"NICE TO MEET YOU" - SOW:

Every college senior should be as lucky as Melissa Gallo. The day she finished her last final exam at New York University she got a job. And not just any old job -- a contract role as Dorian's daughter Adriana on One Life to Live.

Weekly Were you more excited to finish school or get a great job?
Gallo "It was so crazy! I had one really hard exam and it was my last one. After I took it I called my family and said, 'I'm done, I graduated!' I was so excited. Then five hours later I found out I got [OLTL]. It was a little overwhelming. I thought, 'I can't tell anybody this. My friends will hate me.' But it was a wonderful day that I will remember forever."

Weekly Had you auditioned for anything else?
Gallo "Not really. I started auditioning in October, and I got one national commercial for Verizon. This was my second soap opera audition."

Weekly What was the other one?
Gallo "Guiding Light, to play Marina. And then I auditioned for this. I actually didn't get a call-back at first and then [a different ABC] casting director came to my school for a showcase, so I met with her one-on-one. Then, a few days later, I had a call-back. It was pretty lucky."

Weekly Robin Strasser (Dorian) thinks you look like her when she was in her 20s
Gallo "Some people have said that. Also, when Laura [Koffman] came back to play Cassie everybody said, 'Oh my God, you guys could be sisters. Robin definitely helps me out. I have been learning so much from her and Tuc [Watkins, David]."

Weekly Had you watched the show before?
Gallo "No, because I was always in school. But I have a cousin who's a huge fan. When I was up for the role she filled me in on everything. I was all caught up in 10 minutes. We said, 'Wow, we didn't know you were such a big fan.' She had been watching it for years."

Weekly Do you speak Spanish?
Gallo "I don't speak it fluently, but I can get by. I speak Spanglish. I had to speak Spanish on the show a couple of times, which was fine. I call my parents and make sure that my pronunciation is good."

Weekly Tell us more about your family
Gallo "I come from a big Cuban family, a lot of whom reside in the New York area. That's the best part of getting a big job, is your family being excited for you -- especially my parents, who shelled out a lot for college, dance classes and acting classes. It's so good to be able to give something back and say, 'See, your investment was worth it.' My dad's favorite joke over Christmas was 'Melissa was an unemployed actress for four hours."






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