Meet Vancouver actor and playwright, Jenn Griffin.
Jenn next appears in Neil Labute’s A Second of Pleasure as part of Take 5 (Oct 19-23) at the VanCity Culture Lab.
Meet Jenn Griffin
Originally from Edmonton, Alberta, Jenn crawled to the B.C. border as soon as she was able has been an award winning Vancouver based actor and playwright for over 30 years.
Her play The Long Call was recently selected as one of five plays for inclusion in the Advance Theatre Series.
As an actor, Jenn recently played the role of Jean in the Arts Club’s Production of Good People, and received a Jessie Richardson nomination for her performance.
Jenn has made numerous television and film appearances. Of late, she played the role of “Jane” in the horror film Still/Born to be released in 2017.
Jenn is thrilled to be included in Christy Webb-Gibson’s Vancouver edition of Take 5. Jenn once lent a pen to Neil Labute and he has yet to return it. She considers having the chance to bring the role of “Jess” in A Second of Pleasure by Neil La Bute, sufficient payment in lieu of her borrowed pen.
20 Questions with Jenn Griffin
1 Your first job.
My mom was a widow so I always had jobs from the age of ten: paper route, selling Bingo cards, babysitting and catering help. But my first real job was when I was 16 as a waitress at The Ye Olde English Fish and Chip Shoppe in Edmonton. They played the same Highland dancing cassette all day long.
2 The job you always wanted as a child.
I read the Exorcist when I was ten and I knew they would make it into a movie. I asked my mom if we could move to Los Angeles because I wanted to play the part of Reagan in the film version. My mom said we couldn’t move to Los Angeles because of the dog.
3 Your pet peeve.
Blind privilege, vocal fry, solipsism, 18 year-olds who call me “Honey”, people who let you know up front that they don’t read as if it’s a good thing, and highland dancing cassettes.
4 Your hero.
She died when I was nineteen, but she gave me all she had even though she wouldn’t let us move to Los Angeles because of the dog. So yeah, my mom.
5 Your biggest indulgence.
Perfume, yeah, Hermes Elixir Des Merveilles. Probably a necessity I picked up while working at The Ye Olde English Fish and Chip Shoppe.
6 One thing no one knows about you.
They might know, but not grasp that I was raised by Brits. I think like a Brit. It is both obstacle and asset and, surprisingly, more the former when working at The Ye Olde English Fish and Chip Shoppe.
7 Three things you would want with you on a deserted island.
My bed, my perfume, and a yacht waiting to take me back home.
8 The one word your best friend would use to describe you.
She said:”Supercallafragalisticexp ealladocious.” But then she does live in L.A, without a dog, and is affected by its culture of Disney and hyperbole.
9 If you were not pursuing a career as a performer, what would you be doing right now?
Well, I’m a playwright and a poet and I went to art school. So, I always think of acting as my most practical choice. Terrifying but true. If I wasn’t doing any of that, I’d probably still be working at The Ye Olde English Fish and Chip Shoppe.
10 Hero or villain?
A bit of both, thanks.
11 Your life’s motto/mantra.
The adventure awaits.
12 Your favourite playwright.
Too many to mention and my mind wanders to all the possible playwrights writing in obscurity without access to the system at large and how I might love them. Right now though, I have to give my twisted heart to Neil La Bute so that I can live his words.
13 The last book you read.
“Infinite Jest”. Don’t ask me how long it took me to read it.
14 If you were a cartoon character what cartoon character would you be and why?
I would be Bugs Bunny because he had the best lines, and a poor understanding of consequence.
15 What will it say on your grave marker?
Thanks for stopping by, I’ll be here all week.
16 Who would you most like to have dinner with?
My parents. There are a lot of unanswered questions. But not at the Ye Olde English Fish and Chip Shoppe.
17 Your idea of happiness.
Knowing that I did my best with what I had to work with.
18 The one thing in your life that makes you most proud.
That I show up, and keep showing up.
19 If you could go back in time, what would you tell your 20-year old self?
Let yourself cry, you will stop eventually.
20 To be or not to be?
To be without clinging to identity or result.