COLLEGIATE THEATRICS: Lipscomb University's Lacy Hartselle

Last fall, when we started this series - COLLEGIATE THEATRICS - we were talking to college students across the country about what lay ahead of them during the academic year and now we find ourselves at graduation time for the class of 2015, today represented by the beautiful, ethereal and brilliant Lacy Hartselle. Mere hours after her graduation from Nashville's Lipscomb University on Saturday, she reflected on our five questions to give us an intimate look into how her life was changed during her college career.

A native of Huntsville, Alabama, she moved to Nashville to go to school and now, after a joyous four years, she'll be making her home in Music City: She's getting married in August and will continue to pursue her career. Read on and learn more about Lacy Hartselle...

How was your college theater career? Did it live up to its advance hype? Well, it's bittersweet to say that my college theater career is no longer "going," because I am officially a college graduate as of yesterday! My experience with the LDoT (Lipscomb Department of Theater, as the students refer to it) far surpassed my expectations. Throughout all of the magic moments and the tragic moments, I wouldn't wish it any other way. This department is the place to be if you're serious about pursuing a performance career because it is exponentially growing in talent, professionalism, connections and opportunities.

What was your favorite part of studying at Lipscomb? Oh, so many things! What has set this department apart for me are the people. It's one of those things where you "get out what you put in." I'm so thankful for being able to pour all of my available self into this department because in return I have received lifelong friends and fellow artists/collaborators in addition to oodles of lessons learned. It is the safest place for "daring to fail gloriously" (as all the students say, thanks to my outstanding beginning acting teacher Robyn Berg). The memories these past 4 years have granted me are priceless.

Have your future plans changed since your college experiences? My future plans have most definitely changed since my freshman year... oh, wow, yes. I started out my freshman fall semester as this little fireball Musical Theater major and had a blast working under the brilliant Justin Boccitto as Tammy, a Corny Collins show girl, in Hairspray. All the while, I was plotting (against my parental guidance) my move to LA to pursue film acting. I was torn between film and theater, thinking then that I had to choose one of the two. So, I backed off from the theater department a little and did some soul searching over the next two semesters. This quest directed me to Vienna, Austria where I spent a whole semester traveling and studying German, history, European literature and writing. Truly, "my cup ranneth over" during those challenging, enlightening months. Never have I ever been so surrounded and influenced by art, and in every form imaginable. It was there that I committed myself to the arts, finally trusting that God had created me with these creative passions and talents to shine for His glory - be that on the stage, screen, behind the scenes on set or even when building a set! I had no intention of "letting a relationship get in the way of my career" and alas, I met my future husband on campus and we are to be married this August - hooray! As of now, we are staying in Nashville where I have film work lined up and will continue working in all areas of performance! We will just have to follow peace and the work of course.

What collegiate theatrical moment looms largest in your memory? Woof, tough question. One is too difficult to choose and I've never been good at following the rules... so let's say there are three different moments for three different reasons. In no particular order:

A) LES MISERABLES, fall 2013. Nothing beats being a part of this powerful story about mercy and the power of love. It was such a unique experience because of the camaraderie formed through every single person working passionately to do this compelling show justice. I played a lovely lady alongside many other odd roles and it was with this experience that I learned to appreciate ensembles. Ensemble roles have the responsibility of creating the world in which these characters and this story lives. You carry the show and the audience into their suspension of disbelief!

B) I finally had the joy of working under the direction of the unparalleled Beki Baker. This past month, I was seen as "Chris Mundy" in Dancing at Lughnasa. This intimidating show stretched me incredibly as an actor. It's a memory play set in the 1930s in Ireland. Throughout the dialect work, listening development and energy demands while combating senioritis, I have so much praise and gratitude for the opportunity to have been a part of this story.

C) The last and most recent theatrical moment that will forever play in my head (and on my computer because we had it videoed - yea!) is from our senior showcase when Austin Ryan Hunt and I were able to perform the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet. We executed it guerrilla theatre style as Austin emerged out of the surprised audience. We received such encouraging feedback among them being several times said that we made people fall in love with Shakespeare. Austin and I have loved studying Shakespeare in depth over the past few years, so that was the best compliment we could have received! There was no better way to finish my college stage time than by playing my dream role Juliet Capulet for eight magical minutes.

Do you have any advice to offer to high school students considering making the plunge? First, follow peace. Next thought: collegiate theater is such a wonderful, rare incubation-esque period of your life where you're permitted to try anything you want without being judged for it. You are in the same boat as everyone else going through these 4 years with you. You'll make mistakes and you'll experience triumphs. Celebrate it ALL! You're all passionate, messy, driven, talented, inconsistent, uncomfortable and excited. Seize the opportunity to grow individually as well as communally with the glowing artists around you. You sharpen each other and remind one another of the importance of your craft. Surround yourself with the people who celebrate you, not tolerate you! Drop expectations and come in with a "sponge mentality" (as some LDoT students would say) ready to absorb it all! I can't wait to see what you all do!

To post a comment, you must register and login.