Student Blogs This Week - Student Directing, Honoring a Late Teacher, and More!
Check out what our student bloggers are writing about for the week of October 28 - November 4
By: Taylor Brethauer-Hamling Nov. 05, 2021
Our student bloggers write about how they're coping with the current global health crisis, give insight on their school's performing arts programs, share their opinions on the latest theater news, and so much more.
Read some of the top blogs from this week below!
Check out more Student Blogs here! And don't miss a single blog by following our Instagram and liking our Facebook page!
Student Blog: Park Royalty: "Fame" at NYU is Not What You Think
Student Blogger: Sophie Rossman
Excerpt: Everyone's a star in the park: the street performers masked in paint, the dimpled, grey-haired lady blowing bubbles for the passersby, and even you, a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed 17-year-old college student whose only objective is to breathe in the vibrance of your new home.
Student Blog: Tap Dance - Moving to the Rhythm of Your Heart
Excerpt: A couple of weeks ago, I was the stage manager of "The Golden Era", a Tap Dance show directed by Carolina Guzmán, my tap teacher and mentor. The show managed to take the audience on a journey back in time, to a jazz club in the 40's, with a live jazz band and tap dancers swinging along with the rhythm. Being part of this show was a big deal to me because tap is part of who I am.
Student Blog: How to Find Connection After Almost Two Years of Isolation
Student Blogger: Allie Flanders
Excerpt: Coming back to school this year was a difficult transition. I felt a little bit cheated out of my freshman year, as I am sure so many can relate to. Between online classes and limited activities and clubs, meeting people and feeling connected was difficult. This year, I decided I wanted to seek out hope and connection through my passions.
Student Blog: Huzzah! - My Experience at the Maryland Renaissance Festival
Student Blogger: Abigail Dobry
Excerpt: Two weekends ago was my fall break at the University of Pittsburgh. I decided to spend my long weekend travelling back home to Maryland to see my family and friends. I caught up with friends in person, spent some time with my family, attended the Maryland Renaissance Festival and stopped by my old high school during a rehearsal for their upcoming musical.
Student Blog: Three Things I Learned in My First Month Studying Musical Theatre in NYC - Sarah Tennille
Student Blogger: Sarah Tennille
Excerpt: BroadwayWorld.com Student Blogger Sarah Tennille shares her experiences in her first month in college, including the highs and lows of life in New York City and the struggles of a conservatory education.
Student Blog: An Original Adaptation
Student Blogger: Erica Lambert
Excerpt: We received such a great response from the audience. It was great to receive such a positive response for something all of the cast and the director/writer himself put so much hard work into! We created an original production in seven weeks. Plus, it was the first live performance back at my school since the COVID-19 outbreak. Being a part of this production was such a breath of fresh air, wholesome, fun, and positive experience. This really made me see a different side to what theater can be when we forego 'normal'. If you ever get the opportunity to work on a new production you should go for it!
Student Blog: A Great Theater Teacher
Excerpt: Although he was my teacher, I, and many other students, considered him a friend. He was one of the easiest, most enjoyable people to talk to, and he always found the good in those around him, even if there wasn't much good to find. [...] If I were tasked with characterizing a great theater teacher, I would give them every trait of Mark Guerra. If I were tasked with characterizing a great human, I would give them every trait of Mark Guerra.
Student Blog: Music, My Best Friend
Excerpt: Music is your number one empathizer. Every genre, every song, and every lyric to me represents different people to depend on to find solace or simply as an escapade from ennui. Especially since I associate much of my musical erudition with my parents' and grandparents' upbringing classics along with the new music I grew up with, you're exposed to a whole universe of magic that can really cheer you up at any given time. It's also something I take to heart since I've sung throughout my life and just always look further than just how music makes me feel, such as analyzing the instruments utilized or how harmonies were built to make a fabulous syncopation, and blah-blah-BLAH. I shan't bore you with that since I'm not a music teacher. But, I revel in the fact that music can solely convert itself into an act of leisure to a lengthy encyclopedia of rhythms that I must observe and then learn from.
Student Blog: Working at the La Jolla Playhouse and The Garden
Student Blogger: Mia Van Deloo
Excerpt: This past September, I got a new job working in the front of the house at The La Jolla Playhouse. My job title, Audience Concierge, includes many patron services responsibilities including checking vaccine cards/ID upon entering the theatre, ticket scanning, helping ushers, being available in the lobby during the show, and locking up. Working in the front of the house has given me lots of insight into what working in a professional environment is like while also teaching me about another aspect of theatre that I did not know much about coming into the job.
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