MIN:SEC “JOE DANISI, ACTOR–SCREENWRITER–DIRECTOR”
PODCAST
INTERVIEW WITH JOE DANISI
CORRESPONDENT: MARILYN SOKOL
PRODUCER: LEHMAN COLLEGE MEDIA RELATIONS
OFFICE
DURATION: 4 MINUTES 32 SECONDS
00:00 [MUSIC]
LYDIA DIAZ:
This is Lydia Diaz, a Mass Communications
major at Lehman College. In this segment,
we hear from actor, playwright, screenwriter
and director Joe Danisi.
Danisi talks about his evolution from actor
to documentary writer. He was creative
director of the “Play and Screenplay
Development Series” in the Naked Angels
Theater Company. He was also a screenwriter
for a well-known Court TV series: “Dominick
Dunne's Power, Privilege and Justice: Doctor
of Deceit.”
The conversation is led by award-winning 2
actress Marilyn Sokol. She’s a professor in
Lehman’s Department of Journalism,
Communication and Theatre.
00:41 MARILYN SOKOL:
Let me ask you something. You started as an
actor.
JOE DANISI:
I started as an actor.
MARILYN SOKOL:
How did you make that leap from-- first of
all, which role did you assume first? To
leave-- well, not leave, but to add to your
acting? Was it director, producer or
writer?
JOE DANISI:
Well, it's interesting because I think I was
always a writer and didn't know it. Through
the years, I've thought back on -- you know,
your childhood comes back to you and then
you remember, oh, my goodness, yes,
scribbling in the corner of your bedroom.
“Joe Danisi, Actor–Screenwriter–Director” Podcast 3
On the floor or whatever. But as Marilyn
said, I was trained as an actor. And, you
know--
01:21 MARILYN SOKOL:
Where did you train?
JOE DANISI:
I went to the Lee Strasberg Theatre
Institute.
MARILYN SOKOL:
Okay.
JOE DANISI:
What happened with me was, like a lot of
actors, I was very frustrated because you
want a part. You go after it. It's-- you
know, it's the most difficult career. It
has to be one's religion. I was in-- went
to Europe at one point with a production of
West Side Story. I did an opera at BAM. I
mean, all-- I was auditioning for everything
I could find.
“Joe Danisi, Actor–Screenwriter–Director” Podcast 4
And I started to write as a result of my
frustration. And like a lot of actors who
begin to write, I wrote for myself. I would
write monologues. I took a little writing
workshop just to kill some time. And, you
know, that really was a catalyst. And I
started to perform my own material around
town. One-man shows and this kind of thing.
And I -- that was -- you know, that was a
real turning point. And so I would give my
pages to other actresses or other actors.
"Hey, hey, look at this. Does this -- you
know--" "Look at this monologue," blah,
blah, blah, blah, blah. And then that grew
into plays, short plays. And that sort of
got the ball rolling.
02:30 MARILYN SOKOL:
And then, how did you get into -- and then
you started directing your own pieces,
right? Your own work.
JOE DANISI:
I did. I started writing and then I had
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one-act plays, and I would direct them at
different small venues around town.
MARILYN SOKOL:
But to make the leap from this very artistic
path--
JOE DANISI:
Yeah.
02:48 MARILYN SOKOL:
-- to being hired by A&E and Discovery,
that's quite a jump. How did that occur?
JOE DANISI:
So one of the people I had spoken with was
actually, a booker, a sort-of talent booker.
MARILYN SOKOL:
Yeah?
JOE DANISI:
And -- he said, "Are you ready to make a
change?" And I said, "Yes." And I felt
something shift. And I was still acting,
“Joe Danisi, Actor–Screenwriter–Director” Podcast 6
but I was, you know, looking to expand. And
that led to having an interview for a job as
a production assistant on a TV special.
Which led to getting another P.A. job on
something else. And all of that kind of,
you know, kept moving along.
At the same time, I was performing, I was
writing. I felt -- I was all over the map.
It's very tough, and you've got to love it.
And that love is what keeps that flame alive
and will nurture you through all those dark
nights. Very, very tough business. Because
you've been on Broadway once doesn't mean
that you're gonna have a career there.
03:49 MARILYN SOKOL:
That's right.
JOE DANISI:
Because you’ve had a television show, if you
get to that point, doesn’t mean that--
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MARILYN SOKOL:
That's right.
JOE DANISI:
--you’re gonna have a career after those 13
episodes or three seasons.
03:58 MARILYN SOKOL:
You still have to keep digging ditches.
JOE DANISI:
And that's the beauty of being an actor.
That's the beauty of working in this -- in
this profession. All that life experience.
And it constantly changes as we change. And
that's the gift that actors are given, which
very few other people are given.
04:17 LYDIA DIAZ:
Visit www.lehman.edu. This is a production
of the Lehman College Media Relations
Office.
[MUSIC]
“Joe Danisi, Actor–Screenwriter–Director” Podcast 8
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“Joe Danisi, Actor–Screenwriter–Director” Podcast