BWW Blog: A Day in My Life as a Vassar Drama Student

I'm a first year and prospective drama major at Vassar College, a liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, NY. Here's a typical day in my life!

6:30 a.m.- My alarm goes off. I get dressed and gather my things as quietly as possible because my roommate is still asleep.

6:52 a.m.- When I arrive at the gym, I do a combination of cardio (the rowing machine) and strength training (arms and shoulders). The time goes quickly with a fun theater podcast or two! I finish with stretching.

7:50 a.m.- I head to Vassar's main dining hall, Gordon Commons, where I eat a bowl of cantaloupe and two over easy eggs with spinach and mushrooms. Yum.

8:15 a.m.- Shower time!

8:40 a.m.- I don't have 9 a.m. classes this semester, so I have an hour and a half to do homework before I leave for class. I work on an assignment for Intro to Screen Arts.

10:30 a.m.- My first class is Intro to Psychological Science. Today's lecture is on research methods and ethics.

11:53 a.m.- I power walk across campus to my next class, Movement for Actors. We do a series of exploratory games aimed at fostering awareness of our bodies. I don't have much experience with this sort of movement class and am loving it so far.

1:15 p.m. -Lunch! Sometimes Vassar's dining service gets a bad rap, but I think it's wonderful. I assemble a kale salad with tofu and roasted sweet potatoes. I run into a classmate from last semester and we catch up as we eat.

1:45 p.m. -Back in my room, I change out of my movement clothes. I write some notes about class while it's still fresh in my mind; we're supposed to keep a journal of our thoughts and feelings as we go through the semester and (hopefully) get more in touch with our bodies.

2:15 p.m.- I head to a practice room in the music building, Skinner Hall, to do some singing. Right now I'm working on two Schubert art songs-fun, fun!

4:00 p.m.- Next, I attend a meeting for The Vassar Insider, the digital news and politics publication on campus. I'm excited to get involved this semester because I'd like to learn more about writing and push myself to keep up with current events.

5:00 p.m.- I hustle to my next event, the meet and greet for a New Group called the Leadership Fellows Program. We'll be spending the next six weeks learning how to become more effective leaders.

6:35 p.m. -I ate dinner at the Leadership Fellows gathering, so I have an hour of free time before rehearsal at 7:30. I head to Vogelstein Center for Drama and Film and sit in the lobby to read ahead and take notes on my psychology textbook.

7:30 p.m.- Tonight is the first read-through of the play I'm in this spring, Sophocles' Women of Trachis. My role in the chorus involves some singing, some dancing, and a lot of chanting in unison.

9:15 p.m.- We spend the second half of rehearsal on dramaturgy, discussing the structure of the play and learning more about gender roles and societal norms of Ancient Greece. I completely nerd out.

10:30 p.m.- Rehearsal ends. The costume designer of Women of Trachis lives on my hall, so we walk home together. We're both feeling excited about the rest of the rehearsal process.

11:05 p.m.- I don't have any homework to finish for tomorrow, so I get to bed as quickly as I can. Goodnight!