Biography
Born and raised in New York, actress and radio/TV show host Deidra Sarego spent her childhood immersed in musical theatre with roles in The King and I, Carmen, and South Pacific. Since theatre is Deidra's first love she went on to continue theatre in Florida, NY and Los Angeles. Her striking good looks and captivating blue eyes, evident in her early Gap and Express magazine ads, reflect her Northern Italian and Dutch heritage.
After receiving her BFA in Theater from the University of Florida Gainesville, she headed out to Los Angeles, taking classes with famed acting coaches Aaron Speiser and John Kirby to further hone her craft. Small roles in popular films, television shows, and plays quickly followed, including "Red Roses and Petrol" with Malcolm McDowell; "Torque" with Dane Cook; and "An Existential Affair" with Martin Landau.
Deidra then performed in the play "The Gift of Peace," touring across America in a bio-diesel bus to raise support for the U.S. Department of Peace, a cabinet-level position in the executive branch of federal government. The play was presented during the annual Peace Alliance Conference in Washington, DC. Other actors included Frances Fisher, Wendie Malick, Dan Lauria, Esai Morales, James Pickens Jr., Shiri Appleby, LaTanya Richardson, Ivan Sergei, George Coe, Kent McCord and Ed Asner, with direction by Tony Award winner John Rubenstein.
A documentary on the project followed: "Change is Gonna Come." Making its debut at Sundance Film Festival, Deidra appeared alongside Deepak Chopra, Ed Asner, Amy Brenneman, and Frances Fisher.
Deidra went on to produce a benefit for "The Gift of Peace," hosted by Joaquin Phoenix and featuring a performance by Balthazar Getty and Scott Thomas as Ringside, raising over $33,000 for the movement. She's devoted her time to The Art of Elysium, AARF and appeared on The Dr. Phil Show to lend her voice to oppose Proposition 8.
In 2008 Deidra made her directorial debut on The Ron Russell Show, which is a talk show that interviews stars of yesteryear. Ron Russell has interviewed celeb greats like the beloved Jane Russell, Tab Hunter, Tippi Hedren, Cliff Roberson and many other old Hollywood legends. Deidra directed the Jane Russell and Cliff Roberson interviews.
A new role as radio and TV show host launched with her debut on The Jimmy Star Show, syndicated in 12 cities, and available on lgbtq.tv on Roku. Live and uncensored, Deidra's raucous and witty contributions to celebrity interviews (most recently, Naomi Grossman fan-favorite "Pepper" on FX's American Horror Story: Asylum and Taryn Manning "Pennsatucky" on Netflix's Orange Is The New Black), helped lead both Deidra and the show to multiple Shorty Award nominations, honoring the best of social media.
Deidra and her co-hosts at The Jimmy Star Show will be hosting One Magical Weekend, a premier lgbt celebration at Disney World in June 2015, as Platinum sponsors of this famed event.
Deidra will be starring in the Tony award winning play and Emmy winning HBO movie starring Mark Ruffalo and Julia Roberts, The Normal Heart written by Larry Kramer. She has taken on the role as Dr Emma Brookner and they play will run June 11-14th 2015 at Plays and Players theater in Philadelphia. Proceeds of tickets sales will go to Dream Catcher Camp, a camp for children with HIV and AIDS.
