Today we’d like to introduce you to Carrie Brewer.
Hi Carrie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My mother always told me that I was singing before I was talking, so performing has just always been a part of my life. All the way from singing in school chorus concerts and performing in high school musicals, to my work now as an audiobook narrator. I went to college for theater at UCONN, worked in regional theaters and toured for a few years before discovering stage fighting while in a production of The Three Musketeers. I fell in love with it and, for some reason seemed to have a knack for it, so I continued training – taking classes and attending workshops as often as I could. Eventually, choreographing and teaching stage combat became the main focus of my career for over 15 years. This was all while living in NYC and LA.
I had 2 daughters and eventually moved to Nashville 13 years ago this summer. Since I’ve lived here, I’ve had the great pleasure of continuing to work in all the aspects of the business I’ve worked in so far. I work with wonderful theaters like Nashville Rep, Nashville Shakespeare Festival, and Studio Tenn as both an actor and as a fight choreographer, I do some on-camera acting and voiceover work, and I added audiobook narration to my career about 4 years ago. That has become my main focus now, and I adore it. I’ve narrated books in a wide variety of genres and work with both indie authors and traditional publishers.
I often consider myself a Jack of all trades, but when you’re a performer, you have to diversify to survive! Plus I love the variety in my life. I feel very lucky to be able to keep telling stories in so many ways.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I woul say the biggest obstacle is the ever-present hustle. As a freelance artist, you can never really relax because you dont know where the next job is going to come from – and the competition is fierce! There are always auditions to do, reach-out emails to write, self-marketing videos to make, and (let’s be real) side-hustle jobs to keep in your back pocket for when there are blank weeks in the calendar. The highs and lows of this business aren’t for the feint of heart, that’s for sure. Despite all of that, I really love it. It’s a big part of who I am.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
As an audiobook narrator, I record books from my home studio and work with indie authors as well as traditional publishers and production houses. I’ve narrated books in a wide variety of genres, my favorite being Historical Fiction, Thrillers, and Romantasy (yes, I have a romance pseudonym.) One of my favorite aspects about being a narrator is developing a relationship with the author and really working as a team to bring the story to life. I dont always get to communicate directly with them if I’m working through a publisher, but when I do, it makes telling their story even more special.
As an actor and singer, I’ve been on stage playing roles that range from Disney’s Cinderella to Shakespeare’s Cleopatra. And here in Nashville, I have been so fortunate to work with the professional theaters in town doing amazing shows like Elf the Musical! and Sunday in the Park with George with Nashville Rep, and Deathtrap with Studio Tenn, to name a few. I also occasionally work in film and in commercials, but the bulk of my career is either on stage or in the booth behind a mic – except when I’m choreographing fights or teaching a stage combat workshop! Even though that isn’t necessarily the focus of my work like it used to be, getting to use those skills I spent so many years honing, and to create choreography, whether it’s with swords or fists, is such a joy. It’s all storytelling!
I think the thing that sets me apart is the fact that as I get older, all of my life experiences (marriages, kids, cross-country moves, etc) collide with all my experience in different aspects of the entertainment industry, and I just feel stronger, better. More confident in who I am and what I do. I’ve learned to trust my instincts and channel all of that into my work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.carriebrewervo.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carriebrewer_vo
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@carrie_brewer
