County Alumni: Sarah Rush

For Sarah Rush, the call of the stage started at a young age. In elementary school, she starred in her first play and that was it. The acting bug bit.

As a child, Sarah always had an undercurrent of grief and loss in her life. Her brother Calvin died at age seven from cancer and the loss left the family grieving. Even at her young age, Sarah was aware of the grief and how it affected both herself and her parents. “Being a sensitive person, I really felt that deep unspoken sorrow,” Sarah says. “…I think I wanted to cheer my parents up. I wanted to make them laugh… I loved making people laugh.”

When Sarah was in seventh grade, a teacher came to her middle school to teach for just one year. During that year, the teacher directed the play “The Little Match Girl,” about a girl in the streets of London selling matches to survive. As the night gets colder, and the girl sells no matches, she lights them to warm herself and sees a series of comforting visions. But when the matches are gone, she freezes to death. Sarah played the title character, and the play became a defining moment in her life.

 “Being a seventh grader who had all this emotion, and this teacher that recognized it in me… it was like a mini tsunami in my life. It was a moment where I realized I wanted to be an actress. That I WAS an actress,” Sarah says. “I didn’t think of movies. I didn’t think of television. I just thought of being in a play. It was a way for me letting out those things that were deeply tucked inside.”

“It amazed our parents and the students that this little seventh grader had this kind of emotional life, and they really encouraged me. So, I did plays in high school.”

While in high school at Waynesburg, Sarah worked with Charles Berryhill, an educator with the Central Greene school system. Berryhill taught English and served as the Drama teacher, and he became another integral person in Sarah’s development as an actor. Both he and his wife Marion continued to support Sarah’s career after high school.

During her high school years, Sarah ended up traveling to the Bucks County Playhouse to compete in a statewide competition. She won best actress, and that “was kind of marvelous and built a genuine sense of encouragement in me.” Sarah later competed for the Bituminous Coal Queen with a performance and song from “My Fair Lady.” “I won, and it gave me a full scholarship to a Pennsylvania university. So, I went to Penn State, and that was just another one of those, I call them hugs, from Greene County.”

 Sarah earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Penn State, with tutelage from mentors Manuel Duque and Helen Manfull. She completed the five-year program in four years. After graduation, she received the Samuel Gallu scholarship for the most promising actor and moved to New York.

 In New York, Sarah got a job as a waiter. After three weeks in New York, Sarah auditioned for Eleanor Kilgallen of Universal Studios to be a contract player. Sarah landed the contract and flew out to Los Angeles. While under contract, Sarah worked in television and theatre. Her recurring role as Flight Corporal Rigel in the cult-classic Battlestar Galactica during this time has earned her a spot in sci-fi tv history.

She also did a lot of plays in LA. Her first play while in LA was a production of “Our Town,” which held a special significance for her. “Mr. Berryhill loved ‘Our Town.’ That play is very much a part of Waynesburg and Greene County. It really resonated with us who were [his] students. I auditioned for the part of Emily, and I was Emily. I was who Emily was. I got the job because Gower Champion [the director] said I haunted him.”

“With me coming from a very special small town, it was like getting another hug from my community, saying we believe in you, we support you, and we encourage you.”

Contract players at Universal were eventually eliminated, and Sarah was the last to go. She moved back to New York and worked in regional theater, traveling to different cities. While in New York, she studied with Uta Hagan and Herbert Berghof at their acting studio. She also did some work in television. After nine years in New York, Sarah moved back to Los Angeles, where she’s been ever since.

After moving back to LA, Sarah adopted Amanda, the “joy of her life.” To focus on taking care of her, she shifted her career in a different direction. “For the last twenty years or so, I’ve done a million commercials,” she says with a laugh. “Well, not a million, but many, many commercials. That was a gift because I could support myself but be a full-time mom, too. I would even take Amanda to all my auditions and when it was my turn to audition, one of the other actresses would watch her.”

Sarah has done several television shows and films during the last twenty years and hopes to do more theatre productions in the future. “That’s the desire of my heart right now. Plus, I need to continue to make a living,” Sarah says.

“But I feel so blessed in so many ways because the older I get, the closer I get to God and the more my relationship with Christ deepens, and the more I need Him because it’s a tough profession. Now that I’m in my mid-sixties, it’s hard to get work, especially after the pandemic. There’s less work and everything has changed. I count on God for my provision and that’s kind of what makes me tick. Just trusting God to provide and moving forward.”

Besides her work as an actress, Sarah continues to pass on a love of acting to others. She serves as a substitute teacher for English and Drama classes at nearby schools. She chaired the PTA Reflections Art program for 8 years, and led a Girl Scout troop for 13 years, resulting in 7 of her Scouts, including her daughter, earning their Gold Awards.  

When asked about what role she’s the proudest of, Sarah refers to a play she did at Little Lake Theatre in Canonsburg with her friend Sunny Disney Fitchett. While in high school, Sarah had worked as an apprentice at the theatre and met Sunny, the daughter of Little Lake’s founder Will Disney. Sunny served as the artistic director at the theater for 23 years and directed Sarah in the one-woman play “The Belle of Amherst,” about the life of Emily Dickinson. “It was two hours and ten minutes of me talking and it was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life. I’m very proud of it.”

Sarah is also proud of her work in bringing Hollywood to Greene County. Sarah and actress Patricia Heaton produced the 2005 documentary “The Bituminous Coal Queens of Pennsylvania,” directed by David Hunt. “We came to Pennsylvania, and we shot this documentary and our crew loved the people from Greene County. We won several awards, but what I loved about it was that people fell in love with the people of Greene County. There was a filmmaker from New Zealand, who said she had never seen people like this in her life and ‘I Just love them.’ It’s a really sweet film and I’m very, very proud of it.”

Sarah’s love for acting has never diminished over the years and she’s always happiest when she’s working.” I love it when I’m working. I remember once when I had an early morning call and there was a torrential downpour that day. I’m driving on the freeway and there were no cars out, it was pitch dark, and I glimpsed myself in the mirror and broke out laughing. Because when I saw myself in that mirror, I had the hugest smile in the world because I was driving to work, and I was thankful.”

“I’ve met many wonderful people and have a wealth of friendships because I’ve been an actor. I have a wonderful community of friends and I’m very grateful. But it’s also been very tough and sometimes you can get clobbered in life. I’ve definitely been clobbered. But that’s when my faith steps in. I trust in God to pick me up and keep me going.”

Sarah’s love for Greene County has never diminished, either. “One of the things that I love about Greene County. It’s a very special community of wonderful people. There are many really creative, wonderful people that have come out of Greene County.”

“I love to come home. It’s such a big piece of me. It’s such a huge part of who I am. When I come back to Greene County, I’m reminded of who I am, and it settles me. It reminds me of me. So, I love to come back.”

And Sarah has some advice for those wanting a career in the arts: “Go to school and get the education. Get a solid foundation in your craft. Continue studying for the rest of your life. And get yourself out there as much as possible. Work begets work. Sometimes you have to do other jobs just to help keep the lights on, but there’s honor in all work… It’s a difficult career. You have to keep plugging.”