True Blood's Rutina Wesley on MTV's 'When I was 17'

Rutina Wesley got her start in Fame

Before Rutina Wesley got the part of Tara Thornton on HBO's True Blood, she was strutting her stuff on stage at the prestigious performing arts school, the  Las Vegas Academy. Wesley, who was the daughter of a showgirl and a tapdancer, grew up in Las Vegas and before she starred in the 2007 dance film "How She Move", she was performing in the Academy's production of Fame. Rutina recalls,

"What I love about 'Fame' is it's sort of like I was living 'Fame.' I was going to a performing-arts high school, [and] I knew the hard work it took to be there. The auditions were brutal for that show, I remember I had to dance, sing and act, and it was really tough."

Landing the part allowed her to have her first taste of actual fame and she knew she was born to perform.

"The theater at my school was awesome," she laughed. "It was a 1,400-seat auditorium, so, being in that auditorium at 17, and having, like 1,400 people cheer for you was, like, one of the most amazing feelings that I've ever felt, energy-wise. It just felt right."

You can see the interview on MTV's series When I was 17 SOURCE:  MTV — 'True Blood's' Rutina Wesley Recalls Early 'Fame,' On 'When I Was 17'

(photo credit: MTV Inc)

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