Meet Jamie Ragusa | Actor and Mom

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

Hi Jamie, why did you pursue a creative career?
I actually started an artistic career because my Grandfather had all of kids take dance lessons. He thought it was great for both girls and boys creatively and athletically. So fast forward, when I was 7 my parents asked me if I wanted to take dance lessons and I was like sure. So I studied dance starting at the age of 7 at the same studio my Dad danced at throughout high school. What kept me dancing is that I fell in love with it… all of it, which kept me dancing throughout high school, took me to get a BA in Dance at Point Park University in Pittsburgh, and continued all through professional jobs as a dancer on Princess Cruise lines, and other various shows in Pittsburgh, Nevada and California. After a back injury though, I stopped dancing and went back to school for Marketing. Years later, after I had established a career in Marketing, got married and had kids… I missed being artistically creative. So, I took a Voice Over class, that led me to an acting class… and that’s when I was like yes, this is what I have been missing! I dove right in and went all in and trained, and continue to train hard. Once I started to get work s an actor and get paid for my work in acting, I then decided to pursue it full-time. I’ve never looked back, because I truly do love it. I love working with my imagination, working with others and telling a story that hopefully has some impact on the viewer/audience.

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.
As mentioned, I was a dancer first, but really I didn’t begin acting until later in life after I had my children (Francesca, 9 and Antonio, 11). I didn’t really start until about 7 years ago when Francesca was almost 2. I think finding a balance of juggling many things has been my biggest challenge. As a working actor and mom of relatively still young kids can be difficult. I never really have a set schedule, so it’s not easy to make plans in advance because not only am I managing my kids’ schedules, I’m constantly re-arranging my own depending on what the week presents with auditions, or class, or a workshop or show. It’ a lot and many times I have felt burnout, I’m trying to be better about that and pay much more attention to self-care.

Also, the pandemic and the strike have been very difficult to work through. I was finishing the last 3 months of my Conservatory program at Maggie Flanigan when everything went on lockdown. I was filming some great indie projects, and felt really good where I was at as an actor… and then the pandemic happened, and I was devastated as were so many. But, I continued to take classes and try as best as I could to remain positive, because acting is my sanity, class is church for me. The very abrupt transition to zoom, not being in person with other actors, was a tough transition. Looking back, it really was all so difficult and new for everyone, especially artists. Then fast forward, just as we felt things were moving again… the industry was interrupted once more with the WGA and Sag-Aftra strikes. They certainly needed to happen, but we are still feeling the impacts as an industry from all the disruption in the last 4 years.

So, I think my story is one of resilience though I haven’t been doing it very long, I’ve had my share of challenges. This career is one of the most brutal and difficult careers to do. The rejection and ups and downs can make one spiral on any given day. And many days I question myself, “Am I just wasting time?” Yet, with all of those uncertainties I may have, I know I’m never going to give up because I know deep inside I was meant to do this, to be on this path, to share others stories, (or even my own).

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Omph! This is a hard one, lol! Because I have two kids I feel like I never get to do this anymore! However, when I was in my late 20’s/early 30’s I loved to hang out downtown. In the East and West Village, loved walking around in SoHo. I would absolutely go to see a play. I would absolutely love to take them to the Moma, walk on the High Line. I love unique coffee shops, so would pop into a few of those. I really LOVE to laugh, so going to a Comedy show would be so much fun! And then also taking a day trip to Brooklyn. I used to live between Fort Green and Park Slope, and have very fond memories of me just walking around the neighborhoods over there. There are so many unique pockets in NYC, there is something for everyone. This city truly is such a beautiful gem. When I moved to NYC in 2007, I knew this was where I was meant to be.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My Teachers!! Without my teachers… I would NOT be where I am today in my craft. It began with Caroline Thomas of Total Theater Lab who introduced me to acting in a profound way by understanding what some of my POVs as well as introducing me to amazing plays and types of characters I could work on. Simultaneously, I took classes at the Lee Strasberg Institute where I studied with Robert Ellerman, Tim Crouse, Marcel Simoneau. I worked on sensory exercises and scene work. Then, I went to Maggie Flanigan where I completed their Conservatory program under Charlie Sandlan. With Charlie, I studied the Meisner technique, along with Voice, Movement, Script Analysis, Character Work. It was with Charlie, I began to find my way of working as an actor. Ways to approach a script, ways to develop a character, preparation, and most certainly exploring all sides of myself. It was in this program, I began to understand myself, my beliefs, my aspirations, and points of view. Matt Newton of MN Acting Studio and Victor Villar Hauser have also both been instrumental in working with me on my TV/Film audition technique, including the tough transition to self-tapes and zoom in the Pandemic. Most recently, I have been taking scene study classes at The Barrow Group with Lee Brock and Seth Barrish. With them, I have been working on putting the work together and all things I’ve learned to this point, and focus more on trusting myself, trusting I’ve done the work I need to, and then letting it go to work on whatever impulses and present moment may arise. It’s been really fun to play and test things out in such a supportive community of artists. Most recently, I have also taken classes with Jennifer Esposito who I’ve worked on scenes and monologues with. As an actor in the business for over 25 years, Jennifer has a great perspective. Jennifer encourages everyone to find and use their voice as an artist in this tough business. It’s about believing in yourself, and what you uniquely bring to the table as an artist. She also encourages her students to create their own work! Create something that excites and inspires you. She just produced, wrote, directed and acted in her own feature film, ‘Fresh Kills.’ For me to see someone in the business for over 25 years creating her own authentic story she wanted to tell is very inspiring for me and others in her class to see.

To some, that may seem like I have jumped around a lot and I have, but I have also learned different things from each and everyone of them that have helped me tremendously on this journey. I continue to remain curious, and explore things that work for me and keep things interesting and fun! This business is hard enough to not have fun while you are learning.

Website: https://www.jamieragusa.com

Instagram: jamiedragu

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-ragusa-2b71427

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jamie.jd1/

Other: https://vimeo.com/user47501582

Image Credits
Denim headshot (Curtis & Cort Photography)
Brown Sweater headshot (Andrew Steinman)