Catching up with Mandy Musgrave

Mandy Musgrave portrayed Carol Lockhart on General Hospital, a former Day of Dawn member turned dog-owning waitress in the small town of Beecher's Corners, who took the fall for Shiloh regarding the death of Willow’s father, Douglas Miller. Michael wants her to testify against Shiloh and visits her at the diner where she works. Jason attempts to bring Carol to Port Charles but is thwarted when the small town police force turns out to be under Shiloh’s influence and throws Jason in jail. Sam goes undercover as a waitress in order to get Carol’s statement, in hopes of exposing Shiloh and helping Willow.

​I was able to chat with Mandy about her roles on General Hospital and Days of Our Lives, keeping in touch with her South of Nowhere cast mates, and working with her husband, Matt Cohen (ex-Griffin Munro, General Hospital).

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions. Days of Our Lives fans will remember you as Bo and Billie’s daughter Georgia/Chelsea Benson, a role you played from January 2004 to December 2005. Was that your first acting role?
My first acting role where I had dialogue was actually on Drake and Josh. I had one line “Hey, Drake, looking cool”.  But my first in-depth, steady, job was Days of Our Lives. I even had my first on screen kiss there.

Who was it that you shared your first onscreen kiss with?
Brody Hutzler.

Patrick Lockhart! I remember Chelsea was obsessed with him but I didn't realize you'd kissed. He was twice your age! 
(laughs)
Yes, that was the one! He was twice my height too! But a gentleman and a true professional. There was a scene in a pool hall where my character was trying to drug and seduce his character and he believes that he is kissing another woman.

How did acting on a soap opera prepare you for your acting career?
Memorization! The skills that you gain from working on a soap in general help you to be ready for anything. Changes on the spot happen daily and you have to be ready to roll with the punches.

Your most well-known role is Ashley Davies on the N’s South of Nowhere and you’ve been on shows such as 90210, CSI, and The King of Queens, but it's been several years since you were last on TV. I know you’ve been keeping busy as a stay-at-home mom to your son, so how did the part on General Hospital come about?
Well, my husband (ex-Griffn Munro, Matt Cohen) and I planned on alternating jobs once our son was born. But he booked General Hospital just a month after our son’s birth. And that kept him busy non-stop for 3 years. So when he left General Hospital, it allowed me to go back to auditioning. General Hospital was one of my first auditions back and I just so happened to book it. Many people didn’t know that there was any relation between Matt and myself, as I go by Mandy Musgrave.

What was it like returning to daytime TV so many years later?
Fantastic! I love how well-oiled the soap machine is. Although it takes time to get in the rhythm. Especially if you haven’t acted in 4 years!  

Talk about jumping right back into it your General Hospital character Carol is tied to some of the most prominent characters on the Port Charles canvas. What was it like working with Steve Burton, Kelly Monaco, and Chad Duell?
It was absolutely refreshing. Steve Burton is a true gentleman. You can tell that he is a valued part of the team. He never interrupts. He helps other actors if needed and he takes time to get to know everyone. Chad, what a kind professional with an intoxicating smile. I worked with him on a day where he had an obscene amount of dialogue. I truly don’t know how he did it; they have a blessing having him there. Kelly Monaco is so beautiful, it’s intimidating. Then she starts talking and smiling and she lights up the room. She was open to running lines with anyone and she was great at developing her character and making choices.

You and Matt recently put out a short film called Mama Bear that you starred in as the title character and Matt directed. What are the plans for the full length version?
The plan is for it to happen! I stay out of everything for the most part and just do the acting. Mama Bear has been Matt’s pride and joy. The writer Lee Ehlers is a wonderful writer with many other projects available. We have all been friends for many years and have found a good partnership with combined talents. They work well together because of their ambition, drive, and passion.

Are you working on anything else that you can tell us about?
Not at the moment. I am trying to slowly find balance between working and moming. It’s working out beautifully.

If you could choose, what would your dream role be?
This is always a challenging question because it changes. I believe that doing a comedy would be wonderful for me. I did love the action in Mama Bear. So a superhero would be fun as well.

The last time I saw you was at the South of Nowhere reunion fan event we put together in 2013. At that time, we were trying to generate interest in a South of Nowhere reboot. You and several of the cast even filmed some scenes, showing where the characters may have ended up, that was circulated online. Is a reboot still a possibility?
Oh, it always is. Just a matter of the right people being passionate along with us. But every cast member would happily return to South of Nowhere.

Is there a chance we’ll see you as Carol on General Hospital again?
You know as well as I do. But yes, it is possible.

Maybe down the line you and Matt could both re-assume your roles on General Hospital and Carol and Griffin could rival Aiden and Ashley for best couple- the fans would go wild!
(laughs)
That would be fun, wouldn’t it?! Matt said the same thing!

Speaking of Matt, you’ve had the opportunity to work with him on several projects, both as actors playing off one another and also with him taking on producing and directing projects you were acting in. What’s it like working with your husband? Is it different to be directed by him or do you both just "get in the zone?”
At first we both feared the positions of power that we were in. Neither of us like being told what to do. But he is a talented director with a vision. He trusted my instincts and I trusted his. He allowed me to explore and have time to myself to get into character and I had to remember to give him space and turn off "spouse mode." We worked surprisingly well together in those roles.

Since we’re talking about working well together, you still keep up with your South of Nowhere on-screen love interest Gabrielle Christian and you worked with fellow South of Nowhere cast members Aasha, Maeve, and Valery Ortiz on Cowgirl Up, would you be open to doing another web series with the South of Nowhere cast? What plot or premise would you like to take on?
Oh, of course! I would love to work with them again. Any and all! It would be fun to do a “Bridesmaids” type of project with them! We always have so much fun together.

So, you and Matt are both actors, Matt directs and produces, you also sing and paint, and now Matt is hosting for Entertainment Tonight. Your son is still young, but does he also like to create and perform like his parents? Do you foresee him following in your footsteps and being in the Entertainment business?
We honestly had no desire to push him into our industry, but he is a natural entertainer. He sings and acts out scenes all the time. He loves having an audience. He has not one shy bone in his body. We actually took him on a commercial audition once and he booked it. We ended up turning it down for various reasons, but again, he is a natural.

Well, who knows, maybe we’ll see him pop up on a soap one of these days, like his parents. Thanks again for talking with us!
Thank you! It’s so nice to talk with you again.

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