By Sophie Pappas

Bold, brash and sexually-charged is how Fishers native and actress Tiffany Dissette describes her character in the musical theatre parody “50 Shades! The Musical.”
The show follows Pam, played by Dissette, as the leader of a women’s book club that is reading the well-known erotic novel “50 Shades of Grey.”
The off-Broadway production is in the home stretch of its first U.S. tour.
“Being in a new musical on its first national tour is kind of a big deal,” Dissette said. “It’s been a whirlwind.”
Ever since making her mark at Hamilton Southeastern High School, Dissette said she’s had a love of performing.
“I’ve been a performer since I was 3 years old and in dance classes,” she said. “Hamilton Southeastern has such a good drama and choir program I learned so much there. Plus the teachers were really, really influential in my decision to do this for a living.”
She graduated from HSE in 2006 and went on to pursue a degree in Fine Arts from Western Michigan University. Following that she toured on cruise ships as a lead singer for two years before moving to New York City and starting auditions for musical theater.
“My real passion is acting,” Dissette said. “The exciting part about ‘50 Shades’ is that it started as a sketch comedy and now it is touring North America with all original music. And it’s so funny. People are rolling by the end of it.”
Dissette will conclude her tour with “50 Shades! The Musical” in May, when the troupe settles in Los Angeles to perform for five weeks. She said she plans on staying in Los Angeles with her boyfriend to find a manager and start auditioning for film and television roles.
“I feel really lucky,” Dissette said. “I’m getting paid to do what I love.”

“50 Shades! The Musical” ● Old National Center ● 502 N. New Jersey St. in Indianapolis ● 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. Jan. 25 ● Tickets start at $51.50 ● For more information call 231-0000 or visit www.50shadesthemusical.com