By Cinara Marquis
From the halls of SUNY Plattsburgh to the bright stages of New York City, Michael Rispoli has shown all that determination and passion can bring you anywhere.
Born in 1960, the actor was raised in Tappan, New York. Rispoli is a second-generation Italian-American who graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with a bachelor’s degree in theater. He has loved acting ever since his start in grade school.
Rispoli has an extensive portfolio of work, including a number of plays and musicals both on and off Broadway as well as a variety of films and TV shows. He often depicts Italian characters, most notably Rispoli, who played Jackie Aprile, a recurring character in the first season of “The Sopranos.” Other notable roles include Rudy Pipilo in the TV show “The Deuce,” Buddy Visalo in the film “Two Family House” and Lieutenant Caro in the Broadway debut of “Between Riverside and Crazy.”
“You’ve got to keep your legs on stage somehow, whether you’re coming from a small school or whatever; when you graduate, you got to be involved in some sort of stage craft somewhere,” Rispoli said.
After grade school, Rispoli continued acting in high school and followed that passion at Rockwood Community College, and then SUNY Plattsburgh.
Rispoli and seven other students set up a suite on the fifth floor of DeFredenburgh Hall, dubbed the “Kamikaze Kids.”
“We’d hang out at the beach, run back and then do a play at night,” Rispoli said. “In the rearview mirror, it was a romantic time.”
Rispoli remembered that there was a bar in the former Sundowner. “So, in the middle of your day, you can go there and have a drink,” he said. “I wasn’t a day drinker, but I’d run it to my communication teacher and sit with him.”
There was also a pub that was open every Thursday night in the basement of Macomb Hall; Rispoli explained that it was filled with beer.
“It was just these big kind of cartons of beer that you just kept pouring the beer and there was music, it was a big haul down there,” he said.
But the drinking community wasn’t the only active community on campus, theater was too.
Charles and Ruth Kline ran the theater department in the 80s, and Rispoli emphasized their passion for the craft. The Klines did a theater program over the summer and Rispoli was involved in those shows, too as he stayed over the summer to graduate early.
Rispoli graduated in December 1981 and headed to New York City to audition for a two-year theater program at Circle in the Square. The prestigious program accepted only 50 students out of 1,200 applicants, and then after the first year, the class was split in half — Rispoli was accepted both times.
“I always want to have hurdles in my way because I want to make sure I’m growing and I’m doing the right thing here, and so I made the cut,” Rispoli said.
After his education at Circle in the Square, Rispoli worked hard to get roles. It was always a team effort for him and his peers.
“The odds are really against you so you got to keep a good center. You have to have good support and if you do it with good and talented people who can stay focused you guys will help each other move forward,” he said.
For a few years Rispoli worked in what he calls “off-off-Broadway theater basement shows.” It took time and a lot of effort, but after a few more years the off-off Broadway transitioned to off-Broadway and then, eventually, Broadway.
“You’re doing it just for the love of doing the theater,” he said.
It was after some more plays that Rispoli started doing films and TV series as well.
“I was off in a whole different direction, but my days at Plattsburgh were always with me,” he said.
The experience and encouragement that Rispoli got at SUNY Plattsburgh empowered him to stay on the stage. He said that without the positive, like-minded people whom he surrounded himself with, he would not be where he is today.
“You got to go to a place where everybody’s doing the same thing that you’re doing. They’re all actors and they’re all saying, ‘Hey, I’m doing a play downtown, and they’re doing it in some shitty little theater basement,’” he said. “It’s great you know that’s the only thing that’s open to you, but you’re doing it.”
This leapfrogging idea is what enabled Rispoli and his peers to find connections. He shares show information with his peers, and they in turn share show information with him.
“I have found that when you’re doing well and your friends are doing well and you’re good with each other, there’s a kind of leapfrog thing,” Rispoli said. “You have to have a generosity of spirit for others and for yourself.”
Rispoli now lives in Pine Bush, New York, with his wife and three children. He still acts, his latest Broadway run ended in February 2023. There are a few movies in the works, too including “Nonnas,” directed by Stephen Chbosky. He loves the stage, but it is a big time commitment compared to movies and TV series and he enjoys his time with family.
