As a child, Tom Dantas was one of those boys from a traditional family in Bahia, whose members expected he would become a doctor, an engineer or a lawyer: he studied at a prestigious school in the capital of Salvador (Bahia) and he was supposed to follow the same path of his friends, however he decided to change his fate. Later on, his first passion came up, at the age of 14, when, encouraged by his family, the youngest of five children, had his first contact with art, while still at school.

This hobby turned out to be a great passion for Tom and the Christmas season performances – the school drama group put on one every year – became the best moment for the young man, who was already glimpsing, although timidly, a career on stage. “There, I learned all the theory and got to know the classics, with the plays put on while I was still at school,” Tom recalls. There, his love for art was born.

But, as was expected – and also longed for his family, he attended Law School, trying to put aside his acting classes and his interest in pursuing a career in arts. It was a mistake: his love for acting prevailed so he left university in the sixth semester and decided to pursue a professional career, which had initially been considered as a hobby. “I’ve already had this idea, but I realized this was what I wanted for my life and I decided to study in order to be the best in my new profession.”

That’s what happened… and several acting workshops and recording practice courses followed – the first of which was with Eduardo Milewicz. He also sought professional qualifications at Escola de Artes Cênicas (School of Performing Arts) and attended an Artist Residence at Residência Artística na Sede Cia dos Atores, studying  Nelson Rodrigues‘ Work

During this time, he took part in a staging of Nelson Rodrigues’ work and also played the well-known “João Grilo”, in Auto da Compadecida.