Anyone who knows me learned very quickly that I am extremely passionate about the arts and the importance that they play in our history and future. I have been infected with a love for theatre for nearly 5 years now, where I not only appreciate how it is globally produced but I have been able to attribute most of who I am to performing. I decided upon starting college that I would take a break from performing and not add it as a major as a personal test, which led me to pursue a degree in English. This has been my plan since I was an elementary student reading three books a week, but I wanted to see through my first semesters if Theatre was truly a major I wanted to pursue along with English.
The university I attend is very STEM focused and is making wonderful discoveries through research and technologies, and I think this is absolutely wonderful. But something that I discovered as an English major throughout this past freshman year was that my fellow peers were befuddled when they learned that I had no interest in science, AT ALL. I commonly got questions about why I chose to be an english major and what in the world I will ever do with that degree (as they boasted about the need for more doctors). Thankfully I was able to find good friends who were accepting, even though arts weren’t their particular passion, and recognized their value in society.
Going back to theatre, I took two courses this past year (one per semester), and by the end of this current semester I realized that theatre was something that I had to do along with English. I knew it might not have the most stable career options, but I was losing sleep over the fact that I was not practicing and growing in a field that I love so much. And let me tell you, I have never been happier with a decision. I know that I am on a personal tangent at this point (I did just finish a week of finals so my brain isn’t too creative right now), but I promise I have a point.
The first – and most important – point being to do what you love. In my case, I am blessed with enough credit hour space to be able to add a double major, but don’t think there are not outlets to express yourself if you are doubtful that you don’t have enough time, money, resources, etc. There is always a way to find what you love and do it, and there will be people supporting you along the way.
My next point is that we – as a society – need to stop discouraging others from trying to pursue their dreams. I’ve already gotten so many questions about the purpose behind me adding a double major that has such significant job instability. Rather than doing this, we should encourage and believe in the people, that way they will believe in themselves and be more likely to succeed.
And lastly, going back to the title of this article, THE ARTS ARE IMPORTANT! Whether it be theatre, dancing, painting, writing, singing, etc., they all not only require tremendous talent, but they tell history from all different cultures. So, I encourage everyone to go out and see your school’s musical or go to an art show or a ballet because you might realize a hidden passion of your own.