Possibilities

Dear readers,

I have to start by apologizing. I have been gone for way too long. Well, I have good reason, I promise!

Since my last entry I have been in two shows, run projections for another show, completed my junior year, and have maintained a steady social life in between!

The first show that I was in this semester was Shakespeare’s, “The Tempest.” It was a blast to be a part of. The production was a part of a student run organization on campus called Shakespeare in the Dark. SITD puts on student directed productions of different Shakespeare plays. The director was Stephen Dunford, a senior and a fellow theater major. He cast me and two other girls as the part of Ariel. We represented the three elements: earth, fire, and rain. I had the pleasure of playing earth Ariel. It was a very interesting and eye opening experience.

I also had the opportunity to be in a scene in the directors workshop class production of “The Good Doctor.” It is a play written by Neil Simon based off of Anton Chekov’s short stories. I was the wife Sonya in the first scene entitled “The Sneeze.” In my own opinion, it was hilarious. Well, the show was hilarious. Senior Mary Meyers was the director, and she was just a joy to work with.

Last, I got to run projections for the Friday performance seminar class and their production of “Hair.” It was a phenomenal production with an extremely talented cast. People were turned away at the door every night, it was just that popular! I have never had the experience of working on a show from a tech angle. I can safely say that I am a) not that great at it, and b) that I would much rather be on stage singing with the cast. But it was an all together fun time. The crew danced up in the balcony with the cast and sang along while we ran cues for the show. We felt like we were as much a part of the show as the actors were. I strongly suggest that everyone should have their own tech experience. Seriously.

But enough about this semester and what I’ve been up to. With graduation yesterday and senior year looming, there are so many things to think about. On the last night before I left for home I was sitting on a friends porch watching a thunderstorm. It was two days before graduation and I asked him if he was nervous to graduate. He had an answer that really surprised me. Some of my friends would respond immediately with yes, or they would say that they weren’t ready. But my friend responded by saying that he was excited for all of the possibilities. The whole conversation really got me thinking. William and Mary has made so many things possible for me. It has opened so many doors for friends of mine. I have watched my friends get the internships and dream jobs, my best girlfriend become the president of Mortar Board, some of my other good friends get up to $6,000 in summer research scholarships. And me? This summer I’m cast in a show that was written by a William and Mary student and is going to be directed by a WM professor. The show will be performed at the Capital Fringe Festival in D.C. this summer. It’s going to be an incredible opportunity.

So, even though it seems like every other day my mom throws a new cliche at me…I swear it must be a mom thing…her favorite one right now is “live in the moment,” I can’t help but smile. And even though I can’t stand cliches and try not to get wrapped up in the fact that I’m almost positive my adorable mother collects them, I know for at least right now that she is right. We do need to live in the moment. We do need to get excited for the possibilities. Robin Williams in “The Dead Poets Society” said, probably better than a cute cliched mom, “Carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary.”

Enjoy summer readers. I’ll be writing again soonly. I promise.