Cast Spotlight: Scarlet Bell Silva

Happy Sunday!

This week's Cast Spotlight is the one and only Scarlet Bell Silva. You may have seen her as Meg Magrath in "Crimes of the Heart." Now she's playing Stacy in "A Nice Family Gathering"!

Tell us a bit about yourself! 
I graduated from Powell High School in 2001, where Ms. Buell was my theatre teacher. I then proceeded to get two Bachelor's degrees from Maryville College in 2005- one in Theatre and one in English Literature. I have pretty much always lived in East TN. I am kind of in love with the Smoky Mountains. Plus, I could never leave my wonderful parents, Samuel and Nita Bell. They have always been so supportive of me, and I couldn't imagine having them any further than a short drive away. I married my husband, Josh Silva, in 2010. and we have been trying to live the dream ever since. Josh and I have three very, very spoiled dogs. We have a beautiful, all black German Shepard named Attila, a very assertive Chihuahua named Fancy, and a sweet little rescue Doxiepoo named Sheldon. Our pups, Netflix, and acting are pretty much my only hobbies...well, except for soaking in my hot tub at home.

What's a fun fact about yourself?
I hate Halloween and all things scary. I have never went to a haunted house, and I have never watched a scary movie all the way to the end.

How did you get involved with the Powell Playhouse?
I saw an audition posted on Facebook. I knew Ms. Buell and had started the PPH, so I took a chance and auditioned for a show. It paid off!

Can you give a brief timeline of your involvement in theatre?
I've always loved to act. It got me into some trouble when I was younger; I didn't understand my desire to mimic and impersonate other people as a small child could be misconstrued as being rude  and/or disrespectful! :-) I started acting onstage in high school, and then I went on to get a degree in Theatre in college. I took a long hiatus from acting after college, but I'm back into acting now and plan to continue acting from here on out.

What is your favorite role you have ever played and why?
My favorite role was performing "The Woman" in Christopher Durang's Laughing Wild. The character was very neurotic and disturbed. I loved her! And the audience loved her, too, which helped. I think I got more laughs from that role than any other role I've ever played.

What is your favorite show you have ever been in and why?
My favorite show was probably Crimes of the Heart. It was more of the feeling I got when I finally got back into acting again. I will never take such a long break from theatre again. The cast and crew were amazing with that show!! Plus, I loved playing Meg.

What is your best (or worst) onstage mishap?
Oh, man. That's a hard one. There are SO many to choose from!! I guess it was pretty bad when I missed my cue to come onstage during A Midsummer Night's Dream back in college. I was playing Titania, the Fairy Queen. My poor Fairy minions had to flutter and fly around onstage aimlessly for about 60 seconds, waiting for me to realize I had missed my cue and needed to get onstage immediately and start the dialogue again! That was embarrassing.

Do you have any funny audition stories?
I can't sing. At all. My friend in college was directing a musical (The Fantasticks) and wanted me to audition to play the Mute. Of course, my friend was mean (and maybe a little vengeful after the April Fool's joke I'd recently pulled on her :-) ), so she made me sing Jennifer Lopez's "Jenny from the Block" while running in circles around the theatre as part of my audition!! I got the role, by the way. I was an amazing Mute.

What is your dream role and why?
I don't really have a role in mind...but it would definitely be a comedy. I love comedy!

Cats or dogs?
Dogs. Hands down.

Paper or plastic?
Plastic. I reuse the bags.

If you could sing one song on American Idol, what would it be?
Well, as I have already stated, I cannot sing; however, if I could sing, I guess the song would probably be Miranda Lambert's "Mama's Broken Heart"...or any Miranda Lambert song, really.

If you were stranded on a deserted island and could only bring three things, what would you bring?

My family, my dogs, and something to write with.


That was Scarlet Bell Silva, everyone! Stay tuned for more!

Photo Credit: Nancy Anderson and Kristina Greenway; dir. Gina Cannon-Jones