Eva DeVirgilis is an award winning makeup artist and actress and activist. While acting and performing comedy at night in New York City, Eva began to learn the trade of makeup artistry in order to supplement her income in between gigs. As her acting credits began to grow so did Eva’s passion for makeup, and she took every opportunity to learn from some of the top makeup artists in the industry including Laura Mercier and Scott Barnes. Her unique ability to make people both laugh and look and feel their best lead Eva to become an in-demand makeup artist in her own right. While existing in both the acting and makeup fields Eva saw first hand the impossible beauty standards that were being placed on women. She noticed a very unfunny pattern; almost every woman who sat in her chair apologized for the way she looked, and she recognized these same struggles in herself.
This lead to her internationally renowned TEDx talk In My Chair; a Makeup Artist’s Perspective on Beauty, where she merges her skills as an actress/comedian & makeup artist on stage by documenting the diverse stories of the women who sit in her makeup chair. Eva has made it her mission to “End the Apology” in women and to “Change the culture around beauty one story at a time.” Also devoted to inspiring others to discover and surpass their potential she coaches professionals how to give creative, compelling and dynamic presentations using story, and teaches in the School of Business at Virginia Commonwealth University. Acting credits include LAW & ORDER; CRIMINAL INTENT, AMC’s TURN: WASHINGTON’S SPIES, and LEGENDS & LIES; THE PATRIOTS. Eva starred in the world premiere of SAM AND CAROL, a role created for her by New York Times Best-selling author David L. Robbins. She will again be starring in his new work THE END OF WAR. She can be seen doing comedy regularly at the Coalition Comedy Theatre. Eva is now based in Richmond, Virginia.