Celestine Rae was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to an Italian/German American mother and African American father who encouraged her creativity and self expression at a very young age. A shy child, Celestine fell in love with the art of dance and it was on stage that she found herself and her calling. Celestine performed in school plays in grade school and would volunteer to choreograph the dance numbers in her shows as well as at her dance studio. Her passion for dance quickly grew into a love for acting as she was nicknamed 'Face' by choreographer and former Alvin Ailey company dancer, David St. Charles, for her passion and expression while performing in his narrative ballets. She was encouraged to pursue acting by many of her dance teachers and began to audition for plays and short films while in college. Two weeks after graduating from Temple University with a B.A. degree in English, Celestine immediately relocated to New York City to pursue her career as an actress full time. She trained at The William Esper Studio under Terry Knickerbocker, graduating from the Meisner Conservatory Program. Celestine has performed in several off Broadway productions in New York as well as numerous films and television shows.
