Rising Stars: Meet Michael Gurshtein

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Gurshtein.

Hi Michael, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I grew up in Moscow in the dying days of the Soviet Union. I had the good fortune of being born to two intellectual parents – a lawyer and an astronomer. From a very early age, I started reading vociferously and have always had a love of the written word. That has fed into the writing side of my endeavors.

And growing up in Moscow meant lots of world-class theatre, which my mom and grandma took me and my sister to every chance they got. So I also fell in love with live stage performance. Sadly, self-confidence issues held me back from both passions for a long time. I did a little bit of acting in high school but mostly worked backstage on sets and tech. Then I went to college and ended up studying physics, utterly forgetting my interest in creative pursuits.

Fast forward a decade, and a new community theatre opened up near where I was living in 2011. That opportunity rekindled my love for the creative arts and got me back on stage, which I haven’t left since. Meanwhile, I have continued to write on and off. For a long time, I was helping my dad work on his final book before he passed. In more recent years, I have leaned heavily into poetry, publishing my first chapbook in 2023.

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?
Smooth? Absolutely not. But worth it? Sure. Early on, the biggest challenge was moving from Russia to the United States. I was 10 at the time, so the transition for me was probably the easiest for anyone in my family, but it still wasn’t easy. Not only did I have to get better at a new language quickly (I had three years of schooling, but that’s not the same as being immersed daily) to avoid ridicule, but I had to learn a whole new culture for which I had absolutely no context going in.

When we moved, I could not even point to Colorado on a map. Fortunately, kids are adaptable, and life gets easier. But in high school, a chain of events led to a severe two-year bout of depression that really crippled my self-esteem and my desire to do anything creative or put myself out in the world and open myself up to criticism. Healing that took the better part of a decade, lots of introspection, some therapy. I have to credit Stoicism, first and foremost, for finding myself in a better place.

It’s a very misunderstood philosophy, in my opinion, but it’s been invaluable to me in terms of how I look at the world and particularly how I look at producing creative work and sharing it with the world. Over the last 10 years, I have also been able to build a strong, resilient, and robust social network that has been nothing but supportive of my pursuits.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My two primary creative outlets are writing and acting. On the writing side, I have written quite a bit of poetry and some short stories I am particularly proud of. In particular, my chapbook, called “We,” which came out in 2023, contains some of the poems I have felt best about writing.

My efforts in other forms such as writing plays have so far not yielded results that satisfy me, but it’s something I do keep trying as well. As an actor, I have worked in quite a number of Denver-area theaters. My favorite roles have all been villains or anti-heroes. There is something deeply enjoyable about tapping into your own Shadow and pretending to do the awful things that you would never do in real life.

And the reactions I get from audiences as the bad guy are some of the strongest and most enjoyable. I have played Edgar Allan Poe’s greatest antagonist, several murderers, and a literal terrorist. I’d like to believe that within those roles I have really leaned into the creepy, the uncomfortable, the unsettling, and thus brought a sense of visceral realism to both my fellow actors and to the audience that meant something to them.

Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
Getting out there, talking to fellow professionals, and doing the work is ultimately all it takes. It’s not a secret formula, and it’s not glamorous, but it works. I audition regularly for all kinds of plays, and I get cast 2-3 times a year. Learning to hear “no” gracefully is the single most valuable skill as an actor, in my opinion, because it happens constantly.

But when I do get cast, I try to learn as much as I can from the director, especially, but also from my fellow actors. My background is very different from most of the people I live around and interact with, and this keeps me cognizant of the fact that you never know what someone else’s story is and how you can learn from it if you listen. The other source of mentorship that I have found especially fruitful has been taking professional classes.

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts has an excellent adult education program, and since the start of the pandemic, I have probably taken over a dozen classes there. The teachers are generously giving with their time and knowledge, and a couple of them have become mentors for me outside of the classroom.

Pricing:

• $15 for my poetry chapbook, “We”

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.michaelgurshtein.com/

Image Credits
Brian Landis Folkins, Steve Rausch, Ed Berry, and Hannah Richards