I directed the play ‘Amadeus’ with puppets way back in the day for theater. I also studied puppetry at the Eugene and Neil Center with a lot of the ‘Sesame Street’ people, so I do have a little bit of a history with puppetry. Steve Zissis Read Quote
I would say if you’re young, if you’re a teenager, act in plays, as many plays as you can. It’s an amazing way to build your craft and an amazing way to build your presence. Steve Zissis Read Quote
I was an early peaker, and then I went through a depressive part of my life and had some struggles personally. Things don’t always happen as you’d expect them to happen, but there’s always a second act. Steve Zissis Read Quote
I’m Greek-American, and I come from an immigrant-type background, and Greek-American parents want you to be a doctor or a lawyer. Because that’s how you make money, and it’s very respectable. Steve Zissis Read Quote
I always did plays, and when I went to NYU – and I didn’t go to Tisch, the theater school, because I was like, ‘Well, acting’s not realistic. You can’t make a career out of it.’ So I just studied general studies and humanities at NYU, but I was doing plays while I was there. So I was sort of cheating. Steve Zissis Read Quote
I feel so lucky. When an actor that has been struggling for so long makes the transition into being an actor full-time, it is the most amazing feeling. It’s just sort of like a 3,000-pound weight gets lifted from you, and you’re able to mostly focus on just being an artist, which is an amazing, blessed luxury I have. Steve Zissis Read Quote
Acting is something I’ve done since I was in high school, but I never had a model in my life, whether it was a mentor or a parent, where I could realize that acting could actually be a career. Steve Zissis Read Quote
Aziz Ansari was on ‘Parks and Recreation’ for, I don’t know, what, seven years? And he was a really popular stand-up comedian. He even says that his Netflix show wouldn’t have gotten made unless he created it himself. No one was probably willing to put someone like Aziz as the lead in a show until he actually created it himself. Steve Zissis Read Quote
