Today we’d like to introduce you to Seán Patrick Judge.
Hi Seán, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was born and raised in Iowa City, Iowa, where I started acting at the age of 8 in the Grade School production of “The Electric Sunshine Man”…a little musical about Thomas Edison. I played the mayor of his hometown. I grew up to study Theatre and French at the University of Iowa. At age 25, I moved to Chicago, where I worked extensively in the theater scene there until moving to New York at 30 to follow the lifelong dream of living and working in the “Big Apple”…but of course, it’s a lot of hustling for a non-Equity actor, and after multiple moves to avoid rising apartment prices…as well as a pretty bad mugging that put me in the hospital for 10 days, I decided to move to Houston in 2004 to see if a long-distance relationship I had begun all the way back in Chicago had any future to it. To be honest I never planned to ever VISIT Texas any more than LIVE there. But after discovering the world-class arts scene and the MUCH more affordable cost of living…I grew to love it here. I even finally got my Actors’ Equity membership here, after years of trickling qualifying weeks in Chicago and New York. I began working in Houston with a small start-up theater company called Nova Arts Project and then began working with many other companies in town, most recently in Main Street Theater’s production of What the Constitution Means to Me. Other favorite Houston appearances have been The Legend of Georgia McBride and The Book of Maggie at Stages; It’s A Wonderful Life at AD Players; Small Ball, The Strangerer (2018) and Jim Lehrer and the Theatre and Its Double and Jim Lehrer’s Double at Catastrophic Theater, among many others.
Apart from working on stage over the past almost 20 years in Houston, I have also been voicing anime projects like Ninja Kamui, Ragna Crimson, Venus Wars, Hero Mask, Dororo, Babylon and Vinland Saga.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think the biggest challenge I ever faced was when living in New York and struggling to pay the bills by working 4 jobs, and then trying to have a theater career. I did a few plays while I was there, but it was tough going. Then, getting mugged and having to have my orbital bone, a broken nose, and some teeth repaired…all without insurance, made living there even more difficult. Thankfully, I was surrounded by so many dear friends who came to my rescue in New York and beyond. I even lucked out (if you can call being a victim lucky) when the NY Crime Victims Board deemed my case worthy of having all my medical bills paid by the state. I think I’d still be paying off that debt if they hadn’t come to my rescue with that.
Other than that, I feel very blessed in my career. I suppose I could have pushed through and lived more of a bohemian lifestyle and perhaps gotten even further in my career if I’d put all my energy toward that…but I like clean apartments…and traveling… so I guess I sacrificed that hustle lifestyle for creature comforts…and I honestly think it’s turned out pretty well so far. Do I wish I worked on stage more? Absolutely…if I could JUST make an income doing that, I think I’d want for nothing else in this world…but that only happens for a fortunate few these days…so I’m content in getting to share the stage whenever I get the chance with my amazing colleagues in this awesome theater scene.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m am an actor. I don’t direct, write, stage manage (though I did do that once in college on a project in NY), produce, or any other aspect of the theater world. I don’t know if that has limited me, but it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do. I love being able to step into the mind and life of a character who may be totally unlike me and see what it’s like. I am proud of the varying roles I’ve played over my career so far…and as I’m getting older, seeing what lies ahead. I think one of my proudest moments was when I was walking along the Charles Bridge in Prague with a fellow actor. We were there working with the Prague Shakespeare Company for a month on Richard III (a few years later, I’d go back again to work on Henry V), and we both were just basking in the whole “I can’t believe this is happening.” And it wouldn’t have happened if I lived anywhere else but Houston. It was because PSC works extensively with Houston’s Main Street Theater that I was ever even noticed by the Artistic Director and invited to join them in the Czech Republic. We realized that any regrets we ever had about leaving the “big theater cities” like New York and Chicago were all ridiculous.
I honestly never think about what sets me apart…perhaps it’s simply my size! I’m very tall, and I guess that can work to my advantage for being “imposing” on stage. I don’t honestly know…I just like to act and am lucky enough to get to sometimes.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you, and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
I learned a lot about how art will persevere. I saw companies going “virtual” and actually worked more than ever before as an actor for corporate training during that time. It also really reaffirmed I picked the right person to marry!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://seanpatrickjudge.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seanalation/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/seanjudge
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/seanjudge
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/seanjudge
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/@seanjudge
