Dawson Leery on "Dawson's Creek"
Fate certainly played a hand in James Van Der Beek's
entrance into the acting world, but it was his dedication and
talent that earned leading roles in
"Dawson's Creek" and two provocative
new films - "I Love You...I Love You Not"
and "Harvest."
Suffering a mild concussion when he
was 13 years old, the athletic Van Der
Beek wasn't permitted to play on the
football team that year. So, for the first
time, he decided to try out for the
school play and landed the lead role of
Danny Zuko in the school's production of "Grease." Bitten by
the acting bug, he continued to do local children's theater in
his hometown of Cheshire, Conn.
He was still focused on acting at age 16, so his mother
agreed one summer to travel the three hours each way to New
York City in order for him to pursue acting professionally.
While he landed an agent and a manager on their very first
visit, he didn't find much success auditioning for commercials.
The next year, he was cast in the Off-Broadway play, "Finding
the Sun," which was written and directed by Edward Albee.
He describes this as the defining experience for him as an
actor, and commuted six hours every day during the limited
three-month run for rehearsals and performances in the
middle of high school. After that experience, he starred in
"Shenandoah" at the Goodspeed Opera House.
His first on-screen performance came with a starring role in
the 1995 feature film "Angus," and he is featured in the
upcoming release "I Love You...I Love You Not" with Claire
Danes. Last summer, he completed the independent feature
film "Harvest."
A dean's list student, Van Der Beek received an academic
scholarship from Drew University in Madison, N.J., where he
majors in English with a minor in sociology. In what little free
time he has, he enjoys writing and playing all kinds of sports.
Dawson's Creek Bios!!!
This page hosted by 
Get your own Free Home Page
Dawson Leery on "Dawson's Creek"
Fate certainly played a hand in James Van Der Beek's
entrance into the acting world, but it was his dedication and
talent that earned leading roles in
"Dawson's Creek" and two provocative
new films - "I Love You...I Love You Not"
and "Harvest."
Suffering a mild concussion when he
was 13 years old, the athletic Van Der
Beek wasn't permitted to play on the
football team that year. So, for the first
time, he decided to try out for the
school play and landed the lead role of
Danny Zuko in the school's production of "Grease." Bitten by
the acting bug, he continued to do local children's theater in
his hometown of Cheshire, Conn.
He was still focused on acting at age 16, so his mother
agreed one summer to travel the three hours each way to New
York City in order for him to pursue acting professionally.
While he landed an agent and a manager on their very first
visit, he didn't find much success auditioning for commercials.
The next year, he was cast in the Off-Broadway play, "Finding
the Sun," which was written and directed by Edward Albee.
He describes this as the defining experience for him as an
actor, and commuted six hours every day during the limited
three-month run for rehearsals and performances in the
middle of high school. After that experience, he starred in
"Shenandoah" at the Goodspeed Opera House.
His first on-screen performance came with a starring role in
the 1995 feature film "Angus," and he is featured in the
upcoming release "I Love You...I Love You Not" with Claire
Danes. Last summer, he completed the independent feature
film "Harvest."
A dean's list student, Van Der Beek received an academic
scholarship from Drew University in Madison, N.J., where he
majors in English with a minor in sociology. In what little free
time he has, he enjoys writing and playing all kinds of sports.
Dawson's Creek Bios!!!
Dawson's Creek Bios!!!
Get your own Free Home Page