Student Blog: Our Town and the Little Things That Make Life Big

So recently in my public speaking class, we were told to give an informative speech about something we’re passionate about. And, of course, as a theatre kid, my brain immediately went: theatre. That’s my thing. My whole world.

But when I really thought about it, I didn’t just want to talk about theatre, I wanted to talk about one specific play that changed the way I see life: Our Town by Thornton Wilder.

If you don’t know it, Our Town is this quiet, metatheatrical play set in a small New Hampshire town called Grover’s Corners. It follows ordinary people; milkmen, mothers, teenagers falling in love, through everyday life, love, and death. On paper, it sounds simple. But somehow, it’s one of the most profound plays ever written.

The heart of Our Town is about noticing the little things, the small, everyday moments that we take for granted. The ice cream actually being good at the dining hall. A hot shower after a long day. That perfect feeling of a fresh towel out of the dryer. Or laughing with your friends until you can’t breathe and your stomach hurts.

Those are the things we overlook, the things that are life.

When I did Our Town in high school, I thought I got it. I understood the words, sure. I knew my lines, I hit my marks, I felt emotional onstage. But what I didn’t fully understand back then was how much those words would grow with me, how real they’d become when I started living them.

After writing my speech about Our Town, I started seeing life the way Wilder wanted us to. Like when I’m sitting in someone’s dorm room watching TikToks and eating McDonald’s, or walking back from rehearsal with my friends, sweaty and tired but so happy, or when we’re backstage, whispering, laughing, hyping each other up before a show. Those moments, those are my Grover’s Corners.

There’s something sacred about theatre, about being in a room with people who are all trying to tell a story together. You start as castmates, and somehow you become this little family. You share late nights, inside jokes, emotional breakdowns, caffeine addictions, all for the sake of creating something that’s gone the moment the lights fade. And maybe that’s the point. Theatre is fleeting. Life is fleeting. And that’s what makes it beautiful.

There’s a line in Our Town where Emily, after she dies, looks back and says, “Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it — every, every minute?” That line destroys me. Because I think about all the times I’ve wished for “what’s next”, the next show, the next performance, the next chapter, instead of realizing I was already living the good stuff.

Now, I try to slow down. I try to really see things, not just the big milestones, but the small, quiet moments with people I love. Because someday, these will be the memories I miss the most.

Our Town reminded me that life isn’t just something we talk about onstage, it’s something we live every day. And if I’ve learned anything from theatre, it’s that the most meaningful scenes aren’t always the ones in the script. They’re the ones we create together.

So maybe I’m just trying to live my own version of Grover’s Corners, surrounded by good people, doing what I love, noticing the little things while I still can.