About


Michael Thomas Cain

I, Michael Thomas Cain, was born in Ohio but grew up in Georgia; my father is from the north, and my mother is from the south. I feel as if I'm from both places as they each have had a great influence on me; however, I've spent most of my adult life in the north. For ten years of that adult life, I've lived in New York, and that is my current home. At present, if I had to say where I am from, I would have to say Cleveland, Ohio because that is where my parents are living. I've had the opportunity to experience many places and types of people, but I still hope to travel more in the United States and around the world. 

I grew up as an only child and participated in baseball, piano, and the scouts, just to name a few. I graduated from Westside High School and Augusta College (1995). After I graduated from AC, the school changed to Augusta State University, but it is now known as Georgia Regents University. At Augusta College, I received a B.A. in Communications/Theatre. It was at Augusta College that I discovered theatre. I was always curious about that world, and after a good friend of mine decided to try it, I followed him in. I took an acting class, auditioned for a play, and never looked back. At AC, I had the opportunity to act in many plays and learn/participate in all aspects of the theatre. For the first time in my life, I found a place where I belonged. To this day, I keep in touch with many of the people and professors that I knew back then. That world is still very much a part of my life today, and even though I've experienced many obstacles and struggles along the way, I have not been able to turn away from the first thing that helped me to feel comfortable and the thing that provides me with such a creative/artistic outlet.

(I've realized that I have an old soul. And even though I can come across as awkward, stuffy, or unfeeling, I'm really shy, sensitive, honest, genuine, and sincere deep down inside. I've worked to mask or overcome some of these true qualities in order to survive in life, but if you take the time to get to know the real me and give me a chance to get comfortable around you, I'll open up in ways that will surprise you. Also, I know that it appears that I'm very serious, but life is serious, and I have a lot going on inside of me and that I'm trying to accomplish, and I will not spend my life laughing like an idiot for no reason. I don't play games; I don't have time for games. And what you see, is what you get. Anybody who really knows me knows that I know how to laugh and have fun. And they know that I'll do anything for you and I'm pretty easy to get along with. But I am a Scorpio; I'm loyal if I trust you, but you're in trouble if I feel wronged in any way, and I don't forget. I feel character should be judged by actions and work done.

I come from a long line of middle class/working class people, and both sides of my family have strong roots in the United States and across the globe. I'm proud of my foundation and background, and I embrace the efforts that they've made through the generations, and I hope that I'm able to carry on their values and traditions in my life, work, and journey. With that said, I champion and support the underdog that works and struggles to get what he or she needs, wants, and desires out of life. There's something honorable about that, and I will always support that, and I hope that I can live up to those who came before me. I am not perfect, but my heart and soul is true; I am always seeking the truth and remembering what it means to be a human being even when life is difficult to look at and feel. My determination is endless. My eyes and ears are always open, and I'm always observing, experiencing, and seeking spiritual enlightenment. Even though it can torcher me much of the time, I embrace my creativity and artistic nature as it gives me a vessel to explore, and I hope to leave something of spiritual value and importance behind when I'm gone.

Once I dedicate myself to something or a project, I give everything that I have and usual work myself to exhaustion. With experience, I've tired to learn balance. And there's nothing wrong with regrouping and reflection. A new perspective is helpful. Taking advantage of what you've learned will help in the future. Life is about experience, a journey, and continuous growth through ups and downs.)

After graduating from college (1995), I attempted graduate school for acting, but that didn’t work out (However, in that short amount of time, I got to see Eric Bogosian perform some of his monologues on stage, and I had never experienced anything like that before. For some reason, it never occured to me that anything like that was possible. I connected to his material/voice, style, and way of performing. The experience gave me a new vision of myself and what theatre could be. I was strongly thinking and feeling, there’s a guy who thinks and feels the same way that I do, and he’s expressing it in a way that I totally get. I thought, I want to do that. I want to write and express my ideas and feelings like that. It took me a little time to realize, but something about that experience forced me to see that I was more than just an actor; I was/am an artist who needed/needs to create. I feel that I started writing as a result of that experience, and I’ve never been able to get very far away from that idea. To my knowledge, he is not aware of this, but because of that one night, he changed my life, and that is why, today, I write and express my ideas and visions on paper.), and then I spent some time hanging out and trying to decide what my next move would be. I really wanted to pursue a career as an actor, so I toyed with the idea of moving to either California or New York. After careful consideration, I decided on New York City, so, with a friend, I moved to NYC to become an actor. That decision kept me living in and around NYC for five years. During that time, I took some classes, worked several jobs, waited a lot of tables (at West Bank Café), went on auditions, hung out, and experienced life. From time to time, I would get an acting gig. And I participated in other aspects of the business in order to gain experience or get closer to where I thought I needed to be. During those five years, I felt it necessary to live the life of a struggling artist, and even though I embrace that time in my life and feel as if that time helped me to become who I am today, I do regret not being more aggressive in and dedicated to my pursuits. That was a very interesting and colorful time in my life, and if we ever have the opportunity to talk, I could reveal some very interesting stories and experiences. Also, it wasn’t until later that I focused on the craft of writing, but during that time, I was doing a lot of writing and was exploring many ideas and myself.

After 9/11, a difficult break up, and feeling like I had no direction and wasn’t doing anything of value, I felt as if it was time for me to leave New York. I was away from NY for about four years. During that time, I lived in Atlanta, Georgia and Cleveland, Ohio. To be honest, I feel like I wasted a lot of time in Atlanta, but I did start painting and viewing writing as a craft that I needed to work on and cultivate. Because I wasn’t finding anything of importance in Atlanta, I moved to Cleveland to be with my family and find stability. In the couple of years that I lived in Cleveland, I worked a good job and grounded myself in playwriting, theatre, and art. That was a very productive time for me and a time that I will always cherish. I was writing and/or painting every day and whenever I had the opportunity, and I was seeing improvement in both. Also, in Atlanta and Cleveland, I started teaching, but I didn’t realize at the time how much that would become a part of my life. Most importantly, when I was in Cleveland, I met my wife, Kristy, but we only worked together and were only friends at that point. This forces me to think about how interesting life can be. The chances of me ending up in Cleveland, Ohio to live were pretty slim, and I wasn’t there for very long, but I was there long enough to find the love of my life, and for this, it becomes very difficult for me to question the journey of life that I’m on; everything happens for a reason even if we do not know why in the moment.

I decided in Cleveland that I wanted to apply to graduate schools for playwriting. The first year that I applied, nothing happened, but I continued to work, and I changed my approach and strategy, and I was accepted into three schools the second year. As important as Cleveland became, I felt that it was time for me to move on and that my journey needed to continue. I had always had a connection to New York in a way that I have never been connected to another place, and I missed it. I missed it a lot, and I was thinking that if I could find a solid, legitimate opportunity, I would go back to NY. I felt at home and complete there, and I felt as if that is where I needed to be in order to work, live, and accomplish my goals. I gained a focus in Cleveland that I had never experienced before, but I knew that if I was going to continue my journey in NY that I would have to carry that focus with me; I knew that I needed to establish a creative and professional life and a lifestyle that was the opposite of what I had there the first time. I was accepted into the M.F.A. in Creative Writing (Dramatic Writing) program at Adelphi University, so after careful consideration and evaluation of which program would be the most rewarding, I made preparations to move back to NY and continue my education, career, and life.

I was happy and excited to be back in NY, and even though I was nervous, I was excited to start my new program. For two years, I dedicated much of what I had to that great and challenging program, and the entire experience and what I learned and what I’m still using and applying today is too much to document here. Also, during that time, Kristy, my wife, and I started dating, and things between us quickly evolved. I’ve had some rocky experiences in that area, but I knew that she was the one for me and the one that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, so right after graduate school (2009), I asked her to marry me. At that point, I was all about working and building and gathering and embracing life, and I’m still that way, so I thought about waiting a year to get on my feet, but I figured why wait on something that I was so sure about; I’m not going to live forever, so I have to experience now while I can. Kristy and I were married in 2010 at a beautiful bed and breakfast by the water in the Hamptons and had a wonderful reception with family and friends in Cleveland, Ohio. After we got married, Kristy joined me in NY, and I’ve now been back in NY for over five years.

I experienced a rocky road directly after graduate school; it took me some time to find my footing, but in the last few years, I’ve had some positive things happen to me. Presently, I work on my plays and professional endeavors, work on my art, am an Assistant Professor in the Division of Arts and Sciences at ASA College, and enjoy my life with Kristy. In the big picture, life is good even though challenges do present themselves from time to time. However, even with all of my experience and with everything that I have done and accomplished and as blessed as I am, there’s so much more that I want to do, experience, and accomplish. I do cherish and value everything that I have and that I have gained, but I’m the kind of person who is never satisfied. I will continue to work on the things that mean the most to me; I always feel like I could do more and be more and be better at whatever I’m doing or working on. Also, I want to expand my horizons and move forward with all of the ideas and desired that I think about and nurture every day.

My story continues, and there’s so much more to learn about me as I continue on my journey. Some of the gaps in this biography may be filled in by using the other material in the Michael Thomas Cain site, but I do hope that we have the opportunity to learn more about each other now and in the future.

To be continued…

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