Vanessa Mathison. Photo Courtesy of Cameron Mathison.
Vanessa Mathison chatted about playing Mia on the hit ABC daytime drama “General Hospital” and her love for traveling with her family.
Legendary comedian Groucho Marx once said: “Behind every successful man is a woman, behind her is his wife.” This quote applies to Vanessa Mathison, who is the wife of actor, TV host, presenter, and athlete Cameron Mathison.
On her acting debut on “General Hospital,” Mathison said, “Well, ‘General Hospital’ is this iconic show. I grew up watching it and I have always been a fan. It was just a dream.”
“Looking back, I still can’t believe that I actually did it. That’s how incredible it was. It seems like it didn’t happen, and it is something that I will never forget. It is pretty cool to say that I spent two days in Port Charles,” she added.
Vanessa had great words about working with Cameron Mathison and Laura Wright on the hit ABC soap opera “General Hospital.” “I never thought, in a million years, that I would be able to share the screen with Cameron. That was a pretty cool experience. Cameron was so supportive, he knew how nervous was and he held my hand the whole way. He knew his lines as well as mine. I was lucky to be able to have him as my scene partner.”
“Working with Laura Wright was amazing. I look up to her and I admire her and the career that she has had. Laura is so talented and she is just a total queen in my book. It was a privilege to work with an actress of that caliber, I felt very honored,” she added.
Vanessa was drawn to her character, Mia, for many reasons. “Mia is a strong, independent, and confident businesswoman. I just loved stepping into that role and playing it. Mia was just so fun. It’s completely opposite of what I normally do during the day. It was really cool to play Mia,” she said.
On her daily motivations, she said, “I am motivated by my kids and my family. They are my life right now.” “We are going to empty-nesters soon so I am really cherishing every single moment I can with them,” she said.
She shared that her plans for the future are to do “more traveling.” “Obviously, traveling to where our kids end up in school, and hopefully, we will be visiting those two places a lot,” she said.
“The travel that we do as a family is really some of my proudest moments. We are so lucky that we have the ability to show our kids the world. You can’t learn what travel teaches from anywhere else,” she said.
“Traveling exposes our kids to other cultures, history, languages, customs, and different cuisines. Travel teaches people to be humble because we realize how small we are. It teaches us how important something as simple as a smile is. Smiling is a universal language. Traveling has taught my kids to be confident and independent and it teaches them problem-solving skills and self-awareness,” she elaborated.
Speaking of traveling, she noted that she loved visiting Greece and the Greek islands last summer with her family. “Greece is one of our favorite places by far, it is stunning,” she exclaimed. “Every single island has its own unique characteristics and qualities, it blew us away. I hope to explore more in the future.”
The digital age
On being a part of the digital age, at a time when streaming, social media, and technology are so prevalent, she said, “I have mixed feelings about it.”
“The digital age can do some incredible things but also, I feel, it can be a little scary. Having kids that grew up with their pre-teens and teens in the digital age, I definitely witnessed some scary things that come along with it. You just need to be really careful, especially from a mental health standpoint. It just has to be used wisely,” she explained.
On the title of the current chapter of her life, she said with a sweet laugh, “What does Vanessa want to be when she grows up?” “Honestly, it will be a new chapter especially when the kids leave the house,” she said. “I am also doing a lot more photography, it’s exciting.”
Success
Regarding her definition of success, she said, “Getting to a place where we are experiencing true happiness.” “Developing happiness from within and developing a peaceful mind and growing our compassion, love, and wisdom within our hearts. That’s where happiness is,” she said.
Vanessa expressed her gratitude to the “General Hospital” viewers and fans that have embraced her as Mia. “It has been so nice to receive the support that I have from total strangers, that does feel really good and I really do appreciate that. I was lucky to receive such support so I am grateful for that,” she said.
To learn more about Vanessa Mathison, follow her on Instagram.