Rising Star Talia Cuomo On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Entertainment Industry
An Interview With Elana Cohen
I wish I knew from the beginning that when I seem to have trouble memorizing my lines, I should take a break and come back to it. I have learned that reading over my lines before bed, then sleeping on it, makes me absorb the material 100%.
As a part of my series about pop culture’s rising stars, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Talia Cuomo.
Talia Cuomo is best known for her controversial role playing a 12-year-old child bride, Lily, forced to marry a 40-year-old man on the hit NBC series New Amsterdam with Tyler Labine and Ryan Eggold. Other roles include Blue Bloods alongside Stephanie Kurtzuba and Vanessa Ray, Life & Beth with Amy Schumer, FBI with Jeremy Sisto, and Lisey’s Story with Julianne Moore, Clive Owens, and director Pablo Larrain. Talia has shared the big screen with Sarah Paulson as her daughter in the blockbuster film Oceans 8, as well as working with Sandra Bullock and Gary Ross. As a model this New Jersey native has worked with such brands as Macy’s, Saks Fifth Avenue, Claire’s, Foot Locker, Target, and many others. Believing in the importance of giving back to her community, Talia volunteers and runs food drives for the people of New York and knits scarves for the military soldiers. She is passionate about her education and when she is not studying or working at her craft, Talia enjoys reading, running track for her middle school team, baking, playing piano and flute, and hanging out with her friends and family.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
Hello! Thank you for the interview! I grew up in a small suburban town in northern New Jersey, surrounded by a close-knit community, my parents, siblings, grandmother and my bulldog, Charlie. I have a twin brother, Jude, and a sister, Ava, who’s seven years older than me.
Many of my childhood days were devoted toward my education and acting career. I spent a lot of time in New York City, where I would audition, film, do photoshoots, and go to acting class. My twin brother, Jude would often be with me, sometimes into the late hours!
The city was and still is my second home. I was also fortunate enough to grow up with a lot of close friends. I enjoyed my time in middle school!
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
My acting career began when I was around five years old. According to my family, I liked to talk a lot and meet new people, adults included. I was extremely bubbly and energetic and basically wouldn’t stop talking. I was also told I was an “old soul”. My mom eventually decided to take me to an acting coach. This coach was in Rutherford. NJ. His name was Alex, and he was a very interesting guy who had an English accent and enjoyed making jokes and entertaining me and my mom. He was very patient. Sometimes I would ask a lot of questions. My very first successful self-tape was with Alex. It was for a commercial with Dino, the dinosaur.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your entertainment career?
A memory that stands out in my mind is the time I attended a SAG event for the private screening of “Bird Box” before it was released. I went because I wanted to see Sandra Bullock, who was doing the Q&A at the end. It was a year earlier, we had filmed a scene together for “Oceans 8”, and I was a big fan. “Bird Box” was not for my age group, it was very scary! Immediately afterwards she walked over to me where I was seated and asked me if I was ok. She stroked my hair and was genuinely concerned! At first, I wasn’t sure she recognized me, but then I asked her if she remembered. She said, “Oh yes! You were wearing overalls”. I was so flattered.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
When I was around 5, I was in an off-off Broadway play called “Leah the Forsaken”. I enjoyed doing this play so much that I cried when I couldn’t go to one show because I had the flu! I got over the flu in less than 24 hours. Anyway, this play was rehearsed for about a month. I was the only child in the cast. Everybody was excited for the real show. I was getting ready to go to the stage to perform my scenes. I had my outfit on and ready. I ran out and said my lines when I realized I had my hot pink mermaid themed flip flops on under my white floral 1700s dress. Though this may not seem like a big deal, to my 5-year-old self, I was devastated! Not sure what lessons I learned, but I now laugh at that situation with my family to this day.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?
Right now, hoping to get called back for, “FBI” or “Blue Bloods” or both. Apparently, my roles are recurring, however in this business, you never know! I think some of the subject matter in those shows is very controversial, but helpful. Both shows are about criminal investigations. Many topics deal with racism and biases towards employment and school admission acceptances. I also did an episode of “New Amsterdam” about child marriage, which surprisingly is legal in many states!! Bringing attention to these topics can help bring out public awareness! My episodes of these shows are still streaming.
Most young people your age don’t have to balance work and school. Can you tell us how you manage to balance your schoolwork, auditions, and time on set?
I manage to balance my time pretty well between schoolwork, auditions and being on set. I am good at managing my time (I usually prioritize acting first, as I know I can usually make up my schoolwork). Let’s say I have a long audition with tons of lines to memorize. Since I’d say I’m pretty skilled at memorizing my lines pretty quickly, I usually just manage it into the time I’m doing homework or studying and cut back the time I’m taking breaks or resting. I also fall asleep pretty late at night, which I know is not the healthiest thing, but it works!
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
I am extremely grateful for my acting mentor and teacher, Theresa Pittus. She has helped me tremendously in my career. Though I don’t have a specific situation or story where I laugh at, Theresa makes every audition an amazing experience! Talking and preparing with her is everything to me!
Now let’s jump to the main part of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why?
1. Before I started acting, I wish I knew to just have fun with it! When I first started, I put this unneeded pressure on myself to “act well” and to get all my lines right and to remember all my cues etc. While you should still definitely do all of these things, if you think too much about what your next line will be, you won’t be listening to your other scene partner(s) and being “in the moment” which is usually what makes a scene an interesting one. Doing what feels natural in the moment can produce something great!
2. I wish I knew from the beginning that when I seem to have trouble memorizing my lines, I should take a break and come back to it. I have learned that reading over my lines before bed, then sleeping on it, makes me absorb the material 100%.
3. To always eat big breakfasts before going on set. Being on set usually lasts all day so, having food in my system keeping my energy up helps a lot. I remember I used to wake up not hungry, so I wouldn’t eat anything at all. That was a big mistake, because I could get sleepy, which is never good when you are on set!
4. If you’re on time you’re late! My first commercial was for Nickelodeon. I was punctual, arrived at my call time, but the whole crew was waiting for me! I was holding up the filming!
5. I wish I knew to just be myself. When auditioning, I used to always try to do exactly what the script says. Now, I sometimes experiment or have the urge to change something, if it feels right to me, you never know!
You are a person of enormous influence. How do you think you can use social media as a platform to be a positive influence to your fans, and for society at large?
I think I can make a positive difference on social media by showing my strong commitment to my education, acting career, and having the drive to succeed. I hope I can encourage others to go after their dreams and bounce back from any negative energy! Also, to work hard and remember to have fun at the same time!
If you had the ability to choose to work on any TV show or film, or work alongside any co-star, or with any director, what or who would that be, and why? You never know who might see this article, especially if we tag them. :-)
If I had the ability to choose to work alongside any actor, it would be Reese Witherspoon. I admire her immensely. She’s got amazing versatility as an actress. I enjoy watching her and take inspiration from learning about how she approaches her roles. She’s absolutely terrifying in “Speedway”, charming and hilarious in “Legally Blonde”, then a natural born singer as June Carter in “Walk the Line”. I would be ecstatic and completely in awe working with Reese Witherspoon.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
You can find me @taliacuomo on Instagram.
This was very meaningful, thank you so much!
