Art Dohany

Yes

Well, a somewhat short history of me since high school. I attended Polk Community College for two years on a theatre scholarship and achieved a General AA Degree. I then went to Belmont College in Nashville to study Music Business as a recording engineer. After a year I realized I craved to be in front of people so I then entered the School of Theatre at FSU, Tallahassee where I received my BFA in Acting. I then continued my training at the FSU Acting Graduate Program at the Asolo State Theatre in Sarasota where I gained my MFA in Acting. After graduation I joined Actors’ Equity Association and toured the state for a year with the Asolo Children’s Theatre.

I then had to go to New York, because that’s what all good actors do. After temping as a word processor/secretary on Wall Street for two years and auditioning for everything, I decided that I could more comfortably starve in Florida. Besides, I’d rather be stuck in traffic on I-4 than to be stuck in the hot, stuffy subway. Once back to Central Florida, an acting job opened up at The Adventurers’ Club at Disney’s Pleasure Island. I spent six years there entertaining the inebriated guests, then moved over to Epcot where I’ve been doing audience interactive street theater for the last thirteen years.

My wife, Suzette, had attended the BFA Acting Program at FSU in Tallahassee also, however; we didn’t get “involved” with each other till we met again in New York. She was actually my Temp Work Boss for awhile. When I moved back down to Florida, lo and behold, she followed and we married in 1990.

In 1993, our son Ashton came along. Probably my greatest achievement ever! (I could talk about him for hours!)

During the commercial, video and TV boom here in Orlando in the early ‘90s I landed a handful of commercials and Nickelodeon roles, but alas, “Hollywood East” never materialized and most of that work has now disappeared.

Currently I’m at Epcot five days a week (Quite a steady job for an actor!) on a year to year contract and occasionally teaching an Acting Class at Valencia Community College. To satisfy my music lust, I play guitar with a local band here in Orlando, playing out about once a month. Suzette is a tenured Speech Professor at Valencia Community College, (She has the real job!) and Ashton is a 15 year-old high-schooler who has found his passion as a sponsored Vert Skater. He has no desire to enter into acting, thank goodness. We’re hoping he’ll skate his way to fame and fortune or at least, fortune, to support us in our aging years.