General Hospital has gold with Trina Robinson, played by Tabyana Ali, and Spencer Cassadine, played by Nicholas Alexander Chavez. The show’s giving the supercouple the slow burn treatment but hearts ignited recently when Trina visited Spencer at Pentonville. For her performance as a young woman in love, Soap Hub bestows upon Ali Performer of the Week for GH honors.
Soap Hub Performer of the Week for GH: Tabyana Ali
Star-crossed lovers Trina (Tabyana Ali) and Spencer were kept further apart after Spencer received a short jail sentence for sneaking out of the less-secure Spring Ridge facility earlier this year. Spencer revealed he’d taken an unauthorized leave hoping in vain that it would help prove Trina’s innocence in the trumped-up case against her for recording and posting a sex video of her pals Cameron Webber (William Lipton) and Josslyn Jacks (Eden McCoy).
On his way to the big house, Spencer pushed Trina away, not wanting her to be hurt any longer. Recently, Trina discovered from Cameron that Spencer had her back all along. She went to see him on visiting day to clear the air. Spencer fessed up that he knew she was innocent of recording Joss and Cameron being intimate.
“Do you know how badly I needed to hear you say that?” Trina quietly but firmly asked Spencer. The Cassadine heir explained how he wanted to do what was best for Trina; he couldn’t risk sharing with her that he was on to evil Esme Prince (Avery Kristen Pohl). After all, Trina’s so honest she might not have been able to hide what she knew about Ms. Prince.
“Spencer, I don’t fault your motives,” said Tabyana Ali as Trina dug deep into her character’s innate goodness. “Your intentions are golden — but I would have felt more protected with you at my side. It hurt that you thought so little of me…when I thought so much of you.”
Trina didn’t want to make a huge scene at Pentonville — not when doing so could have meant a guard would have sent her packing for being disruptive. But that’s only one of the reasons, Tabyana kept her character grounded. A lesser actress might have resorted to screaming histrionics as Trina called Spencer out on his actions. Instead, Ali remained focused and in control while letting her passion and anger flow out of her in her co-star’s direction.
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Trina expressed to Spencer that as difficult as it was for him to think what could have happened to her, it’s been just as bad for her to see him in jail. The Cassadine cad quipped that he didn’t know she cared. That’s when Ali took her performance up a notch — and appropriately blasted Spencer. “Oh, give me a break!” Trina declared. “You knew! I was clear about how I felt about you. Can you say the same? If you ever returned my feelings, you never said so! You didn’t even try! Did you?”
Tabyana Ali played Trina not merely angry but deeply frustrated — it’d be one thing for Spencer not to feel anything for her but to actually have feelings and not express them? That’s a waste.
One of the best parts of watching Trina and Spencer interact is when he tries to get inside her psyche. “Since when are you interested in the X-Men,” Spencer queried after Trina mentioned that she’d spent the day at a comic book convention. Trina said she was not — but Officer Rory Cabrera (Michael Blake Kruse) was. (Nothing this side of Esme pushes Spencer’s buttons more than hearing that Trina’s spending time with ‘that guy!’)
Spencer ended his visit with Trina after learning she’d spent time with Rory but first, she insisted on thanking Spencer for him trying to help her — even though it didn’t work out the way he wanted. Spencer said goodbye to Trina but fans are hoping that this is just the beginning and that more scenes between Nicholas Alexander Chavez and Tabyana Ali will follow.
General Hospital airs weekdays on ABC. For an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
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