I am a work in progress (and other advice)

I like to fill the inside cover my acting journal with bits of advice, words of wisdom and similarly catchy phrases with brightly colored markers. This week, I found two quotes to be particular useful:

1. You are where you are at (from last semester dance class)
2. I am a work in progress (freshman acting class)

Let me back up a bit first though; this past week, I was busy registering for classes and I had my hopes set high to get into one particular class and I went directly to the professor. And he told me, “You’re not ready for this class”.

I’m the girl who can’t be told no; but I accepted this and said “Well, that makes scheduling a bit easier at least”. Apparently, I can be told “Not yet”. Maybe I am not ready for this class next semester but he did tell me to look out for another class I should take in the spring. I trust that this professor knows what he’s saying, having seen me acting/studying/asm-ing for him for the past year and I appreciate that he didn’t exaggerate my abilities. I’m not ready—I’ve got more to learn.

I may be a college student now but I don’t think I will ever be done learning. Because you can’t rush progress: I was presenting a showing of a one act play for my class this week and we’re getting our critique back from the class to use before our next showing when my professor (a different professor) adds in a little aside to me that I’m doing things that I couldn’t have done when I started here. Since this is the professor who has had me from Day 2 of college, I think I can trust his judgment too on where I’m at.

My final and third piece of advice for this post:

3. “I learn by going where I have to go”

That is from a lovely poem, The Waking by Theodore Roethke. I didn’t know when I registered for my classes this year, what ones were going to affect me absolutely and what I would learn the most from. Clearly, I’ve become a better actor by going to college and majoring in theatre, yes. But I didn’t know that by the almost-end of my sophomore year, that I would have also worked busking a Commedia show, written my first play, learned to stage manage, become a Green Room blogger or that I would be singing onstage again for the first time in a few years. I didn’t know I could do all that until I did it.