Adored General Hospital actress Sydney Mikayla has decided to leave her role as Trina Robinson. The Emmy-nominated actress' departure from the ABC soap opera follows her decision last October to bump down to recurring status so she could have more time for school.
In a statement to Soap Digest, Mikayla said, “I have loved working on General Hospital, but I feel like this is the right time to dive in and enjoy my college experience to the fullest. The cast has become family and bringing the character of Trina to life has been one of the best experiences of my career thus far. Thank you to Frank and the entire team for believing in me and giving me this wonderful opportunity. I will miss working with everyone every day, but I am excited to see what is to come for the show.”
Last summer, when Mikayla was nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award, the actress told Soap Central that she had been accepted into University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). At the time, she said that she was "grateful that my academic career and my acting career have kind of taken off at the same time" and that she was "looking forward to seeing where it takes me."
However, she did admit that it was a lot of work to juggle both school and her job at GH. "I have to be an organized person, just because you have to keep each thing in its own lane," she explained. "I think my organizational skills have gotten me pretty far."
“Sydney asked to leave in order to focus on college. We love her and are sad to see her go, but of course support her decision and wish her the best,” GH executive producer Frank Valentini said in a statement.
Valentini also revealed that daytime newcomer Tabyana Ali will take over the role of Trina later in the month. "We're excited to welcome Tabyana Ali and see what she'll do with the role of Trina," said Valentini.
Ali joins GH with previous TV roles on The Big Show Show, Shimmer and Shine, and A Kid Called Mayonnaise. Ali is also reportedly working on a film called Empire Waist, which is currently in production.
How do you feel about Sydney Mikayla's decision to leave GH so she can focus on school? What do you think about GH casting Tabyana Ali to play the role of Trina? We want to hear from you -- so drop your comments in the Comments section below, tweet about it on Twitter, share it on Facebook, or chat about it on our Message Boards.
