Student Blog: A Summer of Growth

This summer, we all got close to living back in "precedented times". But of course, with low vaccination rates and high transmission rates, we might be erasing all the progress we've made. Even with these challenges, I've had the ability to experience a summer unlike any I've had in the past; one filled with growth, discovery, and joy. I feel like a very different person going into this fall semester than I did leaving the spring semester.

I believe that my biggest source of growth is from working and managing a kid's theater camp. I've never been a huge fan of children and while working with them this summer has not absolutely changed that, I feel like I understand them much better. The kids were aged 4-15 so I had a huge range of kids to understand, work with, and learn about. Sometimes the kids took a lot of energy out of me, but I enjoyed it.

I think a huge source of joy for me was being able to watch the kids learn and perform. I was able to see them understand performance and really enjoy it. Along with watching these kids learn, I learned a lot about myself and what my future could look like. I worked directly with many administrative people at the theater, most closely being the Director of Education. Being able to see how a professional theater works and the different jobs that had always seemed a little confusing to me. Now that I have been able to work hand-in-hand with professional theater-makers, I realize that I love education, but I don't love teaching. I'm going to look into pursuing a master's degree in Theater Education so I can work as a director of education for a theater in the future. A doctorate is still an option that I'm looking into, but I have plenty of time to figure that out.

On top of this, the theater I am working at has been working on one of their first, in-person, post-pandemic productions, an outdoor concert version of Camelot. I was allowed to sit in rehearsals, watch the process, and get a deeper understanding of what the real world of professional theater is like. My eyes have been opened to what my future could look like and I feel like I really understand theater now. Being involved has made me excited for what my future career is going to look like.

Also, I luckily was able to make my return to live theater with The Public Theaters production of Merry Wives. The production was held outside at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park. I never realized how much I missed being squeezed into tiny chairs with a bunch of people I have never met until I was watching this show. This show was filled with joy and really inspired a great feeling of community even after we've spent all this time separated.

Going into my junior year of college, I feel satisfied with where I am right now and where I'm going. I know my mind will probably change a hundred more times before I actually do make a choice with my degree, but I do feel very very confident about where I'm going. I have a new grasp on my industry and where I stand in it. I think that I can say, confidently, that this is going to become something very exciting.