BWW Blog: Meet Joscelyne Tamburri of the Canadian College of Performing Arts

Today begins a new blog by Joscelyne Tamburri, a Year I student of the Canadian College of Performing Arts (CCPA). The college is one of Canada's top training centres for students looking to train for a career on stage, screen or in the recording studios.

Joscelyne will regularly post on BroadwayWorld and the www.ccpacanada.com website about her time training at CCPA and performing in the college's productions.

This week, Josie is dealing will the flu, classes, rehearsals for Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" coming to Victoria, BC in April.

March 10, 2017:

For people not in theatre, or who are new to theatre, the basis that applies to every company anywhere in the world, is that we are very close and we give everything to each other. And by everything, I literally mean everything, including germs. So when one person gets sick, we start dropping like flies. More and more groupings of talented students go down every day and morph into these half-beings, pretending they're OK because God forbid you miss a single moment of learning under our amazing faculty; attempting to learn a Russian accent, practicing Laban technique so we can be the right type of steel (yes, actual steel. This is the 5th or 6th level of tension depending on which method you use) for 1 line in our Shakespeare scene, and auditing dance classes ONLY because in jazz class this morning you tried to do a triple pirouette, lost control from dizziness and face planted into the floor.

But hey, it's just the flu, and ain't nothing gonna keep us from finally getting to know what it's like to be steel. It's just a given when you are pushing yourself to your limits in such close proximity to everyone while being so entirely vulnerable that illness is gonna spread faster than the first video of Emma Watson as Belle in the upcoming Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" remake.

Speaking of Beauty and the Beast, there is only 2 more weeks of school of regular school before we get the start rehearsals for our production of it, and I could not be more excited! **that smooth transition though **My brother likes to ask me:

"Joscelyne, how can you be so excited when you're just a dancing napkin?"

-Cole - *not in theatre / doesn't understand

1. First of all Cole, I am a Can-Can napkin! There's a big difference, Can-can isn't your average dance style, it's much more. Jeez... Also, I'm that AS WELL AS a villager, I'm not "just a dancing napkin." C'mon, get it right...

2. I feel sad for people who aren't in theater who don't think ensemble is an amazing thing to get because they don't truly understand the amazing responsibility you have as an ensemble / chorus member, and how being a part of it is an incredible privilege. Musicals aren't solely dependent on the "stars" of the show. The chorus are the people who create the world of the show support the upkeep of it's tone throughout. Think about how lackluster great shows like "Thoroughly Modern Millie," "Phantom of the Opera," or "Wicked" would be without a chorus. Sure, solos and duets are awesome and usually very moving, but you need the punch and weight of a strong chorus to have a jaw dropping, encore-inducing show. Hello! Think about how sad "Masquerade" would be without the chorus... did you almost just shed a tear too? I did. Also, as you may have noticed, I like to call it The Chorus instead of ensemble, because I believe the chorus is the core of the show.

Getting back on topic, I think it's really disappointing when people think "only getting ensemble" is a bad or insulting thing. It's incredible. You have so much responsibility and impact. The directors are putting the show in your hands,it's up to you to make it amazing. Own it, work it, love it!

With the ending of regular classes looming around the corner and the rehearsals starting soon, it's making me realize how fast these 2 years are going to go by. I shouldn't be ending my first year of college, it still feels like Christmas break, though that's probably due to Victoria's always mild but bi-polar weather. It's hard to believe how fast life is going by. Most of my friends are turning 19 or older, meaning we're all technically adults now (though to be honest, a lot of them are still finding their way. There are daily disturbances of Shrek is Love, Shrek is Life at the weirdest moments), I have a car and drive it 1.5 hours every day to go to college, (...Whaaat even is that?! I'm still 13 on the inside, how did I get here?!) and I'm learning about taxes, something you think would be boring but is actually really cool, especially when I learned how I can write off makeup as a work expense (WHAT!!?? GOD BLESS)... when I'm finally getting paid to act that is. Am I an adult, is this what it feels like? Hmm...

Everything has just gone by so fast, yet I have learned so much here even so. This school is crazy intense with its long hours and expectations, but it's also a completely unique and rewarding learning experience. I have learnt and grown so much in this first year, and though it's flown by, it feels like I have years and years worth of knowledge and experience under my belt, and that is the most incredible feeling. I'm surrounded by so many talented AND kind-hearted, caring people who bring nothing by positivity and wisdom into my life. It truly is a family here, and I love each and every one at our school, faculty and students. Every day I witness something that inspires me even more, and I have people by my side to support that growth and to catch me when I fall. Because you will fall in this industry, again and again, and usually, it's terrifying to be that vulnerable because you are falling so publically. Depending on the people around you, it can be humiliating. But here at our school, with its loving atmosphere, it's not scary because I know that when I do fall, I'll have my colleagues to catch me with open, accepting arms and I'll be there for them when it's their turn. I'm encouraged to fall, and to fall hard, because it's when we fall, accept it, and pick ourselves back up, that's when we truly grow.

OK, I'm gonna' end this here before I become that kind of motivational "You are the change the World needs" preacher that always makes me cringe. Thanks for reading and as I always say, "stay classy and sassy."