Damon Gupton (Group 28) doesn't buy the idea that a jack-of-all-trades is a master of none. He's mastering careers as an actor and a conductor. In the years since graduating from Juilliard's Drama Division in 1999, he's had roles in television, film, and at the Public Theater and has made his conducting debut with the Cleveland Orchestra. This year he is taking part in an American Symphony Orchestra League conducting fellowship with the Houston Symphony.Success is something Damon Gupton doesn't take for granted. He works hard at his art, doesn't sleep very much, contemplates his responsibilities to society, and brushes aside suggestions that he should choose one career to focus on. He believes that everything that is supposed to happen to him has happened, and he's just interested in enjoying the journey.
Damon Gupton (Photo by Steven Kunken)
He actually came to music first—in his youth, when he was especially taken by the compositions of John Williams, beginning with a recording of the Superman soundtrack. He had expected to hear the actors from the film, but instead, "all I got was the trumpet and timpani at the beginning and horns and then strings. I was like, 'What is this stuff?'" Trombone lessons soon followed. He attended the University of Michigan, getting a degree in music education and contemplating a career teaching high school orchestra.It was in Ann Arbor that Gupton's love of acting was born. He began performing in plays his sophomore year at the university, and through the works of August Wilson and Lorraine Hansberry, he says, "I found a part of my life … and part of my life as an African-American." This passion led him to Juilliard's Drama Division.Gupton says, "The Drama Division is single-handedly responsible for me being here right now. Every professional success that I've had has been connected to the Drama Division and for that, I am undoubtedly grateful." He recalls the frustrations of the program, being pushed to his limits by instructors and directors while spending endless days in the windowless world of rehearsal spaces and classrooms. But he credits Juilliard's drama training with providing the skills that he carries with him today, both in auditions and at the podium. He specifically cites the Alexander Technique, speech training, and theater history he learned here.Both careers stretch and challenge him as a performer, and he welcomes the variety that the combination allows him. He says, "I think they exercise different aspects of me as an artist. Acting allows me to have more of an expressive voice, in a way, in terms of bringing other people's words—or my own—to life. Music is more personally internal, so it presents a whole different outlet." He hopes he can continue working in both fields, and use each to serve the other.His job in Houston includes participating in the symphony's educational outreach program, going to schools and into the community to increase an understanding of and enthusiasm for music. He is excited about this opportunity to get involved. "I talk a good game," he says. "But now it's time to put my money where my mouth is, and this position is a good beginning for that." Gupton believes that the performing arts need to re-evaluate how they appeal to dwindling audiences, and he hopes to find some possible solutions with the youth of Houston. "It's amazing what the kids will take in if they know that you're of their world. That means a lot of adjustment in terms of what you listen to, what you consider to be sacred music, and how you open it all up to include them."Gupton is passionate about his role as an artist and believes that he is responsible for helping to institute change, whether it is in classical music or the theater. "There are other voices to be heard," he says, "other avenues to explore." He wants the music and theater that he creates to engage and excite audiences, the way John Williams's pieces affected him. Perhaps one of Gupton's performances will be the all-important catalyst—the Superman album—that launches a youngster into a career in the arts.
