To go, or not to go. That is the Question.

As the semester comes to a close, and graduation is upon us, the future hasn't really struck me yet. Im planning to take a year off from school and start applying for grad schools this fall. I know a lot of people are in the complaining mood, with finals and long hours. Studying and pulling all nighters. But, i wanna say this, I love school. I love being here and the people i have met, especially in the theater arts department. We become a family. Yes, every year we kinda have to tweak who is the in the family, but even after those people graduate, we are still close. The bond that we develop, after endless hours of rehearsals and shows after shows with each other is nothing but, incredible. If i could take these people and move them with me to grad school, that would be ideal. But, realistically, i will probably be going by myself. I have made a list of schools that i would like to attend to. They all have pros and cons, but are non of the less, amazing.

1. Depaul University- This is my top choice. It is located in an amazing part of Chicago, a town that i have fallen in love with.

2. Florida State University- Many people groan when i say this institution, but it is also incredible. Florida is actually one of the big places to study theater in the US. Part of their program is studying in London, being understudies at the rep theater, and best of all, full rides.

3. ACT- Located here in San Francisco. I feel like this is the only reason i would want to go here. I have seen some of their shows and have not been too impresses.

I'm gonna say these are a few of my top choices. What is great about theater grad school is that many of the universities pay YOU to go. Not all but some. Makes it hard to refuse. Just hard to leave the people that have become my family over the past 4 years.

 

Last week, I finally got cast in a show with a director that I have admired for years, Mark Jackson, whom I spoke about in earlier blogs. The show is called, Wallflower. It will be an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Midsummer Nights Dream. But it wont be your normal adoption, it will be a new take on the classical story. If you saw Jackson’s piece last year, Juliet, you will understand what I mean. But if not, I will give you an over view.

Juliet was a play performed by 6 women and 1 man, all playing Juliet. The story covers the life and emotional state of Juliet from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The play covered the more famous and well-known scenes from the classic play, but it also dove into the psychology of the teenage mind in love. Every actor at some point plays a different aspect of Juliet and also the people in her life that affected that fateful outcome.

Every since I audition and didn’t get into Juliet, I told myself that his next show, I would work my butt off to get in. And it worked!

Wallflower is rumored to have inspiration of a Pina Bausch dance piece. It has a resemblance of a 50’s high school dance with many group numbers. We haven’t had our first meeting yet, but I cant wait to see what Jackson has in store for us.

Im hoping in doing this show, he will like working with me and be interested in casting me in future shows. He is a prominent actor/director/play write in the bay area, so hopefully this will open some doors for me in the future.