Meet Grace Ruble

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Grace Ruble. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Grace below.

Grace, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

For as long as I can remember, I knew I wanted to be part of some kind of creative storytelling. I read constantly as a child, and then eventually became interested in music, and then musical theatre, which lead to me finding my purpose in acting and film. When my family started moving around when I was a teenager, I realized that my theatre and music classes were where I felt most at home. It was easier to “break the ice” as the new kid in school when I had already talked to someone in a scene or sang a song with them. I fell in love not just with performing, but with the community it gave me. Now that I’m acting professionally, I want to use the arts to connect not just with my peers, but the larger world. I think that by connecting with others over a song or a scene we can have discussions that make us better people. When I found out that I could do that professionally, I never looked back.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?

I consider myself an actor first and foremost. Most of my career has been in theatre, though I love TV and film as well. You might have seen me most recently on The Polar Express Train Ride in Perris, CA. I was part of an immersive show on a real moving train that gives children and families the experience of being inside the iconic Christmas movie. I love both immersive and children’s theatre, so it was extremely fulfilling to be part of creating Christmas magic for the next generation. Now that we’ve entered the new year, I’m back in LA looking for my next project!

In addition to acting, I also enjoy working behind the scenes. Last summer, I branched out from just acting and wrote and performed in a one-woman show, Beautiful Little Fool, that I produced at the Hollywood Fringe Festival. The show was based on the life of flapper, Zelda Fitzgerald. When I started reading about Zelda a few years ago, I knew I had to tell her story. Even though she lived 100 years ago, her life has so many parallels to what women are going through today. She struggled with objectification, reproductive rights, and mental health. But despite her struggles, I was so inspired by her boldness. She had so much daring. She was one of our nation’s first “it girls”, the iconic style of the 20s flappers never would have happened without her. When I began my research for the show, I was shocked I’d never heard more about her, and saddened that so much of her accomplishments were hidden behind those of her husband, novelist, F. Scott Fitzgerald. I wrote the show to honor her story and to connect her to the women of today.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three qualities that I think have been impactful in my journey are passion, determination and resilience. To a lot of people, passion feels like a high energy emotion, but my passion for acting gives me a sense of calm. I’ve always struggled with anxiety, but I often say that deciding to be an actor was the one decision I felt no anxiety over. I felt so strongly that this was my path that I couldn’t see myself pursing anything else.

If you had met me as a child, you never would have guessed that I’d become a performer. I was extremely shy and barely spoke when I was younger, so I’ve never been the most natural actor in the room. However, because I love acting so much I’ve always been extra determined to hold my own with my peers who are more extroverted or even more naturally talented.

This isn’t to say that I’ve never questioned my decision or wondered if another path would have been easier, and this is where resilience comes in. Whenever I feel that way I think of something I was told by one of my college professors that has always stuck with me. She taught a class on the business skills needed to be an artist and she always used to tell us “Life is hard. But you get to pick what kind of hard.” When being a creative gets stressful or difficult, I always remind myself that even though it can be hard, it’s the kind of hard I chose. She taught me that no one’s life is free of struggle, but you can choose a struggle that you’re passionate about and that gives me the strength to keep going.

Overall, I would tell anyone that has a dream that if they have passion and commitment, that dream is probably closer to their reach than they think.

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

After producing my own show last year, I’d love to connect with actors who also want to write and produce their own work. I’m especially passionate about telling stories in history that have been overlooked, especially women’s stories. You can connect with me on Instagram @graceoliviaruble

Contact Info:

• Website: https://graceoliviaruble.com
• Instagram: @graceoliviaruble
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/JWpPgk2d-N0?si=B4L1UcMrpyt4XbK1

Image Credits

Headshots by Leah Heubner
Rehearsal Photos by Elisa Lucia
Production Photos by The Art of Acting Studio