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Gwen Stefani

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Torrey loves portraying Natalie since she relates to so many different women. "She's a working, single mom, and she's in a male-dominated field in the medical field, so she's a very powerful woman who stands for what she believes, stands for other women. I just feel like I get so many rich storylines with her too, which I love so much." Chicago Med is a spin-off of Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D., both of which Torrey has had crossover appearances in. [Her real-life boyfriend Jesse Lee Soffer portrays Jay Halstead on Chicago P.D., the younger brother of her TV fiancé.] This fall, Dick Wolf's hit Chicago franchise received their own night, with Chicago Med, Chicago Fire, and Chicago P.D. all airing on Wednesday. Viewers are into Chicago Med just as much as the cast is. "We're so lucky. It's like everybody loves the work, is an amazing actor, and good people. I've never been on a show where every single person is just like, we'll be best friends, family forever." As far as characters go, Natalie ranks as Torrey's "ultimate favorite," but there's one other character that stands out for different reasons: One Tree Hill's villainous Nanny Carrie. If you need a Nanny Carrie- refresher, check out YouTube for "The Story of Nanny Carrie," a 12-minute compilation of Torrey's madcap scenes from seasons five and six. "Nanny Carrie is so iconic for me because I feel like it was so many firsts for me. It was the first time in my career that I got offered to do a job where I could actually really dig into my acting skills. I got to do some crazy stuff and show up. Paul Johansson [who played Dan Scott], the first day I came in, was like, 'Is she actually going to be able to show up and pull off this Kathy-Bates-Misery storyline?' And I was so prepared…I took home syringes to practice being crazy," she says proudly. Many recognize Torrey from her roles on The Vampire Diaries, Pretty Little Liars, Hallmark's Best Christmas Party Ever, Army Wives…, but as an OTH fan, I will always associate her with Nanny Carrie. "There's nothing that compares to One Tree Hill fans. It's the weirdest thing —it doesn't even touch the Pretty Little Liars, The Vampire Diaries fans." Torrey began modeling and acting while she was a junior in high school. Born in Huntington, New York, her family moved to Winter Park, Florida when she was 11. After 10th grade, she transferred from Winter Park High School to The Crenshaw School of Orlando. "When the whole pop craze came through Orlando, it was like pop- freakin'-central like, Mandy Moore, Justin Timberlake… All those people needed to graduate high school, so that school became the school that they finished all their work at. I graduated with 8 people. I don't know what I learned," she laughs. "I had like a 4.3 GPA. I was valedictorian in my class. I was like, 'But I was never heeeerre...'" she laughs. "I got to graduate 6 months early and head out to L.A., so I was content." Our server comes over and Torrey orders an iced, decaf Americano. Over Chicago Med's hiatus, Torrey and her father Liberty DeVitto, who is a drummer who played with Billy Joel for thirty years, filmed a PSA about parents talking to their kids about drugs and alcohol. In it, Torrey plays the violin (she's been playing since she was 6), while Liberty plays the drums. "My dad was an alcoholic, so he's always had an open conversation about that. I haven't played with my dad since I was a kid, and I was so nervous… I could tell my dad was kinda sweating reading cue cards off. It took everything inside me not to laugh, because he's trying to be natural reading these lines. But when it was my turn to go into the studio and play, I was sweating profusely because I haven't played in a studio in so long. I was like, 'Dad, help!' But it was awesome," she says with a big smile. These days, Torrey doesn't play the violin as much as she'd like, but there have been a few occasions where she was able to show off her skills, like on her TV show. "It was awesome 'cause I'd never married those two worlds. I'd been asked for projects I didn't love and I was like, 'No, that's not the right project.' So, when they asked me for this, I was really excited to do that." In one episode, Torrey plays Bach Double with a patient ("It was actually very emotional."), and in the other, she participates in a jam session with Dr. Latham. She has also performed at a couple of weddings, including her friend's wedding, where she played Elvis' 'Can't Help Falling in Love,' and at Christie Brinkley and Ted Cook's 1996 nuptials. "I think I was 11, or something like that, I was pretty young," she says of the latter, who is an old family friend, connected through Billy Joel. "I played while she walked down the aisle." Had Torrey not become an actress, she could've easily followed in her father's footsteps and become a musician. There was a time that Torrey questioned whether the world of acting was really for her. While shooting OTH, she became a little depressed. Still fairly new to the entertainment industry at 24 years old, being on set all day in the reconditioned air, surrounded by people who didn't exactly share her mindset was an adjustment. "I love acting so it had nothing to do with that, sometimes you're not necessarily around people who just love acting and are there for the right reasons and it can be a little disheartening." She developed a close friendship with Michaela McManus, who portrayed Lindsey on OTH, but they were both recurring characters, often traveling, so they didn't see each other regularly. So, when Torrey wasn't on set, she was alone in her hotel room playing the brain game on her Nintendo DS. To raise her spirits, she looked into volunteering with children. "I Googled working with kids, and hospice popped up. I had actually never heard of hospice and

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