Hi my name is Rhianna-mae and i am 18. i am originally from northampton and have come to sheffield to study acting.
My journey as a performer started when i was back in nursery,i had been chosen to play Mary in our nativity play. I don't have many memories of it, however every picture i have seen of it i have the biggest grin on my face. After doing a few school plays in primary school, i discovered my love for the stage and wanted to be on it as much as could. Realising that there was only so many shows a year i joined my school choir so i could be on stage as often as possible. When i started secondary school we have any shows however i spent all my time in the choir room working to be back on stage. At year 9 we had to pick our options and i of course picked music and drama. It had been a few years since i had been on a stage for acting, so music had taken over my life and i was sure that i wanted to go on and do music full time. However when year 10 started my drama teacher said that we were finally going to do a school play as one hadn't been done in years, i knew that i wanted to do it as soon as she said it was happening. we had a very small cast due to not many people being interested in it, and then lockdown happened so it got put on a pause. During lockdown i continued studying music and drama, however i was finding music harder and harder and started enjoying it less. When we went back to school for year 11 i decided to stop going to choir rehearsals and focus 100% on the play we were doing that had picked back up after lockdown, as the oldest student in the choir i was still able to perform with them as i would still come to rehearsals when we weren't rehearsing the play. In the end we were not able to dp the show as most oof our cast were year 11s who had left after lockdown. Even though it did not end up going ahead doing Game Over (the name of the play) was so important as it pushed my love for drama over music for the first time in a few years and it made me remember that i don't have to be singing to be on a stage. College is really where my love of theatre began to thrive as spending everyday acting made me love it even more.
A play that has left an impression on me is "The Laramie Project" by Moises Kaufman and the members of the techtonic theater project. The play is made up of interviews of the people of Laramie, Wyoming taking about the murder of Matthew Shepard, who was killed for being a gay man and is 100% verbatim. Matthew's story is such an important one to be heard as his death lead to laws against hate crime all across america being put in to place. Reading, watching and performing Matthew's story made me think about how horrible it is that there was no laws about hate crime (specifically for Wyoming) before his death and how it had to come to a young adult getting murded for anyone to do anything about hate crimes. Personally i feel as if plays like this are so important to help spread people's messages especially for people like Matthew who are not able to tell their own story. that's what i feel theatre is about, telling the words of others to as many people as possible.
Comments
You've identfied a very powerful piece of theatre. It shows just how much impact theatre and film can have in the world. We'll be delving into that idea often on the cource and you will no doubt have many opportuntiies to explore applied theatre work. Welcome to Sheffield!
Coming from Northampton to Sheffield to study acting is a journey fueled by passion and determination. Your path as a performer began in nursery, and from your early role as Mary in the nativity play, it's clear that the stage held a special place in your heart. Your dedication to being on stage led you to join the school choir, ensuring you could perform as often as possible. In secondary school, the allure of drama drew you back to acting, and despite challenges and interruptions like lockdowns, your commitment to the craft shone through. Your college experience further ignited your love for theatre, emphasizing that you don't need to sing to shine on stage. The Laramie Project left a lasting impact, reminding you of the power of theatre to amplify important stories and messages, like Matthew Shepard's tragic tale. Your journey in acting is marked by resilience, and your dedication to sharing others' stories through theatre is commendable and vital. Welcome to the course!