Actor discovers one way to reduce the tension of hypertension is having Denver Actors Fund financial support
Aid recipient: Peter Trinh is a longtime Denver-based actor, playwright and stand-up comedian who most recently appeared in David Byrne’s “Theater of the Mind” for the Denver Center for the Performing Arts’ Off-Center (as “David”!). Last summer, Peter was nominated for a Colorado Theatre Guild Henry Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Play for his work in Benchmark Theatre’s “You Will Get Sick.” Before that, he was featured in Miners Alley Playhouse’s “The Treasurer,” coincidentally directed by Denver Actors Fund founder John Moore (who is not a voting DAF board member). Peter was the Assistant Artistic Director for Theatre Esprit Asia, where he starred in “Dust Storm” and has twice performed his one-man play, “Boat Person,” based on his parents’ escape from Vietnam in 1982. Peter, a native Vietnamese speaker, is the first person on either side of his family to be born on American soil. Other credits include Colorado Springs TheatreWorks’ “Around the World in Eighty Days” and The Catamounts’ “Everybody.” Want more? He’s also appeared at Bas Bleu Theatre in Fort Collins (“Boat Person”), the Aurora Fox (“Chinglish”), Vintage Theatre (“The Oldest Boy,” “Joy Luck Club”) and many others. Peter graduated from Arvada West High School and Metropolitan State University, and is the father of two boys.
His medical story: Peter was diagnosed with hypertension when he was 27, but the blessing and the curse of having recently graduated to a full-time life as an actor included no longer having a job with health insurance. At the end of 2019, and having been off his medication for a time, Peter landed in the hospital with dangerously high blood pressure. Hypertension can manifest itself in many ways, including sleep apnea, and subsequent visits to doctors and emergency rooms have not been uncommon.
How we helped: For his 2019 hospital visit, the Denver Actors Fund Board of Directors voted to pay the full $1,049 Peter incurred in direct medical expenses. More recently, the DAF covered Peter’s $1,607 in out-of-pocket medical expenses. On a separate note, because the life of an actor also rarely means having dental insurance, we arranged for Peter to see a dentist for the first time in four years and have his teeth cleaned, gratis. Including a pandemic COVID stipend (but not the complimentary dental visit), the DAF’s overall financial support for Peter since 2019 is now $2,908.
A message from Peter: “Thanks to The Denver Actors Fund, my bills will not spiral and pummel my credit as I scramble to chip away at them, bit by bit. My gratitude swells, knowing that The Denver Actors fund provides answers where people in our industry usually find dead-ends. The Colorado theater community is blessed to have The Denver Actors Fund.”
‘The Colorado theater community is blessed to have The Denver Actors Fund‘
How you can help us replenish: At The Denver Actors Fund, we love it when the money goes out as fast as it comes in, which means we are in a constant state of replenishment. That’s the gig. If you would like to help us keep up, simply mail checks in any amount made out to Denver Actors Fund to P.O. Box 11182, Denver, CO 80212. Or use this donation link, with our humble thanks,
Read testimonials from other Denver Actors Fund beneficiaries here, or click on a recent name below:
KENT SUGG, $8,413
LYNNE HASTINGS: $1,309
BRITTNI AND LAVOUR ADDISON: $13,361
ANDY BRUENING: $1,406
The Denver Actors Fund has now made $1,150,000 available to more than 540 Colorado theater artists. Read testimonials from other Denver Actors Fund beneficiaries here
Note: At The Denver Actors Fund, anonymity of aid recipients is presumed and fully protected, unless and until the recipient chooses to have their story told.
HOW YOU CAN HELP US REPLENISH:
To DONATE the Denver Actors Fund, please CLICK HERE (with our humble thanks)
ABOUT THE DENVER ACTORS FUND:
Video above: The Denver Actors Fund receives the Colorado Theatre Guild’s 2016 Community Impact Award.
The Denver Actors Fund is a source of immediate, situational relief when members of the local theater community find themselves in medical need. In addition to financial relief, a team of more than 100 Denver Actors Fund volunteers offers good neighborly assistance including meal prep and delivery, child care, transportation, errands, construction, pet-sitting and more. For more information, visit our web site at DenverActorsFund.Org.
HOW TO APPLY FOR AID:
To apply for Denver Actors Fund aid: Fill out this brief online form here
MORE WAYS TO HELP:
DONATE BY MAIL:
Send checks made out to the Denver Actors Fund to:
P.O. Box 11182
Denver, CO 80211
VOLUNTEER:
Ever thought about taking a more active role in The Denver Actors Fund? Click here for more information
SHOP AT KING SOOPERS
Sign up for King Soopers’ Community Rewards Program and raise money for The DAF just by shopping for your groceries – and it doesn’t cost you an extra penny. To sign up, simply go here and designate The DAF as your preferred non-profit. Each quarter, King Soopers sends us a donation based on how much our supporters have spent. Thanks to all of you who are shopping for The DAF.
DONATE YOUR CAR
The Denver Actors Fund is now registered to accept vehicle donations, thanks to a new partnership with Vehicles for Charity. You can turn your unwanted but usable vehicle into greatly appreciated funds for The Denver Actors Fund. The process is simple. The DAF will receive 80 percent of auction proceeds, and a receipt for the donation will be sent to you that can be used for tax purposes. Read all about it here.
VOLUNTEER:
Ever thought about taking a more active role in the Denver Actors Fund? Click here for more information
COME TO THE EVENTS THAT SUPPORT US:
MONDAY, APRIL 24: Our great friends at Town Hall Arts Center are continuing their incredible commitment to designate one performance per run with 100 percent of all proceeds from ticket and concession sales to be donated to The Denver Actors Fund. Join us for “La Cage Aux Folles.” In St. Tropez, there is a drag club owned by devoted husbands Georges and Albin (who is also the star attraction). Life is good. Then their son, Jean-Michele, drops a bomb: He is getting married to a woman whose father is a homophobic, conservative politician. To ensure a smooth “meet the parents,” Georges and Albin try to act “normal” – leading to a night of chaos and hilarity. Directed and choreographed by Nathan Halverson, with music direction and tracks created by Phil Forman. Tickets only $27 (normally as much as $52). Reserve your seats at 303-794-2787 or townhallartscenter.org.
MONDAY, APRIL 24: The Vintage Theatre in Aurora has undertaken its largest production since “Angels in America” in 2010 with “The Inheritance,” a two-part, six-hour play by Matthew Lopez (“The Legend of Georgia McBride”). And they have designated 50 percent of all proceeds from both Industry Nights as a donation to the Denver Actors Fund. (Part 1 already happened, and April 24 is Part 2). “The Inheritance” updates E.M. Forster’s novel “Howards End” as a treatise on gay life for three generations of men in present-day New York. A critic for The Daily Telegraph called it “perhaps the most important American play of this century.” NOTE: 7 p.m. start! Information and tickets here.
MONDAY, APRIL 24: Our NEW friends at Boulder’s Happy Dagger Inc. (welcome!) are hosting an Industry Night performance of Duncan Macmillan’s achingly wonderful play “Every Brilliant Thing” at R Gallery + Wine Bar, 2027 Broadway in Boulder. Thank you, Todd Morton and Sean Mallary, and company! Part of the proceeds from the evening will be donated to The Denver Actors Fund. Reserve your seat at eventbrite.com. (Note: Although there is laughter and a beautiful spirit that carries this piece, the story deals with suicide, and the principal character struggles with mental health issues.)
SATURDAY, APRIL 29: Clover & Bee Productions is staging a reading of Oscar Wilde’s “The Importance of Being Earnest” at the Savoy Denver that will reunite much of the cast from the Breckenridge Backstage Theater’s 2021 production. The play includes two self-absorbed ingénues, jealous fiancées, one haughty dowager, and the most infamous handbag in British history. Directed by Jessica Robblee. All proceeds will go to The Denver Actors Fund. Appetizers and drinks at 6:30 p.m., reading at 7:30 p.m.
MONDAY, MAY 8: 11 Minutes Theatre Company is staging “Elizabeth Rex” as a DAF benefit. It’s a funny and provocative drama about a group of Shakepeare’s actors, including Shakespeare himself, as they duel and banter with each and Queen Elizabeth. 7:30 p.m. at The People’s Building, 9995 E. Colfax Ave. Info at 11minutestheatre.com.
THROUGH JUNE 25: This just in! During its entire run of “Cats,” The Candlelight will be collecting once again for the Denver Actors Fund at ALL performances. Incredible! 4747 Marketplace Dr. in Johnstown. Tickets at 970-744-3747 or coloradocandlelight.com.
VISIT OUR ONLINE MERCH STORE:
Click here to see how you can buy DAF products such as T-shirts, key chains, puzzles and much more.
