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A round-up of answers to the usual questions from one of Guiding Light's
newest cast members. Gavin Houston plays Remy Boudreau.
Pudding Pop Past:
I grew up in Teaneck, N.J. My dad was friends with Keisha Knight Pulliam's
(Cosby Show's Rudy) mom. And she referred us to her manager. My
sister wanted to get into acting, because she modeled. So we both went,
and when they saw me, they ended up giving me a script, too. So I auditioned
for them, and they ended up wanting to represent me and not my sister.
I must have been about 12. I said, "Sure, let's get cracking; let's
do this!" So we did headshots, and then I got my first audition for
a commercial. I was like, "Oh, man, I'm going to be in a commercial!"
I thought that meant I got the commercial, forgetting that I still
had to audition. When I did audition, I was a mess. I was so nervous.
I just tried to smile a lot and tried to get through it. My dad really
helped me get through it, helped me learn my lines. I'd always been kind
of a clown, but when I'm told what to say, it's a different story.
So, my dad really helped me. My second audition ever was for The Cosby
Show, and I actually got that. I played a character by the name of
Paul; I was a kid at a school dance.
Class Action:
When I was a kid, I did over 30 commercials. I did commercials with Dr.
Ruth, with Jerry O'Connell (Sliders), with Dulé Hill, who's
on The West Wing now. And then, it was time for college. I wanted
to continue acting, but my parents wouldn't let me major in theater, because
that doesn't guarantee you anything. So, I got accepted to the University
of Florida and I went there as a physical therapy major. I was only 17
when I went away to college, and I was going a thousand miles and I didn't
know one single person. I started college, and I found out physical therapy
wasn't really my thing. So, I changed to exercise physiology. I enjoy
working out, and I knew a lot about it. But, still, I didn't feel like
I can do this for the rest of my life! Meanwhile, I kept thinking,
"I love acting. That's the one thing I can do all day, every day,
for free."
Book Learning:
So, on the side, not telling anybody, I went to the library and I started
reading as many books as I could. By Chekhov, Stanislavsky, lots of monologues
-- and I was in the library so much, that the theater students saw me
in the library. They said, "Why don't you just audition for parts?"
And I said, "I don't know about any. I'm not even in the program!"
So they told me when some of the auditions were, and I went. I started
beating out grad students for parts and getting lead roles. The other
acting students were like, "This is unheard of! Who is this guy?
What is he doing?" It was crazy! Luckily, one thing I've been very
blessed with -- and I have to credit my parents for this -- is that my
personality is very laid back. I'm very humble and thankful for everything.
I was very thankful for the help the grad students were giving me. A lot
of them looked out for me and helped me. Eventually, I did so many plays
in college that I didn't even have to audition anymore; everybody knew
my work. I'd come in, and people would be like, "Oh, yeah, I heard
about you!"
Act One:
So the biggest thing for me now was to tell my parents that I wanted to
do what I wanted to do and not what would make them happy. My father is
the greatest. He is probably the one person I want to please and impress
the most. And he kind of knew that I was getting back into acting. I had
a show, Richard III, and I invited my dad. It was on Father's Day,
and it was the biggest thing for me. I didn't even know if he'd made it,
because I was getting ready backstage. I just went there and I did my
thing. I didn't know if he was there or not, and then, at the end, I saw
him in the audience and he was smiling and all happy. He was so much more
supportive than ever before, and that just let me know, "Okay. Now
I'm ready to begin. Now I can get on my way. Now I can start this."
Strike One:
I came back to New York five months ago. The first thing I did, I went
back to the same manager that I had as a kid. She's always been the best.
I feel so comfortable with her and her staff. We did headshots and I started
auditioning again. It's funny, because my first audition was for Guiding
Light. It was for an under-5 part where I was friends with Ben, and
we were going to plot to take Marah's virginity. I was so nervous in that
audition, and I didn't get it. I was afraid I lost the energy and confidence
I had in college. But I kept auditioning.
Act Two:
Then I heard about GL again. My manager faxed me over a script, and I
read the script. It was so compelling to me, that I called my manager
back and I told her, "I'm going to nail this one." I would never
say that usually. I don't like to jinx myself. But the script was great,
and I knew I could have fun with it. And by that point, I'd auditioned
so much and had so much training that I felt confident that everything
was back up to speed. What's funny is that before the audition, I got
cast as an extra on GL. I was supposed to be a background person. So I
went in and auditioned for (GL Casting Director) Rob (Decina), and I got
a callback. And the callback was for the day before I was supposed to
do my under-5 work. I auditioned again, and they loved it. I told them,
"Well, I'm supposed to come back tomorrow for background work."
And they were like, "Oh, no, no, no. Don't. Forget about that. Forget
about it." And I thought, "Good." And then they invited
me to come back a third time and audition for (GL Executive Producer)
Paul Rauch. So, in a sense, Guiding Light out-booked Guiding
Light.
Showtime:
So I came back, and there were four guys ahead of me. And I thought, "Oh,
boy, the competition is here." They were sitting down, talking to
each other. One guy was dressed in a three-piece suit, which I think is
a little bit off for Remy, a little bit too much. And I was overhearing
some of their conversation, so I went completely away from them, where
I couldn't hear them, and I stuck to my game plan and kept my energy up.
I felt my third reading was my best, and I felt so much more confident,
even though Paul was there. I walked out, and I just felt great. I wasn't
worried about getting the part because I have no control over getting
the part. The reading is the only thing I have control over. So as long
as I do everything I wanted to and I didn't hold back, I'm content.
Keepin' It Real:
Remy is so similar to who I am, in terms of being an ex-football player
and how he interacts with other people. I just really, really felt this
role. I was almost, in a sense, playing myself. And I've built such good
relationships with the cast members already: Oliver (Macready), who plays
Romeo, Jordi (Vilasuso; Tony), George (Alvarez; Ray), Michael O'Leary
(Rick). And when it comes to Remy's family -- Yvonna (Kopacz; Mel), Kim
(Rockington), the new Felicia and Rick (Biggs; Clayton), even when we're
not shooting, we're always hanging out, talking to each other and joking
-- like a real family. We're all clowns. Everyone on set is so relaxed,
so upbeat and so helpful. People were giving me advice and offering to
help me and run lines. It's just such a good atmosphere and such a good
vibe. I was so nervous my first day. My stomach was churning. But Lisa
(Brown; ex-Nola), the acting coach, helped me a lot, and also Yvonna did
too. They really helped me settle down. They really made it so much easier.
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