Full Name: Nicholas Evan Reichert (Nick)
Hometown: Knoxville, Tennessee
Age: 22
Astrological Sign: Leo
Major: History
Relationship Status: Single
We are excited to introduce out first theater Cutie! He’s humble, insightful, and passionate about acting and law. Meet this week’s Campus Cutie, Nick Reichert.
HC (HerCampus): As our first theater cutie, we’d like to know more about your interest in theater. What makes you so passionate about acting?
NR (Nick Reichert): Acting is sort of like a really great rush. It’s one of the few things in life where you can feel very vulnerable, but at the same time powerful. You are on stage, maybe alone, maybe with other people, but you control what happens.
HC: I think that’s a great way to describe it. When did you realize your passion for acting?
NR: When I came to college actually. I didn’t do theater in high school. I played rugby and was, funny enough (laughs), in the marching band. And I always wanted to try my hand in acting. It was something I had always wanted to do. And college seemed the greatest place to start.
HC: How would you describe your style as an actor?
NR: That’s really tough. I’d say I’m very versatile. I’ve played funny stuff. I’ve played serious roles. I guess you could say, “seriously funny.”
HC: Seriously funny?
NR: (Laughs) Yeah, that’s the combination of the two.
HC: What would you say has been your favorite role?
NR: It’d probably be Noah in The Grapes of Wrath sophomore year. It was a great show. It was a great version of the book. The playwright came to see it. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life. It was a really dramatic role to sink my teeth into. Although I didn’t have a lot of lines, I was on stage a lot, and he was a very misunderstood character.
HC: A misunderstood character? That sounds interesting. Can you tell me more about that?
NR: It’s implied that the character is mentally handicapped. He is sort of the black sheep of the Joad family. So there are all these very loud, colorful characters in his family. And then you have Noah. When he walks into the room, it’s kind of understood that he’s different. It’s really sad.
HC: Well that sounds like it must have been a challenging role. What would you say your biggest challenge is as an actor?
NR: I’d have to say the biggest challenge is getting off book. But I think a more immediate challenge is taking yourself, your personality, and morphing it, augmenting it, into this new person. So it’s just this overall transformation. That’s the hardest part about the rehearsal process.
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HC: What would you say is the most rewarding part about doing theater at Wake?
NR: Just the lasting relationships it builds, and how free and open the creative community is.
HC: You guys must get really close as a cast.
NR: Mhm. You can tell, within the department, who’s in a show at the time. They get really close [with] books upon books of inside jokes.
HC: So what do you plan on doing after Wake? Do you plan on continuing with theater?
NR: I love theater, but I won’t be doing it professionally. I will be doing a different kind of acting. I plan to be an attorney. I plan to go to law school after graduation.
HC: That’s really cool! What made you interested in law?
NR: It first started the Christmas break of my junior year in college. I was thinking about what I wanted to do. Should I go into graduate school for history? Should I teach? What should I do? I started watching a bunch of law related movies on Netflix.
HC: What movies did you watch?
NR: 12 Angry Men, The Verdict, and …And Justice for All. They all have really great acting performances. I realized I can still act in litigation and trial, but use my other skills in terms of research and insight to help people as well.
HC: That sounds awesome. So I know you have a show opening November 2, As You Like It. What’s the show about, in a nutshell, and what role do you have in it?
NR: The show’s about love, in all shapes and forms. How love can change people for the better. It’s about finding one’s identity. I play Duke Senior, the banished ruler, who’s usurped by his younger brother. When the play opens, I am in the Forest of Arden.
HC: That sounds really cool. If you could make an announcement to the whole WFU community about why we should come see the show, what would it be?
NR: (Laughs) You should come see it ‘cause it’s Billy Shakes! I think it’s a rare opportunity to see Shakespeare on its feet. And it’s really funny. If nothing else, it’s filled with sex jokes.
HC: (Laughs) Well you’ve convinced me! What’s been your favorite part about working on As You Like It?
NR: Just the awesome cast. And us just working and learning Shakespeare together. It’s the same as learning a foreign language. It’s very similar.
HC: You mentioned earlier that the play is about how love can change people. Do you believe love can change people for the better?
NR: Yes, you see it every day. Just in little ways. Whether it’s a phone call to your family, or helping a friend. Love is expressed in little ways, in more than just the romantic sense.
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HC: I completely agree! Speaking of romance though…what do you look for in a girl?
NR: I look for a sense of humor, and someone who is optimistic, generally.
HC: Why optimistic?
NR: Because I sometimes have a pessimistic streak (laughs). Also because I like a girl who can see the joy in everything, even if it’s a bad situation, just someone who can find something good about it.
HC: (Laughs) A pessimistic streak? What do you mean?
NR: Like when a lot of stuff is happening to me at one time, and I don’t think I can do it all – even if it’s stuff that’s happened to me thousands of times before. I’m a very humble person, which is kind of ironic to say. I’m just too hard on myself sometimes.
HC: Well I think you should be very proud of yourself! What is something you are very proud of?
NR: (Laughs) Thanks. I’m proud of where I’m from. I’m proud of my family and friends. In general, I’m just proud to be here, at Wake Forest.
HC: That’s great! What do you mean you’re “proud of where I’m from”?
NR: Just my hometown. My roots. My parents are from Wisconsin, and then I moved to Knoxville, Tennessee. It’s funny. I don’t really have an accent. They kind of cancelled each other out. Just the southern hospitality is great. Some people can rag on the South for certain things. But I don’t think you can beat the people down here.
HC: I completely agree! With that said, what words do you like to live by?
NR: I guess my motto would be…I don’t know. I’ve got to think about that (thinks). I guess my motto could be in a song. You could look at the song “Smile” by Charlie Chaplin. It goes (sings) “Smile though your heart is aching, smile even though it’s breaking.” No matter how bad it gets there is always a reason to smile.
*Article by Raquel Broehm