Graynor has previously appeared on Broadway in The Little Dog Laughed and Brooklyn Boy.
Other stage credits include Dog Sees God; Spanish Girl; Trust (Second Stage); Fall; Into the Woods (Trinity Repertory Company); Ah, Wilderness! (Huntington Theatre Company); and King Lear (The Company of Women).
Graynor's screen work includes "An American Crime," "For Your Consideration," "Mystic River," "Game Six," "Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist," "Youth in Revolt," "Conviction," "Holy Rollers," "Whip It," "Veronica Mars" and "The Sopranos."
| Full given name: | Ariel Geltman Graynor |
| Where you were born/where you were raised: | Born in Boston, MA. Raised in Wellesley, MA. |
| Zodiac Sign: | Taurus |
| What your parents did/do for a living: | My mom Joani Geltman is a parenting expert. Read her blog, she's a genius! And I'm not just saying that because I'm her daughter. It's a fact. Everyone loves her! Joanigeltman.blogspot.com And my dad Greg Graynor is a contractor. He does beautiful home renovations in Boston. He doesn't have a blog but you should find him, too. I owe them some PR after all their schlepping me to NY for auditions as a kid. |
| Special skills: | I just learned how to say "Hey ladies, what're we doing for lunch?" in Korean. So "Speaks Korean." Obviously. |
| Something you're REALLY bad at: | Personal discipline |
| First Broadway show you ever saw: | Show Boat? Maybe. I feel terrible I can't remember. |
| If you could go back in time and catch any Broadway show, what would it be? | I would have loved to have seen Barbra live in Funny Girl. |
| Recent show other than your own you have been recommending to friends: | I talked about Motherf**ker with the Hat a lot. |
| Favorite showtune(s) of all time: | Anything from Gypsy, Annie or Into the Woods. |
| Some favorite musicals: | Anything with Sutton Foster in it. |
| Broadway or screen stars of the past you would most have loved to perform with: | Shirley Temple |
| One performance - attended - that you will never forget: | Logan Marshall-Green in Adam Rapp's The Hallway Trilogy. |
| Music that makes you cry, any genre: | Sad men on guitars talking about love. |
| MAC or PC? | MAC. Although I don't have Internet in this apartment right now. So my iPhone is getting A LOT of play. |
| Most played song on your iPod: | TV on the Radio's "Will Do - Dance Remix" |
| Most-visited websites: | That's private. |
| Last book you read: | Currently in the middle of "Shantaram" by Gregory David Roberts |
| Must-see TV shows: | This place I'm living in now doesn't have Internet, but my home before this didn't have a TV. So I'm a little out of the loop. |
| Last good movie you saw: | "Contagion" |
| Some films you consider classics: | "Annie Hall "Manhattan" "Baby Boom" "Big Business" |
| Pop culture guilty pleasure: | I'm extremely highbrow. Clearly. So this doesn't apply. |
| Favorite cities: | New York, Boston, Paris |
| Favorite sport/team/player: | Gross |
| First CD/Tape/LP you owned: | First CD was Sheryl Crow. |
| First stage kiss: | Mauro Hantman in a play called Fall at Trinity Rep when I was 16. |
| Favorite or most memorable onstage role as a child/teenager: | My first play with the Wellesley Players was The Miracle Worker when I was 7. I played a blind girl. I don't think I've ever committed to anything so much. |
| Moment you knew you wanted to perform for a living: | There was never another option. |
| How you got your Equity card: | Trinity Rep, back when Oskar Eustis was there. So thank you, Oskar. |
| Favorite liquid refreshment: | A sugar-free Red Bull before a performance. Grey Goose soda with extra lime for after. |
| Pre-show rituals or warm-ups: | See above Red Bull. |
| Worst flubbed line/missed cue/onstage mishap: | In Dog Sees God we had almost too much fun doing the show. One night Kelli Garner broke so intensely on stage that me and Keith Nobbs couldn't keep it together. All three of us essentially gave up for a second and full out stopped to laugh. The audience went nuts and cheered and applauded. It was quite a moment. Maybe the most unprofessional in my life, but very very fun. |
| Worst costume ever: | I did a production of Annie in Korea when I was 12. I was at the height of my awkward stage and the only overweight orphan you've ever seen. Both my orphanage mumu and finale classic Annie dress were dreadfully unflattering. |
| Most vocally challenging role you have played: | Little Red in Into the Woods. |
| Most physically challenging role you have played: | Eva Destruction in the movie "Whip It." Roller derby is no joke. |
| Worst job you ever had: | That afternoon of doing construction with my dad. But I did get a pink hard hat. Still have it too. So I guess that doesn't count. |
| Leading lady role you've been dying to play: | All of Tennessee Williams' ladies. |
| Leading man role you wish you could play: | Hamlet |
| Something about you that surprises people: | I'm a very good cook. |
| Something you are incredibly proud of: | My friendships. |
| Something you're embarrassed to admit: | I care what people think of me. It's terminally uncool, but true. |
| Career you would want if not a performer: | Chef |
| Three things you can't live without: | Humor, love and food. |
| "I'll never understand why…" | ... people always get their headshots taken under bridges. |
| Words of wisdom for aspiring performers? | Have confidence! What makes you different and unique will be what brings success. |
