Major: Theatre, with concentrations in acting and directing 
Hometown: Cranston, RI

Q. What makes the College of Arts and Sciences at URI unique?
A. The College of Arts and Sciences is unique at URI for a few reasons. First off, many arts schools hold entry auditions where you must audition in order to be considered admission into the school. We do not do that here, and we build our foundation on inclusion for anyone who is passionate about the arts. We are also very different in the amount of fields you can go into regarding theatre, as well. Not many schools offer the ability to have two separate concentrations within your chosen field. For instance, I am a theatre major with concentrations in acting and directing, with a minor in education. If this were any other arts school, at least in Rhode Island, I would not have the opportunity to have both, rather, I would have to pick between two things I am passionate about. I am very fortunate to be able to expand my horizons, because it wasn’t until I got to URI Theatre, when I realized I really enjoyed directing almost as much as I love acting. Lastly, URI Theatre encourages its students to enrich themselves in things they might not have initially thought about before. Though my concentrations are in directing and acting, I have taken major core classes involving stagecraft, makeup, costuming and design. Because of the array of courses we must take, it helps expand our knowledge and prepares us to look for jobs in the future that we may not have planned for, but are still ready for. Due to how this curriculum is set up, I was able to find my love for directing, and so many students end up going into areas of theatre that they didn’t even think about before, which I find very enriching and amazing.

What accomplishments and/or activities at URI are you most proud of now?
Hands down my biggest accomplishment at URI is directing an entire one act play that brought in a zero seat left audience, my senior year during the fall semester. The play was called Exit, Pursued by a Bear by Lauren Gunderson and is a revenge comedy centered around our protagonist Nan fighting to leave her abusive marriage. With the help of two of her friends, she enacts scenes from her failing marriage to her single audience member that is her toxic husband tied to a chair surrounded by venison steak. Nan’s plan is to lure in a black bear once their show is over to maul her husband. Though this seems like a plot for murder, black bears are for the most part vegetarian and do not kill people for food. Throughout the show, we see what Nan has truly been through as each scene of abuse unfolds before the audience’s eyes. I wanted to direct this show to spread awareness of domestic abuse and how the red flags may not be as easily visible at first. As a woman raised by a single mom, I believe that women can do anything a man can do, however I was not fortunate enough to witness a healthy marriage due to my father dying when I was too young to remember. This show helped me connect to a concept that, as a woman, I do not need a man to be happy, and to not settle for anything less than what I am worth. Though I wasn’t able to see my mother and father interact growing up, I have heard the wonderful stories of how much they loved each other and know that I do not deserve any less than that love.

What research projects, internships, experiential learning, and/or study abroad programs did you participate in at URI? 
URI Theatre is centered around hands-on learning. Besides the play mentioned above, I have also directed a smaller scene from Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl that was presented in a director’s showcase at the end of Spring 2021 semester. I was also cast in She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen and understudied in Miss Nelson is Missing. Miss Nelson Is Missing was then broadcasted to over 200 schools across the state; I find it pretty remarkable that we were able to reach such vast audiences during the pandemic. Throughout all of these projects, I was able to gain hands-on learning and preparation for how professional theatre works. I have gained a lot of directing and acting experience and know how to work with actors, managers, and different areas of theatre in general. 

What do you value about your liberal arts education?
There are many things I value about my liberal arts education. Professor Max Ponticelli goes by the motto “Do good work, don’t be a jerk.” It’s a funny phrase but I wholeheartedly agree with it. There is no 50% in theatre. You need to give your all because if you fail, you’re letting everyone else around you down as well. You work in collaboration with people you will not always agree with or see eye-to-eye with. However, everyone is trying to reach a common goal. Communication — along with compromise — are two very important tools to have in your arsenal while working alongside so many people at one time. This also relates to “don’t be a jerk.” It is so easy to just be a good person. Not to mention, being a good person will help you get jobs in the future. If you have the reputation of being easy to work with, spoiler alert, people will be more inclined to work with you. My liberal arts education not only taught me how to create good pieces of work, but I have also been given such good advice on how to be a good person in general, and that is something I really value as I move on from school into the career world.

What have been some highlights of your time in the Theatre department? How did you come to specialize in Directing & Acting?
As previously mentioned, I did not originally have a Directing concentration coming into URI. I didn’t even have an Acting concentration coming into URI, actually. When I first came to URI, I wasn’t even a Theatre major. I enrolled undecided. As a senior in high school, I was interested in everything and the possibilities freaked me out, especially when the field I was most passionate about seemed the most terrifying of all. I have always loved performance art, however I was always so shy and scared until I got to middle school. I started out with dance, which I have always loved and still consider myself a dancer, as well. I then started becoming very involved with choir and singing. I ended up even taking voice lessons for a few years and performed in a Rhode Island Allstate choir concert. It wasn’t until my sophomore year of high school when I got involved in theatre, working backstage, mainly, helping out with costumes. My junior year was when I finally made my way into acting and from then on, I knew it was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I just didn’t know if I wanted it to be my job. That was until my freshman year of college when I took THE100, Ariana Pacheco as my TA and Max Ponticelli as my professor. Ariana helped me take the leap towards theatre and that spring semester, I took my first acting class along with a stagecraft class. The rest is history. I didn’t realize I wanted to direct, however, until just last year. I took the required directing course and wanted to learn more so I just kept going with it and ended up directing an entire show. I could not be more grateful for this experience.

Anything else you’d like to share?
One last thing I would like to share is that following your passion is entirely possible. I am so grateful and fortunate to be going into my desired field and doing what I love for years to come. I hope that, as a theatre major, I will be able to inspire others to go down whatever path they desire, whether that be music, theatre, nursing, anything. You are more capable than you think you are. That being said, your worth is not defined by your accomplishments and how other people view you. Expressing yourself through your work is one thing, your worth being dependent on your work is another thing entirely. We only get this one life, follow your dreams and if you fail, it’s because you’re supposed to, it’s all a part of the learning process.