Hello,

I have a question about location & age as it relates to acting. Let me give
a little background. I am a 37 year old actor, who lives in Seattle WA. I discovered acting a little later in life (in my 30s). I feel like I’m ready to go to the next level. My issue is that I’m not sure what to do. My dream would be to go to New York and become a working actor. My major hang-up is my age. I know it could easily take 5-7 years to establish myself in a new area, so at 37 I may be will into my 40s by the time I start working. Some of the advice I’ve received is to stay in Seattle for a few years & develop my resume, however I’m hesitant to do that because of my age issues. Another thing to consider is that most of the people in my age range that I’ll be competing against will probably have a fairly extensive resume with a lot of NY credits. If I could make a living at it I would consider staying in Seattle. Overall Seattle has a wonderful arts community. The thing is that there are only a few equity theaters in the area, and the non-equity ones don’t pay nearly enough to make a living. Another argument for staying is that over the years I have developed a pretty good support network. Which to me is a big thing because acting is such a competitive business; it’s nice to have a group of friends who understands what it’s like. I’m not married, so I can pick up & move however I also have some bills that the typical 21year old doesn’t have so I’m also worried about surviving, while I find work. Sorry for the ramble, but I’m really confused. Should age really be a determining factor in this decision, or is it all in my head?

Any advice or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Tim