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I got picked on a lot, even by teachers too. I liked to listen to musicals and bake, and my homeroom teacher found out and mocked me in front of the whole class for baking.

I spent most of my high school years on movie sets and I'd have like one teacher, which was really bad.

About 13-14 years ago, I went back to my alma mater, Fairfax High School, and ran into the music teacher. She invited me to come speak to the kids about the viability of a music career. When I went into the room where I used to play every day in a big orchestra, they had nothing!

I had a teacher senior year in high school. He was a theater teacher, and he basically was a little bit like 'High School Musical.' He kind of encouraged the jocks to get involved with the plays. I did it as kind of a senior year lark.

The school plays needed kids that were big and bold and weren't afraid to be on stage, and I fit that bill, so I was expected to do it. And then I went to college, and the exact same thing happened.

I loved doing 'Teachers.' I don't know if it's set me on a road, but it certainly got me out of financial penury for two years. But as much as I love it - and it's a huge sacrifice - as much as I love it, I'm in acting because I'm searching to do lots of different things.

I didn't want to teach. I wanted to act. It was quite a long and difficult road to get there but very thrilling when I did.

It wasn't until I got into seventh grade, I think, that I realized that doing plays might be a fun thing, and so I auditioned for the school play - and got in, as it turned out.

When I was eight years old, I got a dummy for Christmas and started teaching myself. I got books and records and sat in front of the bathroom mirror, practising. I did my first show in the third grade and just kept going; there was no reason to quit.

I had a brilliant drama teacher while I was at Roland Park: Ann Mainolfi. But the school was mostly rich in academics. It wasn't like I was prepping myself for a life in acting. There, you prepped yourself to have a stable future. The school's piece de resistance is college prep - it didn't teach you how to audition for a TV show.