BWW Blog: De'Ja Williams - The Power of A Good Team

Taking care of yourself is often ranked as the top priority amongst actors. You need to be able to pull off long rehearsal hours standing, singing, and/or dancing. You need to be able to bend and move the way your director envisions you doing, so in that case, taking care of your body is the most important so that you have a good personal support system. However, I might argue that taking care of those around you is equally important. The friends and allies you make within the industry are often the difference between a cannonball and a belly flop.

Once, a few months ago, I was driving to school and my car stopped on the highway right before an exit. I was two exits away from school, I was frustrated, and I had an 8 am class that I had to be in. The lectures in that class were crucial and I was struggling to balance so many different topics during finals week: I couldn't afford to miss a minute of class. I was panicking and I wrote this article for my personal blog after the close call.

"Being stranded on the side of a highway at 7:45 in the morning, when you have an 8, am class really gives you time to think about what's important in life. Which, first, and foremost, would be your homework for your 8 am class which you did not complete. Next, would be your contact list. Who is most likely to come and get you? Of those people who has B period free on day 6? Okay quickly text your closest friend who A) has a car and B) is most likely to be on campus at 7:45 am. Continue through your contacts alarming your close circle of friends that you are stranded on the highway and verifying your story to your first-period teacher. If I've learned nothing it is that where there is goodness in the world, then goodness will be given back. Closing? Be nice to people and they will give a damn about you and come pick you up on a windy morning at 8:03 to get you to your super hard English class." (Highway Struggles, De'Ja Williams)

That day one of my very close friends left campus to pick me up and dropped me off right outside my first-period class building. That was the first time I realized how powerful the bonds of friendship can be. The next time I had to call upon my friends I knew they would have my back. My friend group and the people I have become close with are extremely supportive. We all push and support each other and that is what we all really need to succeed. Often my friends will write essays or stories and we will take turns editing them. We all go to each other's shows and events when we can. Within the Missouri All-State Play, there are some students who live between 2-5 hours away from each other so seeing each other's work can be difficult but more than once a few have gone the distance to see one another. It is a very inspiring group to be a part of.

When it comes to me, I often enlist friend help on video projects and things of that type. I am passionate about storytelling and I often fiddle with mediums. I love cinematography and use my camera as often as possible to capture those emotions that are harder to put into words. For this to work, however, I need every bit of help I can get and my friends are always happy to oblige. Whether it is taking a chance on camera or it is lending a recording of a voice or even spending time in the studio editing with me, my friends are always there for me. I can't think of a better group of people to surround myself with. Nor can I think of how I would ever get anything done without them. Often I don't think of them as friends and instead, I think of them as a family. My closest friends within the theater department know that if they can't find me, I am probably in the computer lab and it isn't uncommon for them to bring me lunch or drag me out to get us to rehearsal on time. For that reason, I would like to dedicate this article to those who without their support I would be completely lost: Matt Currie, Kaylie Carpenter, Charlie Southern, Megan Currie, Eugenia Wiles, Arthur Jones, The All-State Cast, The MICDS Drama Department, and Patrick Huber. Special thanks to and for Bianca Sforza who showed me the opportunity to write for Broadway World and pushed me to apply.

Without a good pair of friends, we are all lost.

With Much Love and Adoration,

De'Ja Marie Williams