Ryan Swafford was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee on December 7, 1974.The only child of Jim and Lynn Swafford, he developed an interest in the arts at a young age and began singing in The Chattanooga Boys Choir at age 10. Throughout high school, Ryan played clarinet in the Hixson High School concert band, performing at the Sydney Opera House in 1991 as part of the Pacific Basin International Music Festival.While attending the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, he took an acting class on a whim and in the spring of 1997, a friend convinced him to audition for a play at the local dinner theatre. Having never acted and always considering himself too shy to appear in front of an audience, Ryan reluctantly auditioned for and was cast in the role of Speed in The Odd Couple. Later that year, he was cast in Miracle on 34th Street at the Chattanooga Theatre Centre. Over the next six years, he appeared in many productions including The Importance of Being Earnest and Travels With My Aunt in which he portrayed the title character.In the spring of 2003, Ryan relocated to Los Angeles where he currently lives. In December 2003, he auditioned for and was invited to become a member of the West Coast Ensemble Equity Waiver theatre company. At WCE, Ryan has appeared in the stage version of Joseph Heller's Catch-22 and continues to pursue other acting opportunities.
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