Student Blog: Reflections on Student Blogging
A time of self-discovery and creativity!
Now that it is May, I have come to the end of my time as a student blogger for BroadwayWorld. I applied for this position at the beginning of the year with no expectations; I simply jumped on an opportunity to grow my confidence in my writing and share my perspectives on theatre. I was fortunate enough to receive the position, and have had such an incredible experience articles about theatre since February! Looking back on this experience, I have learned a considerable amount about myself as a writer, theatremaker, and student. However, I am most surprised by how this experience has reignited my love of casual writing, along with just how deeply it has aided in personal reflection as an artist.
I, like many other theatre students, excelled at language arts and english classes in grade school rather than math and science courses. While I couldn’t wrap my head around equations and formulas, I found ease and joy in analyzing text, seeking out hidden themes, and discussing literature with my classmates. I also was an incredibly creative child, another trait many of my peers share. My sister and I were literally constantly telling stories; making up worlds and placing characters from our favorite media into our own, made-up scenarios. I was an avid reader and writer, and was, in general, constantly creating.
As I grew older, however, and academic demands became increasingly rigorous and my cell phone became a more permanent fixture in my everyday life, I slowly stopped devoting time to reading and writing for fun. With more and more books to read for class, accompanied by essays upon essays, writing and reading became more of an academic chore than a pursuit of personal fulfillment. Why write when I was already spending so much time on homework? Why read for fun when I had to annotate a multitude of pages each night? And, to make matters worse, I had TikTok and other short form content to occupy the free time I did have. These addictive applications squandered any time I had to devote to these pursuits.
Of course, I continued to be creative throughout middle and high school, and did not lose my passions for creative pursuits entirely. High school theatre gave me a fabulous outlet of storytelling, increasing my confidence and giving me a community. I engaged in plenty of personal creative activities, but was still lacking the passion and ability for writing I once had.
College has been similarly difficult to dedicate time to reading and writing, especially as a theatre student who primarily takes classes that require vast amounts of those activities for homework assignments. I slowly have begun to lose confidence in my writing, and, in all honesty, truly have only been writing for academic purposes until getting this opportunity.
When I saw this position, I applied immediately, excited by the prospect of being able to write about my passions and have an opportunity to exercise my writing skills outside of an academic space. However, I could have never expected the profound impact it has had on my confidence as a writer, how it has inspired me to continue to write freely about my passions, and how it has helped me recognize my strengths and values as a theatremaker.
Having an outlet to put down thoughts and feelings into words has been amazing for my creative process, and generating ideas for articles has helped me discover aspects of theatre that truly excite me. Starting by writing articles about shows and people that inspire me, I was amazed by how freeing and joyful it was to write without the constraints of a rubric and the constant, looming worry of a grade. This feeling was something I could have never anticipated; the surprise of this elation was incredibly welcome.
I found myself writing several articles about my design experience, and how important it is for all members of a theatrical team, especially producers, to understand these people and processes. Before writing these pieces, I never knew the depth of my feeling for the importance of fostering these relationships. It was cathartic to put into words thoughts that I hadn’t even known were swirling around my head while working on shows. I am so thankful for the opportunity to understand my values as an artist more deeply from writing on these subjects.
Going into the future, I now have a better understanding of the kinds of art I want to help produce, the types of programs I want to support and start, and the nature of advice I want to give to aspiring theatremakers. I also am reminded of how fun and fulfilling writing can be, and look forward to creating more in my free time. Thank you BroadwayWorld for reigniting this lost passion of mine, and aiding in my understanding of myself as a modern theatremaker. I will take these unexpected discoveries as a student blogger into the rest of my student career and beyond
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