Nurse plays a doctor on TV
Having worked as a nurse for years, Terry Garcia was used to putting in lots of hours and even more steps while on the job.
She did not expect that experience to come in handy while working on the set of a TV hospital, but the 14-hour day was a familiar shift to her.
Garcia, of Butler, was cast as a background extra on the HBO Max show, “The Pitt,” in September, and filmed for the show Sept. 18 in Pittsburgh. The show is set in the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Center and focuses on the staff of the hospital over the course of 15 hours.
While she may only appear in the background of the show, Garcia said people can recognize her by both her costume — scrubs — and the name tag her character wears.
“They also told me in my information to bring clothes that would be appropriate for a doctor to wear … They gave me scrubs,” Garcia said. “Then I got my name tag that had my real last name on it.”
This is the first time Garcia has thrown herself into show business, but she said she was intrigued by the idea of it after hearing that a casting agency was looking for extras for the show.
Some viewers consider the show to be a continuation of the 1994 show, “ER,” which shares a star with “The Pitt” in actor Noah Wyle. A fan of “ER,” Garcia said she went for it with “The Pitt” somewhat as a lark.
“I'm a big fan of ‘ER.’ I watched the entire series on one of the streaming services and I did know it was for ‘The Pitt,’ which I had never seen,” Garcia said. “I hurried up and got HBO and binged it. I had the whole thing done except for a half hour and then I had to go.”
Garcia said she found an advertisement for the casting on a social media site and submitted an application online. She explained she then had to send the casting agency photos of her face and full body and she needed to provide her “measurements.”
It bothered her a little, to share details about her body she wasn’t even sure of, but she went ahead with the application — and sent a photo with a regional touch.
“My whole body picture is (a selfie) from Sheetz,” Garcia said.
Only two days later, Garcia got a response email saying she was welcome to be an extra on the show. A later email notified her that her call time was 10:14 a.m. the following day, Sept. 18. Garcia noted the call time was “down to the minute” and in a location on the North Side.
Upon arriving to the call location, Garcia and other extras were shuttled to another part of town, where the day’s filming would take place.
She got outfitted with her character’s costume and then met a Butler County Area Vocational-Technical School alumna in the makeup tent before getting photos taken of her from every angle for continuity’s sake.
Garcia said she was amazed at how many people were on the set and how many times the cast and crew ran through the same scene over and over again. Filming took place outside and she got slathered with liquid to imitate sweat, which she said was kind of unnecessary because of how hot it was on the day she filmed.
“I had to be in certain places doing certain things. I felt a little bit of nervousness because if I messed up I would have to do it again,” Garcia said. “This was in September and it was one of those days that was so stinking hot.
“That day I put on 9,700 steps and never left a two-block radius.”
Garcia didn’t meet any of the show’s stars, but she said she spoke with some other extras and background actors throughout the day.
To her, the gig was rewarding because she saw a little “TV magic” and because it was something she did on her own after looking for new experiences following the death of her husband.
“I lost my husband a couple years ago. I took care of him. I got socially isolated, doctor's appointments, various things,” Garcia said. “I wanted to do something that I could do without anyone else’s help.”
Season two of “The Pitt” is currently airing with new episodes being released every Thursday until April 16. Garcia said she has not spotted herself in the show yet, but the experience of working on set was rewarding in its own right.
“It was one of the best days of my life,” Garcia said. I had so much fun and I had no idea how many people were involved in a television show and how much equipment, how much they rehearse.”
