Adulthood is coming into focus, and for a life in professional musical theatre, there are some sacrifices I’m not sure I’m ready to make. I want to build my own rule book, and be authentic to myself, but how? Everything is so competitive, it seems impossible to get work if you're not the perfect blank and malleable chess piece that producers can use. The logical part of my brain says 'Just be true to yourself and the work will follow!' But how do I pay the bills while I wait for the work?

“Climate Follies is a comedy to cope with the climate crisis. 5 actors play a multitude of roles across 15 super short scripts using clowning, puppetry, singing, and dance.” Director, Raphael Schwartzman, and Jim Poyser have been working with the current cast since July 2021 but have been workshopping the script since 2019.

To me, running isn’t about seeing if you can beat your previous time. It’s about listening to music, moving your body because you can, looking at flowers, petting dogs, breathing in the misty air of a summer morning in the mountains. It's about seeing the world differently. I'm not a runner. I've never claimed to be one-I'm anything but fast, I have chronic knee problems, and the prospect of doing anything remotely athletic makes me want to cower in fear. And yet, in March of 2020, I found myself lacing up my sneakers every morning and heading out onto the trail.

The thing I love about theatre above nearly all else is the sense of community it provides. When you're working on a production, you are a member of a team, doing your part to make sure the show and all involved succeed. Vaccination is the same principle, applied to all of humanity. In order for us to truly 'open up' and get back to feeling that undeniable magic that theatre provides, we must collectively do the right thing to protect ourselves and an industry that is yearning to bounce back better than ever.

So many things to do, so little time. While Singapore is having a mini lockdown, the lockdown fatigue is really causing me major setbacks. Now I only have less than a week to prepare for school! Although the mini 'lockdown' will be lifted on Aug 18, they recently allowed those fully vaccinated to be able to dine in, so... Yes, I need to meet my friends before school reopens, it'll really help with my mental state. Anyway, here is my to-do list, so if you are starting school in September, please don't be like me and start preparing now.

The weather decided that hot girl summer would not happen this year for me. I quickly forgot my plans for outdoors parties, hiking, and short trips. I opted instead for catching up on books, TV shows, plays and movies. Sometimes, we need to slow down and enjoy small things. It took me a while, but I can now look back on those two months without feeling ashamed or blameworthy. You do not need to feel pressured to go back to school with tens of ridiculous stories to tell.

Though I will miss my Maryland friends and family dearly, I am so ecstatic to be back at Pitt. I haven't stopped thinking about it since I chose to stay home last spring. Though I try not to get my hopes to high in case of another lockdown or something of the sort, I cannot help myself in preparing for one of the greatest academic years of my life. I wish all college sophomores luck in there studies this year, and frankly, anyone else as well. We deserve it.

As an International Student, I've been glued on the news to see if I am able to enter to Canada so I can make my final semester in person. I need to be emotionally strong as I see how my friends are all coming back to the city and singing in person and everything. I feel happy that I am able to connect with them through technology, because even I am not there I still feel part of the community.

Pass Over was an absolute rollercoaster of a play. I went from laughing to crying, crying to sitting in shock, and sitting in shock to trembling in fear throughout the 85 minutes. The play is described as having the two main characters, Moses and Kitch, 'talk smack, pass the time, and hope that maybe today will be different,' but no small summary can describe what you will be seeing on that stage. While the play appears to take place in New York City, it also takes place on a plantation and in the land of Ancient Egypt, with all of the time periods colliding in one setting.

Choir was my real outlet last year, and I've no doubt that it will be the same this year. My professor, the wonderful Dr. Jordan Cox, was and is a light to everyone he came in contact with. He accepts people as they are, and embraces that special part of them. You really do see Christ in him, and that's rare nowadays.

It is now August, so I am sure most of us are starting to prepare for going back to school. For me and other musical theatre majors, this auditioning and just getting back into that 'go, go, go' mentality. Every semester is always a whirlwind of class, work, practice, and performing. A lot of times it can be hard to juggle these things.

August, can you believe it. August is a funny month. It's supposed to be winter but August is always confused. The weather is cold and gloomy, one day and then shiny and warm the next. Makes me confused to be completely honest. August also means that the cold months are behind us and that is so sad! I love the cold, the rain, the clouds and the bundling. But August also means that we are in the home stretch for the end of the year!

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. Learning about mental health in theatre from Simone Biles, moving back to New York City, and more-- read the latest from our college student bloggers!

I was so excited for High School Musical:The Musical: The Series season two, more than I thought I would be, I mean last season really surprised me with the cast, the amazing original songs and the way they made High School Musical work as a TV show, it felt fresh, original and special, but now that season two is over, I have a lot of thoughts. The plot changed a little bit, but we have the same cast and the same style so, that was not a problem, but from my point of view something felt different and at first I thought I was expecting too much because I loved season one, but with every episode my excitement went down.

As we begin to reemerge from the shadow of a pandemic, the first thing many of us want to do is go to the movie theater. Before the world shut down, it was my favorite thing to go out and do; so when 'Spirited' is released Christmas of 2022, you'll find me cozied up in a seat with a bucket of popcorn.

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.

After a year and a half of living in my hometown, it’s nearly time to go back to New York. I moved to New York in 2018, and I lived there until the first months of the pandemic. So, the question is, why do I feel more nervous about going back than I felt when I first left my hometown?

'It took me like, 10 years from graduating to starting to make a living doing it myself, solo, without assisting or anything. So yeah, just stick out if you can and just keep trying and don't be told that you can't do it, just persevere.'

I had always enjoyed writing. I have written countless miniature stories and plays since I was nine years old. Naturally, when I got to college, I had figured maybe writing was something I wanted to do, but I decided against it. I am lucky enough that my theatre had the opportunity for students to write and direct their own one-act play. After acting in this show my freshman year, I knew I wanted to write one for my sophomore year. So, I got to work and took a screenwriting class in the spring of my freshman year to help me. With the assistance of my teacher, I was pushed into actually submitting my script to be put on stage, and I was fortunate enough to be picked.

One of their most popular packages is the Agency Jump-starter Program, which includes 3 two-week intensives with agents, and closes with a private industry night via Zoom. On industry night, each actor goes into a private breakout room and performs one-on-one with each agent and receives feedback. As of now, Acting & Voice Studios works with over 150 agents, casting directors, and managers; including agents from Gersh, Paradigm, A3 and Verve.

As the story usually goes, a young person is bit by the “acting bug” and knows immediately what they want to do for their career. For Yue, not so much. His life was an acting drought until he turned 26.

According to a recent announcement from the Broadway League, all audiences, performers, crew members, and theatre staff must be vaccinated and audiences must wear masks. This does not bother me at all since I recognize the benefits of keeping everyone healthy and safe in exchange for incredible theatre.

In the absence of live theatre during quarantine, I turned to the next best thing -- theatre made for T.V. I love this show because even while I was sitting at home during the pandemic, the realistic sets of Times Square and the Broadway Theatres brought me comfort and excitement. It was a way for me to feel connected to Broadway again. So… why didn’t they make a season three? 

'You shouldn’t feel the need to sacrifice your mental health for others. I think that sometimes, like Biles, we feel like by being a part of a show, we have the weight of the world on our shoulders. We don’t want to let anyone down by protecting ourselves.'

Summer Stock auditions are a total numbers game and I implore you to cast a wide net, but make sure you're really targeting Venues that are most likely to hire you, Venues that are looking for performers with your skillsets and strengths--you want to set yourself up to receive as many callbacks as possible. Because more callbacks means a higher callback rate and a higher callback rate leads to a higher likelihood of booking work next summer!