Cast Bios Rachel Boston

‘AN ICE SCULPTURE CHRISTMAS’ CAST BIOS RACHEL BOSTON (Callie Shaw) – Born and raised in Signal Mountain, Tennessee, Rachel Boston fell in love with theater at the age of seven when she was cast in a church production of "We Like Sheep." At the age of 17, Boston moved to New York City to pursue an acting career. She received a scholarship to study at New York University and also studied at Fordham University and The Actor's Center. Boston recently starred alongside Julia Ormond and Jenna Dewan-Tatum in the Lifetime series "Witches of East End," and TV Guide recently included Boston in their 2013 "Hot List" issue. For her starring role as Mindy in the independent feature "The Pill," Boston was honored with the Stargazer Award for the most talented emerging actress at the Gen Art Film Festival in New York City, the Best Actress Award from the San Diego Film Festival, and the Emerging Artist Award from the Big Apple Film Festival. Filmed in Manhattan, "The Pill," which also took home the Gen Art Film Festival Audience Award, opened in theaters in 2012 and is currently available on DVD, VOD, and iTunes. Boston previously appeared with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel in the Golden Globe® nominated film "500 Days of Summer," which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and went on to win an Independent Spirit Award for Best Screenplay. She also co-starred alongside Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner in "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past." Boston recently starred opposite Julia Stiles, America Ferrara, and David Cross in the indie comedy "It's A Disaster," which was distributed theatrically by Oscilloscope. The Village Voice called the film "perhaps the first great apocalypse potluck comedy." Boston plays the role of Lexi Kivel, the funny and whip-smart wildcard who happens to play the glockenspiel. After a successful run on the festival circuit and at Comic-Con in 2012, "It's A Disaster" also became available on VOD and iTunes. In 2011, Boston joined the hit television series "In Plain Sight," in the role of Detective Abigail Chaffee. Tough but with southern charm, Abigail soon became the love interest to Marshall Mann. "In Plain Sight" completed its fifth and final season in New Mexico. During her hiatus from "In Plain Sight," Boston executive produced and starred in the film "Black Marigolds," which reunited her with Noah Bean, her co-star from "The Pill." The film follows a young married couple, Kate (Boston) and Ryan (Bean), as they set off into the wilderness. Ultimately a love story, "Black Marigolds" was filmed in Palomar Mountain and premiered in April 2013 at The Boston International Film Festival, where it received the "Special Recognition Award." Previously, Boston starred on the CBS series "The Ex List" as Daphne Bloome, the free-spirited sister of Bella Bloome, played by Elizabeth Reeser. Some of her guest-starring appearances include "Grey's Anatomy," "Curb Your Enthusiasm, "ER," "Rules of Engagement," and "The (more) HALLMARK CHANNEL / ‘AN ICE SCULPTURE CHRISTMAS’ – Cast Bios – Page 2 Closer." She had recurring roles on ABC's "Scoundrels" with Virginia Madsen and the CBS comedy "Mad Love." Boston also produced and starred in the Lifetime musical comedy "Holiday High School Reunion," which aired through the 2012 Christmas season. Rachel Boston starred in the Hallmark Channel Original Movie “Ring by Spring,” and the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries Original “A Gift of Miracles.” Boston began her career in television on NBC's award-winning series "American Dreams," playing Beth Mason, the strong-willed girlfriend to J.J. Pryor (Will Estes). On the one-hour drama set in the 1960s, Beth brought a wave of female independence and a voice of modern- day opinions as she laid the groundwork for the ever-changing world issues, including equality for women. The "American Dreams" cast & crew reunited in June 2013 for a panel discussion at the ATX Television Festival in Austin, TX. ### DAVID ALPAY (David Manning) – David Alpay is best known for his recurring role on the CW series "The Vampire Diaries" and being a regular on Showtime’s "The Borgias" and "The Tudors." Alpay was also a series regular on the Canadian series "Billable Hours." Alpay starred in the Sundance film "Ten For Grandpa," and had a supporting lead in "Man of the Year," alongside Robin Williams, Christopher Walken, Laura Linney, and Lewis Black. He also played a lead role in his first film, Atom Egoyan’s "Ararat," alongside Christopher Plummer On television, Alpay has guest starred in a number of hit television series, including Lifetime’s “Drop Dead Diva;” CBS’s “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation;” USA’s “Royal Pains;” TNT’s “Rizzoli & Isles” and “Fairly Legal;” Starz’s “Crash;” and FOX’s “Dollhouse.” Most recently, Alpay starred in Lifetime’s drama series, “The Lottery.” ### BRENDA STRONG (Chef Gloria): Perhaps best known for her starring role narrating and recurring on the ABC series “Desperate Housewives,” Brenda Strong has amassed a list of impressive credits over three decades of acting. Strong first broke into acting in Billy Crystal's 1984 music video "You Look Marvelous," which she later followed up with guest starring roles on “St. Elsewhere,” “MacGyver,” and “Cheers.” She also made guest appearances on “Matlock,” “Murphy Brown,” “Herman's Head,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation,” and “Blossom,” and had a brief role on the cult favorite “Twin Peaks.” By the mid-1990s, Strong was a regular guest player on dozens of series, with prominent recurring roles on “3rd Rock from the Sun,” “Party of Five,” and “Seinfeld.” During that time, Strong also appeared on the hit television series “ER,” “Picket Fences,” “Silk Stalkings,” and “Dawson's Creek,” and starred in the television series “Scorch.” (more) HALLMARK CHANNEL / ‘AN ICE SCULPTURE CHRISTMAS’ – Cast Bios – Page 3 Later, Strong starred as Sally Sasser on ABC’s “Sports Night” alongside Felicity Huffman, and also guest-starred on The WB's popular “7th Heaven,” “Gilmore Girls,” and “Everwood” series. During this time, she also had guest appearances on “Ally McBeal,” “Nip/Tuck,” “CSI,” “Malcolm in the Middle,” “Everwood,” and “The Lyon's Den,” followed by a starring role on the television series “The Help.” Beginning in 2004, Strong starred, mostly off-screen, on ABC’s “Desperate Housewives,” opposite Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, Eva Longoria, and Teri Hatcher. Strong played the deceased Mary Alice Young, who narrated the events of her friends' and neighbors' lives from beyond the grave. Her narrations over the eight seasons of “Desperate Housewives” yielded two Emmy® Award nominations for Outstanding Voice-Over Performance. Strong's character narrated all but two episodes of the series. Strong also appeared onscreen several times in flashbacks and in a dream episode. Between 2004 and 2006, Strong costarred in the motion picture trilogy “The Work and the Glory,” based on a bestselling nine-volume series of the same name by Gerald N. Lund. She guest starred in “Boston Legal” in 2008. In 2012, Strong began starring as Ann Ryland Ewing on the TNT original drama series “Dallas.” The series was a continuation of the original series of the same name that aired on CBS from 1978 to 1991. Strong appeared in each episode of the three season run. In addition to her impressive television credits, Strong’s movie credits include roles in “The Craft,” “Spaceballs,” “The Deep End of the Ocean,” “Red Dragon,” “Black Dog,” “Exposed,” “Starship Troopers,” “Starship Troopers 2,” and “Ocean of Pearls.” ### --HALLMARK CHANNEL-- .

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