delgado’ on NBC’s Sci-Fi hit, “La Brea.” Nicholas’ passion for humanity exceeds his entertainment work and in depth character portrayals. As a father, husband, actor and activist, Nicholas is committed to projects, both on camera and off, that highlight the injustices, struggles, and victories of the human condition.

Resources

NICK’S LINKS:
THAT ONE AUDITION’S LINKS:

For exclusive content surrounding this and all podcast episodes, sign up for our amazing newsletter at AlyshiaOchse.com. And don’t forget to snap and post a photo while listening to the show and tag me (@alyshiaochse)!

EPISODE CREDITS:
  • WRITER: Lizzy Dalla Betta
  • SOUND DESIGN: Zachary Jameson
  • WEBSITE & GRAPHICS: Chase Jennings
  • ASSISTANT: Elle Powell
  • SOCIAL OUTREACH: Bebe Katsenes

089: Eme Ikwuakor
089: Eme Ikwuakor 1500 750 Alyshia Ochse

Dive In and Take The Risk

Today’s guest’s journey is a roller coaster ride full of defining moments, times when everything seemed to be working against him, but ultimately lead him to where he is today. From multiple heart attacks by the time he was 21 years old to getting cut from some of recent year’s most recognizable films, Eme Ikwuakor has continued to press on and shares how he took the deep dive into an artistic career.

Eme Ikwuakor is a triplet, born In Wheatridge, Colorado and the son of Nigerian parents (his father is a college professor in Nigeria). Attending the University of Colorado on a track and field scholarship, he was considering a sports marketing major until a college advisor recommended an acting course. Ikwuakor signed up and was quickly cast in the part of Tom Robinson in To Kill a Mockingbird. It became a life-changing experience. Always fascinated by history and African-American rights issues, Ikwuakor then became heavily involved in the Interactive Theater Project in Colorado, a professional acting troupe that specialized in theater for social change. This experience became a great influence on his career goals. During this period, he was cast in Ink, the critically-acclaimed, locally produced, independent science fiction feature that won Best Colorado Film at the 2009 Denver Film Critics Society awards and was considered “one of the best films of 2009. (JoBlo)” This positive experience taught Ikwuakor a great deal about how to independently produce projects, market and take chances. Arriving in Los Angeles after college graduation with a B.F.A in Performance Theater, Ikwuakor took a series of jobs to support his acting and producing ambitions. His life-changing project, Chance, was a short dramatic film, which he wrote, produced, co-directed and starred in. Its insight encouraged him to drop his day job of three years and focus entirely on his acting career. Since then, he has never been busier. Ikwuakor’s television series credits include Outlaw, Love Bites, Victorious, The Comeback, Silicon Valley, Castle, Hawaii Five-O and We Are Angels. In addition to Ink, he has been featured in the films The New Republic, Murder in the Dark and Not Safe for Work. He continues to work actively for social and political change. Currently, Eme is starring on ABC’s, Marvel’s Inhumans.

Tune in

Listen On iTunes

Resources

LINKS:
QUOTES:

“Sometimes it might take you five auditions to learn that one piece of advice to book this next gig.”

“If I hear a no, I know what I need to work on.”

VIDEOS:

065: Elliot Knight
065: Elliot Knight 1500 750 Alyshia Ochse

In our second conversation with Elliot Knight we take a deeper look into everything, from his relationship to auditioning, to how he makes the distinction of being in love with the performance, the storytelling, and the craft rather than the industry and what that difference means for him. He talks about wanting to be the kind of performer who reveals rather than masks. This is a conversation for anybody that needs reminding to own and honor the space you take up, to be expansive, to be vulnerable in your art, and how to let life imitate art.

Elliot Knight is an English actor best known for his break out performance in the British television series “Sinbad,” playing the titular role. Knight received his theatrical training at The Manchester School of Theatre before landing the coveted role. Knight appeared as a recurring character in the BBC crime drama “By Any Means” before making his US television debut in ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder,” joining Viola Davis, Aja Naomi King, and Alfred Enoch. Knight joined the cast of ABC’s hit fantasy series “Once Upon a Time” as Merlin in the show’s fifth season. He starred alongside Juliet Rylance and Antony Starr in “American Gothic” before being cast in Erin Cardillo and Richard Keith’s “Life Sentence,” which aired on the CW. “Life Sentence” follows Lucy Hale’s character Stella as she navigates life after her terminal cancer is cured, her family, and her relationship with her husband, played by Elliot Knight. The show is currently available on Netflix. You can catch Elliot on Greg Berlanti’s DC universe “Titans,” which has just finished its first season.

 

Tune in

Listen On iTunes

 

Resources

LINKS:
QUOTES:

“Never believe your own press package.”

VIDEOS:

022: Elliot Knight
022: Elliot Knight 1500 1000 Alyshia Ochse

Elliot Knight grew up in the city of Birmingham, UK where he took a keen interest in the arts and drama, soon after, winning awards for his talents, including his school’s standout award for Drama Excellence and an additional Regional Acting title from Birmingham City Council for his leading role performance of Alfred Ill in The Visit. While attending The Manchester School of Theatre, where he lead as “Macbeth” in a string of toured Shakespeare performances, he won his first professional role as the titular hero in Sky 1’s popular adventure series “Sinbad”, beating out hundreds after an extensive worldwide search. Subsequently, he was lauded by Screen International as one of the much anticipated “Stars of Tomorrow” of 2011. After screen testing for leading roles in many TV pilots, Knight made his US network television debut in 2014 in ABC’s hit series “How To Get Away With Murder” and is since being recognised as one of the industry’s most exciting new talents.

Currently, Elliot can be seen on CW’s highly anticipated show LIFE SENTENCE opposite Lucy Hale.

Tune into our Interview on iTunes HERE

 

Resources

LINKS:
QUOTES:

“There were no real sign posts along the way saying this is what you could be do as a living.”

“Growing up I was inspired to live in my own imagination.”

“I would create a world for myself to enjoy.”

“I’ve always loved music, dancing, performing it feels like my language. It makes me feel true and real.”

“The choice was made for me. My drama’s teacher enthusiasm helped shine a light on my acting.”

“It all embodies living in your imagination and letting go and things not having to make tangible sense. Our jobs as dreamers and creators to do exactly that, push the boundaries and see over the walls in front of us.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“Imagination is not about following rules and limiting yourself, it’s about expanding and exploring.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“Do you want it? Then it is yours, so go and claim it.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“Acting is constant unemployment and re-employment.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“Always know how important something is to you, don’t expect it to be treated in the same regard by everyone else.”

“There is a huge difference between your passion for acting and the industry of acting.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“An audition is an audition. It doesn’t matter where you are. It matters what’s inside of you and what you let out. That’s all that matters.”

“Never believe your own press packet. Always believe in yourself in your own realm.” | CLICK TO TWEET

“Appreciate yourself, because whatever you have to offer IS good enough because it’s your way.”

VIDEOS:

013: Alysia Reiner
013: Alysia Reiner 1500 1000 Alyshia Ochse

Alysia is best known for her role as Natalie “Fig” Figueroa, the tough as nails assistant warden everyone loves to hate on NETFLIX’s hit series ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK. Alysia won a SAG award as part of the amazing ensemble cast, and you can see her in all 5 binge-worthy seasons. She is currently in production on Season 6 of ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK and recently launched her very own eco-friendly fashion label, Livari. Alysia recently wrapped production as both a producer and star of motherhood dark comedy EGG, starring with Christina Hendricks and Anna Camp.

You can also catch her as Sunny in F/X’s critical hit and Peadbody Award winning BETTER THINGS, brought to you by the inimitable Louie CK and Pamela Adlon. And don’t forget to look for her in recent/upcoming episodes of YOUNGER, BROAD CITY and ODD MOM OUT.

Alysia may be all over your streaming shows and on your TV, but she couldn’t get an agent for years and self-submitted and taped for the break role in the Oscar nominated film SIDEWAYS. Listen in to hear her daily practice for being a creative person and how she is mentoring the next generation of female storytellers.

Tune into our interview right HERE

Resources

LINKS:
QUOTES:

“Don’t wait, create” CLICK TO TWEET

“Daily practice for a creative person; Do something for the business, something for the artist in the business and something for artist.”

MORE:

Follow @AlyshiaOchse on Instagram
That One Audition with Alyshia Ochse (Footer Logo)

ALYSHIA OCHSE

Los Angeles-based actress, bestselling author, host of That One Audition podcast, entrepreneur, & mother.

MENU

HOME
ABOUT
PODCAST
ACTRESS
SHOP
CONSULTING
COACHING

SUBSCRIBE

©  Alyshia Ochse |  MADE WITH BY CHASE JENNINGS
Enter your
text here

    Subscribe to That One Audition with Alyshia Ochse

    Never Miss An Episode