Madeline Taylor knew she wanted to become an actress from an early age, and she transferred drive toward action in a swift series of steps at the age of 8. As a 10 year old, she made her feature film debut in The Girl Next Door (Blanche Baker; Mark Margolis; Blythe Auffarth) as the sister of a teenager severely abused by their caretaker aunt and a neighborhood gang of boys. Madeline played a character who has polio; has to wear a leg-brace; and is subject to witnessing the gravity of the trauma which takes place. The film, which was based on a true story, was a 50’s period piece, and demonstrated Madeline’s ability and interest to take on darker, more adult roles which warranted serious discipline and commitment. Since then, she has acted in several significant works of film and television, including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit; Rectify (SundanceTV); Banshee (Cinemax); Army Wives (Lifetime); and The Inspectors (CBS). In addition, she worked on the acclaimed HBO mini-series John Adams (Paul Giamatti; Laura Linney; David Morse) which won 13 Emmy Awards during its run; she played “Young Nabby Adams,” daughter of John and Abigail Adams and was directed by Academy Award winner Tom Hooper. Her collaborative acting work with veteran actor Estes Tarver culminated with Changeover, a film ahead of its time which examined the affect of trauma on mental health in a high school student who attempts to deal with significant loss and grief. And she explored comedy and improvisation in her leading role in Raliegh, I Kinda Like You (Reid Hutch; Bill Frost; Tor Ramsey), which brought her to her home state of North Carolina. We discussed the value of independence during adolescence; trauma in characters; stage combat; the ensemble element of performing; Little Miss Sunshine; and growing as an actor, performer and personally.
Opening Credits: HoliznaCC0 - Western ShowDown I CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication; Closing Credits: Miseryslims - Cub's World I Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)