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Marina Sirtis

From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference

Real World article
(written from a Production point of view)
Marina Sirtis
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Gender: Female
Date of birth: 29 March 1955
Place of birth: London, England, UK
Character(s): Deanna Troi
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Marina Sirtis (born 29 March 1955; age 54) is the actress best known for playing Counselor Deanna Troi on Star Trek: The Next Generation. She went on to play the role in four Star Trek films, as well as episodes of Star Trek: Voyager and the series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise. Along with Colm Meaney (Miles O'Brien) and Michael Dorn (Worf), Sirtis is one of three regular Star Trek cast members to have made multiple appearances as the same character on a different series. She is also one of only six actors to play the same character on three different Star Trek series; the others to do so are Jonathan Frakes (William T. Riker), Armin Shimerman (Quark), John de Lancie (Q), Michael Ansara (Kang), and Richard Poe (Evek). Sirtis credits both the Star Trek television and movie series for bringing her a following of fans that can never be rivaled. Several costumes worn by Sirtis on Star Trek were sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay, including her evening dress from the episode "Man of the People". [1]

Sirtis was born in London Borough of Hackney to Greek parents who initially did not want her to pursue a career in acting. She trained at the Royal Shakespeare Company, affiliated with the Guild Hall of Music and Drama School, to which she had to apply in secret so her parents would not find out. Once she earned a name for herself in the theater, she went on to television. Having grown up in London, she became a huge soccer fan, and a supporter of Tottenham Hotspur FC. Her brother plays the sport in Greece.

She appeared in several British television series and films such as Hazel, Minder, One Last Chance and in an episode of The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes directed by future Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek Generations director David Carson. In the United States, she was part of the cast of several movies, including 1983's The Wicked Lady, 1984's Blind Date (starring Kirstie Alley), and 1985's Death Wish 3. In 1992, she co-starred with Zach Galligan in the comic horror movie Waxwork II: Lost in Time. She appeared in a Cinzano Bianco commercial with TOS guest actress Joan Collins.

Marina Sirtis on the set of Star Trek Nemesis

Sirtis has also guest-starred on such series as Hunter, Diagnosis Murder, Stargate SG-1, The Closer, and another Gene Roddenberry series, Earth: Final Conflict. She and her Next Generation co-stars Jonathan Frakes, Michael Dorn and Brent Spiner, as well as other Trek stars such as Nichelle Nichols, Kate Mulgrew (Kathryn Janeway), Avery Brooks (Benjamin Sisko), Paul Winfield (Clark Terrell, Dathon), Matt Frewer (Berlingoff Rasmussen), and David Warner (St. John Talbot, Gorkon, Gul Madred) have lent their voices to the animated series Gargoyles, which aired from 1994 through 1996. Sirtis and Frakes would also go on to voice in the subsequent series, Gargoyles: The Goliath Chronicles from 1996 through 1997.

In 1992, Sirtis married rock guitarist Michael Lamper. Her TNG castmates Brent Spiner and Michael Dorn were groomsmen at her wedding.

Sirtis and Michael Dorn have appeared together in the independent films Lesser of Three Evils (2005, along with Brian Thompson) and The Deep Below (2007), as well as the unsold sitcom pilot Through the Fire, which Dorn wrote and directed. Sirtis also appeared in such independent films as Terminal Error (2002, with Michael Nouri), Net Games (2003, with Ed Begley, Jr.), and Spectres (2004), the latter of which co-starred Enterprise actress Linda Park (Hoshi Sato) as well as Tucker Smallwood (Bullock, Xindi-Primate councilor). Most recently, Sirtis was a member of the ensemble cast of the successful, Academy Award-winning drama, Crash (2005). Fellow Voyager and Enterprise' guest star Daniel Dae Kim (Gotana-Retz, Corporal Chang) also appeared in this film. Sirtis's next film will be Joseph Merhi's drama Oranges, due out in theaters in 2007.

Early in 2006, Sirtis had a recurring role on UPN's (now The CW's) Girlfriends, starring fellow Enterprise guest actress Golden Brooks (Alicia Travers). Most recently, she was in an episode of the CBS series Without A Trace (starring Enrique Murciano), playing the mother of a missing high school basketball star. Former Enterprise star Connor Trinneer played the coach in the same episode, but he shared no scenes with Sirtis.

Sirtis recently starred in a science fiction film written and executive produced by and co-starring TOS star Walter Koenig called InAlienable. Koenig premiered an unfinished trailer of the film at the 2007 Star Trek convention in Las Vegas.[2] Among the other performers in the film are fellow Star Trek alumni Erick Avari, Gary Graham, Richard Herd, J.G. Hertzler, Andrew Koenig, Judy Levitt, Lisa LoCicero, Courtney Peldon, Alan Ruck, and Patricia Tallman. It is interesting to note that when originally announced in 2003, this film – then known as Illegal alien – was set to star Sirtis' TNG co-star John de Lancie and Voyager's Robert Picardo.[3]

In 2007, Sirtis voiced the character of Matriarch Benezia in the video game Mass Effect, which also featured the voices of Armin Shimerman and Dwight Schultz. In July 2008, Sirtis filmed a role in a British film 31 North 62 East.[4]

As it happens, Sirtis' father died on October 24, 1981 – exactly ten years before Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry passed away.

[edit] Additional characters

Deanna Troi (illusion)
(TNG: "Where Silence Has Lease")

"Goddess of Empathy" (hologram)
(TNG: "Hollow Pursuits")

Troi Hologram (TNG: "Future Imperfect")

Ardra (impersonating Deanna Troi) (TNG: "Devil's Due")

A Paxan (in Troi's body) (TNG: "Clues")

Ux-Mal criminal (in Troi's body)
(TNG: "Power Play")

Deanna Troi (hologram)
(TNG: "Ship in a Bottle")

[edit] Appearances on Star Trek

Star Trek: The Next Generation regular cast
LeVar Burton • Denise Crosby • Michael Dorn • Jonathan Frakes • Gates McFadden • Marina Sirtis • Brent Spiner • Patrick Stewart • Wil Wheaton


[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://memory-alpha.org/en/wiki/Marina_Sirtis"
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