As an avid member of Taft Theatre and an actor, I’ve always been curious about how playwrights build characters, structure scenes, and shape compelling stories, so the opportunity to discover more about the topic was an amazing one. Uncovering more about playwriting also deepened my appreciation for the craft and helped me grow as an actor, as I gained insight into the elements of theatre that bring characters to life, captivate audiences, and make them feel.

      At Brown, each day offered something new. In and out of class, I learned what it was like to live on a college campus, to connect with students and faculty with diverse backgrounds and interests, and got a feel for the rhythm and rigor of college coursework. Since my class met in the afternoons, my mornings were fairly relaxed. Most mornings, I would eat breakfast with my friends, occasionally go into downtown Providence with them for a coffee or meal, finish up some homework, and participate in any of the fun events or activities held on campus. On campus, I would play lawn games with friends, watch movies in the nearby Providence theatre, and – my personal favorite – compete in karaoke competitions.

      In class, we analyzed a range of plays, studied the techniques used by different playwrights, and applied those strategies to our own work, putting our learning into practice. One of my favorite exercises was one where we each started with a piece of paper, wrote a line of dialogue on it, then passed the paper down the line to the next person, who would have to respond to that line of dialogue. This taught us one of the most important tenets of playwriting: writing to respond. For homework each night, we would read a play, then write a few scenes using the play as inspiration. Our professor would encourage us to work with others from class, so I often read many of the plays with friends, sometimes using accents and always having fun. Additionally, a highlight of the course was seeing Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage, performed by the Trinity Repertory Company in Providence. Watching a play we had studied in class come to life was truly unforgettable.

      And that, academically, is what was most meaningful to me: learning how to take a piece of art from script to stage. Storytelling is a powerful way to connect humans and relate to audiences. Playwrights create the stories, and actors bring them to life. As an actor, uncovering how to engage audiences on paper and on stage was truly transformative. Beyond the classroom, the friendships I made at Brown will stay with me forever. I met students from all over the world, including some from other boarding schools around Taft, and connected with people who shared my love for theatre, as well as those with entirely different interests. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to live and learn alongside these students, to have fun with them, and create meaningful memories with them, too. At Taft and beyond, I will continue to write plays and tell stories on and off the stage. My passion for theatre won’t end here, and I’ll carry the lessons I learned during my time at Brown as a meaningful steppingstone toward the future.