Graduation Date: Spring 2016

Major(s): Secondary Education & English

Minor(s): Theatre Education & Spanish

How were you involved in the UWO theatre department?

I worked in the costume shop for five years as a shop assistant and was an active member of TAB, including two years as the Public Relations Representative.

What is your favorite theatre department memory?

Kathleen’s famous Christmas dinners with all of the shop assistants.

How has your experience with the theatre department influenced your post-college life?

I think that the biggest influence on my life was the feeling my experience in theatre gave me. I was a part of something and felt a sense of community and family, and that is something that I strove to, and still strive to give to my students.

What was your biggest takeaway from the theatre department?

I had wonderful experiences in every aspect of my studies in theatre and the group of people that I had the honor of working with shaped and blessed me with more than they’ll ever know.

Do you have any advice for current students about to graduate?

Try everything. Even when you don’t want to. Even if someone is pushing you to try something new to gain experience. The worst thing that will happen is that you WILL gain experience. And the best thing that could happen is that you find something you never knew you liked or something you never knew you could do.

What did you plan to do with your degree?

I planned to get a job teaching English and involve myself in the theatre community there.

What have you been doing since you graduated?

I’ve done just what I had planned to do. I got a job at Tomah Middle School teaching eighth grade English and just closed my first show as their technical director.

What else do you hope to accomplish?

I hope to continue to involve myself in the shows [in Tomah] and hope to be given the opportunity to direct a show of my own.

What show were you the technical director for?

Lion King Jr.

What is your show statement?

In doing this show, we wanted to raise awareness for the clean water shortage that Africa is facing and raise money to be able to build water wells. Since closing the show, we can proudly say that we raised enough money to build one well and are closing in on our second.

What do you hope your students have learned from the experience?

I hope that my students learn to appreciate one another. In creating this show, they learned to depend on one another, to encourage one another and in doing so, they created memories with new friends that will stay with them forever. I hope they always remember the time they spent together and that the work they put into this show was well worth it.

What have you learned from your technical directing experience?

It’s strange to me to be on the other side of the show. Working with students, guiding them and helping them to succeed in this show was probably the most rewarding and most frustrating thing I’ve ever done – students finally retaining all of the lines and cues and information you’ve thrown at them.