Chicago Joy

Actress Torrey DeVitto is very happy this February day.

The morning brought the announcement that the NBC series Chicago Med, in which she costars, has been renewed for a second season; she was told the good news the day before.

“I’m so excited,” DeVitto says by phone from Chicago, where today’s schedule included a table read for a new episode. “We’re all so thrilled. It feels amazing.”

Chicago Med has consistently racked up high viewing numbers in the 18-49 same-day demographic. Having premiered in November, it’s the latest of three Windy City-based dramas from mega-producer Dick Wolf; like predecessors Chicago Fire and Chicago P.D., it revolves around the lives and adrenaline-fueled careers of an ensemble of characters, in this case based in the emergency room of the fictional Gaffney Chicago Medical Center.

DeVitto plays ER pediatrician Dr. Natalie Manning. When the show started, she was a pregnant single mother-to-be, her military husband having recently been killed overseas in the line of duty. The young widow has since become mom to son Owen.

DeVitto’s own family life growing up was enviably unconventional. Born and raised in Huntington, New York, she enjoyed trips on the road as a child, traveling with her parents; her father was a drummer for Billy Joel for 28 years. She began taking violin lessons at age six and was still in elementary school when she was accepted into a New York high school orchestra.

She later played in youth orchestras in Florida, and as a 12-year-old soloed at the wedding of Joel’s ex-wife Christie Brinkley to Peter Cook. She also took up acting lessons, landing her first role in The WB’s short-lived 1999 series Safe Harbor.

DeVitto moved to Los Angeles after high school graduation, and began booking pilots and guest star roles. She went on to regular or recurring roles in the series Beautiful People (then-ABC Family, now Freeform), One Tree Hill (The CW), The Vampire Diaries (The CW), Army Wives (Lifetime) and Pretty Little Liars (Freeform). She stars in the upcoming film Amy Makes Three, a psychological thriller.

It’s fun that we’re talking today, when your show’s renewal has just been announced.

A:  Yes! We’re all on Cloud 9. We couldn’t fathom it being cancelled, because of the ratings, and the other two shows being renewed, but in a way it still feels like it did when you were told you’d booked the part in the first place!

How did you find out?

The showrunners showed up on set and gathered everyone together and told us. It was just Nick [Gehlfuss, who plays chief ER resident Dr. Will Hallstead] and I [of the cast members working that day].

How did you prepare for your role?

We all did individual shadowing quite a bit. I got to shadow the role I play. We all got to do real first-hand training, like real medical students. After three weeks, we could go to our own devices. We had dummies that breathe – they had fake arms, but real blood put in them. If you didn’t give them the right [medicine], their hearts would stop and they would ‘die’. Mine stayed alive!

What have some of the challenges been, playing a doctor?

The two things that are so difficult are putting on the gloves – getting your fingers in right, and if you don’t, you have to do it again – and talking with a stethoscope in your ear. You can’t hear yourself, so you don’t know if you’re shouting.

What do you think of Dr. Natalie Manning?

I love my character so much! She’s a really strong character, emotionally strong, and she can stand up to the men, but I love the fact that she is also so compassionate. She’s a new mom, and she has that compassionate side to her, with her co-workers and patients. The writers are so amazing – there’s never been a script where I’ve felt, “No, that isn’t something she would do.”

I was very specific as to how I wanted my character to look – as low-maintenance as possible. I never want Natalie’s nails done – she looks like she’s done them herself. Even the kind of jewelry she wears – I hand-pick my props. No lip gloss. I’m obsessed with ChapStick® and have four different kinds in my purse, but if my lips are too shiny, I wipe it off.

How has it been, working with children?

It’s been fun. The kids coming in are so smart and sweet. The questions they ask, their spontaneity….

Do the storylines ever get to you?

Yes, but more so when I’m watching it. When I’m doing scenes, I come from the mindset of the character. Watching, I’ll get teary-eyed – the music, the other actors.

I’ve learned so much from every episode, about the different medical procedures, and what doctors go through in their day-to-day. Some of them are super-human.

Speaking of music, you played the violin one episode, along with a patient who was a violinist.…

They came up to me and said, “We heard you play the violin. How’d you like to play violin in the show?” I couldn’t have been more thrilled.

But since I was 18, acting has definitely been number-one, so I don’t play violin as much as when I was a kid. Especially with violin, you need time to prepare a classical piece. I said, “Let me give you a list of pieces I can prepare in a week.” I played Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D minor.

How has your musical background helped you as an actress?

Growing up with music, I had a very stringent practice schedule. It gave me a work ethic and the muscle to memorize.

And growing up in the music industry gave me an insight into the business. Everyone had their act together around the kids – it gave me a really good moral compass going into this. They were nothing but kind to people – I’d be next to Billy Joel or Elton John, and they were always kind.

So when I went into the business, if someone [were not behaving well], I knew, “This isn’t right.”

You bring another sort of experience to this role: You’ve been a hospice ambassador for five years, for the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization, helping people face the end of their lives. You’ve said this cause is your passion, and a lifetime commitment.

I’m starting to work at a hospice in Chicago. When I booked this part, I didn’t know what kind of doctor she was. When I found out she was a pediatrician, I was so excited that I’d be working with kids, and be able to be so compassionate. A lot of hospice is caring with compassion.

It’s pretty clear you’ll be looking forward to a second season on Chicago Med.

This role in particular is one I put my energy into. The shows I’ve done previously have driven more to a younger audience. As much fun as they were, I wanted to move into an adult role. I’ve played a lot of crazy characters. When I booked this part, it was a real dream job, for me personally, as the next phase in my career.