Lights, Camera, Action! You would most likely recognize this bubbly and talented senior as an actress in the school plays. Her Campus had the pleasure to sit down with Maura Bonini and get to know more about her. Maura’s heart belongs on stage, and as a theatre major here at SCU, she has taken advantage of all the opportunities provided here to pursue what she loves. She has not only achieved her own goals, but has helped others by volunteering and working globally to teach and share her love for the arts.
This girl eats, breathes, and lives in the theater. As a baby, Maura would direct her babysitters in plays, telling them where they needed to stand and what they needed to say. In preschool, she claims she would stand in front of the mirror in costume and just talk to herself. Everyone knew that she needed to get into theater. Her acting career took off in the third grade, as she played Munchkin #4 in The Wizard of Oz. She will never forget her first line: “And very courageous!”
After only a brief interaction with Maura, it is clear that acting is her passion. Her first role during her freshman year was Footloose, and she laughs as she distinctly remembers how she rocked her purple pantsuit costume. Her sophomore year she acted in the play First Person Shooter, which addressed video game violence and how this may affect school shootings. Maura was also a singer in In the Heights, and had a role in The Tempest as well. All of her roles have been unique in their own ways, so it’s hard for her to pick a favorite. The role that encouraged her to be a better actress was playing Juno in The Tempest, although it was a small role with only five lines. She said that this role took a lot of confidence, stamina, and focus because her character had to stand holding her arms up for the entire play. She came out of that role as a much stronger actress because of this and it has greatly increased her confidence on stage.
Maura incorporates her love for the arts while doing good as Vice President of Artists Striving to End Poverty, a social justice club on campus. The club does outreach work with local elementary schools and teaches all sorts of arts – including music, dance, theater, and visual arts – to the children. Maura has not only worked with local children, but has also extended her experience with children around the world; she loves to travel and show others the beauty in her passions. During her sophomore year, Maura participated in an immersion trip to Nicaragua to teach children theater, and recounted that it was an amazing and eye-opening experience. This past summer, she partook in a fellowship through the Leavey School of Business, traveling to The Gambia (on the west coast of Africa) to teach theater there. Maura is truly passionate about arts education and arts advocacy.
Aside from being on stage and sharing her love for theater with others, Maura is also a Student Ambassador, which takes up a lot of her time. She gives campus tours and answers questions in the office. As a member of the leadership team, she organizes socials and also mentors those seeking advice. Maura also enjoyed being a Community Facilitator (CF) in Sobrato Hall during her sophomore year.
Maura studied abroad in London during her junior year, which turned out to be her “favorite place in the entire world.” She made friends there who she loves like family. While living in a British flat near the school with other exchange students, she became very close with all of her peers. To this day the group keeps in touch daily and continues to be great friends. In addition to the relationships she was able to create, Maura’s greatest take-away from studying abroad is that she was really able to explore her independence. Since she has grown up in San Jose, going abroad affirmed her self-sufficiency and she is now confident that she’ll be able to live farther away than just 10 minutes from home.
Currently, Maura is preparing for her part in the fall play and will also be co-directing The Vagina Monologues. She plans on attending graduate school after she graduates to continue her love for acting and performing on stage. Her Campus hopes that she “breaks a leg” in all of her performances to come and wishes her the best of luck in her acting career!