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I'm majoring in theatre. Beyond anything else, that is my primary motivation. I want to study theatre, do theatre, have a hand in anything theatre-related. I want to work in theatre as a career, or at least a hobby. I want to act, stage-manage, tech, usher, work wardrobe, operate as dramaturg- and much of that I have already done!
You already know that I'm a student of the Drama Studio. I've been there for five or six years. I'm a regular attendee of the movement courses, I've done scene work, I've been through two years of improv training (though I don't think it's exactly my specialty), I've had stage combat, Suzuki and Viewpoints training, 'street' theatre, and most importantly: I've worked on productions, including full-length plays, one-acts, and the annual studio Cabaret that showcases classwork from the past year. I stick my hands into anything they'll let me and I love every bit of it.
I know that this is all no easy work, and that I can't expect it to be easy. This is a profession only for the very brave, the daring, the foolish, and the people who are most comfortable with themselves. It requires, at times, blood and sweat and tears. It requires persistence, a strong sense of self, dedication, and the ability to both take direction and be creative in your own right.
And part of the reason that I'm so passionate about this work is because I feel it enlightens me, enriches me, and because of my participation in this work I have grown immensely as a person. I am not someone who has a strong work ethic, by any means, and being responsible is generally just beyond me, but if the work is for theatre? That changes everything. I become transformed into a punctual, capable, obedient, self-controlled person, who works for a team and a whole rather than herself, and who pushes her memory and her body to the limit.
I came to the Drama Studio because I knew I wanted to train to pursue theatre, not the other way around. I've always had a flair for the dramatic, of course, but moreover I've always been fascinated by how a person's words and behaviour can change them utterly. When I was a toddler I would play pretend, and my sisters and I were always making up stories and acting them out as kids. (We still kind of do that.) And out of the three of us, I was willing to take every role, be every character. I was never picky because one character or the other was 'irrelevant', or 'male', or 'a bad guy'. Everyone has a purpose in a play, and I want to bring them all to life. Someone has to!
I also was the one who was the most serious about it all. If we wanted to play at being pirates, I found pirate books and read about them, or looked them up online. I found recipes for he kinds of foods that pirates would have eaten, ransacked the house for pirate-y clothing and accessories, and assigned everyone a position on the non-existant ship. And that's the kind of thing I have always done for a role or a show. Copious, excessive amounts of research. Using costume as a way to enforce and enhance a character. Desiring everyone else to be as serious as I was about the material. It's all at once a game, and so much more than that.
When I was in about second grade, I joined a drama camp at the local Jewish Community Center. I did summer productions there for three years, leaving when the director finally had us do absolutely nothing but read scenes aloud from Disney films to fill time. It's not that I dislike reading aloud from film scripts, because I love reading aloud. And I don't exactly dislike film- I love film, I just don't love the culture of American film actors. I want no part in film, only the stage. Anyway, the experience was really quite narrow, and didn't teach me much, unlike the studio.
Part of why I didn't learn as much at the JCC as I did at the studio was that, at the JCC, we were expected to read our lines and walk away. That was the entirety of our experience. Most of us never even saw backstage. At the studio, however, a student develops a strong familiarty with what a theatre looks and feels like, and how to behave in the environment. I feel like I've been prepared very well to ease into any theatre and work in it, in the capacity of actor or otherwise. I have stage-managed (and under Steve Hays, which is no small feat!), I've been a wardrobe assistant (twice with miss Greta in the past year for particularly froufrou shows of Steve's, Tom Jones and The Snow Queen), and have had more experience ushering and taking tickets than I ever have onstage! I learned about all the different people and parts that make a theatre run, and I know how to work with them to make a coherent and successful show.
There's a lot I can do with my interests and experience, including working at places like reenactments or theme parks, auditioning for local theatre companies, or striking out for New York. But right now, what I want most is to study and learn everything I can, so I can be even better when I decide to use the actor's toolkit I've been provided with through all of the classes and workshops I've done.
You already know that I'm a student of the Drama Studio. I've been there for five or six years. I'm a regular attendee of the movement courses, I've done scene work, I've been through two years of improv training (though I don't think it's exactly my specialty), I've had stage combat, Suzuki and Viewpoints training, 'street' theatre, and most importantly: I've worked on productions, including full-length plays, one-acts, and the annual studio Cabaret that showcases classwork from the past year. I stick my hands into anything they'll let me and I love every bit of it.
I know that this is all no easy work, and that I can't expect it to be easy. This is a profession only for the very brave, the daring, the foolish, and the people who are most comfortable with themselves. It requires, at times, blood and sweat and tears. It requires persistence, a strong sense of self, dedication, and the ability to both take direction and be creative in your own right.
And part of the reason that I'm so passionate about this work is because I feel it enlightens me, enriches me, and because of my participation in this work I have grown immensely as a person. I am not someone who has a strong work ethic, by any means, and being responsible is generally just beyond me, but if the work is for theatre? That changes everything. I become transformed into a punctual, capable, obedient, self-controlled person, who works for a team and a whole rather than herself, and who pushes her memory and her body to the limit.
I came to the Drama Studio because I knew I wanted to train to pursue theatre, not the other way around. I've always had a flair for the dramatic, of course, but moreover I've always been fascinated by how a person's words and behaviour can change them utterly. When I was a toddler I would play pretend, and my sisters and I were always making up stories and acting them out as kids. (We still kind of do that.) And out of the three of us, I was willing to take every role, be every character. I was never picky because one character or the other was 'irrelevant', or 'male', or 'a bad guy'. Everyone has a purpose in a play, and I want to bring them all to life. Someone has to!
I also was the one who was the most serious about it all. If we wanted to play at being pirates, I found pirate books and read about them, or looked them up online. I found recipes for he kinds of foods that pirates would have eaten, ransacked the house for pirate-y clothing and accessories, and assigned everyone a position on the non-existant ship. And that's the kind of thing I have always done for a role or a show. Copious, excessive amounts of research. Using costume as a way to enforce and enhance a character. Desiring everyone else to be as serious as I was about the material. It's all at once a game, and so much more than that.
When I was in about second grade, I joined a drama camp at the local Jewish Community Center. I did summer productions there for three years, leaving when the director finally had us do absolutely nothing but read scenes aloud from Disney films to fill time. It's not that I dislike reading aloud from film scripts, because I love reading aloud. And I don't exactly dislike film- I love film, I just don't love the culture of American film actors. I want no part in film, only the stage. Anyway, the experience was really quite narrow, and didn't teach me much, unlike the studio.
Part of why I didn't learn as much at the JCC as I did at the studio was that, at the JCC, we were expected to read our lines and walk away. That was the entirety of our experience. Most of us never even saw backstage. At the studio, however, a student develops a strong familiarty with what a theatre looks and feels like, and how to behave in the environment. I feel like I've been prepared very well to ease into any theatre and work in it, in the capacity of actor or otherwise. I have stage-managed (and under Steve Hays, which is no small feat!), I've been a wardrobe assistant (twice with miss Greta in the past year for particularly froufrou shows of Steve's, Tom Jones and The Snow Queen), and have had more experience ushering and taking tickets than I ever have onstage! I learned about all the different people and parts that make a theatre run, and I know how to work with them to make a coherent and successful show.
There's a lot I can do with my interests and experience, including working at places like reenactments or theme parks, auditioning for local theatre companies, or striking out for New York. But right now, what I want most is to study and learn everything I can, so I can be even better when I decide to use the actor's toolkit I've been provided with through all of the classes and workshops I've done.
