Alumni Make Their Marks

January 29, 2011

As some of our current students take part in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) at Fitchburg State University to compete for various awards, we'd like to update folks on what three of our recent alumni, who are now acting and teaching, are up to these days.

Last August, Laurie Ascoli '07 began working for Young Playwrights' Theater (YPT) where she teaches play writing to students of all ages in Washington, D.C. public schools.

The program was recently recognized as one of the top 15 youth programs in American by the White House. To view a press release from the YPT, visit here.

Kristen O'Neil, a member of the Class of 2008, is currently featured in a commercial for Tufts Healthcare. To see the video, visit here.

O'Neil has been working at Harvard Medical School since graduating from Stonehill and recently signed with an agent in Boston.

"This commercial has been my biggest and most exciting job thus far, and hopefully there will be more to come," says O'Neil.

Joe Coffey '05 can be see with Derek Jeter in a commercial for Gillette razors. To view the commercial, visit here.

He notes landing the commercial was pure luck.

"I just went to an audition, they happened to like me, and that night I got the call to come in the next day and shoot the thing. He was in Tampa for spring training so it all worked out nicely. I also got my SAG card because of the experience," says Coffey, whonbsp;currently lives in Orlando, FL but will be making the move to the left coast soon.

"I'm trying to save money and put together a nice reel so I don't show up empty handed," says Coffey.

As for advice for students with acting dreams, Coffey says: "one thing I can say about this business is that you just never know what's going to happen. I would encourage students to audition for as many things as possible because you never know what they're looking for. And a lot of times they don't know what they're looking for, but you might bring something different to the table that they didn't expect."

Contact

For more information, contact Communications and Media Relations at 508-565-1321.