Actor / Producer / Director

Amick Byram is a true performer and entertainer. He knows show business through and through. If you want to learn about the business of acting and producing theater, Amick is an authority. He is well respected in the industry and his smile and warm confident personality is infectious.

Kathleen Cooke: Tell me about yourself and some of your accomplishments?

Amick Byram: I work in several different areas of the business, primarily in theatre and live entertainment but also in television and movies. In all these different areas, I work as both a singer and an actor but also as a producer and director. Needless to say, I lead a very busy life. I have produced theater in New York at the John Houseman Theatre on 42nd Street and I have produced other theatre pieces across the country. I have also directed 5 world premieres of brand new musicals.

KC: At this point in your career, what are you most proud of?

AB: As a director, I am most proud of a production of Ben Hur that I directed in Florida. It was a big production and it was challenging for me, both creatively and from a business point of view. It was a magnificent production and was a step up in size and scale. As an actor, I am most proud of roles I have played on stage, Joe Gillis in Sunset Boulevard opposite Glenn Close, and Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar.

I am also particularly proud of Les Miserables, in which I played both Enjolras and Marius.

KC: You do a lot of behind the scenes singing in Hollywood, or “session” work. Can you talk about that?

AB: Session work is when you are asked to show up at a recording studio and read your socks off. Seriously, it can be any number of things, from film scores, commercials, song demos, prerecorded live entertainment shows, or television shows. One of the most important skills to have is the ability to read music well. You are handed a piece of music and with little or no rehearsal, expected to perform the song. Usually it is with a group of singers but I also do my fair share of solos.

KC: Can you give me an overview of your history in the business and a sample of the kinds of things you do?

AB: I started in the business as a singer and an actor, and I spent the first 15 or 20 years of my career acting in television and theater. I guest starred on Star Trek The Next Generation, Fraser, Saved by the Bell, Friends and other shows. In theater I was in Phantom of the Opera on Broadway, and Les Miserables - the West Coast Premiere. I was in Sunset Boulevard - the North American premiere, co-starring opposite Glenn Close. Those are some of the big production shows, but I’ve also worked a lot in nonmusical plays written by Shakespeare, Neil Simon, Moliere and others.

As a singer, I recorded two jazz albums with three other singers and both years was nominated for a Grammy for best vocal jazz group.

I have sung in over 100 episodes of The Simpsons and sang the role of “Moses” in the Dreamworks film The Prince of Egypt. I work pretty consistently in “the session” business and I also do voice over acting work and some promos and TV/Radio commercials. But enough about me, you talk about me. (laugh)

KC: What is the most important quality that is necessary in the business?

AB: It is professionalism and know-how, but it is also the issue of gifting and talent. You have to mesh that talent with personal skills and the business of show-business. At different points in your career, the proportions change. When you are first starting out, show business is about 70% show and 30% business, because you have to really focus on getting that job and getting your foot into the door. It takes both talent and fortitude to get that. Once you start to establish yourself, those proportions change and eventually it becomes 60% show to 40% business to 50% / 50% etc.. etc… You work less and less on getting your foot in the door, and start concentrating on your identity, who you are in the business, and using business to further what you want to do in your career.

KC: Would you recommend that people take a business classes?

AB: The issues of business are important. They have more to do with the pursuit of the jobs and follow-up. Gifting and talent will land you jobs, but the business is what gives you the opportunities. It’s your character and the way you conduct yourself that keeps you in the business.

When I first started in the pursuit of work, I would do that really uncomfortable thing of calling people who I had an acquaintance with or who I knew through a friend. Any person you are calling, if you are just normal and nice and don’t put pressure on them, actually will appreciate the contact. I now appreciate people calling me and saying, “Hey Amick, I haven’t talked to you in four or five months, and I was just wanting to touch base and let you know that I’m in town. If there’s anything that I can be a part of, let me know.” People have to get over that feeling of being an irritant or the fear factor. If you are genuine and aren’t pestering, people actually appreciate it because talent is a very valuable commodity.

You have to establish personal relationships with people. But don’t worry about how this person can help you, just be interested in people. A good actor is interested in people and the human condition. It makes you a better actor. It’s always about others in networking. If you are interested in other people, they are going to be interested in you. If you help someone else, they will in time help you.

KC: You came from a college background. Can you tell us about your education and is it important to go to college?

AB: I went to college and was interested in two things: drama and music. However, I never felt compelled that I was supposed to get a degree in either of those disciplines. I did not declare my major until I was a junior in college. I was standing in line at admissions and my computer printout said that my declared major was business. I don’t know how that happened, but I have to think that God’s hand was in it some way because the degree has served me well.

I realize now that my gifting and training has come in two ways. I was raised in a very artistic family and learned a lot about music from my mother. By the time I was in college, I was deeply involved in the music degree track but also was taking business law and accounting. I enjoyed the business classes, but I knew I was going to pursue a career in show business. It wasn’t until recently, when I started producing theatre, that all those classes and all of that knowledge has come together in a remarkable way.

I took a couple of theatre classes in college and a lot of music classes. I knew I wanted to be a performer and getting the actual degree in music wasn’t necessary for that. When I entered show business after graduating, I was actually behind in knowledge of theatre. I spent the first several years post-college, living in Hollywood and New York playing catch up. I realized that I didn’t know anything specifically about the theatre business. I immersed myself in a professional acting classes for about four years straight. I took other classes about how to audition, how to perform on camera, etc… but really immersed myself for four years in intermediate and advanced acting classes on a professional level.

If people want to be an actor, they should go to college and get a degree in theatre, which I didn’t do. Once you get out of college, get into a professional environment around people who are actually working in the business. You need to go from an academic environment and academic teaching to more of a professional environment. One of the greatest benefits of the immersion in the business is who you are going to meet, how you are going to react, and how you are going to learn practical, “where the rubber meets the road” type issues that generally you don’t experience in college.

KC: How have you learned to deal with rejection, fear, and stress in this business?

AB: I have always had very thick skin and that has been a blessing. I’ve always had a feeling about myself that I can do anything. Now, that doesn’t mean that I haven’t suffered. That doesn’t mean that I haven’t felt rejection or extreme disappointment. But I never wanted to quit the business when I’ve gone through those times. The biggest issue to have to deal with is the feeling of injustice when I feel like I should have gotten a job that went to someone else, who in my humble opinion, of course!, didn’t deserve the job. There’s no fairness associated with this business whatsoever. In show business, you can be the most highly trained and gifted person, but there’s no guarantee that you’ll get work. So that sense of injustice can easily creep in. You have to have your eyes wide open knowing that fairness does not apply in show business.

From my point of view as a Christian, I have to turn to the Lord. It’s not easy laying down that sense of injustice when it happens. That’s where trusting the Lord and constantly being in a place of self-examination is important. Being willing to ask, “Is this what God wants for my life?” I want to be on the path that He has directed me to be on.

KC: What do you hope to be doing in the next 5 years?

AB: In the next five years, I want to be a producer of at least 2 commercially successful hits. I’m always on the hunt for a great project that is commercially viable, that is a great story, and that says something of value. Why should someone spend ten million dollars to put it on stage? You have to have a commercial project that has the best chance of success, but I also want it to have a decent story that should be told.

 

Because of new technology, there is so much visual imagery that can go into theatre now. Special effects, using projections to enhance scenic design, time code to automate scenic and lighting movement, so many wonderful things that can be incorporated into theatre. Theatre isn’t literal – theatre is suggestive in an artistic way and there are so many more tools to use. We don’t have to use just painted backdrops. Lighting can do amazing things to not only lights actors, but create scenic imagery.

If you want to be a director in the theater business you need to keep up with technology. You don’t have to be an expert in it, but you need to have a working knowledge on what is out there and what can be accomplished. You need to know something about everything – costumes, lighting, automation, acting, music, set design. You have to be a commander, a psychiatrist, a counselor, a problem solver, and be a sensitive but strong personality to bring out the best in everyone.

Theatre is growing. There seems to be a larger and larger interest in live entertainment. Concerts are becoming more theatrical and theatre is borrowing from the concert world. Phantom of the Opera was a bench mark because people who had never gone to theatre went to see Phantom. That was also the case with Les Miserables and Cats. Those are the big three, the British invasion, that introduced many people to theatre. Right now, the latest incarnation of music theatre is the jukebox musicals - Mamma Mia, YellowSubmarine, Jersey Boys, etc… People are seeing that we can take popular music, write a story and adapt it for the stage. That’s been quite exciting and it has also brought more new people to the theatre who never went before. In the “Golden Age” of musical theatre, starting with Oklahoma in 1939, all the classic musicals became the hit songs on the radio. Now, it’s the reverse. Hits on the radio are now being heard in theatre. I think there is going to be a merging of those two scenarios. I can see in the future songs that are popular in the theatre, actually crossing over into the pop world again. So yes, theatre is definitely growing.

 

KC: How important is it for people to live in NY or LA to work in theatre?

AB: It depends on what your dream is. If your dream is to perform in theater, regional theatre is where the much of the truly creative stage work is being done. Find a major city that has a thriving theater business. Or start in a good theater city and get some good experience under your belt, (along with your Equity card.) It’s not necessary to live in NY or LA. But if you want to do Broadway, at some point you’ve got to move to NY. If you want to do TV and film, you’ve got to move to Los Angeles. If you want to be a theatre director or producer, that’s something you can do regionally very well. There are wonderful opportunities already existing in cities all over the country. Look at the great regional theatre cities: Chicago, Seattle, San Diego, Minneapolis, etc. where very good theatre is being mounted. If it’s really your dream, just go. If God has really called you, doors will open at the proper time.If you are exclusively interested in television and films you have to be in Los Angeles. You can also work in small theater in Los Angeles providing you with continued training and possible exposure to the television and film industry. Besides it’s more fun waiting tables in sunshine than in the cold!

I moved to Los Angeles and I didn’t know anything. I didn’t have my Equity card. I didn’t know anything about theatre. I had not a clue. And yet I knew that I had talent, and I had to go test it. I had to see how I stacked up with other people. Everyone has to test themselves at some point.

KC: You’ve had your foot in two worlds: secular and Christian. How do you keep that balance?

AB: I’ve done more work in the secular world than on projects that are geared specifically toward the Christian marketplace. The Christian work that I have done has been primarily working on Christian musicals and recording projects. I’m also doing some church concerts because of my new CD, Encounter.

The bigger question is how do you walk with the Lord in a secular world? Every aspect of the business has its spiritual struggles and difficulties.

When you are an actor in the theatre as opposed to TV/Film, the jobs themselves are more long term. You are put into a situation where you are part of a “family” that you didn’t choose. There are going to be people who think 180 degrees differently than you do on every level. You will find yourself in potentially compromising relationships with people. The temptation to fall is great and you have to be on guard. You have to be open as a person and as an actor in order to do your best work, but also determine in advance what the boundaries are in your relationships with the people you work with.

You need to remember this….

The character you are playing is not you. You are creating an imaginary person that exists alongside and in concert with you. Remember it’s called a “play” not a “life”

Make sure you are centered in your walk with God and know who you are in your relationship with Him and that your life is marked by personal discipline and integrity.

My family helps keeps me balanced. I am a blessed guy in that I am married to someone who works in professional theatre and understands the importance of keeping it separated from real life. My kids also keep me grounded. Show business is very consuming of time and thought. If you came to my house, you’d only see two show biz posters – Prince of Egypt and Phantom of the Opera which are in the den. I go to other people’s houses and they have walls and complete rooms that are lined with posters and headshots of themselves with famous people. Their identity is show business and their entire life is wrapped up in the shows that they have done and the next job there are hoping to land. I don’t overly criticize them because I understand. We try our best not to let show business be the center of all our conversations. Normalcy has to be fought for. It’s easy to be consumed.

KC: How do you determine whether or not to play a certain role or part?

AB: I get this question from many people particularly young people starting out in the business who are concerned about their walk with the Lord. What I tell people is, “the message of the piece is more important than the character of the part.” That should be the determining factor.

As an example, I was asked once to play an attorney who argued for an abortion. The wife wanted to abort the fetus and the husband brought his wife to court to keep her from having the abortion. They were empty nesters, and she wanted to go back to get her degree and have a career…something that was put on hold while she raised their children. The pregnancy was unexpected and was not wanted by her. I was asked to play the attorney on the wife’s side, and make the argument that she should be able to abort her child because she wanted to go back to college to finally pursue the career she never had. The message of the writers, and the message of the show was that she had every right to abort her child so she could go back to college and have the career. That became the determining factor for me turning that job down. If the message of the show was that she didn’t have the right, I may have made a different decision.

This question of “God’s called me to be an actor, what will I do or not do?” will always be a point of prayer and personal decision throughout a career. That’s why my motto, “the message of the piece is more important than the character of the part” is a good starting point in making those decisions.

KC: Can you recommend a book that has inspired you or helped you in your career?

AB:

Respect for Acting by Uta Hagen

A Sense of Direction by William Ball

I also subscribe to “Variety” which gives me the business of the business and “Live Design” which has great articles, interviews and pictures geared toward theater design.