Carolyn Topol Talk recently had the opportunity to chat with the talented and lovely Hira Ambrosino. It was great to catch up with Hira, missed by fans of Days of Our Lives in one of her best known roles as Tori Narita, mother of Paul Narita, played by Christopher Sean. CTT is joined by many fans who hope we will see Hira reprise this role!
Carolyn Topol Talk: All the fans of Days of Our Lives miss you.
Hira Ambrosino: That’s very nice of you to say.
CTT: But that was not your first time on Days of Our Lives, was it?
HA: [Laughs] No, it sure wasn’t. I played a pediatrician. I think her name was Dr. Hayden. It was for Nicole’s baby.
CTT: That was the major storyline back then.
HA: Yes it was. Basically, the pediatrician’s job was to go in and check the baby and give a clean bill of health. That’s when I met Arianne [Zucker] for the first time — way back when.
CTT: So did Days casting seek you out for the part of Tori — because of that role?
HA: No, I went in to audition.
CTT: Did they remember you had played another role on the show? (Pictured above with Christopher Sean)
HA: Yes, they did. I think they just wanted to make sure that they had the right match for Paul’s mother. They wanted somebody who is Japanese, who could speak Japanese, and who would have chemistry with Christopher Sean as mother and son. It was great. The moment I walked on set — actually even before I walked on set — I met Christopher as I was heading to the hair and makeup room. He sort of popped his head out and smiled at me and asked, “Are you Hira?” and I asked, “Are you Christopher?” We hugged, we talked, and we got along right away. That was the first time we ever met.
CTT: So you didn’t meet at the audition; you met after you had the role?
HA: Yes that’s correct. The producers watched the audition tapes and decided who would be a good match. They do a really good job. Basically, it’s a guessing game. I would have a nervous breakdown having that job. [Laughs]
CTT: Ironically, you have performed on the same show as Christopher before this — just not at the same time he was in it. You had a very impactful role on an episode of Hawaii Five-0 once.
HA: I did, yes. I worked on the show before Christopher. I only did one episode, but it was a really, really important episode for the producers because it touched upon Pearl Harbor and they wanted to make sure that everything that had to do with Pearl Harbor, and how the Japanese Americans were treated during World War II, was historically accurate. Everything from the wardrobe, to the language, to how the internment camps looked was accurate. They created everything based on research they did. It was phenomenal.
CTT: I remember how impactful that internment camp episode was. It was so well-done!
HA: Thank you so much. My role was very small, but I still have people coming up to me and asking, “Did you play the mother on that Pearl Harbor episode?” They’re very, very touched — especially Japanese-Americans. I’m so glad I did that role as it had such historical significance.
CTT: You have been doing some other projects since Days. Would you like to tell us about some of the things you’re working on?
HA: I’m always working on something or another because I’m a working actor. I’ve been working in Los Angeles since 2001. Between working on television episodic shows, and some independent features, and commercials, and voiceovers, I’m doing something every day. Today was kind of an insane day because today was one of those days where I was literally running around all over town. I had six auditions! It’s usually not that crazy. But let’s see, today I read for one network episodic, one cable show, I had two voiceover auditions, one feature film audition, and one commercial — and it was all over Los Angeles, which as you know is pretty big. [Laughs]
CTT: I know you also did Jane the Virgin not too long ago.
HA: Yes, I was on the season one finale.
CTT: That was quite a significant episode!
HA: You know, it’s so funny. Depending on the project that I’m on, little children could care less about the TV shows or films I’ve been on, but when they find out I did one of the voices on the Cars game, suddenly I’m a hero. I did all the female Japanese voices on the game. Part of the game takes place in Tokyo. I also worked on Angie Tribeca, which is Rashida Jones’s show — they just got picked up for a third season, but I was in their second season. Angie Tribeca is a hilarious comedy on TNT. Rashida Jones is the loveliest person. That show was created by Steve Carell and Nancy Carell.
I worked on a spin-off of Criminal Minds called Criminal Minds Beyond Borders. This is Gary Sinise’s new show. My character could be recurring because I played the chief of the criminal division of the Tokyo police department. It was very interesting that they chose a woman to be the chief of police of the criminal division. Some of my dialogue was in Japanese and they flew in a big star from Japan to costar. That was a lot of fun. Gary Sinise is also one of these ridiculously nice people. When Gary Sinise is not working he flies all over the country to help veterans. He’s kind of like Christopher Sean actually — generous, and kind, and funny, and sweet.
CTT: How did you get involved with the special PSA you shared on social media? [https://vimeo.com/184411638]
HA: It was created by the folks in that video with me. Anna Auther reached out to me and asked if I wanted to be a part of it, and I said sure. And Nan McNamara is an amazing voiceover actor.
CTT: That was a very strong message about empowerment and diversity.
HA: During the election a lot of things felt so negative. We wanted to do something positive. It had nothing to do with one political affiliation or other you might have. It was about just remembering what we’re doing here, and that we have to work together — all of us — for the good of our country, for the world, and for the universe.
CTT: I also understand you once participated in performance dancing.
HA: I did for a time. I was not a professional dancer but I did compete in amateur competitions. I love to dance and I still do. I used to do ballroom and Latin. My favorite dance in Latin, for example, was the cha-cha; and in ballroom it was the waltz. I also played piano from a young age. Music was always a part of my life. I play classical music, but I enjoy listening to R&B and Motown.
CTT: Before that, I learned you studied politics and international relations.
HA: I did.
CTT: When did you change course to become an actor?
HA: Well, the short version of a very long story, [laughs] is that I always wanted to be an actress from the time I was a little girl. Somehow I never had the opportunity to really study it because my family was always focused on the idea of going to a good school, and I had one of those typically serious Asian families. It was like… we will support you as long as you’re going to become a doctor. [Laughs] So I had to find my own way of supporting myself. I suppose going into academics was my way of rebelling — oh boy what a rebel. [Laughs] One day, as an adult, I said, “Hey, what happened to my dream of being an actor? When am I going to get to that?” So I thought, ‘What about tomorrow?’ I literally picked up the phone the next day and started calling to see what I could do about that. I started working right away.
CTT: And you were on the east coast at that time, correct?
HA: Yes, I was in Boston. This was before Matt Damon and Ben Afleck and Mark Wahlberg created their production companies in Boston. I did commercials and I ended up doing a lot of corporate videos. There wasn’t all that much there yet. There’s a lot there now. I knew I’d like to do more, so I started commuting to New York City. I went to New York, and I studied, and I actually became a full-time model because I sort of fell into that. But that’s not really what I wanted to do. The first time I ever got a Law and Order audition, I couldn’t go cause I was booked on a modeling gig. I thought, ‘Okay, my priorities are messed up. Why did I come to New York? It was so I can work on a TV show.’ When I couldn’t go to the audition because I was always busy working as a model, I knew this was wrong — this was not what I wanted to do. I stopped working full time as a model so I could actually take these opportunities when they presented themselves.
My first TV job was on the Conan O’Brien Show. I was just a featured extra, but I got to work on a funny little sketch. I also worked on One Life to Live in a very small role. After that I thought there were so many more jobs in Los Angeles that I needed to check it out. So off I went. I also worked on Jimmy Kimmel for a while — I loved working on that show. It was so fast and furious and always fun.
CTT: Since you’ve been in LA, it seems you have continually gotten roles on an ongoing basis. Is this true?
HA: Yes, I would say so. And what doesn’t show up online, if you look up an actors name, are the commercials we work on. Every actor who is not a star, works on commercials. Commercials are fantastic because they can really make a lot of wonderful money. I worked on a Jared jewelry commercial that ran for a couple of years and that was fantastic.
CTT: Going forward is there anything we can expect to see you in coming up in the near future?
HA: Unfortunately, I’m working in a field where we’re not allowed to say anything until it’s put out there… but, yes, I’m working on some things now. For example, at the last fan event I went to, I couldn’t tell the fans what I was working on because I had done a couple of pilots that ended up not getting picked up so nobody can see them. We shall see if the projects that I’ve already worked on will be out there. At this point that’s all I can say. What a strange world right?
CTT: Is there anything you might want to share with your fans — possibly a return to Days at some point? (Pictured left with Tony Moore, Matthew Evan Paine, and Eric Martsolf)
HA: I would love to get back on Days of Our Lives, but that’s entirely in the hand of the producers. If all of you would like to write to the producers I would greatly appreciate it! I just couldn’t believe how nice everybody was on that set. I’ve worked on so many sets. The fact is, most sets are wonderful — filled with amazing people from top to bottom, in front of the camera, behind the camera. Everybody is so talented and great to work with. I’m convinced that the occasional difficult people one runs into, whether it be on set or even at the supermarket, anywhere, are there to remind all of us to be appreciative of the nice people.
*****
It is abundantly clear that Hira Ambrosino is one of the “nice people”. She was generous, warm, and candid with all her answers. We look forward to seeing her on screen many more times in the future!
Please make sure, if you are a Days of Our Lives fan who like to see Tori Narita return to Salem, that you contact Greg Meng and Ron Carlivati.
(Photo Credits: Robin Emtage, Hira Ambrosino, Carolyn Topol Talk)