I’m Renée Nicole Gray, a fashion historian, writer, playwright, and artist. I hold a Bachelor of Liberal Arts with concentrations in art history and graphic design from UMass Lowell. I’m also a proud member of SAG-AFTRA, The Association of Dress Historians, Actors Equity Association, and the Textile Society of America.
I moved from Maine to NYC at eighteen years old to pursue a career in performing arts. After training in acting and musical theatre at HB Studio and LIU Brooklyn I began to work in numerous films, TV productions and as a commercial actor. Some of my favorite experiences on set were for the pilot episode of Mad Men, getting to be a background actor on SNL, and working on Girls and A Star is Born. I also appeared in numerous theatrical productions, with lead roles in shows at the NY Fringe Festival and Midtown International Theatre Festival. In 2010 I won a Lady Gaga lookalike contest which unexpectedly led to nearly a decade of performing worldwide in my tribute show The Lady Gaga Experience.
During this incredible journey I portrayed Lady Gaga in productions for MTV, E! Network, in The Fashion Planet on Dutch/German TV, and performed at private events for ABC, Polaroid, Bravo, Lan Kwai Fong (China), The Tower Of David (Israel), Resort Worlds Casino, Nordstrom, Citi Field, and at hundreds of weddings, birthday parties, and Bar/Bat Mitzvahs. I also headlined at Pride events across the country and opened for Rachel Platten at Long Island Pride.
Though being a tribute artist brought me many unique opportunities, I realized that I was far more passionate about developing my own voice, art, and unique path rather than following someone else’s.
In 2019, I retired from gig life to concentrate on my passions. I launched a small boutique for my original wearable art designs and dedicated myself to studying dress history full-time. In 2020, I returned to college to study graphic design and art history and graduated Summa Cum Laude.
After a long hiatus, I also recently returned to another of my passions, playwriting. In the fall of 2024, I was selected as one of twenty-five playwrights to have their monologue published and performed for the annual Faces of America Monologue Festival in NYC.
You can find my portfolio here and read fashion history research on this website and at streisandstylefiles.com.