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I love using abstract thought as a technique to compare myself and the character I'm portraying. Often times when I'm cast as a new character, I ask myself a series of silly questions first as myself and then as the character. For example- If I were a season, what season would I be?

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My favorite abstract thought question is what kind of fabric I would be. Personally,  I think I'd be a soft minky fabric with raised dimples. It's soft and cozy, yet durable and stretchy. I keep this in mind whenever thinking as a character instead of myself, because it allows me to compare yet separate the two of us.

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An example outside of myself comparison wise would be like comparing my work to a famous artist, such as Jim Carrey. Even though we are both artists, we're both very different in terms of technique, and odds are that our behavior and acting styles while in character are completely dissimilar. However, these differences don't reduce our worth as actors, but instead shows value in individuality.

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Comparison can also be made in set designs or the stage itself rather than yourself or other actors. Comparison is a tool that shouldn't undermine one thing or another, but instead use the two to improve both concepts or art forms. A physical example I could think of is the use of abstract sets. Just because a scene or show has abstract set pieces and little to no real furniture doesn't drop the value of a production, but instead shows that different productions have different focuses that should be paid attention to.

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My artistic process sometimes feels a bit primal. I honestly believe that my best work as an artist comes from a spur of the moment thought, a moment of spontaneity that fuels me with unrelenting determination to extract a vision from my mind and make it tangible. This not only happens as a performer, but also as a visual artist. While I put thought and practice into everything I do, I also allow a bit of flexibility to shine through.

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Some might consider me a bit of a superstitious person- no walking under ladders or opening an umbrella inside for me. However, it has become a personal habit before every show I'm in to sing the same little mantra in my head before I go on. "Whether the weather be cold, whether the weather be hot, whether the weather we're in this together, whether we like it or not, good show." This is something my old theatre group and I used to do before every performance, and even if they're not with me now I feel like a performance can't go wrong if I sing it to myself.

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I think this quote is really great, and sums up a mindset I want to make a habit of keeping. I shouldn't be afraid of failure, because failure is how one grows in themselves and learns.

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This is another quote I found that I really enjoy by Paul Newman. His perspective is that in order to be an actor, the person must possess the ability to think and act like another- in other words, playing pretend. Acting is hard work, but I make it a habit to not turn it into a chore. Acting is a freeing profession that allows us to become all sorts of people or even creatures, and I just have to remind myself not to take myself too seriously every now and then.

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When I was in high school and still unsure of who and what I wanted to be in college, my default answer was always an author. The satisfaction of spending all my time writing down all the stories living inside of my head was exhilarating, and I thrived off the praise from my peers when I wrote something they also enjoyed. I entertain the idea of being a playwright every now and then, and find myself not minding the thought.

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Growing up I really loved Shel Silverstein, and enjoyed memorizing his poems long before I realized I craved a life in theatre. His poems were always so silly, yet some held a message that really was unforgettable. I aspire to write moving words of prose and poetry such as he did.

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I would love to enter into the world of not only puppeteering but puppet building. Work such as The Dark Crystal or Fraggle Rock were things that I grew up with, and I was fascinated about how expressive someone could make something as simple as a hand puppet. I want to design and build my own puppets, to bring something from my own mind to life.

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I would love to be a part of a team to build something like this one day. This really inspires me, because it shows that the world of theatre isn't as cut and dry as people think it is.

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Personally, I'd say the individual who influenced me the most when it comes to theatre is my high school director Mr. Morgan. He met me when I was terribly shy and decided he would stop at nothing until I joined his theatre class. He saw something in me at that time that I had no clue was there, and helped me become the person and performer I am today. I can confidently say that if I had never met him I don't know what I'd be pursuing career wise right now, and I wouldn't be as happy in life as I am as an actor.

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Another personal influence would probably be my dad. When I first got into theatre my dad was right there supporting me, and in the almost seven years of me doing theatre, even if I had the smallest background role he never missed a single show of mine, and still hasn't. He loves to sit and listen to whatever production I'm a part of in full length, and doesn't mind if I spoil the ending for him.

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As an artist I'd say one of my largest influences is the cartoons I grew up with as a kid. Shows such as CatDog, The Snorks, Spongebob Squarepants, etc taught me to appreciate the exaggeration of cartoon features, and that's something I've brought into my acting as well. Exaggeration doesn't mean cheesy, but instead expressive, and is something that even in a serious situation it's something the audience can appreciate and enjoy.

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Another artistic influence of mine is James Baxter. He isn't an actor, but instead an animator. He's worked on media such as Prince of Egypt, Adventure Time, and Beauty and the Beast. He's known for the fluidity of his animation, and is often hired by studios for a clip to add a sort of punch into a scene. His work is recognizable due to the smooth, lifelike movements through his art form, and that really inspires me to stand out and make myself recognizable.

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I am physically disabled. Even though often times I do not want the label of a disability to stick out, it's something that is a large part of who I am not only as a person but as an entertainer. I have Cerebral Palsy, affecting mostly my right leg, meaning that there are certain things physically that are difficult or that I am unable to accomplish. However, instead of viewing this as something to hinder myself, I view it as an extension in which I must work with.

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Being a sculptor is also a large part of who I am as a person and as an artist. In high school I took a ceramics class and immediately fell in love. I had never before felt like my hands and mind were more in sync until I was sculpting, because instead of holding a pencil and transferring a mental image onto paper or canvas, my hands were feeling around the image in my mind and physically chiseling away until I saw exactly what I had envisioned.

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Nerdy media is also a large part of who I am identity wise. I love video games, tv shows, and anime. It may sound silly, but media such as this became my way of branching out and raising my conversational confidence with people I wasn't familiar with. For example, my favorite anime is Fullmetal Alchemist, and I remember making a lot of friends because it was a really nice mutual ground to talk about.

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Lastly, music is another aspect of who I am. I've always been big on sitting back and actually listening to the words of a song to completely take them in, because I honestly feel like you get a deeper connection with the artist this way too. My favorite band is Sleeping with Sirens, because all of their music sounds like poetry to me.