David Alpay

ABOUT DAVID ALPAY

as Mark Smeaton

Date of Birth: October 6, 1980

Birth Place: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Nickname: Dave

Eye Color: Hazel

Height: 5'10" (1.78 m)

Family: Yegsabet and Ara Alpay (Parents), Yasmin Alpay

Education: Attended the University of Toronto (2005) to pursue a Masters in History of medicine, holds honors degree in human biology and zoology

Actor Bio:

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CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

Non-acting careers:

screenplay writing, executive producer, has played principal violin for the Canadian Dance Tapestry since 1994
a member of the Tim Robbins and the Rogues Gallery band

Upcoming Projects:

The Vampire Diaries (filming) (2012)

Movies:

Americana (2012)
Weekends at Bellevue (2011)
Unstable (2009)
Ten for Grandpa (2009)
Inconceivable (2008)
All Hat (2007)
Closing of the Ring (2007)
Man of the Year (2006)
Category 7: The End of the World (2005)
Anniversary Present (2005)
Sabah (2005)
Ararat(2002)

TV Shows:

The Borgias (2012)
Rizzoli Isles (2011)
Fairly Legal (2011)
Miami Medical (2010)
Dollhouse (2009)
Billable Hours (2007)
Martha: Behind Bars (2005)
Burnt Toast (2005)
Slings and Arrows (2005)
Kevin Hill (2005)
Whiskey Echo (2005)
Wild Card (2004)

Stage: Tiny parts in student productionsand several other Stage roles in Toronto.

Big break: Ararat

Best known for: His role in Ararat

Awards:

Nominated for a Genie 2003 for Best performace by an actor in a leading role for Ararat

Nominated for a Gemini 2008 for Best Ensemble Performance in a Comedy Program or Series for Billable Hours

Talk about...

David Alpay

MEMORABLE QUOTES

“He was kind of this beautiful thing at a time that was getting darker and darker,” Alpay says of his Tudors character. "The king was diving into this mania having changed everything about England to be with this one woman. Smeaton was like a streak of bright crimson against that very black canvas.” Alpay read up on his character, but had a hard time finding enough details to give him a complete picture of Smeaton. Tudors writer Michael Hirst, who is known for spending the majority of his time squirreled away writing, eventually filled out Smeaton one night over dinner with Alpay. “He said to imagine the 16th century and imagine traveling back in time and we’re courtiers, but we’re just a little out of synch – we don’t know the codes, we don’t know the mores, we don’t know the right way to do things,” Alpay says. “That’s who Mark Smeaton is – he’s a time traveller.” The actor says Hirst’s explanation put Smeaton into a context he could understand. “Because, really, what do we have in common with people from the 16th century,” Alpay asks. “It was a horrible place where your live expectancy was very short; people p---ed standing up in their pants.” After a brief conversation about toilets in the 16th century (for the record, it was invented in the late 1500s but was not used until the 1800s), Alpay reveals that the pressure of playing a character so apart from the rest of Henry VIII’s court was a huge amount of pressure. “I was s---ting myself the whole time I was there,” he says frankly. “I think that’s why I was going on these hikes. I would get on the train out of Dublin and walk for three hours through the mountains. I spent more time wandering around that country than I have ever wandered anywhere in my life. I don’t know what I was looking for. I don’t know what I was trying to find.” [source: AOL Posted: 09/23/08 By SORAYA ROBERTS ]

"When Smeaton was dragged up to be executed he’s got this bravado about him, he’s like, “of all the people about to have their heads chopped off I’m the only one who deserves it,” and I thought wow, his bravado and cheekiness, he’s celebrating the fact he slept with Anne Boleyn. And what does Michael do? He creates a guy who is possibly Anne Boleyn’s only real friend, who was emotionally available to her when even her husband wasn’t. And in the end when they torture this false confession out of him, when he turns around and says he’s the only one who deserves this death he’s not saying I’m the only one here who slept with her, he’s saying I betrayed my best friend and I deserve this death. It completely changes things. It’s stunning." [David Alpay on his character in an interview with NOW Magazine]

“I never told them that I didn’t have an English accent. I kind of auditioned with an accent and just kinda got the part and bluffed my way through, I guess.”

“What’s really cool is that the show refuses to provide answers like that on the surface,” Alpay says, “and it’s not until the last two episodes of the season that we really find out what’s happening, and it’s heartbreaking, actually. Smeaton and Anne aren’t out to get the king or screw around and cause trouble. They’re just two people who, in a way, really love each other and care about each other, but the environment, the society that they live in, that has a really hard time with that. There’s a social friction that’s the kernel that grows into bigger problems later on. He’s a very innocent character who isn’t duplicitous, but seen through Henry’s eyes he seems that way. The history books though have kind of favoured Henry’s viewpoint.” [Metro News. CA]

FUN FACTS

Plays the violin & is part of the Rogues Gallery band that backs Tim Robbins

From classroom to red carpet (Toronto Star article)

Pursued a Masters in the History of Medicine

FAN SITES

Official Facebook Fanpage

Tumblr

Twitter

PHOTOS


	photographed at the CBC by Christopher Manson.

David in "The Borgias" - Season Two Episode 8, Truth and lies
David Alpay (right) in "Closing the Ring"
The article refers to him as "sleek and sultry" at an event hosted by showtime in 2008	1999 U of T Brain Olympiad winner David Alpay wins U.S. National Brain Bee

David Alpay Picture Page 1
David Alpay Picture Page 2

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	Kittywake09		David Alpay joins The Borgias for Season 2	0	Aug 19 2011, 3:38 PM EDT by Kittywake09
			Thread started: Aug 19 2011, 3:38 PM EDT Watch David will be joining the Borgias for Season 2. Read more about who he will play here. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/ustv/news/a336031/david-alpay-signs-up-for-the-borgias-role.html 2 out of 3 found this valuable. Do you find this valuable? Do you? Keyword tags: David Alpay Season 2 The Borgias Post reply

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David Alpay

ABOUT DAVID ALPAY

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