Senior Showcases 2021

Bread and Roses
Created by Yankelina Duran | [email protected]

I strive to radiate joy and community in areas where division is prone; within ourselves,
work, family and in the world. The world is in need of equality, justice, and light. Theater has the power to change and heal. I have learned through the Arts to blur the lines between necessity and beauty. This way I feel full. I believe we are the salt of the world. As salt heals wounds, we will together heal the world through theatre. I yearn to help others understand the differences, but most importantly similarities, between necessities and desires. Bread & Roses. Water and dessert. Healing and beauty. Once the line is blurred, we can collaborate to create masterpieces that heal and beautify the world through theater, as actors and servants. This way we can create light, beauty, and change within ourselves, our community, and those who are in the audience.

BREAD AND ROSES is a film that encapsulates the idea that the arts, which are usually deemed unnecessary, are necessary. The metaphor “We need bread, and roses, too,” from the 1912 Mill strike in Lawrence, MA, is the foundation. The film shows how sparse our
lives are without the arts and how much we will lack (physically, emotionally, and spiritually) without these “roses” in our lives. An original poem titled Pan y Rosas weaves various forms of art, interviews, and history together, that all respond to the question, “Can humans live a substantial life without roses?”

Believe: A Musical Theatre Cabaret
By Maggie Martin | [email protected]

Personal Mission Statement:
I’ve always felt a deep connection with theatre and the stage, particularly the expressive and emotional aspect of acting. Theatre has the power to touch hearts and bring people together, providing comfort and support through community. When we watch the actors onstage, we gain a very deep empathy for the characters. We feel that we can connect emotionally to characters on a much deeper level. But more than that, theatre for me is a liberating experience. The stage is a place where I feel at home. Stepping out onstage, all my doubts and insecurities just fly out the window. It’s just me and the stage. Theatre gives me the confidence to be myself.

As a high-functioning autistic, I struggled with feelings of insecurity. Growing up, I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb sometimes, because I wasn’t always at the same level of independence as my peers, and because I struggled with forming and keeping friendships. I felt like my struggles related to Belle from Beauty and the Beast. When I first began doing theatre in third or fourth grade, I felt like I had found a place where I could truly be myself. Through theatre, I built up self-confidence, and gained courage to take on new challenges every day. I learned that vulnerability isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. Theatre has taught me to have more faith in myself, and to not let fears or insecurities hold me back. It’s taught me that what makes you different makes you unique.

My personal mission is to encourage my audience to embrace their differences, because they make us unique. I want others to see that a ‘label’ does not define you. Your character is what truly defines you as a person.

Artistic Statement:
All too often, we become our own worst critics. We look in the mirror and despise the person we see. We grow to become very hard on ourselves, focusing on the negative aspects rather than the positive attributes. We start to doubt ourselves and our abilities. I’ve had those thoughts before, on so many occasions, and there were times where I had to stop and ask myself, “Why? Why was I given these challenges?”

But now I acknowledge that God always has a plan for us, and He put us on Earth for a greater purpose. God sees us, knows us, and loves us, because we are His children. We have to remember to believe in ourselves even in our moments of doubt. We should give our cause to heaven, and trust in the Lord, for He is always there for us, every step of the way.

My artistic mission is to use my voice to inspire others to find their own voice, and their own purpose. I want them to remember to have faith in themselves and faith in His love. I want my audiences to know that they should be true to themselves, because faith is the key to unlocking your potential.

—Maggie Martin

more to the story: a photographic exploration of theatre production
By Julia Murphy | Julia.Murphy@gordon | Juliamurphy.myportfolio.com

Presentation: April 30th and May 1st at 8:00 PM, premiering on YouTube Live
On display: April 30th-May 12, outside of BCA 126

Since becoming part of Gordon Theatre Arts at the beginning of my sophomore year, I have come to have a deep appreciation for the backstage work of theatre. There is so much right there under the surface of theatre advertisements and bright Broadway lights. Behind the scenes work is an artform in itself. I believe that the energy and talent that goes into creating a production deserves to be beautified just as much as the performance, because production work is undeniably incredible and awe inspiring.

I am lucky to have found a community that has helped me to explore a world that was rather unknown to me beforehand, and to have found people who wanted to help me learn more about myself. This project is my love letter to all that I have learned during my time in this community, and to all of the people who have helped me discover my talents and passions within the theatre.

One Another
By Brittany Cardoza | [email protected]

“We’re all just walking each other home.”

Everyone deserves to feel seen, heard, worthy, loved, and known. We can do this for one another by listening to each other’s thoughts and stories. There is power and beauty in every story, high or low. Music is a powerful medium through which people can share, and my hope is that we can hear these stories and listen well. What if we loved one another not despite our differences, experiences, and flaws, but even more because of them?

WONDER PITA
By Maeve Brooks | [email protected]

We were created to tell stories. They entertain, heal, and provoke thought. Stories help us make sense of the world and force us to ask questions. They allow us to revert to our childlike wonder. Let us not lose our wonder. This story is true. A labor of love. A story of redemption. I hope you listen, learn, and laugh.

The Hurt(ing) & The Hope(ful)
Created by Sofia Jeanes I [email protected]

Mission Statement:
Humankind exists within the fields of constant polar tensions. We live between the worlds of mortal and immortal. We live among the shadows of the heavy and dance in the warmth of the light. Each individual is shaped by the polarities that they encounter: the hurt and the hope, the joy and the heartbreak, the peace and the turmoil.

As we navigate our own swirling emotions and experiences, we tend to imagine our life experiences are solitary. When these experiences and realities are intentionally shared, we open ourselves to the truth; we are not on this journey through life alone. Unity, hope, and healing arise for the individual and the collective through stepping into the narrative of another. When things are personal, they become universal.

I believe in the power of vulnerability and honesty and the strength and courage necessary to express them in their fullest. I seek to bring light and levity to the experience of being human through a synthesis of the personal experience with art through collaboration to highlight the universal. I want to make the unseen, seen and the unheard resound. I believe that Love truly does conquer all and that the human draw allurement toward hope is reflective of the eternal within each person. My goal is to create spaces where people can collectively take time to wonder, provoke the unknown, and ask hard or uncomfortable questions whilst also balancing the weight of our realities with the light. Throughout my artistic exploration- I will continue to push myself to do hard things, to ask big questions, and to dwell within the tension.

Director’s Note:
What you’re about to hear are real stories from people just like you and I, read by actors. These stories are all transcripts taken directly from interviews that have been conducted over the past several weeks. The prompt for these interviews was simple, “tell me about a time where you experienced hope, and another where you experienced hurt.” The actors have no idea whose stories they’re about to read, or what story may be contained in each envelope. They have no background information about the people who have shared their stories- where they’re from, what they might be like or how old they are. This show is an experiment with the intention of reminding us all that the human experience is not at all a solitary thing and that our stories are far more connected than we think. - Sofia Jeanes