Reflections

          Since coming to Loyola this past year, I have learned a lot about myself and what I want to strive for in the future. Before coming to Loyola, I completed my first year at Montana State University in Bozeman as an undeclared major. The reason I chose to go to Montana State is that I wanted to experience something different, something new. I was born and raised in Minnesota and had a craving when I was applying for colleges to go somewhere outside of my home state. Montana is a gorgeous place in the country (I have included some of the photos I took throughout my time there in this portfolio); however, it was not the place I wanted to be for four years. When I was first starting college, I did not think that I would pursue theatre or any realm of the arts for my degree. Initially, I was thinking that I would be a psychology major or some sort of STEM major. Even when I was in Montana, I was disappointed to find out that the theatre and art community around me in Bozeman was almost nonexistent. 

         When I was halfway through my first semester, that was when I realized that Montana State was not for me. I remember sitting in my dorm room when I first got the feeling and I felt devastated. At that moment, I thought that I failed and that I had to start back at square one all over again. I was scared - transferring seemed incredibly daunting. It was a major risk that I did not know if it would be better for me. Nevertheless, I decided to start my college search again. I was drawn to Chicago due to the big art community and the city itself. In the past when I traveled to Chicago, I loved exploring the city. I wanted to keep exploring the town and wanted to call it home. When I settled on coming to Loyola for the fall of my sophomore year, deep down I knew that Loyola was going to be a better fit for me. 

          While I attended Montana State, I was able to take the only theatre class offered, which was acting for non-majors. This class reminded me of my love and passion for theatre. Even though I have done theatre years before coming to college, this class persuaded me to pursue theatre for my degree. I love stepping into a world of a character and bringing the character to life. For one of the projects for this class, one of my classmates and I were assigned to the stage and perform a scene from the play Proof (written by David Auburn). The process of blocking and practicing the scene with my classmate was fun and sparked a lot of creative ideas for the scene. Even though it only was a year ago the last time I performed on stage, I realized I forgot what it felt like to act on stage and embody a different person other than myself. In a way, I had to reteach myself about the mental process that goes into acting. During my process of rediscovering my acting skills, I felt like I found pieces of myself that were buried. I consider myself to be a very creative person and for the entirety of high school theatre was my main creative outlet. Doing this course helped me grow as a person and helped me decide to start my journey to getting a degree in theatre. 

          When I came to Loyola, I gave myself time to settle in and get comfortable with the new school. Going from small-town Bozeman to Chicago was a major adjustment for me. Even on my first day living on campus, I felt like I was at home. For the fall semester, I took one theatre course which was Dramatical and Theatrical Process with Kelly Howe last semester. I thoroughly enjoyed reading a wide variety of plays and understanding more about the different artistry roles. In one of the assignments we had to do for this class, we had to see the main stage productions (Somewhere and Woolf’s Orlando). When I went to see Somewhere, which was the first main stage show of the season, it made me feel even more excited to join the program. Seeing Somewhere and also Woolf’s Orlando prompted me to audition for the spring 2023 main stage of Pride and Prejudice (which I am currently in rehearsals for now). Auditioning for Pride and Prejudice felt like a major risk since it had been so long since I have auditioned. It was incredibly nerve-racking to audition in front of people I did not know at all. Auditioning was a great experience to get into the swing of how to prepare for auditions. Since it had been so long since I last auditioned, the whole experience felt strange and familiar to me. After when the auditions were over, I learned that I made it into the primary cast. I was cast as an ensemble member and an understudy for four different roles for the production, and one of the roles I am understudying for is the lead (Lizzy Bennet). This is my first time understudying which has been an exciting experience for me. I knew when I accepted the role that it would be a major challenge for me to learn 5 different tracks for the show. Even though it has been challenging learning all of the tracks, it has been so exciting to be on stage again. I love challenges like the one for Pride and Prejudice and I am excited for what's to come during my time here. 

          During my time at Loyola, I am looking forward to exploring more tech roles (such as dramaturgy, scenic, and sound design), improving my acting skills, and writing material for the stage. Currently, I am taking Design I which has been an eye-opening class since I have not experienced analyzing plays through a designer lens and to create a design based on that. I am hoping to explore more roles like dramaturg and stage management roles during my time here. One of my goals is to sign up to be a student dramaturg for one of the main stage shows. Another goal of mine is to take the stage management class and (if my schedule allows it) gain hands-on experience to serve as a stage manager for one of the productions at Loyola. To make these goals happen, I need to start making plans on when I take the classes I want to take and to keep putting myself out there and taking risks. Finally, the last goal that I have is to take the playwriting class here and to develop my skills in writing original material for the stage. I have always wanted to write a play so during my time at Loyola I want to work on my writing skills. 

          Overall, I am incredibly excited to be at Loyola and am looking forward to the rest of my academic journey here.