I've always been a very shy person, always awkward and anxious in social situations. I was always one who preferred to stay in rather than go out, and be alone rather than with a ton of others. That's why I think it usually surprises people when they learn that I was a theatre kid.

I have been on stage and performing since I was three years old. There is nothing I am more thankful for than the fact that I was put into acting programs. Even though the moments before going onstage usually left me thinking things like, "I hate this why do I do this to myself" with sweaty palms and an increased heart rate, nothing ever compared to the acting, the singing, or the dancing. Something about getting to be someone else for awhile was so refreshing and wonderful, and made me see that it wasn't so bad to branch out and come out of my shell. You don't have to be a super outgoing person to be an actor, that's the whole point. You can act outgoing. You can act like someone else. You can still be shy offstage. Regardless of anything I'd feel before I made my debut though, nothing was ever better than walking onto that stage with the makeup caked on my face and the lights blinding me.

Besides the fact that I actually loved the acting part of it once we got to the finished product, the rehearsals it took to get there also made the whole experience wonderful. One of the best parts was getting to create backstories for whatever character we'd be playing. We'd get full sheets to fill out on what kind of person we were, where we came from, what kind of personality we had, family members we made up, and all sorts of things like that. Sharing all our motivations with the cast bonded us, and we'd get to work on whatever play we'd be putting on. There was always wrong lines and hilarious mess-ups. There were times when it was impossible for all of us to contain our laughter.

And that brings me to my favorite part of being a theatre kid: the people. It's not just the actors who made the experiences some of the best parts of my life, it was the people who were behind the scenes, and in the wings, and playing in the pit, and running the show. The people who I'd do shows with were always my best friends and my favorite people to hang out with. Anywhere we'd go, the quietest we could get was a dull roar. Remember how I said I was shy? Never with my theatre people. We'd always be singing at even the slightest mention of something that could relate to a song. It didn't always have to be a show tune either, we'd make up harmonies for top 40 hits too. A bunch of theatre kids hanging out always resulted in us somehow being kind of fearless; we'd get ourselves in some unforgettable situations. And that's always how it was. I'm glad it was always unforgettable.

To quote myself following my final performance of my final musical, "I will be missing theatre so much, and am so sad that I'll never get to be on stage with my people again. It's been wonderful while it was happening, thanks to my fellow actors and drama kids for all the memories and the good times I hope I never forget and all the great friends I hope I never lose."

There's nothing I love better than acting, and there's nothing I miss more than being a theatre kid and being with my theatre people.