Tanya Boyd

Before Nike came up with its "Just Do It" campaign, Tanya Boyd, who plays Celeste on NBC-TV's Day of Our Lives, was already living her life with "Just Do It" as her personal motto.

Growing up in Detroit, Tanya realized at an early age that if she wanted to succeed, she would have to make it happen. "I knew at seven years old that I wanted to be an actor; there was no doubt in my mind." As time passed, she heard of the renowned Lee Strasberg Institute, and at age 15, Tanya left high school and headed for New York City. "There was so much more in the world to discover and I welcomed the experience of it all. I knew that a higher power was looking out for me, so I wasn't afraid of anything."

When Tanya arrived at the Strasberg Institute, to her astonishment, she saw people hanging off chairs, moaning, groaning and jumping off furniture. "I thought I had walked into an insane asylum," Tanya explains. "I couldn't figure out what this had to do with acting." Yet, she decided to stay and study. Then after several years of living in New York, she came to Los Angeles.

Boyd, whose first love is theater, has excelled in many theatrical productions such as Cotton, Jelly's Last Jam and No Place To Be Somebody. In 1993, Tanya received a Drama-logue Critics Award for Best Performance in the world premiere of Indigo Blues. Her television credits include such popular shows as Under One Roof, A Different World, Parker Lewis (Can't Lose) and the TV movie Tricks of the Trade, starring Penny Marshall and Markie Post.

Boyd's acting career was interrupted a few times along the way. With her remarkable ability to hear obscure tones, Tanya was offered exciting opportunities to perform on tour as a back-up singer with such well-known artists as Anita Baker, Lou Rawls and Natalie Cole.

"I learned invaluable skills from my experiences on tour which have helped to improve my own performing techniques for both singing and acting," Tanya reveals. "I became more confident about my art and my ability as an artist." Then, while on the Natalie Cole tour, she realized that she'd walked in the shadow of others' careers long enough and she returned to Los Angeles.

Boyd auditioned for Days of our Lives and the rest was history. In March 1994, she was cast as Celeste, Stefano DiMera's devious henchwoman. The role was initially a recurring character, so when her part wrapped, Boyd flew to New Orleans to spend time with her boyfriend Bobby Lyle - a highly acclaimed pianist and recording artist for Atlantic Records - who at the time was also the musical director for Bette Midler's '93-'94 tour. While in the romantic Mardi Gras city, the couple became engaged. Immediately upon her return to Los Angeles, Boyd's good fortune continued when she was offered a contract on Days. She returned to the role of Celeste in July 1994. That December, Tanya married in a candlelight ceremony making a lifelong dream come true. Now Boyd has yet another dream to make come true: to become a film and TV director. To date, her directing experience at the Mojo Theater Ensemble, in Los Angeles, has been both rewarding and successful. In '93 and '94, she directed its summer festival's Main Stage productions. In addition, she directed the very funny adult comedy The Mojo Man for the 1994 NAACP Playwrights Competition. The play won first runner up.

"Even now, I like to sit in the control room at Days observing the directors work. I find the technical aspects and fast pace fascinating," says Tanya.