Student Blogger: Anna Porter

I am going to make the progress I need to make on my own timeline, even if it doesn’t happen all at once, and I am always evolving as an artist and as a person, and that will never change.

So looking back, what has surprised me most is how much truth and knowledge I already had in me, even if I didn’t fully believe it or see it all working out at the time.

This spring really feels like a turning point. Instead of waiting for directors and casting teams to see me differently, I am taking responsibility and expanding how I see myself. It is definitely uncomfortable at times, but it is working, and I am excited to keep exploring this. 

Now, when I am put in similar situations, I am able to take a step back and know that most of the time things work out in the way they are supposed to, and having experienced this, I know that things can go wrong and still work out.

Spend a Wednesday with me as a Musical Theatre student with a double minor at Otterbein University. Go through the day from early morning, to dance classes, to rehearsals and more.

I have spent years being afraid of what makes me uncomfortable, and I am so happy that I have realized that to grow, I need to do things that I don’t know how to do, or things that I am not immediately good at, or things that I feel insanely silly doing.

Even though hardship and failure may show up in different forms, I’ve proven to myself over the years that I have all of the tools to get through them. And every time, I’ve emerged on the other side, greeted by new opportunities that I never saw coming.

Sometimes getting sick is just inevitable but there are things you can do to combat the inevitable sickness or at least mitigate the effects, because getting sick is never fun, and as a BFA MT student, I really just don’t have the time for it.

As I look forward to the new year, I am excited to explore all of my passions, not just those that directly tie to my BFA in musical theatre. I need to be a well-rounded person to live a happy and fulfilled life, and I am doing just that. So while it is only early January and I am currently watching it snow outside of my window, I am thinking ahead and planning for all the possibilities that this summer can hold.

I knew I needed to dive right back into the semester without needing to build things back up. So this break, I decided to explore ways to mitigate the effects of being home and not training for an entire month. Here are the three biggest things that I did that helped me to dive right back into this semester.

No matter how cold or crowded, the city is always magical at Christmas. Each trip has exposed me to new shows, performers, and storytelling styles that inspire and push me to dream bigger. Every year that we return, I am reminded of this first incredible experience and all of the magic, hope, and possibility that New York City holds.

Coming into high school, I knew immediately that I wanted to be a part of the drama club. As the social media manager and eventual president of the club, I felt a great responsibility to make this brand-new theatre program one where everyone felt like they were part of a family. While some traditions were thoroughly thought through and planned, others blossomed from the regular tasks we had to do to put on a show.

As Julie Andrews says, “When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I’m feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things, and then I don't feel so bad.” Here are 5 things I am extremely grateful for that my BFA program at Otterbein has given me.

No one gives you a gold medal for fixing a vocal habit you've been trying to break for years, or finally understanding a new acting technique. Those successes are quiet, personal, and often more meaningful because they are about who you are becoming as an artist, rather than how others perceive you.

​This past summer, I was incredibly fortunate to work on two different shows: I played Laura Wingfield in The Glass Menagerie at Otterbein Summer Theater and Fredrika in A Little Night Music at The Hawaii Performing Arts Festival.

At the beginning of this semester, my Acting Voice and Movement professor gave us an assignment titled “Feeding Your Artistic Soul”. The assignment couldn't have come at a better time for me. Read BroadwayWorld's student blog here!