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recitals and plays popped up on the school calendar, Germanotta jumped at the chance to be a part of the productions. She often snagged a leading role, too. These shows, held in front of small audiences composed mostly of family and fellow students, are where the first hints of her singing and acting talents bubbled to the surface. For children who discover something they are good at, their confidence blooms, and they crave more experiences and opportunities. That’s exactly what happened with Germanotta, who loved the stage and the thrill of performing so much that she began taking acting classes on Saturdays to supplement what she was learning during her days at school. Sopranos Scene By her mid-teen years, Germanotta’s dreams of what she hoped to do with her life were evolving and beginning to take shape. It became more evident that she possessed those special qualities required to thrive in the super-competitive entertainment industry. Germanotta had the talent, the self-belief, and the all-important drive to make it happen. At 15, she hit the acting jackpot by appearing in an episode of The Sopranos , the award winning HBO series that centered on a fictional mob family. While her scene was brief, didn’t include a big speaking part, and didn’t turn any heads in Hollywood at the time—it involved laughing, smoking, and eating pizza in a high school gymnasium—it gave her a chance to be around professionals dedicated to the acting craft and a behind-the-scenes peek at how scenes are put together. While Germanotta looks back on that scene now and cringes over her performance, pointing out in interviews all the mistakes she made, it was a significant moment in her journey. Led Zeppelin Fan There were a lot of dark days during her middle school and high school years as she was tormented, teased, and a frequent target of bullying from other students who picked on her for everything from how she looked to how she dressed. All the hurtful comments that were hurled her way stung deeply and left emotional scars still present all these years later. Amid all

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a star is born