"A life lived second guessing is a life not well lived"

Welcome to the life of J.R. Rodriguez and how he lives it. J.R. has been in the entertainment business for nearly 40 years, starting at the tender age of 9 years old. Through these years, J.R. has seen extreme highs and extreme lows, but believes these are the things that have shaped him into the man he is. J.R. is an accomplished Director, Actor, Producer, Acting Coach, Playwright and Screenwriter. Believing life is a constant learning process, he is always looking at learning more about the life he has been given and willing to share that with others. Let's start from the beginning.

J.R. comes from wonderful parents who, although are never quite sure of what he will do next, instilled in him the "Golden Rule". One Should never, purposely, hurt another human being. His father was a decorated soldier in The United States Army, having served 22 years, including tours in Korea and Vietnam. His Mother was one for the food, working on Posts all over the country in specialty restaurants as a cook and manager. In 1976, J.R.'s father retired an moved the family to his wife's hometown of Wilmington, NC. Not only was the town a wonderful place for the young J.R. to grow up, but the town would have a profound influence on him for the rest of his life. Wilmington was a city growing up from it's "Mayberry" type lifestyle. Wilmington was slowly turning into an artist town. In the early 80's Dino De Laurentiis brought a movie studio to Wilmington. The excitment was uncontrollable with everyone having visions of becoming a star, including the young J.R.

Although work in the film world came, J.R.'s first love had always been the theatre. After graduating from high school, J.R. attended East Carolina University, where, other than his Father, he met the first of two men that would have the greatest impact on his life. J.R. med Cedric Winchell in his first history to theatre class. The young Rodriguez was struck that, although this man had worked in film, he had no pretention about him. He spoke like J.R. did. This guy had been part of it. The old saying those who can do, those who can't teach was pronoounced at ECT, but not with Cedric. J.R., having had his father as a mentor for life, now had a mentor for his love, the theatre. Cedric never pushed J.R. but talked to him like an equal, a confidant. J.R.'s passion grew.

After East Carolina, J.R. spent some time in New York and just wasn't ready. He needed more training. On his return to North Carolina, he met the man that would sculpt him into an artist. This man was a butcher, pushing J.R.'s talent to places that he could have never imagined, forcing him to look at himself and using emotions that previously had been hidden. That man was Lou Criscuolo. They met during a production of "The King and I" for Lou's company, Opera House Theatre Company. Lou was old school. No tricks, no games, just work. Lou pushed J.R. to find in him a thought process towards characters that would take J.R. to strange and wonderful places while still being in Wilmington. Lou was the lightning rod. In the twenty plus years J.R. has spent with Lou, he still, to this day, doesn't approach a project without asking Lou's thoughts and asking for his guidance. Both full of Latin blood, it wasn't always a kind relationship. Once, after an argument, J.R. and Lou didn't speak for nearly three years, both to proud to approach the other. In April of 2000, something changed all that. Lou's beloved wife and J.R.'s agent, suddenly passed away. Both J.R. and Lou realized life was too short. The reconciliation was emotional for J.R. He had returned to not only his boss, but the man that had taught him the most in this strange world J.R. lived.

in 2006, an old friend of J.R.'s had an idea to produce a show in Chicago and wanted J.R. to come and play one of the characters. Although having traveled for jobs in different theatres for years, J.R. was nervous. It was a return to a big city and from past experience, J.R. didn't know if he had the talent to compete with the people in what is widely known as theatre land. The difference between Chicago and New York is that everyone traveling to New york is planning a trip to "The Great White Way". The off-Broadway shows are not taken seriously by the nice folks from middle-America... "It's not Broadway, we came to see Broadway." J.R. always believed that spectacle is Broadway, the dedication is off-Broadway. In Chicago, it's different. Everyone wants to work at the Goodman or Steppenwolf, but they also want to work at American Theatre Company, Porchlight Theatre or even Metropolis. Actors in Chicago want the work and it doesn't matter where it is. J.R. decided to give it a go. Once he got to Chicago, he fell in love. It didn't matter what part of the city you were in, artists were everywhere. He decided to try the big city again. He was fortunate to land a job with help from his roommate with Crosstown Scenic, a set building company. His two bosses, Bob Groth and Carter Robbins knew J.R. was there to work as an actor in the theatre and would allow him to run to auditions, but working at Crosstown also allowed J.R. to go to different theatres and meet the people that he would hopefully be working on stage with someday. A break came in 2009, when Metropolis called and wanted J.R. for the role of Mr. Van Dann in "The Diary of Anne Frank". J.R. was so excited, he couldn't control his emotions. Anne Frank was a wonderful experience and this might just be the thing. He had some time off and a friend had called and asked if he might come to Northeast Michigan for a roll of Mitch in "A Streetcar Named Desire". He wasn't doing anything at the time and said why not. When he arrived at Thunder Bay Theatre in Alpena, his first thoughts went to his memory of his hometown of Wilmington when he was a child. Alpena was a town that, at one point, was a boom town and with the economy failing, the town had been hit with hard times. He saw beauty where the younger folks in town saw no future. He saw a town that wasn't happy with itself. J.R. returned to Alpena for the summer season and agreed to return to Alpena the next year as Technical Director. Eventually, J.R. was moved to Artistic Director where he serves today. When J.R. became Artistic Director a few things were added to the criteria of Thunder Bay Theatre including the program that he is most proud of, a youth acting class. He never thought of himself as a teacher. How could he? He could never compare to Cedric and certainly not to Lou, but he tried it. Over the time that these young people have come to class, he has seen a growth in these kids not only as artists but as human beings. No longer are these kids separate from adult shows, but part of them. When he talks about "His Kids" he is visibly moved. Some twenty plus years after meeting Lou, J.R. has become something he never could have imagined...A Mentor. "All anyone ever wants is a chance. If we don't give these kids a chance, they're going to become a statistic." J.R. says of his class. His prid is unequaled with what he believes to be his greatest accomplisment.

J.R. came home to Wilmington, NC in May of 2013 and brought his film scripts with him. As of September 2014, J.R. is in pre-production for a short version of his first screen play, All In A Day's Work. He also has a short version of a new screen play, dealing with a very sensitive issue to J.R. He is currently looking for ideas into raising money to film this short. J.R. is happy to be home and work with a new group of wonderful talent including Charles Auten and Nick Cocuzzo. With the help of these two men, J.R. is hoping to make a smooth transition in to film. His new film company is called Tobbot Films. He looks forward to bringing you something very special, very soon. Thank you for all your support.