Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabrielle Stephenson.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My mom always says I was singing and creating before I could walk. There are countless photos of me dressed up with arms thrown open, wide mouth and lots of me covered in paint. I sang in a high-caliber children’s choir for ten years while simultaneously participating in community and school theater. Around my junior year of high school, I was in the one-act play and in the thick of AP art classes thinking: ‘if only there was a way I could do both,’ and my theater teacher let me know there in fact was. That’s when I was introduced to the scenic world, and decided I’d go to school for both that and performance.
I graduated from Christopher Newport University in the spring of 2015 with a double major in Musical Theater Performance and Technical Theater and Design. I moved to the Greensboro area of North Carolina for a few years, where I worked at a number of theaters throughout the state performing, painting and designing. I also was performing as a princess at parties on weekends I wasn’t at the theater (the Ice Queen was a favorite at the time), and touring throughout the state in a professional a cappella group to schools and varied gigs. My fiance’ at the time was offered an opportunity to relocate to Atlanta for work, and we took the plunge. I now have worked in a vast variety of theaters & performance spaces in Atlanta and throughout the Southeast and am thrilled that life brought me to this area with all its amazing creatives.
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?
I have to acknowledge that I’ve been extremely blessed, however, there have certainly been some obstacles along the way. I was politely pulled aside a number of times in college and advised to focus on one or the other interest, however, I was insistent that both performance and design made me happy and I wanted to pursue each. This meant that I had to take extra classes most breaks in order to graduate with my classmates, but I was determined to do so. There was a time post-college when I wondered if theater was truly where my heart lied (and if I’d be happier in a career that produced more income) and I worked as a bridal expo planner. I was miserable, and it taught me that my instincts were right and I should absolutely be in the theatrical world in some capacity. In December of 2019, I experienced a freak-accident fall which severely impacted my lower face and mouth, and I had to undergo a number of procedures to correct my injuries. That took me out of the acting game for a time, so I turned my sights temporarily to solely design work and classes to better my acting skill. After 2 years, I can finally say that I am fully healed.
When COVID then hit, many theaters shut down and my husband’s company closed his division, so we made the hard decision to put all our things in storage and temporarily move back to Virginia with my parents. We had the conversation of: ‘well, we could go anywhere,’ but decided we wanted to set a goal of coming back to Atlanta once things looked a little better. We thought it might only be a couple of months, but with no ‘end’ in sight to the pandemic, we ultimately lived in fairly tight limitations for a year. However, Atlanta kept producing opportunities here and there, and I would travel down a number of times, couch surfing in friends’ places in order to keep pushing forward in the theater world and make some income to tuck away. I’d then travel back to VA, taking numerous COVID tests along the way out of caution. My husband eventually was admitted into grad school in GA and we packed our bags and officially moved back. We didn’t know what the theater industry would look like this year, but I’ve been very fortunate to stay busy upon our return.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I introduce myself as an actor, scenic artist and designer. Mainly that work leads me to theater, but I’ve done some film projects and have most recently started to paint more specialized work at the Georgia Aquarium and have taken on some Art Department lead roles on immersive event experiences. I’ll guest teach at institutions here and there, but a typical month for me consists of: painting at one theater one week, filming auditions at 11pm one night and 7:30am another, rehearsals in the evening/on weekends for a show at a theater if I’m currently booked to perform, painting at a second or third theater the next week, hopping on zoom production meetings for a show I’m currently designing and presenting models, paint elevations and research that I’ve comprised in the time I’m not doing the things previously mentioned. Every week looks different, but I always joke that I’m never able to wear anything in my closet other than my dresses established for auditions or clothes that are covered head-to-toe in paint.
As a set designer, I create the world in which (most often) you see the actors perform on, first reading the play and dreaming up what I want the stage/playing space to look like while working closely with the rest of the production team to incorporate other needs. As a painter, I work with another designer (if I’m not also designing) to bring the world they have designed to life. I receive the designs, and essentially make them happen large-scale on the set with various paint techniques that I’ve either learned or experimented with and invented.
As an actor, I used to think that my height was a detriment, and would also try to put myself into the box of what I thought casting was looking for. Recent instructors Rob Mello & Kate Brown helped me to realize that the unique quirks about you are in fact what sets you apart and that realization has made a world of difference in my audition confidence and has made any role even more enjoyable. I’d describe myself as driven, loyal, energetic & upbeat, constantly listening to music and singing along.
Some Atlanta spaces I’ve worked at in either of my roles have been: Synchronicity Theatre, Legacy Theatre, The Alliance Theatre, Center for Puppetry Arts, The Lyric Theatre, Essential Theatre, Merely Players Presents, and more. My favorite design as of yet has been CHORUS OF BEARS at Synchronicity Theatre in 2020. Favorite roles include Janet in the ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, Lizzie in THE RAINMAKER, and The Baker’s Wife in INTO THE WOODS. My favorite project to ever be a part of was titled THE PARCHMAN HOUR, and followed the stories of the Freedom Riders during the Civil Rights Movement. I believe theater should be thought-provoking, engaging and inspiring. I adore that feeling of walking out of a performance space after the show being thoroughly moved and the conversations that follow. I adore more so the feeling of being a part of a project that special.
I suppose I’m most proud of the fact that I’m doing what little 5-year old me dreamed of. I constantly remind myself of her (especially when I haven’t slept much in a number of days) and she helps me push forward.
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
Check out my design and paint work at gabriellescenicartist.com
Contact Info:
- Email: stephenson.gabrielle.y@gmail.com
- Website: gabriellescenicartist.com
- Instagram: @canvasstage (art) | @gab_steeve (personal/acting)
Image Credits:
Robbie Glen Photography
Casey Gardner Ford
Maria Williams (Godbox Productions)
Steve Thrasher Photography
Jerry Jobe
