First off, what have you been up to lately?
I’ve been getting more into writing, producing and directing more. I guess that’s the normal progression as an actor. Connecting with people is a major part of what actors do through their roles and scripts. It’s natural as an extrovert to read something and embody that text into something you know. Producing is my new passion – I’m getting into that more now.
How did you get your acting start – what made you getFf$into it?
It’s interesting – my path was different than most. I didn’t go to acting school or study acting. I went to Nazareth College in Rochester – I just did one show in high school – that was it. Lori -my college girlfriend then – now my wife – she convinced me to audition for Guys and Dolls. I told her there was no way they’d cast me – I wasn’t a music major. She just thought it would be nice for us to be able to do our homework together during breaks. But I ended up getting cast as Sky\ Masterson – one of the leads!
That’s where I learned to network. The musical director there told me that a lot of the community theater programs were looking for people like me. I got auditions and got cast in more shows – it didn’t stop. I worked construction during the day for my father and did shows at night.
Where did it go from there?
It snowballed from there. I auditioned and got more roles. I think not studying acting helped me – a lack of knowledge can be helpful. I didn’t know what I was doing so it didn’t get me stressed out – it didn’t get to my head.
I ended up getting a call for an audition for the national Phantom of the Opera tour. That’s when we had landlines. My mother picked up the call and told them I’d be right there and drove me to New York and I got the part!
You’ve acted on so many platforms – from winning awards for your work in As the World Turns, plays like How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, musicals like Dear Evan Hansen to television/streaming dramas like Stranger Things, Blacklist and FBI. Is there a medium you prefer most?
You move to where the food is. Anything I get cast in I’m happy to say yes to. I’m 57 now – I just want to continue working. I love doing plays – they are great, but they don’t pay as much. They feed the artistic palate though. Musicals too- New York tends to gravitate to musicals and I love the energy you get to expel in them.
Television – it’s an easier medium versus the grind of musicals. If you get both that’s the butter! But I don’t prefer one over the other. My best day job was on As the World Turns. You work five days a week and can raise a family working on a soap. But sadly soaps are mostly long gone.
Is the approach different for you depending on the medium and did you have a mentor to help you with your approach overall?
You project more on stage – there’s more movement and physicality.
I remember auditioning for a community theater play – I listened to Robert Westerberg’s album and watched and studied him. I wanted to mimic him. Later on in my career I got to work with him on a show called Violet. I was awestruck and told him what he meant to me. He in his humble way just said “That is so nice to hear!”
One day he brought his class in to see Dear Evan Hansen. He’s a tall man and he stood up when I was giving a talk and said “Michael Park everyone!” I ran off stage to give him a quick hug!
I learned most about the craft of acting during my time on the soap opera. There were so many things to play – so many storylines. I had amnesia, hypothermia and got married seven times. Benjamin Hendrickson was one of the actors on the soap – he was in the first class of Julliard. I told him I was at a loss for what to do about my character who had amnesia. I told him I watched the Bourne Identity but couldn’t find my hook for the character. He told me “Make every choice logical.” That was what I needed. For some reason those words stuck with me.
The cast of As the World Turns was phenomenal. I learned a lot over the 13 years there and applied a lot of it afterwards. Martha Burns taught me that it cost nothing to be nice – to lead with kindness. If you’re a dick on set it just stresses everyone out and it won’t be good.
Any fun moments over your career that stand out?
John Larroquette was one of the funniest people I worked with. He kept everything close to the vest. We worked together on How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. We did the Macy’s Day Parade and had to rehearse for it in the freezing rain. I walked around offering tea and hot chocolate to people and found him huddled in an alcove. I asked if he wanted anything and he just yelled “Fuck off!” It was funny – I got the message! John always gives so much to other actors – he loves when you ask for advice, but he doesn’t suffer fools either. He always knows how to end a conversation.
I also remember performing in Smokey Joe’s Cafe. Well in between shows they gave us this big cast lunch which we didn’t love.
Well, Ken Ard, one of the actors, had this light, long outfit and during the show he had to do a duet with Brenda Braxton and had to lift her. During the lift his face suddenly changed – Fred Owens was the choreographer and yelled “Oh my God, Ken just shit himself!” The meal and the heat made him sick! But Ken didn’t miss a beat! He came off and changed and just said “Sometimes that happens!”
Another moment that stands out is when I was doing Mindhunter. It bummed me out – it was a six-page scene directed by David Fincher. David is known to be very meticulous – if you put a glass down on the second word of page two you needed to do that every take. Well, the guy at the end of the table – he just kept freezing. He only had three lines but he froze every time. Fincher changed it to make it easier. At the end I looked up and asked if we got anything and he just said “I just want one take to be right!”
I haven’t worked with David since. I guess it’s guilt by association!
You do have some short Pittsburgh connections correct?
I was conceived in Pittsburgh but was too young to remember anything. My parents spoke highly of Pittsburgh – my father worked there for a short bit.
Are you a Pittsburgh sports fan?
I’m a Bills fan – but my second team is Pittsburgh. I’m a big sports fan – Josh Allen getting the MVP was a small consolation prize for not beating Mahomes and the Chiefs.
I’m from what some people call Upstate New York – but it’s really not. I remember moving to New York – at first I asked my wife if she wanted to move to Bergen County – but live in New Jersey? Really?
We live in Rockland County and have been here now for 27 years. It’s been a good run. I wanted a homebase for the kids and we have it now. I was the blueprint at the time for moving from Canandaigua, New York to the city. It was a small town – a sheltered community. I worked when I was 13 for my family construction company sweeping nails off the floor. I would get mad at my grandfather for not giving me a hammer to hammer nails with. I quit twice! Our Summers as kids were spent at Roseland Park then – we all worked for my family’s construction business.
Anything else you want to add?
Oh yeah – I’m teaching more now for the Actor’s Playground in Field, New Jersey. We work with junior and high school kids, some college kids and every once in a while a veteran actor who wants to work on some lines. I teach a master’s class – I love it. I teach the practical side of acting since I didn’t go to acting school. I’ve been acting for so long and have a different story, so I bring a different perspective for students.