Middle Grade
Reader Spotlight
Every month we'll highlight a reader in the Great Lakes Bay region and learn more about them, their work, and their reading life. We'll also discuss books and share a conversation about their journey.
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Read on to learn more about Dominic - actor, educator, advocate, author.
Dominic with his inspiration for his books - Sherriff on the left and CeCe on the right.
Tell us about your family.
My family consists of my husband, Kevin, and I, as well as our two beautiful dogs, sheriff and Ranger. I am also fortunate to have most of my family live in the area, including Kevin‘s family, who moved from Washington state to Michigan because we moved here.
Where are you from?
I am from Mount Pleasant, Michigan. I was born and raised here, then moved to New York City for college. I went to the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, a conservatory in New York City. I called New York home for 22 years before I decided to move back to Michigan in 2019.
How did you get interested in theatre?
I got interested in theater in the fourth grade when my music teacher, Ms. Tousignant. She put on a kindergarten through eighth-grade musical called When the Hippos Crashed the Dance, and I was one of the fortunate people who got cast as one of the leads. I was the turtle, and I had my solo, and from that moment on, I was hooked. As I grew older, the arts disappeared from the school. I went to, so I lucked out. I was able to go to the public school for choir my junior and senior year, and it allowed me to be in the musical there, which I happened to star in Oklahoma and Bye Bye Birdie.
Who inspired you?
Growing up here in Michigan, I was inspired by the Tony Awards that happened every year. It was the only outlet I had to Broadway world or more theaters throughout the country, so I always looked forward to when they would air every June with the likes of Jerry Orbach, Raul Julia, Patty Lupone, Bernadette Peters, and more. The cool thing now is when I watch the Tony Awards, I see my friends. My grandparents also inspired me to travel. They took many vacations on cruise ships, so when they came back, they showed me all these photos of the singers and dancers, and I’ll never stop looking at those photos and saying I want to do this, and I did. I spent over six years on the ocean performing for multiple cruise lines.
What was your favorite role?
My favorite role is Ren in Footloose - The Musical, followed closely by Marius, Les Misérables, and Emmett in Legally Blonde.
Learn more about Dominic by visiting his website - dominicthrasher.com.
You can purchase the book on his website or at Leopard Print Books in downtown Bay City.
Your acting was cut short by Covid, how/when did the idea appear to write a children's story?
I was actually on a cruise ship when Covid started. I was stuck there for a month with no passengers and was finally able to go home when one of my cast mates, parents called the American embassy in Mexico demanding the return of the US citizens to their country during that time when the world shut down, it gave me a moment actually to take a breath and pursue another dream of mine, and also one of my biggest fears of being a writer I was sitting in my living room, not knowing what I wanted to write about and I was watching my dog Sheriff and my sister‘s dog Cece playing in front of me, and I looked at them, and you realize how strong the personality they both had and then started giving them voices in my head, and those voices then became words on my computer and then became a book series called “The adventures of Cece and the Sheriff”
Who are the characters in the book?
The characters in my first book are CC, the sheriff, and Kippy. As the book series progresses, the Sheriff and Cece meet and make many other friends throughout their adventures.
Why should parents pick up this book for their kids?
I always wanted to be different regarding being a children’s book author. I wanted to give kids more than just a book, so with my series, every book has a QR code that includes a 3-D theatrical audiobook, that comes with it where I have voice actors and a fantastic team at Pipe Dream Theatre that creates the audiobook, writes the score that plays underneath it, and produces it. It’s excellent, and my stories are about the Sheriff and Cece, who learned valuable lessons, went on amazing adventures, and made many wonderful friends. Plus, who doesn’t love dogs?!??
Do you have more books in the works?
My first book was published six months ago; the second will come out this summer. I aim to have all the books coming out about every six months until all ten books are published.
What books do you like to read?
My favorite authors are Michael Connolly, Christopher Moore, Marc Acito, and David Sedaris. So I love LA crime books and satire comedy, and I’m a big fan of biographies.
What author or theatre director would you like to have coffee with?
I would love to meet Michael Connolly, as he’s my number one favorite author.
Right: Dominic reading to a group of kids in front of book cover backdrop.
Left: Stars of the book - Sherriff and CeCe.
