Meet Emily Stout | Actor, Writer, and LA’s Hottest Babysitter

We had the good fortune of connecting with Emily Stout and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Emily, is there something you believe many others might not?
When I was in school, I always felt like I found myself in Q+A’s with veteran actors (oftentimes, quite jaded), and they’d say, “If you can imagine doing anything else besides acting, do that.” I always felt like it made my decision as to whether or not I pursued acting feel super high stakes, and that the thinking around it was totally black and white. I think the most important tool an actor has is their imagination, and so of course we should be able to imagine ourselves doing different things. My boyfriend is a writer but is also an incredible chef, and it’s so fun to fantasize about the restaurant he’d run. My best friend is an actor and director, but also a gorgeous singer and this year she’s putting out an EP. I’m very proud to call myself an actor, but I also make money doing a million other jobs, which all inform my acting. And let us not forget- Chekhov was also a DOCTOR, people! We can do whatever we want out here!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Well, I suppose I should start this by saying where I’m at professionally today is unfortunately…..not suuuper far. I remember when I was 18 years old, I made a pact with myself that If I wasn’t on Broadway (lol) and living in a brownstone that I OWNED on the Upper West Side in New York City (truly laughing out loud) by the time I was 30 years old, I would quit acting. When I turned 30, I graduated from grad school in a pandemic. Needless to say, my zoom showcase did not lead me to Times Square. And here I am, about to turn 34, with a couple regional theater productions and readings under my belt and that’s really about it. I’ve auditioned for one Broadway show in my entire life (I did not receive a callback), and the idea of owning property feels like I have a better shot at performing a Simone Biles gymnastics move. And yet, the idea of quitting this feels completely impossible. My dad used to say I had an affliction. There was one time I didn’t book a show at Lincoln Center that I wanted so badly, and I was at babysitting where I worked for two actors themselves, and he called me on the phone and said, “Well, Em, at least you’re with other people who have the same affliction.” But that rejection was the heartbreak that led me to audition for grad school, which is where I met the person I love collaborating with more than anyone in the world. I really don’t believe that things happen for a reason, but if I did, she’d be the reason and she’s so much better than a show at Lincoln Center. I wrote a one-woman show after my dad passed away, and I asked her to direct it. I’m proud to say it’s the best and most healing thing I’ve ever made. Working on the show with her, I was able to re-order, re-shape, and re-love the world around me, one that no longer had my dad in it. It helped me organize and laugh at my own grief in a way that felt absolutely essential in order to move forward with my life. A lot of the time, Acting capital A feels like a really, really shitty girlfriend. I’m absolutely obsessed with her, and she mostly wants nothing to do with me. But at least my truest and most magical friends are also dating her, and when things are really tough, we can sit around and talk shit about her with a glass of wine. And that’s just always been enough to keep me going.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Oh WOW, this is such a fun question. I’m gonna pretend in this scenario that my best friend and I have limitless cash, because well, you sort of need it to have any fun here. I’m realizing in this moment that almost everything I’m going to say for my itinerary is going to be food-related, besides like, two other activities. But also, I only moved here a little over a year ago, and there’s a lot I have not done besides eat. And, I feel like I need to add that in this scenario, you’re with your BEST friend, and let’s be honest. Hot take but IMO, fake best friends go to museums and landmarks and stuff. Real best friends sit across from each other at a table and talk for seventeen hours. Here’s the food you should eat while you’re doing that:

Morihiro- to this day, maybe the best meal I’ve ever had in my entire life. An Omakase experience in Atwater Village truly unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I mean, the chef makes everything down to the CERAMICS.
Providence- This is a two-star Michelin restaurant that serves dishes that are full of like, edible flowers from their garden that were picked one and a half seconds ago. It’s food you’d never in a million years make in your home, and it’s to die for
Jitlada- that kind of LA restaurant where you leave saying, wait that might have been the best Thai food I’ve ever had and it’s in a strip mall
Funke- If you are obsessed with pasta, this is the place for you
Little Doms- impeccable vibes and you always see at least one famous person when you go here and they look so familiar and cozy, you think to yourself, “wait is that…my dad over there in that booth? Oh no, no no, but why do I feel like I know him? Oh my god, okay, okay, that’s Kevin Bacon”

I’m also a big runner and I moved here from New York a year and a half ago, and though I love Central and Prospect Park with my whole heart, the running is WAY better here. Favorite runs/hikes include:

-there’s a trail that goes up behind the Observatory in Griffith Park and wraps back down the canyon for about seven miles. At one point, you’re so high on a ridge, it’s impossible not to leave the run with a little more perspective on your life
-there’s a trail run that hugs the 5 going up to the LA Zoo (speaking of activities, I’ve been dying to go to the zoo here and I have yet to do it so this will put a skip in my step) and it’s full of shade which is hard to come by in this state
-And…of course, it is cliche, but running at the beach for me is the way to instantly stop obsessing over myself/career/etc. It’s very hard to look at the ocean and think you matter at all!

My best friend who actually did grow up here has told me many times to go to the tar pits, but I have yet to do that. I also want to go to the Magic Castle desperately so if anyone has a hookup! DM me on instagram: @stout.like.the.beer

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My Shoutout goes out to Mary Rose Branick (who recommended me for this publication!) who has taught me everything I know about collaboration, landing on truth through patience and gentleness, and how attention to the micro details in a story are how we find our macro vision.

Website: https://emilypstout.com

Instagram: stout.like.the.beer

Facebook: Emily Stout

Image Credits
Nick Rehberger
Travis Emery Hackett
Eileen Meny
Molly Pan