I have spent so much of my life playing characters onstage, that sometimes I find it hard

to play myself. Looking back, I have let my identity get lost somewhere between my parent’s
divorce, my dad’s living far away, and my inability to cope with living two lives. Just like the
objects that fall between the seat of the car and the center console, I sometimes felt like I would
never find myself. I found parts of my identity in books, little broken pieces in the movies I
watched with my mother, and puzzle pieces scattered in my academic life. My uniqueness, while
sometimes tied to my art form, is not dependent on it. So much of me is who I am as a performer,
but what I will bring to Syracuse is not limited by my performance life. I am passionate about
literature and writing; I am constantly writing everything from short stories to screenplays, and I
think that that is a finite example of how my creative spirit remains unbridled, and I plan to bring
as much creativity and innovation to Syracuse as I can.
I am so keenly aware of my mortality, and I wake up every day in search of getting a step
closer to my goals. I think that more than anything, I am motivated by my drive to make change.
In my career I want to move people and change lives. I firmly believe that the best way for me to
incite change is through my art, but I also try to change lives in other ways. I am an active
member in the Tri-M Honors Music Society and I participate in community service through that
club and through other means. I often visit my great-grandmother’s nursing home and the
surrounding community of assisted living homes and sing to residents and sit and talk to them. I
find an immense amount of joy in speaking to these people and listening to their stories. I think
that there is so much to be learned from others’ experience and it’s absolutely delightful to have
the opportunity to reach out through community service organizations and touch people.