2015 SHS alumna training with actor Billy Hufsey

STRONGSVILLE – A 2015 Strongsville High School graduate has her sights set on the stars. Elizabeth Ivanovic’s budding vocal career will soon take her to Hollywood, Calif. where she will be in the midst of entertainment industry stars.

She will be attending the American Musical and Dramatic Academy, which is located across from the Capitol Records building.
Ivanovic has been training for the past handful of months under the tutelage of Billy Hufsey, best known for his role as Christopher Donion on the 1980s television show “Fame” and as Emilio Ramirez on the soap opera “Days of Our Lives.”

Hufsey remembers the light bulb moment when he decided to purse acting as a career. He was 14 and another five years passed before, as he states, “could build the courage.”

“I was relatively shy,” he said.

He put Ivanovic on the spot during an event in support of the Impact Youth Mentoring Program at the Brook Park Recreation Center June 3. The SHS alumna hit it out of the park during a rendition of “I Will Always Love You” made famous by the late Whitney Houston.

Hufsey keeps busy performing in concert and on Broadway. His performance coaching of some of the most talented young people in the industry is where his focus seems to be nowadays.

Breathing techniques are the key to getting the most out of one’s God-given voice.

“It’s easier for me to teach someone how to breathe when I’m pressing the flesh. What happens if you live in Italy? What happens if you live in Cleveland?” Hufsey said. “You can train via Skype, but to get a job you have to get to L.A. The key to success is preparation meeting opportunity.”

Technology has made a difference in all areas of our lives and that is certainly true when it comes to connecting with someone hundreds, if not thousands, of miles away. Even though Ivanovic and Hufsey, a Brook Park native, rarely meet face to face, their Skype sessions have proved to be invaluable.

Hufsey has a school in L.A. and a school in Las Vegas, Skyping with people all over the world. “I prefer to see my clients a few times first, but when it comes to singing it’s all about your ears,” he said. The proof is certainly in the pudding, as Hufsey has gotten more than 300 individuals on television series and in movies.

Ivanovic has known she wanted to pursue the area of vocal performance, perhaps the musical theatre, for some time.
“I just want to be a performer,” she said. “I love singing. That’s my passion. I’m leaving my life with the big man upstairs. Whatever happens happens.”

The changes in her voice and range have been dramatic since working with Hufsey for the past three months.
“All I’ve ever been told is, ‘You’re an alto. You can’t sing any higher than that,’” Ivanovic said. “I don’t even sound like the same person.”

It was her mother, Marie, who made the connection her daughter with Hufsey. “I emailed him and sent some videos of her performing,” Marie Ivanovic said. “He contacted me and said he would take her.”

There are vocal coaches throughout the world. Why was Hufsey at the top of the list? “He’s a phenomenal teacher and gets through to her very well,” Marie Ivanovic said. “With Elizabeth being an athlete her whole life they have that common ground and knows he can push her.”

Elizabeth has been somewhat of a caged Mustang. She has wanted to pursue singing at a higher level, but her mother has pulled in the reins. That is until recently. “She’s always wanted to take off and do things her whole life. I always made her,” Marie Ivanovic said. “Now that she’s graduated and getting ready to take off I know that Billy’s the one.”
Hufsey states that he can tell when someone has innate, natural ability. Then there is that intangible that sets apart – tenacity.

Show business is the hardest business in which to break into and even harder to achieve sustained success, according to Hufsey. “There are so many particulars and ramifications involved in just getting an audition, let alone getting the job,” Hufsey said. “You must continue to grow and get better at your craft to be able to sustain. You have to learn how to reinvent yourself.”

There were approximately 40,000 actors that auditioned for the part of Christopher Donion on “Fame.” Hufsey had 11 callbacks before he was offered the role. He took a risk years ago that paid off. Now he is advising others to do the same. “The risk is not taking the risk,” Hufsey said.

Moving to L.A. is a risk worth taking for Elizabeth Ivanovic.