Christian Cuoco is a first generation American actor of Ecuadorian and Italian descent. He's theatrically trained in France and has produced plays with Punch Drunk Productions. He was born Christmas Day, 1986, in Long Island, NY.
When he was three, on a Sunday afternoon while watching a darkly lit 70s movie with his grandma Sylvia, she pointed to the television screen with her plump, wrinkly finger and said in her thick New York accent, “That’s the greatest actor in the whole world”. The words she spoke just rang true.
From that day on, he wanted to be the type of poetic, powerful and truthful storyteller he and his grandma loved. The only problem was, he grew up in a very strict home and the life of an actor seemed impossible. Yet, he secretly held his dream in the back of his mind.
In his first careers, he worked as a garbageman for several years, while he earned his B.A. in advertising & studio art in Poughkeepsie at Marist College in 2008. Then he became a graphic designer in midtown Manhattan.
In 2012, Christian made a leap of faith. After a long stretch of time in graphic design, the monotony of a daily office commute came to a sudden halt.
“I was in Penn Station, and I remember feeling my heart pumping too fast. I was convinced that I was close to death. I had to sit down. I felt an inescapable dread".
He had an intense panic attack, (it is a strange and terrifying experience)... but there was a silver lining; he came to a realization. “I need to listen to that voice from when I was a kid”. So he started to find the courage to do the impossible. He began to follow to his grandmother’s voice that rang true. Since that day in Penn Station, he’s found peace in the devotion to his craft of acting.
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Christian recently returned from Étampes, France, learning with a close-knit community of clowns at L’Ècole Philippe Gaulier (alumni include Helena Bonham Carter, Sasha Baron Cohen, Emma Thompson). He’s had incredible success making people laugh by creating offbeat, charming performances.
He's told meaningful stories in advertisements with brands including Apple, Audible, and LG; along with dozens of independent and graduate MFA films at Columbia University, NYU and the School of Visual Arts. He’s also studied all levels of improv at the PIT, and trained with Sundance Grand Jury Nominated Director/teacher, Deborah Kampmeier and Elizabeth Kemp, former Associate Artistic Director of the Actors Studio. In his down time, he loves to watch Garry Shandling comedy and dance cumbia. He’s also a certified reiki healer, visual artist and painter.
When he was three, on a Sunday afternoon while watching a darkly lit 70s movie with his grandma Sylvia, she pointed to the television screen with her plump, wrinkly finger and said in her thick New York accent, “That’s the greatest actor in the whole world”. The words she spoke just rang true.
From that day on, he wanted to be the type of poetic, powerful and truthful storyteller he and his grandma loved. The only problem was, he grew up in a very strict home and the life of an actor seemed impossible. Yet, he secretly held his dream in the back of his mind.
In his first careers, he worked as a garbageman for several years, while he earned his B.A. in advertising & studio art in Poughkeepsie at Marist College in 2008. Then he became a graphic designer in midtown Manhattan.
In 2012, Christian made a leap of faith. After a long stretch of time in graphic design, the monotony of a daily office commute came to a sudden halt.
“I was in Penn Station, and I remember feeling my heart pumping too fast. I was convinced that I was close to death. I had to sit down. I felt an inescapable dread".
He had an intense panic attack, (it is a strange and terrifying experience)... but there was a silver lining; he came to a realization. “I need to listen to that voice from when I was a kid”. So he started to find the courage to do the impossible. He began to follow to his grandmother’s voice that rang true. Since that day in Penn Station, he’s found peace in the devotion to his craft of acting.
//
Christian recently returned from Étampes, France, learning with a close-knit community of clowns at L’Ècole Philippe Gaulier (alumni include Helena Bonham Carter, Sasha Baron Cohen, Emma Thompson). He’s had incredible success making people laugh by creating offbeat, charming performances.
He's told meaningful stories in advertisements with brands including Apple, Audible, and LG; along with dozens of independent and graduate MFA films at Columbia University, NYU and the School of Visual Arts. He’s also studied all levels of improv at the PIT, and trained with Sundance Grand Jury Nominated Director/teacher, Deborah Kampmeier and Elizabeth Kemp, former Associate Artistic Director of the Actors Studio. In his down time, he loves to watch Garry Shandling comedy and dance cumbia. He’s also a certified reiki healer, visual artist and painter.
Grandparents, Feli and Miguel c.1956
FUTURE:
RECENT PAST:
- Developing Short Films based on bouffon characters
- Travelling to Reggio Emelia, Italy to study Commedia d’ell Arte with Antonio Fava
RECENT PAST:
- Studied Le Jeu, Melodrama, and Bouffon at renowned clown theater school, École Philippe Gaulier
- Starred in Columbia MFA short Lejana Tierra Mia Official Selection of New Faces New Voices International Film Festival
- Clyde in Jessica Litwak’s staged reading of THE NIGHT IT RAINED
- Produced alongside Punch Drunk Productions and portrayed Donald Trump in an avant garde political play, A SHIFT: POLITICAL OUTCRIES
- Jimmy in the table reading of Sonejuhi Sinha's Love Comes Later
