What Has Nell Geisslinger’s Career Journey Been Like?
Nell Geisslinger’s career in theatre began in 2002 when she joined the acting company at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival OSF as an intern, participating in different productions. Her roles included Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire, Louison in The Imaginary Invalid, and Portia in Medea/Macbeth/Cinderella. She also performed at other esteemed theaters such as the Utah Shakespeare Festival, South Coast Repertory, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, and Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park. She brought characters to life with original music and lyrics, and engages in creative collaborations with other artists.
She made her first screen appearance in the 1990 miniseries It, based on Stephen King’s novel. She later portrayed Christina in the series Jewels. More recently, she appeared in the short films The Ride Home and Abby & Jack in 2019, where she showcased her versatility as an actress. She has been an additional crew member in the TV series Food: Fact or Fiction for 4 episodes from 2016 to 2017. From 2017 to 2019, she was the senior story producer of 45 episodes of the TV series Food: Fact or Fiction.
Nell is a talented musician and puppeteer. She is a founding member of the band The Meriwethers, which performs original songs across the Western United States. She plays piano and guitar, and she often provides backup vocals. Nell is set to return to the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s acting company in 2025 and perform in the productions of Julius Caesar and As You Like It.
Nell Geisslinger Early Life and Family
Nell Geisslinger was born on December 15, 1983, in Los Angeles and grew up in Ashland, Oregon. Her parents are actress Annette O’Toole and actor Bill Geisslinger. Her father was a veteran actor at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Nell’s parents had successful careers in the entertainment industry, and this exposure influenced her career path, as her mother would take her along with her to work. Her stepfather introduced her to The Kinks and Steeleye Span, and this sparked a love for 1960s pop, rock, and folk.
She graduated in 2001 from Crossroads School in Santa Monica, California, with honors in Arts and Sciences. She attended Bennington College in Vermont but left after one term to pursue her passion for acting. Her sister, Anna Geisslinger, is also an actress. She has two stepbrothers, Colin and Fletcher, from her mother’s marriage to actor Michael McKean. In 2023, Nell married Kevin O’Briant, an archaeologist and historian, in Missoula, Montana. As a couple, they have incorporated puppetry into their artistic world, and they are involved in the Día de Los Muertos parade in Missoula.
