T.V. Carpio, a Filipina -American, stars in a major Hollywood film. TV. Carpio, plays a major role in the movie musical "Across the Universe." Born Teresa Victoria Carpio in Oklahoma City in 1981, T.V. is a singer, songwriter and actress. She is the daughter of Asian performer Teresa Carpio.
In the movie, T.V. plays plays 'Prudence', a former high school cheerleader-turned bisexual bohemian.
Nominated for Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) at the Golden Globe Awards, "Across the Universe" is a groundbreaking movie musical, springing from the imagination of renowned writer-director Julie Taymor (Frida, Broadway's The Lion King) that brings together an original story and 33 revolutionary Beatles songs — including "Hey Jude" and "All You Need is Love" — that defined a generation.
In "Across the Universe," Carpio impressed audiences with her solo rendition of "I Wanna Hold Your Hand. " The song number is supposed to express Prudence's feelings for a fellow cheerleader.
Quoting from the film's production notes, director Julie Taymor says casting T.V. was a "lucky discovery." "Along with having a beautiful singing voice, T.V. is a dancer and former ice skater. So I had Prudence become a skater in the circus scenes because T.V. could ice skate. Then, I thought, 'Well, she'll be the cheerleader because she's so good physically.' As you get to know the actors, you create more and more for them." The feeling was mutual as Carpio recalls, "I wanted so much to make Julie's vision come alive. When she would tell us what she saw, it would never be just what's written on a piece of paper — it would be something just completely out of this world... we were so honored to be a part of that. We couldn't even believe that this is our job."
Carpio has acted in varous TV shows in the U.S., including "The Jury" and "Law & Order." She debuted in Broadway via "Rent" as Alexi Darling and was cast in other Broadway productions. Watch out Hollywood for T.V.Carpio, a fresh Fil-Am face to the big screen.
Jay Fermin ppp-usa