Ashley Wren Collins

"Collins is adept at facial expressions that reinforce what's going on in the text. (Collins & Mahoney) make these characters their own—no small achievement if you're familiar with the original version."

"Blonde and strikingly tall...Collins succeeds beautifully. Collins visibly shows the audience Billie's thought processes as she drinks in more and more information and computes what it all means and what her life has become...Originally portrayed by Judy Holliday, for which the actress won an Oscar, (it's) a tough act to follow and sure to draw comparisons; but Ashley Wren Collins makes the role her own."

Ashley Wren Collins is an energetic, evocative, and highly versatile actress who can tackle both comedy and drama with ease; and in addition is a skilled dancer, singer, and choreographer.

Ashley's impressive range is evident in her stage roles, which have included the hilarious portrayal of Billie Dawn in a revival of Born Yesterday, to a singing and dancing Princess Diana in Die, Die, Diana: A Musical, to a heartbreaking portrayal of a woman in a bar yearning to make a simple human connection in the world premiere of the NYC play Some Unfortunate Hour. In a review of the latter, I wrote:

What gives this tale its heart is the thoughtful, feeling performance of Ashley Wren Collins...whose expressive face, intonation, and body language make us understand Charity's deep loneliness and longing to feel alive with more eloquence than any scripted words.

Ashley's other NYC theatre credits include Is There a Comic in the House? (Tribeca Performing Arts Center), The Heart is a Fist (as the lead, at the American Theatre of Actors), and Parallel Lives: Kathy and Mo Show (which Ashley produced, directed, and performed in at the Duplex Cabaret).

In addition, Ashley has appeared on such TV shows as Sex and the City (HBO), 10! (recurring guest host and model, NBC), and Balance Your Body, Balance Your Life (panelist, PBS).

Ashley has also acted in the feature films Kate and Leopold (2001, Miramax), Every Move You Make (2002 indie thriller), and Silver Night (2005 indie vampire film); and was the lead in such indie shorts as Black Lace and The Panther Project.

Further, Ashley has consistently wowed NYScreenwriters.org with her brilliant acting for the workshop's screenplay cold readings. Quickly adapting to any genre, Ashley's performances have run the gamut from the hair-raising, as a dead woman for a horror film; to smouldering, as a young rock goddess for a pop music feature; to laugh-out-loud funny, as an anti-social force of nature for a hip comedy. No matter what parts she's handed, Ashley creates exceptionally memorable characters.

For example, Ashley starred in the NYC play My Life As You, acting opposite Emmy award nominee Jeff Branson—and she took the audience on an emotional journey that transcended the script, alternately sexy, funny, and touching. Ashley's breathtaking performance led to her getting work on As the World Turns, and opposite Susan Lucci on All My Children.

Coming up for Ashley is a staged reading of George Bernard Shaw's Great Catherine with Tyne Daly and John Cullum (with Ashley as Varinka) at NYC's The Players Club on Monday June 23rd, 2008 at 7:00 pm. The reading is produced and directed by David Staller. To learn more and/or to purchase tickets, please visit projectshaw.com.

In addition, Ashley is starring in a comedy video series for the Web, Suzy & Duddy, which is slated to go live later this summer.

Ashley Wren Collins is a brilliantly talented and skilled professional. If you're seeking a superb leading actress for stage or screen, please give this one a close look. Ashley's representation is Jerry Rudes of Mistral Artist Management at email address jhr2001@aol.com.

Ashley Wren Collins' Resume

AEA/AFTRA/SAG-Eligible

Email: ashley@ashleywrencollins.com	Web: ashleywrencollins.com
Rep: J. Rudes, Mistral Artist Management; jhr2001@aol.com	Stats: Height: 5'9, Hair: Blonde, Eyes: Blue; Weight: 125

Film

Kate and Leopold	Chloe	Miramax
The Deed to Hell	Chrissy	Huntington Action Films
Silver Night	Kim	Huntington Action Films
Every Move You Make	Roxanna	Huntington Action Films
Roommate with Benefits	Sabrina (lead)	Reality Productions, Inc.
Black Lace	Agnes (lead)	Independent
The Panther Project	Krista Patton (lead)	Independent
9:27	Stranger	Independent
Strutting Into Chaos	Girl on boat	Independent
Next Door	Ginger	Independent
Meh Booba	Running Woman	Apple Productions
Dark Roads	Catherine	Independent
Blindfold	Bartender	Independent
So Complicated	Tonya	Independent
Multiple feature screenplays (readings)	Lead	NYScreenwriters.org/Manhattan Theatre Club CC

Television

All My Children (three scenes with Susan Lucci)	Party planner	ABC
10!	Guest Host & Model (recurring)	NBC
Sex and the City	Colleen	HBO
As the World Turns	Autograph hound	CBS
As the World Turns	Pool girl	CBS
Balance Your Body, Balance Your Life	Featured panelist	PBS
Sugababes (music video)	Featured	VH1 and MTV
HYP	Ranking Girl (lead)	NY Public Access TV

NYC Theatre

My Life As You (with Jeff Branson)	Stella (lead)	Producers Club II
Some Unfortunate Hour (world premiere)	Charity (lead)	2005 New York International Fringe Festival, Tim Errickson dir.
Die, Die, Diana: A Musical	Princess Diana (lead)	2004 New York International Fringe Festival, Kelly McAllister dir.
Living with Betty	Beverly, Alice, and Joan	2003 New York International Fringe Festival, Mercedes Murphy dir.
Is There a Comic in the House?	Gloria	Tribeca Performing Arts Center
The Sons of Juan Perez	Roberta	Puerto Rican Traveling Theatre
Falling Awake	Alisha Shire (lead)	BDA, Domenica Cameron-Scorsese dir.
Parallel Lives: Kathy and Mo Show (acted, co-directed, and co-produced)	Co-star of two-woman show	Duplex Cabaret Theatre, Ashley Wren Collins co-dir.
Skin	Ensemble	Faux-Real Theatre Company
The Heart is a Fist	Erin	American Theatre of Actors
Foxy Ladies Love Boogie '70s Explosion	Lady Joie; was also show's choreographer	Duplex Cabaret Theatre, Tracy Stark musical dir., Ashley Wren Collins choreographer

Regional Theatre

Born Yesterday	Billie Dawn (lead)	Cape Rep Theatre (Brewster, MA), Richard Sullivan dir.
La Dispute	Ensemble and u/s for lead Egle	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA)/SITI Company, Anne Bogart dir.

Highway Ulysses (world premiere)	Bride (lead u/s)	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Robert Woodruff dir.
The Island of Anyplace	Great Grandfooler	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Thomas Derrah dir.
The Winter's Tale	Hermione	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Jennie Ward dir.
The Merchant of Venice	Portia	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Scott Zigler dir.
The Storm	Varvara	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Jennie Ward dir.
Rhinoceros	Mrs. Bouef	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Roman Kozak dir.
Phaedra 4.48	Phaedra (lead)	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Robert Woodruff dir.
Not I	Mouth	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Mercedes Murphy dir.
The Face-Lift	Sharon	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Yuri Yeremin dir.
The Festivities	Tatyana	American Repertory Theatre (Cambridge, MA), Yuri Yeremin dir.
As You Like It	Rosalind	Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), Henry Gleitman dir.
Hotel Universe	Lily Malone	Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), Jim Schlatter dir.
Three Sisters	Olga	Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), Scott Schwartz dir.
The Dutchman	Lula	Annenberg Center (Philadelphia, PA), Henry Gleitman dir.

TV Commercials

Coca-Cola Light	Hero Girl (principal)	Europe
Coca-Cola Lemon	Hero Girl (principal)	Europe
Windowizards	Genie (principal)	Northeast/Tri-State Market
Maggie's	Hostess (principal)	Philadelphia Metro and Suburban Market
Game Time	Bachelorette (principal)	Nickelodeon
USA Men's Soccer	Principal	Cable TV
Velocity Express	Principal	Internet

Voiceover

Optimum Online	Principal voiceover	National television spot
Ozoneny.org	Principal voiceover	The James Group
Clearlight Mortgage	Principal voice-over (2 spots)	The James Group
Maxim Radio	Featured guest	Sirius Satellite Radio
Various textbooks	Principal reader	Reading for the Blind & Dyslexic
Various	Principal reader	InTouch

Training

American Repertory Theatre/Moscow Art Theatre School Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard University	Master of Fine Arts (MFA)
Theatre Arts and English, University of Pennsylvania	Bachelor of Arts (BA)
Walnut Street Theatre School	Studied with Bill Raudebush in Philadelphia
Scene and Monologue Study for Stage, Film	Studied with Susan Grace Cohen, Liz Evert, Matt Marshall, Kurt Everhart, and Rosemary Harris in NYC
Commercial Technique	Studied with Angela Montalbano in NYC

Special Skills

Conversational Spanish and Russian, dialects/accents (British, Cockney, Southern, Irish, Scottish, German, French, Russian), Suzuki/Viewpoints training, dancing (ballet, tap, jazz, ballroom), singing, musical theatre choreography, yoga, long distance running, biking, ice skating, hiking, whitewater rafting, kickboxing, teaching, volunteer work, licensed driver, valid passport, Miss America impression.

Coke Light TV Commercial, On Camera	Clearlight Radio Commercial VO #1
OzoneNY.org TV Commercial VO	Clearlight Radio Commercial VO #2