This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at Chatham chapter.
Her Campus Chatham: What are you studying right now at Chatham?
Natalie Szewczyk: Interior Architecture
What organizations are you involved with at Chatham?
Mainly the Drama Club and working at Café Rachel.
What shows have you been involved with at Chatham? What roles did you perform?
Chicago ─ Fall 2013 – Crew, Vagina Monologues ─ Spring 2014 ─ Assistant Stage Manager and Crew, Once Upon a Cabaret ─ Spring 2014 ─ Assistant Stage Manager and Light Board Operator, Relatively Speaking ─ Fall 2014 ─ Co-Director and Co-Stage Manager and Sound and Lighting Design, Rocky Horror Picture Show Shadowcast ─ Fall 2014 ─ Assistant Stage Manager and Light Board Operator, Vagina Monologues ─ Spring 2015 ─ Co-Director and Lighting Design and Light Board Operator, You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown ─ Spring 2015 ─ Assistant Stage Manager and Light Board Operator, Doctor Horrible Shadow Cast ─ Fall 2015 ─ Stage Manager and Lighting Design and Light Board Operator
How long have you been interested in directing? What got you interested in it?
I’ve been interested in directing for a while and have made a few short films during high school and fell in love with it. When I read something, especially for the first time, I picture it in my head, and to get the chance to actually make that happen is something I’ve always wanted to do.
What goals do you have for the Drama Club this year?
This year I am actually going to be on stage, well sort of. I’m featured in two of the pieces in the One Acts–this year’s fall show. I am also directing one of the small shorts featured in it and of course helping with lights.
What got you interested in interior architecture?
I wanted to do something that combined my interests with art and math and began looking into architecture. However, I wanted something a bit more focused on the interior aspect and found interior architecture and fell in love with the program.
What would be your dream job?
My dream job would be working with someone like Bjarke Ingles, who creates amazing works. (Like the TEK center in Taipei, Taiwan).
What would be your ultimate goal as an interior architect?
I think my ultimate goal would be to create something unique. I’m mentally playing around with ideas with complex curves.
What are some goals you have for post-grad?
Small goals would be getting a job and starting my career, larger goals would be to see the world and experiencing all different types of buildings at a global scale.
How has Chatham changed your life?
As cheesy as it sounds, Chatham’s community allowed me to become more of the person that I wanted to be. It allowed me to grow personally and mentally and of course helped me make some of the best friends that I’ve ever had.
What do you love most about Chatham?
While I am an architect student, I love the old buildings. I love walking through them and imagining what they were in their hay day.
SPEED ROUND:
What’s your favorite drink at Café Rachel?
Something I like to call the Natalie Chai, which is two shots of espresso, chai tea on top, and just a little bit of soy. Sometimes I add vanilla or tiramisu, but one of my favorite things is mixing it and watching the soy slowly mix with the chai.
What’s the best advice you’ve received from a Chatham professor or faculty member?
The best piece of advice that I’ve received was actually a criticism towards my work–“Horrible Garbage.” Now let me explain why this is the best advice I’ve received. At the time, it was dream shattering and terrible, but it forced me to work hard and achieve more. It became a motto to live by–“Don’t create horrible garbage”–and it’s something that has pushed me to become a better designer.
If you had to read one book for the rest of your life, what would it be?
I’d have to say this is probably the hardest question but I think it would have to be The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger. While it’s not as dynamic as Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings (which, how could you choose just one book?), it’s a romance story that I could read endlessly and still find amusing piecing the story together.
If you could meet one female director—dead or alive—who would it be?
I think it would have to be Sofia Coppola who has done movies like, The Virgin Suicides, Lost in Translation, and The Bling Ring. Her work is attributed to that of like Wes Anderson (who is also one of my favorite directors). I would definitely like to go to lunch with her and discuss the beauty of small things, like sun filter through leaves, or how light falls on a certain section of ground.
All photos courtesy of Natalie Szewczyk.