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Olivia Jackson (96)
Project: TV Series (Rent Control)
Known as: No nicknames
Real name: Olivia Jackson
Group affiliation: White Elm Retirement Home
Physical description: Olivia is in her 70ies and has (only somewhat wrinkled) light brown skin. She is an attractive, somewhat-overweight woman.
Personality: Olivia wears her heart on her sleeve. This means she is very warm and loving. This also means she can sometimes be a bit dramatic and over-expressive. The former overshadows the latter, so she is well-loved at White Elm. She does love performing but she equally loves the sense of community the theater provides. So, while she likes the spotlight, she doesn’t demand it. She has always lived her life as she chooses and can be a little confused (and sometimes frustrated) by those who don’t.
History: Olivia has lived in Billings all her life. She lost her father at an early age (oil rig accident) and was raised by her mother (a librarian). She talks to her father daily and instead of using his death as a reason to be bitter she has always used it as a reminder to live each day to its fullest. When she was young, she started working at a clothing store and the owners loved her like one of the family. She was such an essential employee and continued to grow (from stocker, to sales, to shift manager, and upward) that eventually she purchased the store at a very reasonable price. She married the man who had a bakery next door and had two kids. Olivia and her husband were downtown Billings staples and well known in the community.
Throughout her life, she loved to sing and perform in her spare time. She sang in church, tried out for various local productions, and even had a cover band for a while. She is a very good singer and any number of people have wondered why she didn’t pursue that as a career. For Olivia, it wasn’t a lack of courage, it was simply that singing was something special and joyous. She simply didn’t want to put the pressure of it being her livelihood on it.
She has always loved life in Billings. She enjoys the small city feel and having the sense she knows so many people. Her kids grew up and moved away and she remains close to them. Both have offered to have her move in with them but while she visits often, she wanted to stay in Billings and give them space to live their own life. She lost her husband a decade ago and has talked to him every day since as well.
It was very natural that Olivia joined Finley’s little theater troupe. In fact, she has always been his ringer – elevating any performance she is in (and making their theater more popular than one might expect. When the rent production starts, Finley immediately goes to her as Mimi (somewhat the female lead in an ensemble cast) – to no one’s surprise.
Things will get more complicated when a much younger man will ultimately be the one finally cast as Roger. It will raise how people feel about age, May/December pairings (especially when the woman is older), and more. It’s possible that she’ll move over to the role of Maureen and find the edgier part liberating to play.
Role in the narrative: She is something of an ensemble protagonist. I’m flirting with her having a romantic interest in Finley.
Abilities: She can sing like a bird and is a solid actor. She also knows clothing and may end up the costume department.
Inspirations: I’ll have to review this one and see if I can give her some more stand-out/unique aspects. ATM, she somewhat reminds me of Mercades from Glee.
100 Characters Blog 