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Tune In: SMU Alumni Among Fall TV’s Up-and-Coming New Stars

EXCERPT: Virginia Kull ’04 and Candice Patton ’07, who earned bachelor’s degrees  in theatre at SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts, are featured in two new television shows this fall. Kull can be seen in Fox’s Gracepoint, beginning October 2, while Patton appears in The CW’s The Flash, beginning October 7. Their stories appeared in The Dallas Morning News September 19, 2014:

Dallas-area stars shine in fall TV offerings

Virginia Kull '07 in Gracepoint. Photo by Mathieu Young/Fox
Virginia Kull ’04 in Gracepoint. Photo by Mathieu Young/Fox

By David Martindale
The Dallas Morning News
Special Contributor
Dallas-area actors are making their presence felt this fall in new TV series. There must be something in the water. Meet a half-dozen of the new season’s up-and-coming stars.
Virginia Kull
Virginia Kull, a Southern Methodist University graduate and Dallas Shakespeare Festival veteran, has spent most of the past decade working on the New York stage. The Austin native is eager for friends and family all over Texas to see her performance in Fox’s Gracepoint, a dark 10-episode crime drama premiering at 8 p.m. Oct. 2. “I’m really proud of it,” says Kull, who plays the grief-stricken mother of a murdered boy. “For those who can’t come to New York to see me in a play, now they can just turn on the TV to confirm that I’m really a working actor!” Kull felt an instant connection to the role of Beth Solano. “When I read the pilot script, I could not put it down,” she says. “The words felt like they fit in my mouth. I understood who this woman was, and I thought, ‘Whoever gets to do this will be so incredibly lucky.’ Then it turned out to be me.”

Candice Patton '07 in The Flash. Photo by Jack Rowand/The CW
Candice Patton ’07 in The Flash. Photo by Jack Rowand/The CW

Candice Patton
Candice Patton, who grew up in Plano and graduated from SMU, has one minor beef with her role as Iris West in The Flash, which premieres at 7 p.m. Oct. 7, on The CW. She envies leading man Grant Gustin, who’s having a blast playing the lightning-fast superhero. “I tell my producers all the time,” Patton says. “If they ever want to strap me in leather and give me a superpower, I’m all for it. But I don’t know if we have any plans for that.” Otherwise, she’s having the time of her life as the girl Barry Allen (The Flash) is pining for. “Iris is such a beloved comic book ingénue,” she says. “Beyond that, she’s incredibly brave and strong and smart.” Patton says you don’t have to be a comic-book fan to enjoy the show. “It’s exciting, there’s a lot of action and a lot of heart,” she says.

> Read the full story
> Virginia Kull describes Beth Solano, her Gracepoint character
> Candice Patton talks about Iris, the love interest on The Flash

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