Victoria Pratt

50th Alumni Profiles
B.A. '94 -
 Victoria Pratt
Actress and Author. Star of Marvel's Mutant X, Daybreak and Heartland.
Career History Since Graduation My career since graduating from York University has been weird and wonderful. I began in the Human Performance Lab with Norm Gledhill and Roni Jamnik. From there, I landed contracts as a writer and fitness model for MuscleMag International and Oxygen Magazine. It was the publisher of MuscleMag and Oxygen, the late Robert Kennedy, who convinced me to take acting classes. My first audition landed me the series, John Woo’s Once a Thief. I’ve done many TV series since then, from Marvel’s Mutant X, to ABC’s Daybreak, to CBC’s Heartland, which I’m currently shooting. During my downtime, I write. My first novel, Double Down, was published last fall.
Most Memorable York University Experience It’s hard to pinpoint just one memorable moment from my time at York, but my most favorite times were definitely in the Human Performance Lab. Roni and Norm had assembled a small team of Kinesiology nerds (a term I use lovingly and proudly) – students who had won academic scholarships, etc – to work with them in the lab. I don’t think people really knew all the cool things we got to do down there. Testing elite athletes was a real thrill for me. We got to work with the National Figure Skating Team, (which thrilled my mom) and the Toronto Maple Leafs during their training camp (I became my dad’s hero when I got to test Wendel Clark’s VO2). What I loved most though, was that during any down time, Roni and Norm would just ask us what we wanted to learn, then give us an impromptu lecture. An athlete myself, I was really interested in nutrition, and the ensuing lecture was a real game changer for me. I haven’t eaten in a fast food restaurant since 1992.
York University Anecdote or Highlight Running for the York University Track and Field Team was a definite highlight for me. At the time, York had arguably the best indoor track in Canada, (not to mention one of the best programs in the country) and there was probably no other athlete on campus that appreciated the setup more than I did. I grew up in a tiny snowbelt town, three hours northwest of Toronto, where there were no indoor training facilities. During the winter, we trained outside in the snow. I remember having to cover my face with Vaseline before practice to avoid getting frostbite on my exposed bits. Training at York’s world-class facility was a dream come true for me.
Highlight(s) of Professional Career In the world of fitness, helping to launch Oxygen Magazine was a highlight for me. I was Oxygen’s first covergirl, and a regular columnist for the magazine for years.

In the acting world, it would have to be landing my own TV series. Cleopatra 2525, Mutant X and Daybreak

In the writing world, my proudest moment was getting my first novel published. Double Down was released last autumn, and my second book is almost complete.