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I grew up in Bastrop, Texas, just outside of Austin, where we were constantly on the fringes of the bigger city’s growth. I visit my dad in Bastrop probably every other week, and there’s something new every time I visit. Only 20 years ago, Bastrop was still a relatively small town with only one major overpass through the area with the most businesses. Now, those driving between Houston and Austin can fly right through Bastrop, hardly ever stopping at a stoplight.

Growing up in Bastrop, we constantly came to Austin to tend to a lot of different things — doctor’s appointments, shopping for clothes or visiting Hobby Lobby or Jo-Ann Fabrics. When people ask me where I’m from, I usually just say Austin, especially if they aren’t from around here. It’s easier than explaining. Even though I grew up 30 minutes outside of Austin, I still feel claim to being an Austinite. After all, Bastrop’s growth can only be attributed to Austin’s. I’ve seen the latter city grow, develop and morph into an entirely new cultural entity in my lifetime.

I graduated from Bastrop High School, where I spent most of my time making journalism, but especially making theatre, both at school and at local community theaters. I’ve carried both disciplines with me to the University of Texas at Austin, where I’m currently double majoring in both fields. At UT, I’ve spent most of my time honing my reporting skills. I’ve covered stories from pickleball on campus to government funding scandals and local arts organizations that loss or gain city support. My reporting background has given me storytelling skills that enable to turn disparate information into a compelling story on a quick deadline. Beyond that, journalism school has equipped me with strong multimedia skills, which I look forward to incorporating into future theatrical projects.

I’ve been slow to set a footing in UT’s theatre department. I originally applied to the University as performer’s process emphasis, received a call back, but didn’t make it into the program. The next year, I reapplied to add theatre as a second major, but this time as a dramaturgy emphasis. After my first year as a theatre major, I’ve been in one studio project, “Cowboy Mouth,” written by Sam Shepard and directed by Jax Schuck, a playwriting and directing freshman. It was challenging to put on my acting shoes to perform in my first show in nearly two years, but it was an amazingly fun collaboration, nonetheless.

Though I don’t necessarily see myself going into theatre production (at least, not right out of college), my theatre degree from UT will give me amazing skills ranging from communication and collaboration to literary/theatric criticism and storytelling. Out of college, I see myself either going to grad school (in who knows what?) or finding a journalism job. I’m most interested in reporting on arts and culture or becoming a theatre critic. My studies at UT prepare me for that. I’m excited for what my future holds for me.

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This is a photo that I recently took on campus. I took it with my new-to-me Canon A-1.

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My earliest significant artistic expression that I can remember are photographs. My mom always had a camera on her at important events, and I think it was more so for her scrapbooking than anything else. I liked playing with her cameras, and I inherited most of them after she passed away. Now, my camera collection is bigger than ever, and it continues to grow.

Photography intrigued me up through high school, but when the pandemic started, I forgot about photography. Only at the beginning of this semester did I truly pick up a camera again and start taking photographs. When it’s convenient, I always try to bring a camera with me to see what I can capture. The photojournalism unit in my journalism class this semester really helped stoke the fire.

I’m interested in finding intersections of photography (or multimedia generally) and theatre. I recently discovered a play called “Pictures from Home,” which is an adaptation of a photo book of the same name by Larry Sultan. I started reading the script but haven’t had the chance to finish it. I enjoyed incorporating photography into my work in Performance as Collaborative Practice this semester and appreciated Lisa’s feedback on its inclusion in my altar project.

Theatre and photography are both ethereal, but they’re ethereal in different ways. In theatre, we make art that’s here temporarily, and when it’s gone, it’s gone. No two performances will ever be the same. In photography, we capture fractions of a second and freeze them in time on a piece of film or as a digital file. Fleeting is a word you could use to describe both of these. Theatre and photography, as well as the stories they tell, can have an immense impact on their viewers. I’m interested in how we can harness both media to affect our audience, tell stories and change the world.

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In the last two years, I have learned that I like consuming and making art that has a certain grit to it. I don’t think I can describe it any other way. In my first personal statement for this class, I mentioned the movie “Frances Ha” directed by Noah Baumbach. The movie follows Frances, played by Greta Gerwig, as she navigates early adulthood and her relationship with her best friend in New York City. The first time I watched the movie, I was like what was the point of that. I’ve since watched the movie at least two or three more times, and I’ve come to love how relatable the characters are and how bohemian the film is aesthetically.

“Frances Ha” was shot on a DSLR in black and white in the streets of New York without any special permitting. It’s giving student film vibes. But because of this aesthetic, this grittiness, it adds to the film and its narrative, and I think it makes the movie tell an even more compelling story.

Working on “Cowboy Mouth” this semester made me realize I like making stuff like that too. There were only three actors and four technicians who worked on “Cowboy Mouth.” The rehearsal process was quick and efficient, taking only three weeks. Looking back on some of the other shows I’ve been in, my favorites always had small, tight-knit casts that were able to dive quickly into the material without too many frills. I like, and want to continue to make, sensible and practical art that has a certain grit or do-it-yourself energy about it. Plays with short rehearsal periods, improvisation and devised work all interest me, and I think they could all contribute to this grittiness of which I’m speaking. Art (and especially theatre) doesn’t need the fanciest equipment to get the job done. Some of the best pictures I’ve taken were taken on cameras with terrible resolution and quality. Art with soul behind it is what’s most important.

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This is a clip from "Frances Ha" that always sticks with me. The dialogue really gives insight to Frances as a character, in my opinion.