Blair Wingo makes her network television debut this fall, starring as Vanessa Houston, a videographer and inspirational poet on tNBC’s new extreme Saturday morning series “Skate” (Saturdays, 11:30 a.m.-12 p.m. ET/9:30-10 a.m. PT).
With Vanessa’s interests in poetry, Wingo finds her job playing Vanessa that much more enjoyable. “We both are poets,” said a smiling Wingo. “Vanessa writes and performs her own poetry—which is something I love to do. I think it’s great to have things in common with the character you’re portraying.”
Born in Grand Rapids, Michigan, the acting bug first bit when Wingo moved to Los Angeles with her mother at the age of 3. “I knew I wanted to act when I was only 3,” says Wingo. “I used to always tell my mom, ‘I want to act, I want to act.’”
Wingo began her career in theater at the age of 9, appearing in such productions as “The Dancing Machine,” “Carmen,” “The Wiz” and “Blowin’ in the Wind.” Her other theater credits include “Pearlie Victorious,” “Thunder on Sycamore Street,” and “A Tale of Two Cities.”
By the age 16, after doing a number of television commercials and voice-overs, Wingo expanded to television and film roles. Her guest-starring credits include the comedy hit series, “Malcolm in the Middle,” and “The Parkers,” as well as the movies “The Sausage Factory” and “The Tardy Room.” She has also appeared in the film “To Kill a Soul.”
“When I choose roles, I keep the audience in mind,” Wingo said. “Realizing the influence television has, especially on with young people, it’s very important to me as a role model to have standards. It’s just not fair for the young who are watching.”
Wingo currently lives in Los Angeles. She is majoring in theater Arts at Santa Monica City College and is involved with the NAACP. Her birthday is November 27.
