ACT LIKE A MOTHER

Kelly Lester is someone who shakes things up on a regular basis without even meaning to. While taking some time off from acting to raise a vibrant family, Kelly started not one but two super successful businesses. She then discovered, during one of her daughters’ performances, that her own creative fires were burning stronger than ever. 

Kelly entered back into acting a little older, a little wiser, and a lot more confident and castable. And when working in LA was no longer fulfilling, she and her actor husband set up shop in NYC a stone’s throw from Broadway to grab hold of a long-held dream. 

Kelly’s story is one of ingenuity and the step-by-step processes that lead to great things; it’s one of family—from her actor parents to her 3 daughters, all thriving in the business; and it’s one of jumping in with both feet without looking back. Kelly shares stories of parenting wins, how she’s moving through the acting business at this point in her life, and why an actual person at Amazon picked up the phone and called her.

More on Kelly:

https://www.kellylester.com

@kellylesternyc

The YouTube channel!

(scroll down for lunchbox videos!)

https://www.youtube.com/@lesterworld

NOTE BEFORE: In this episode we mention suicide ideation and drug use which may be sensitive subjects for some.



Act Like A Mother creator and co-host Katie MacNichol takes her turn in the interview seat to share her beautiful, funny and deeply moving story of acting and mothering. She describes her early days in NYC - on Broadway one day and back to waiting tables the next - her meet-cute moment with her actor husband, and how they raised their two kids while working on stage and on the road.

Katie speaks honestly with Melanie about the creative ways she managed to weather not only the ups and downs of a fickle business and financial strain but also the pain, fear and confusion she faced during her teenage son’s struggle with addiction. She shines light on what that experience taught her about her role as a mom and her relationship to her career, and she reveals how this podcast is the direct result of the gifts that come when we’re willing to tell the truth about how life is.

More about Katie:

https://katiemacnichol.com

@katiemacnichol

https://backyardrenaissance.com

https://www.theoldglobe.org

Growing up in a family of hunters in a town without much art, award-winning actor, writer and director Deborah Puette didn’t have a name for what she yearned to do. After moving to Chicago and stumbling into a breakout role on stage, she set her sights on a career and life that has propelled her ever-forward. Through an unexpected pregnancy, a move to LA, the breakup of a marriage, and seeing her child through cancer treatment, Deborah continued to tend to her artistry and her professional trajectory with focus, clarity and grace. 

Deborah’s ability to listen to the quiet, persistent voice inside, to honor herself as a storyteller, and to hone her natural leadership has landed her not just as a beloved member of the LA theatre community, but now as a writer, director and producer of short and feature films. 

She talks to Katie and Melanie about her path from reluctant new mom to why her 25-year-old daughter is her hero, about breaking up with old beliefs and embracing more dimensions of herself, and why she now is proud to talk about her queer identity.

More about Deborah:

https://www.deborah-puette.com

@lassothemoonxo

https://cashforgoldthefilm.com

https://suchaprettygirlfilm.com

Her resources:

https://www.amazon.com/Playwrights-Guidebook-Insightful-Dramatic-Writing/dp/0571199917

https://www.badpitchwriterslab.com

As a young woman fresh out of drama school in London, Rosina Reynolds’ wanderlust got the best of her. Instead of starting her acting career, she set sail on adventures that took her to the West Indies, Panama and eventually led her to northern Wisconsin where a San Diego magazine appeared with an article about the Old Globe Theatre. 

Was it a series of coincidences and right turns made, or was it Rosina’s commitment to live her whole life fully that led her on a wild wonderful path to find herself the leading lady of San Diego theatre?

In this episode, Rosina shares what has motivated her for decades, why LA was not the right place for her, what it’s like raising a daughter who is also a theatre creative, all she’s gained and learned from running the children’s theatre she started 38 years ago and the mysteries and joys of being a first-time grandmother. 

You won't find Rosina on social media or her own website

Her children's theatre is here:

https://cctltd.org

Welcome to Season 3!

Actor Kim Griffin did not move to LA to further her own career. After her daughter's diagnosis with Prader-Willi syndrome, Kim moved her family of 4 across the country in order to have access to the services (and the sunshine) that would benefit her two children.

Kim shares openly about her high-risk pregnancies, the special needs of her kids, her own mental health, and the daunting financial circumstances she and her actor husband continue to find solutions for.

Kim is an articulate advocate for women and caregivers learning to ask for and receive services that many of us don't even know are available. She is a powerful example of what it is to put her kids' needs first, to release any shame associated with receiving help, and to appreciate life under a different set of metrics.

This is a story of forging a creative path no matter what, paying it forward, and the miracle of a moms' Facebook group.

More on Kim:

thekimgriffin.com

@thekimgriffin

Study with Kim

https://www.iamatheatre.com/classes 

Watch "Dick Bunny"

www.dickbunny.com

Kim's Podcast "Off the F*****g Rails"

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/off-the-f-g-rails-with-kim-griffin/id1530849347

Neve's GoFundMe

https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-neves-fight-against-praderwilli-syndrome 

Information on Prader-Willi Syndrome

www.fpwr.org 

Award-winning actor Purva Bedi tried to be practical by double-majoring in Economics and Theatre as an undergrad, but with acting and performing running through her bloodlines, a life on stage and screen was inevitable. In the final episode of Season 2, Purva tells Melanie and Katie incredible stories of her family and how she carries that lineage forward.  She shares about her early career as a bicoastal actor crashing with her parents, the bold declaration she made on her first date with her future husband, and how her biggest challenge as an actor has been saying No. From her own creative projects poking fun at pregnancy and marriage, to her life as a fixture on the New York theatre scene and her many on-screen performances, to the mothering of her two children, Purva brings her heart, humor, and the ability to pivot fast to everything she does.

More on Purva:

https://www.purvabedi.com

@purvabedi

I'm Having a Baby video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXdKeBv_cfs&list=RDMXdKeBv_cfs&start_radio=1

https://www.targetmargin.org

https://www.facebook.com/shrinkagetheshow/mentions/?_rdr

As a single gay actor going from out of town job to out of town job, J. Paul Boehmer didn’t think having children was in the realm of possibility for him. Then he met his husband, bought a house and, after a fortuitous conversation, began looking for an egg donor and a surrogate. 

In this very special Fathers’ Day episode, Paul shares the fatigue of life on the road and the reality of 8-week friendships, how he grew his audiobook side hustle into a full-time gig, and how he and his husband found their way to parenting twin girls at the start of a global pandemic. Paul describes the prejudices they faced as a same-sex couple wanting to have children, how deeply they bonded with their surrogate, what his daughters think of his work, and why they outsourced potty training. 

This is an episode honoring all the amazing dads in the business- hats off to you and all you do.

More on Paul:

a few of his audiobook titles here:

https://www.audiobooksnow.com/search/paul%20boehmer/

For any additional questions about the episode please get in touch with us via DM @actlikeamotherpodcast

Actor, producer, coach, union organizer and mom to a 13-year old boy, Hilary Ward shares with Katie and Melanie her beautiful perspective on life and work. She speaks about acknowledging the “almosts” and the failures as an actor and not just the wins, how her career doesn’t define her worth, and how theatre can be relevant to the community it takes place in. Hilary explains why Primary Trust is the play of the moment and how she negotiated with her family to leave town not once but twice to perform in it.

Hilary has built a thriving career in LA and she speaks to the ups and downs of that including what it was like to get dumped by her agent, how the business is determined to teach her that she’s not in control and how running a theatre company is what actually keeps her sane.

As a military wife with a husband who spent time on active duty overseas, Hilary had plenty of experience with uncertainty. She shares how she cares for and centers herself, what’s important to her as a mother, and how she sorted out who she is rather than who the business expected her to be. 

More on Hilary:

https://www.hilarywardofficial.com

@imhilaryward

https://www.chalkrep.com

https://www.sagaftra.org

https://www.sagaftra.org/los-angeles/local-programs/los-angeles-conservatory

https://theatre.ucsd.edu/academics/graduate/acting-mfa.html

https://twhartford.org

https://www.concordtheatricals.com/p/96908/primary-trust

https://www.penguinrandomhouseretail.com/book/?isbn=9780143129257

Mary Bacon is an award-winning actor and a writer who has collaborated with countless esteemed playwrights, directors and theatres. From multiple world premieres to a canon of classical roles, Mary is a celebrated and beloved member of the New York and regional theatre communities. 

In this episode, Melanie and Katie speak with Mary about the last 2 decades: from the series of beautiful synchronicities that led to the adoption of her Ethiopian son Abadi, now 15, through a thriving career as an actor mama, to the sudden and tragic loss of her husband, Andrew Leynse of Primary Stages, in 2023. Mary’s story is one of the power of endurance and the choice to trust in life. She opens up about how she found her voice after unthinkable loss and how writing has helped her to reflect on and articulate her grief. 

Mary recounts the roles she played that ended up helping her through her darkest time, what she learns by watching sports documentaries with her son, and that by living and creating,  she is honoring her husband’s legacy.

More on Mary and her resources:

https://www.marybacon.net

@marybacon7

https://thewidowbacon.substack.com

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/26/style/tiny-modern-love-stories-the-wrong-parent-died.html?searchResultPosition=16

https://www.bcwtreehouse.org

https://experiencecamps.org

https://www.moliereinthepark.org

https://www.primarystages.org

Growing up as a latchkey kid with 2 working actor parents, there was little doubt that Amanda would follow in the family business. Now the mother of a 20-year-old daughter who has decided to tread the boards, Amanda shares with Katie and Melanie how she found her formula for the work/mom life, and what went down when she left her child and husband behind to hit the road with a show that called to her like no other.  Now as an empty nester, Amanda is looking forward to all kinds of juicy character roles. Amanda’s life has shown that the best laid plans often take a u-turn, and even though she doesn’t believe in vision boards, many of her dreams have already come true. 

More on Amanda:

@instanaught

https://www.amazon.com/Remember-WENN-Season-1/dp/B09QFHMBWD