My Central Journey Research Paper

My whole life I have been invested in doing what I love, focusing on my true passions, as well as finding new ones. I have been very involved in my high school, and have been lucky enough to be a part of multiple clubs and activities. Without these activities, my high school experience and life would be a lot different. I have been an active drama club member, a part of ‘Bottlecappers,’ a club advocating anti-drug, alcohol, and bullying to younger students in my district, and many other community service opportunities. I am lucky to have the opportunity to be in these activities, as they have shaped me to be the young adult I am today.

As a shy, reserved student, I found myself blossoming through the stage. I fell in love with the stage and auditioned for the middle school's play, A Christmas Carol. Fortunately, I was casted in the performance. I loved the experience so much that I auditioned for the next year's play and musical and got a part in those as well. The more time I spent on stage, the more confident I became. I felt like the stage was where I belonged. I had a passion for theater that began to distinguish like a flame when I entered high school.

I started getting interested in Theatre late my 7th grade year. I was in English class when Caitlynn O'Hair was talking about that the musical at the end of the year that they were doing The Lion King musical for the musical theatre program for Burnet Middle School. I wanted to watch it, but for whatever reason, I couldn't go. But, since the class she was in sounded interesting, I put it as one of my electives to take for the next year. My 8th grade year in that class was amazing, and I made lots of friends there. During that class, the teacher, Mrs. Fisher mentioned that if

I saw my first Broadway show at only seven years old and have seen over ten more since then, due to the fact I live only two hours away from New York City by train. I always enjoyed theatre, but I didn’t grow the deep love I have for it now until acting became a career option. I spent a week of the summer completely in the business world of theatre and came out knowing I had to be an actress. I dived into all things Broadway, bought as many albums as I could, watched as many interviews as possible, saved up to see more shows, but even with all of this love for

During my high school experience, I have truly embraced the arts, specifically performing arts. Tri-School Theatre (an extra-curricular, educational theatre program) has been a great opportunity where I have been able to appreciate my talents while learning about theatre with other students. Being an active leader in this program, I constantly collaborate with students for rehearsals and events; after my junior year of high school, I was nominated to be an assistant director for a children’s production, Aladdin Jr. Having much enthusiasm for the arts and promoting theatre at school, I was thrilled with this opportunity. Theatre has strengthened my self-confidence,

Some people say that the journey is more important than the final destination. I agree with that. Last year I wanted to get stronger for softball. The school opened the weight room for girls, so that we could work out also. We got to do different types of exercises to make us stronger. If I wasn't able to go to the weight room all summer, then I wouldn't be as strong as I am now.

This past year my parents began the process of getting a divorce. Less than a week after my birthday, July 24, they had their first court date. Almost every day since then I have had a rehearsal or performance for a community theatre show. I received an unbelievable opportunity in August of this year. I was cast as a lead in one of my favorite musicals. The show was Heathers: The Musical and I had the opportunity to play Heather McNamara. The show has since ended, however the lessons I learned from the show will live with me forever. The show deals with heavy subjects such as bullying, eating disorders, suicide, depression, and date rape. Being an individual who has been bullied and has faced issues with depression, this show brought out sides of me I had never shown. This production taught me to talk about issues that may be more difficult to discuss. Heathers not only helped me get through the months after my parents’ divorce process began, but it taught me so much about myself and others. Producing a musical with such heavy content forced the cast to grow closer and to talk about issues that most teenagers face today. Theatre has become the place where I feel most

As the show captivated my senses, it captured my heart, and turned from what I thought would be a trite show like the soap operas my mother enjoyed into a breathtaking experience. The dancers leaping and flipping across the stage were astonishing, and filled me with a sense of wonder. I was not consciously aware of it at the time, yet in some way, I aspired to emulate them in my own life. Now I in no way wanted to be a broadway star; however, I wished to gain even just an ounce of the talent they possessed. Exiting the theatre, I had a different attitude than when I had first gone through the doors. I had finally found something that I did not just enjoy, but that I was fervent

Fourteen years after that fateful day, when I saw that first musical, my love has grown. I have changed a great deal, but my love has not. Despite what other people say and believe, musical theatre is what I am destined to do. So I will keep pushing myself to become better. Because, no matter what, I'm determined to keep dancing and Singing in the

What do you think makes you feel that you belong to a local community, to society, to

Over the past 3 years at Eleanor Roosevelt Middle School I've been able to blossom into a culture of music and theater. I started choir in 6th grade, along side doing that years musical. Music and theater weren't new to me at that point, for I knew what it's like to dance to loud music in my room, and what it's like to sit through musicals and plays my older sisters did. And I was eager to star in my own musicals and concerts. That’s when "Shakespeare Comes to Calamity Creek" showed me what it's like to be in a performance, and how much work it takes outside of it. That it takes more than just the time at rehearsal to make a show great. How it takes a couple of hours just to remember lines, or how it takes a couple of rehearsals to really get

In the past, I fell victim to the notion of conformity that society demands. Society stresses both the importance of individuality and conformity; however, society cannot hold true to both ideals and the individual suffers— I lost my identity and sense of joy in the world. Conformity gave me the illusion that I had found a sense of belonging,

Somewhere in that span of time, I also discovered musicals movies. I will always remember the first musical movie I have ever seen, Singin’ in the Rain. It was from there, which my journey into the world of theatre began. I started taking voice lessons and going to dance classes in high school. And the most fun of all happened when I started doing shows, like musicals, dance concerts, and vocal concerts. Whenever I am on stage, I just have the time of my life in whatever manner I can be. Back then it was something I just enjoyed, but there was a moment in which the thought of doing this as a career hit me. On the closing night of a production of Urinetown at my high school, I returned to my dressing room and just burst into tears from the amount of happiness I felt from just being able to do what I love. To play pretend on stage, while singing and dancing. What more could a person ask for? So I more intensively started training, and applied to colleges. I graduated high school and attended Florida School of the Arts for two years and got some amazing training there. For a two year program, I received some of the best training and individual attention that I could

Band is the best experience I had in my high school career. I remember the exact day when I made the Rummel/Chapelle Band. I was feeling so nervous for my audition because I did not know if I was going to make the band. I went for my audition in the director's office and played for them. I played two scales and one piece of music for them to judge me on. I came out of the office feeling relived because the audition was over, and I played wonderful. The director came out with me and told me and my parents that I had successful made the Rummel/Chapelle Band. I was so happy to start this new journey in my life. The very first thing in band is marching season. Marching season in one that is very fun and also very tiring.

Though I was fortunate to receive a role in the show, I was yet again disappointed because it was not the role I wanted. Following our spring musical, I had the opportunity to receive a role in every show my school has presented. Unfortunately that was not enough for me because I continued to ruminate on the fact that I was never able to obtain the role I wanted. However, during the process of our most recent production I observed a shift in my attitude toward the situation. After the cast list was revealed and I did not earn the role I auditioned for, I took some time to contemplate on my time in our theatre department. Initially, I considered myself a failure because after three years I was still incapable of securing any of the roles that I desired. However, after a conversation with my parents and the director of the shows at our school, I was able to comprehend why I was a failure. It was not because I was inadequate in receiving any of the roles I wanted, I was a failure because I neglected to understand the lesson that this experience was attempting to teach. Although you may not secure the role of your desire, you as an actor must learn something from every character that you