Jessica Polsky
- Actress
- Producer
- Additional Crew
Austin, Texas native Jessica Polsky grew up with her sights set on
Broadway, and began her triple-threat training while still in diapers.
After a childhood steeped in stage and studying, Jessica graduated on
full scholarship from the University of Arizona's prestigious
Performing Arts Department with a BFA, magna cum laude. A semester
studying abroad in Florence, Italy during her four years of college
allowed her to add a degree in Italian on to her credentials, and she
graduated with a BA in Italian, as well, also magna cum laude.
Her subsequent move to NYC to begin her professional career was met with almost instant success. She spent almost 4 consecutive years touring, most notably: West Side Story (Euro Tour), Sophisticated Ladies with Dee Dee Bridgewater (Euro tour), and Grease (Euro tour). During these first years Jessica also spent a fair amount of time "on the other side of the table" assisting some of the business's most well-known directors and choreographers, and even directing some, herself.
After all this touring she also worked consistently on NYC-based projects, taking part in the much talked about stage version of the film Jeffrey with Bryan Batt (Lincoln Center), an off-Broadway revival of Pirates of Penzance, and much more.
Then came the call from the major TV network in Italy: they had caught wind that there was a young American actress around, fluent in Italian and with the right "look" for the Italian market. They offered her a starring role on the hot, new prime-time sitcom, Camera Cafe'. Jessica accepted this offer and the rest, as they say, is history...
Camera Cafe' was an explosive hit, like nothing Italian television had seen for years, and created a fanatical following that can only be compared to that of Friends or Seinfeld. Jessica's character, which they left named "Jessica", was one of the lead elements of this sitcom set among the disgruntled employees of a corporate office. The show's stellar popularity took Jessica right along with it: the first season she won recognition from Italy's Accademia dei Telefilm (Best Lead Actress of the Television Season), and has been one of the most in-demand, young, A-list celebrities in the country ever since.
She has moved on and up within the industry in Italy and has starred in a steady stream of highly visible and successful projects dedicated to her. Although primarily known for her formidable acting work in network dramas, sitcoms, mini-series, and films, along the way Europe also discovered in Jessica a talented host. Her larger than life personality, warmth, humor, quick instinct and affinity for the camera make her a natural at the helm of televised events, interviews, and more. This was evident in any number of ratings-winning, prime-time network specials (Festivalbar, Robbie Williams Live in Berlin, Masters of Magic, New Year's Eve Live From Venice's St.Mark's Square), as well as the cult hit of her co-creation, Sputnik: a weekly Saturday Night Live-inspired sketch comedy show of which Jessica was both the permanent host and lead cast member.
Most recently she has been busy filming Piloti ("Pilots"): an original sitcom which takes place in an airplane, based on the daily lives and adventures of the crew. Jessica stars in it as the adorable but bumbling stewardess: "Josephine". Piloti is on the air daily (RAI network TV) in perpetual rerun--a response to unprecedented demand for her beloved character, who has quickly become an entertainment industry icon.
In addition to these projects, Jessica is a favorite of the press and of all corners of the industry. She can be seen constantly featured in cameos on every genre of TV project, as a special guest on talk shows, in magazines, on the radio, on the red carpet, in large-scale celebrity endorsement ad campaigns, and as a participant in promotional and charity events.
Jessica was also the recipient of the Italian Parliament's prestigious "Italy-USA Cultural Ambassadorship" in recognition of her bi-continental acting career, and for the rare positive role-model celebrity she has become. This distinguished award is reserved for opinion leaders whose professional and philanthropic endeavors promote friendly ties between the two nations.
Back in NYC she was seen starring in a new Lifetime Network movie, and was thrilled to announce her return to the NYC stage in the title role of the Off-Broadway drama Ghost Wife Radio.
Her subsequent move to NYC to begin her professional career was met with almost instant success. She spent almost 4 consecutive years touring, most notably: West Side Story (Euro Tour), Sophisticated Ladies with Dee Dee Bridgewater (Euro tour), and Grease (Euro tour). During these first years Jessica also spent a fair amount of time "on the other side of the table" assisting some of the business's most well-known directors and choreographers, and even directing some, herself.
After all this touring she also worked consistently on NYC-based projects, taking part in the much talked about stage version of the film Jeffrey with Bryan Batt (Lincoln Center), an off-Broadway revival of Pirates of Penzance, and much more.
Then came the call from the major TV network in Italy: they had caught wind that there was a young American actress around, fluent in Italian and with the right "look" for the Italian market. They offered her a starring role on the hot, new prime-time sitcom, Camera Cafe'. Jessica accepted this offer and the rest, as they say, is history...
Camera Cafe' was an explosive hit, like nothing Italian television had seen for years, and created a fanatical following that can only be compared to that of Friends or Seinfeld. Jessica's character, which they left named "Jessica", was one of the lead elements of this sitcom set among the disgruntled employees of a corporate office. The show's stellar popularity took Jessica right along with it: the first season she won recognition from Italy's Accademia dei Telefilm (Best Lead Actress of the Television Season), and has been one of the most in-demand, young, A-list celebrities in the country ever since.
She has moved on and up within the industry in Italy and has starred in a steady stream of highly visible and successful projects dedicated to her. Although primarily known for her formidable acting work in network dramas, sitcoms, mini-series, and films, along the way Europe also discovered in Jessica a talented host. Her larger than life personality, warmth, humor, quick instinct and affinity for the camera make her a natural at the helm of televised events, interviews, and more. This was evident in any number of ratings-winning, prime-time network specials (Festivalbar, Robbie Williams Live in Berlin, Masters of Magic, New Year's Eve Live From Venice's St.Mark's Square), as well as the cult hit of her co-creation, Sputnik: a weekly Saturday Night Live-inspired sketch comedy show of which Jessica was both the permanent host and lead cast member.
Most recently she has been busy filming Piloti ("Pilots"): an original sitcom which takes place in an airplane, based on the daily lives and adventures of the crew. Jessica stars in it as the adorable but bumbling stewardess: "Josephine". Piloti is on the air daily (RAI network TV) in perpetual rerun--a response to unprecedented demand for her beloved character, who has quickly become an entertainment industry icon.
In addition to these projects, Jessica is a favorite of the press and of all corners of the industry. She can be seen constantly featured in cameos on every genre of TV project, as a special guest on talk shows, in magazines, on the radio, on the red carpet, in large-scale celebrity endorsement ad campaigns, and as a participant in promotional and charity events.
Jessica was also the recipient of the Italian Parliament's prestigious "Italy-USA Cultural Ambassadorship" in recognition of her bi-continental acting career, and for the rare positive role-model celebrity she has become. This distinguished award is reserved for opinion leaders whose professional and philanthropic endeavors promote friendly ties between the two nations.
Back in NYC she was seen starring in a new Lifetime Network movie, and was thrilled to announce her return to the NYC stage in the title role of the Off-Broadway drama Ghost Wife Radio.
