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Summarized by Kent Larsen
LDS Actor in Theater to Stay
Richmond VA Times Dispatch 8Dec99 A2
By Wynne W. Wasson: Times-Dispatch Staff Writer
Rowland has appeared on stages in Pennsylvania and Utah as well as
Virginia, and is currently playing the father in "The Sound of Music" at
the Riverside Center Dinner Theater in Fredericksburg. The run has been
extended through February 13th.
Rowland approached the production as an opportunity to get some audition
practice, and was surprised and thrilled when he was selected to play
the part, "He's such a complex character, so layered. It's been a
challenge playing someone that much older with all that life
experience," said Rowland.
Director and Riverside Center founder, Rollin E. Wehman, however, is
pleased with Rowland, "Russell has a wonderful baritone, a wonderful
stage presence, very commanding for someone in his 20s. He's easy to
direct. I don't think I could have found anybody better if we'd gone to
Hollywood."
Rowland is also fortunate for the timing of this opportunity. Nearly two
years ago, Rowland set a limit of two years to see if he could make a
living at being an actor. So far, the trial has been successful, "I've
been working constantly," Rowland said, saying that he's appeared in
eight shows in a range of parts.
Rowland attended Dixie College in Saint George, Utah, but then got an
opportunity that led to the theater. "I went to Dixie College for one
year, and as I started my second year, I got an offer for a national
tour at Theater IV. I realized others getting those offers were
graduates from good colleges. I decided I would try it until I was 22."
Next month the two years is up, and he will decide whether to continue
working as an actor or to get training and education as an actor.
Regardless, he says he's in the theater for good. "This is something I
love. I will never give it up," Rowland said. "There's something magical
about theater when you have the audience there in front of you and it
clicks."
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