Dear Jenny

This past week, I wrapped up my last week of normally-scheduled classes for my first year of grad school. I would insert a huge, all-caps "WOOHOO/AHH IT'S ALL GOING TOO FAST" here, but I'm not anywhere near finished yet. We begin two priority weeks tomorrow where I'll be in rehearsals for Two Gentlemen of Verona from 10-6 everyday and on July 11th, we open at the Cockpit Theatre! Go here to order all the tickets your heart desires.

For our last context class, our professor had us read a letter written by Stephen Fry to his 16-year-old self. (If you're interested, you can find it here.) We were then tasked with writing our own letter, but this time to ourself at age 65. 

I would call the process of penning this letter overwhelming, emotional, fun, scary, depressing, hilarious, hopeful, and a range of other things. Very similar to the process of just being a girl.

Here are some excerpts from my final product:

Jenny –

            I wonder what’s most important to you now? I know that most of the things I cared so deeply about when I was 16 seem almost silly to me now, only 10 years later. I hope looking back at me won’t make you roll your eyes in scorn or facepalm out of embarrassment. I’d like to think I’m doing a pretty good job of being a general 26-year-old female human.

            It does feel hilariously prideful however, to be giving advice to a (hopefully) wiser person than me. Sometimes though with wisdom comes jadedness. Are you a cynic? I hope not. I hope you never stopped watching Disney movies and enjoying them for what they are. I hope you still wear the occasional ribbon in your hair. I hope when you meet a person, that you see them as a fully-realized, sentient creation with dreams and emotions just as important as your own. 

I used to see becoming an adult as a very small and very rigid box. But it doesn’t have to be that, does it? Maturity doesn’t have to be boring. Sure, be financially responsible, be emotionally available, be accountable in your relationships, but every now and then stay up all night with friends. Take everything in your fridge and try to make one meal out of it. Give yourself a day off to do something stupid. Or do nothing at all. I can already hear you sighing in exasperation, by the way. (I'm already famous for my exasperated sighs.) “That's all easier said than done.” I believe you. The trend for life so far has been to get harder, not easier. I can only imagine how difficult – how heavy – things might be at times for you.

            What gets you through that heaviness? Through the brokenness that you see everyday in the world and in your heart? My go-to’s are Philippians 4:13 and Jeremiah 29:11. I know - super cliché Christian, right? But they're overused for a reason, I think. Maybe my greatest wish for you lies in the fact that you still meditate on those promises and stand in their truth more fully than I can comprehend right now. Because if there’s one thing I could change about myself at the moment, it would be a complete realignment of my heart to the Gospel. I ache for my worth and my joy to be found wholly in God. It’s so hard pinning down your value on any other option. Achievements are fleeting. People are unreliable. Money is a sucky deity. Placing the meaning of my life is any of these ultimately leads to failure. Hopefully you're better at recognizing this than me.

Ok, some quicker, closing thoughts:

Stay active – doesn’t matter how, just keep moving.
Don’t be friends with people who are rude to the waiter.
All good mornings start this way: snooze once, roll out of bed, stretch for five minutes, pray.
Don’t curse so much. It makes it more effective when you do.
To quote Pappaw: spend a little, save a lot.
Keep writing anything and everything.
Sunscreen and vitamin D supplements.
     (On a related note: go to the dermatologist. Even if you went last month, go get all your funny freckles looked at again.)
Remember the legacy of Matthew 25:23.

Floss.
Always have a needle and thread handy.

On stage and in life – earn your pauses.

And as always - sic 'em bears.

P.S. - on a slightly lighter note, as another part of wrapping up our skills classes, we had a musical theatre night where each one of my talented classmates performed. I had the pleasure of singing (in my opinion) one of the more underrated modern-era Disney songs. Feel free to take a peek - 

Catch-up Like Woah

No blog for over a month? For shame.

So what have I been up to? Here's a grab bag of recent life events:

JoJo and I went to Brighton! It involved ferris wheels, vintage shopping (where I got a sweater with bear faces all over it for 5 pounds) and a very cold ocean experience. Watch our adventures above! I think you'll agree that Kitty would be real jealous. (Bonus points for reference-getters.)

I wrote my first piece for The State of Awesome and I think it's the beginning of a beautiful friendship. Read my sassy post here if you'd like your daily dose of reaction gifs. After that, check out a few of my other SoA favorites - like this one or this one.

We took a field trip (yes you can totally still have those in grad school) to Sussex and explored the villages of Sudbury and Lavenham. These places are the stereotypical "quaint English town" picture you have in your head. We were graciously shown around by a former chancellor of the University of Essex, Lord Phillips who insisted we call him Andrew. We started the day with a visit to Gainsborough House where we had a tea party in the back garden. Later on I made friends with some horses - Sussex Punches to be exact. #whatismylife

 

I've seen some incredible theatre. 

Good People did nothing but reinforce the fact that David Lindsay-Abaire is my favorite modern playwright. Getting to see Imelda Staunton from the front row for 10 pounds isn't that bad either. (Gotta love day seats.) Who knew Dolores Umbridge has a flawless Southie accent? 

Our articulation professor recommended us to see Jeeves & Wooster for top notch examples of the heightened RP accent. While the show isn't boundary-pushing or edgy, it's still fantastic. The physicality and impeccable timing required led to applause break after applause break. I couldn't wipe the smile off my face for two straight hours.

Katie and I snagged two return tickets for one of the last performances of Fiona Shaw's one-woman show at the Barbican. What's even better, there was a talkback with Fiona and the director afterwards. This was a case of me not being a huge fan of the show itself, while still have extreme appreciation for what that woman was able to do onstage. I can't imagine the stamina she must have to fill such a big space for such a period of time. Her character work was Beyonce-level flawless.

Our final shows of our first year have begun! While getting to perform at the Cockpit in July is exciting, it also means that some of my classmates will soon be leaving. These shows are the final, culminating performances for those of my classmates on the MA track. Despite this impending sadness, I'm really stoked to be a part of an all-female version of Shakespeare's Two Gentlemen of Verona!

Two Gents (or #2GoV for social media purposes) is believed to be one of Shakespeare's first plays and is therefore thought to have a bit of immaturity about it. That belief combined with a jarring "not-so-happy" ending lend this to being one of Billy's least performed comedies. But honestly, I'm kinda loving it. The story is interesting while not being too convoluted. The characters are super intriguing with complicated obstacles. And you can see inspirations for later Shakespeare works all over the place - everything from Romeo & Juliet to Twelfth Night to As You Like It tie back into this play somehow. 

Plus...it's really funny! I may be slightly biased since I'm playing Speed, one of the two main clowns. I absolutely adore Speed. He is the sassiest boy-servant on paper and literally does not care. One of Shakespeare's greatest tools is giving lower-class characters the moral high-ground. They constantly sit in judgement over the follies of their wealthy masters. Speed is given license to poke fun at and even challenge those around him, regardless of station. That's exciting to get to portray on stage! Perhaps my favorite Speed line, however is not a challenge but a boast to fellow servant Lance- 

"I tell thee my master is become a hot lover!"

I don't think there's a way I can screw that one up. It's too good. Thanks Bill.

I apologize once again, dearest tens of blog readers, for leaving you so in the dark. Here is a cat gif in penance.

To the Bard and all the others,