Dear Readers,
Entrepreneurship is quite the buzz word nowadays and, especially in our tech and app driven society, it seems that everybody is seeking it out. The Merriam-Webster definition of an entrepreneur is "one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise." However, it has come to mean much more than that in recent years. It can often be a stand in for adventurous, forward-thinking, innovative, and creative. In some ways artists were the original entrepreneurs - always creating new projects, re-imagining narratives and human experiences, creating and executing new work, and pushing the boundaries of what has come before them. The students and alumni from the School of Drama are no stranger to the entrepreneurial spirit. Whether creating orignal work, productions, or new ways of thinking, our students are ambitious self-starters who continue the practices they learned during their time in Hutchinson as they embark on their artistic journeys as alumni.
This issue of The Through Line talks to three different members of the School of Drama community about the entrepreneurial skills they acquired while here, and how they've implemented them out in the world. Undergraduate Lindsey Crocker, current Executive Director for UTS, writes about the upcoming 20th Anniversary Gala and how UTS has served the undergraduate entrepreneurial spirit for two decades. Jessica Martin (BA '08) tells us about her journey from producing a one-woman show in her final quarter at UW to directing, writing, and starring in her first feature film, Abby and Tabby: Alone in the Desert. Shaudi Vahdat (BA '12) dives into the difficulties and rewards of balancing being a producer and being an actor in The Horse in Motion's upcoming production of Wellesley Girl.
Read on to learn more about how our students and alumni tackle the challenges of being self-producers, organizers, and artists, and the incredible rewards that come with forging your own path.
Sincerely,
Bobbin