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Senior Musical Theatre Major Finds Home on the Hill

Lindsay Williams, a senior musical theatre major, found the place she called home when she first came to Shorter University. Before coming to Shorter, Williams took a gap year after high school to discover herself, find her talents, and make a choice about her future career path. When it was time to choose a college, Williams toured Shorter with her mom and was impressed with the musical theatre program as well as the professors and students in that program. Williams ultimately chose Shorter because of the small class sizes and personal attention from professors. Growing up, Williams only had a few close friends. When she came to Shorter, Williams was “completely immersed in the family of the theatre department.” Halfway through her second semester, the Covid-19 pandemic began. Even though this was a difficult time, Williams was encouraged that she and her classmates stayed so well-connected. When students came back the next academic year, things changed due to the pandemic. Students learned to dance with masks and take proper precautions when interacting with one another. Despite the changes, Williams and fellow students connected with each other through this difficult situation. She said they made it work and “came out stronger because of it.”

Being a musical theatre major has afforded Williams many opportunities to perform. In December of her junior year, auditions were held for the Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “Cinderella.” Williams secured the role of Cinderella, which was her “dream role.” Playing Cinderella was very exciting for Williams and really affirmed her love for theatre. Williams said that it was her favorite show at Shorter, and it was very cool to see “the magic of theatre bring everyone together from all majors.” Since Cinderella was such a huge undertaking, students needed to raise funds for the show. Since Williams owned so many princess costumes, she helped create an event called the “Royal Tea on the Hill” where musical theatre majors dressed up as princesses and hosted young girls from the community. The event was a great success!

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William’s senior year came fast, and she had to start thinking about her future. Her current plans are to attend professional auditions at theatre conferences across the country. She also attended the A1 Conference auditions in early January and recently attended the Unified Professional Theatre Auditions (UPTAs) and the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC). She hopes that a job will come as a result. Williams has learned a lot about herself by being at Shorter. She has been able to figure out who she is and learn her identity as a performer and as a person. Her experience at Shorter was very impactful. She said that the professors in the musical theatre department pushed her and her classmates to get out of their comfort zones and to do hard things. It helped form her into the person she is today.

By: Brianna Johnston

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