Sweet Briar College closing and Why Women's Colleges Matter

Subtitle: How has attending a women's college helped me?

This is so important. Women's colleges matter. Today, as much as throughout history, women's colleges matter.

Sweet Briar College is closing their doors.

Why is this important? Who cares? There are thousands of colleges and universities in America; what does one less mean?

Sweet Briar College is one of the few women's colleges left in the country. Wikipedia  (forgive me for quoting wikipedia, but it was difficult to find a list) states there are approximately 48 women's colleges still functioning as women's only institutions of higher education. Other articles say there were as many as 230 in the last 50 years. Sweet Briar was founded in 1901, and has been challenging, accepting, and encouraging young women ever since. It has made many top ten lists. They are a small liberal arts school in Virginia with only 760 students enrolled in this academic year and every one of them is a woman who will lose a home.

This is important to me because I attended a women's college. I did, and so did hundreds of thousands of other women throughout history. At one time, of course, they were the only way for women to attend college. What's more, for every woman in America and beyond that is looking at colleges, I want women's college to be an option for them all.

I chose to attend Stephens College after a rigorous and thorough search across the country of the best fit for my formative young adult independent years. I never intended to go to a women's college. I had an older brother, and grew up playing with mostly boys. I had as many boy friends as girl friends, and I'd never considered the idea that I'd ever knowingly choose to spend a significant period of time away from my male counterparts.

I'd also never considered the lack of equality in my life, how hard I fought for success in comparison to men, or what it was to appreciate women and being a woman through the eyes of women only.

I worked exceptionally hard through high school, knowing that I wanted to leave my home state for college. I had a great GPA, a long list of extracurricular activities, and enough volunteer hours and awards to make almost any school I wanted look my way. This is true for many women. When I attended my state theatre festival and auditioned for over 50 schools I was surprised at how many showed an interest. But after a long day of meetings, and several weeks of visiting campuses and pouring over websites--there was only one place that felt like home. Stephens. It didn't hurt that their theatre program was ranked #2 in the country at the time.

I remember making excuses for the inevitable questions--Why are you going to a women's college? Why do those even exist anymore? There aren't any boys there? How will you find your husband? And of course--you're studying theatre?

I remember telling people that Stephens was ranked #2 in the country. That the class size was small and intimate. That I would get more one on one time with my professors. That they had accepted all my AP credits and I could skip a lot of required classes. That the campus was beautiful, and I could get to class within five minutes.  I remember saying "Well there are boys in the theatre department, of course." They were considered apprentices and not students.

The worst part is looking back and realizing that I knew I was making excuses. I hadn't yet reconciled myself to attending a college of only female students. But what I didn't realize was that I already knew deep down that Stephens was perfect for me. A women's college was perfect for me.

I had immediately felt wanted, respected, encouraged, and admired when I stepped onto campus. I had also felt the pressure of living up to a new set of standards and ideals. Not the kind you normally get when going to college--wake yourself up for class, try not to gain the freshman fifteen, higher education means all nighters and big lectures--get used to it. Instead I learned, along with the rest of my class, how to communicate with women, how to empower each other, how to look out for each other without depending on men, what it meant to depend on myself, and how to look at the world as if everything was in my grasp.

Because when a woman attends a women's college--that world is her's for those years. Every opportunity presented is only presented to women. Every experience is only experienced by women. And every opinion is validated by women. By sisters. And when she graduates she never learns to let that go. Women who graduate from women's colleges have a statistically high chance of succeeding in their chosen fields. Why? Because no one taught them to fail. A man was never given a position above them, and never took an opportunity from them. They have learned to believe in themself first and foremost. They have been taught that their opinion is important. And they have spent a significant amount of time in positions of power on their campus, giving them more experience than many women who attend co-educational institutions, and equal experience to many men.

Women's college taught me more about myself than I ever knew before--and most of it I didn't realize until after I graduated and was reintroduced to co-educational society. I spoke more confidently, I knew my goals and ideals, I made plans for my own personal happiness in my future. I interacted differently with romantic partners. I was more assertive about my expectations, and could more easily see and feel things that made me uncomfortable. I learned, in a way I had never fully understood before, the different ways that many women allow themselves to be put down. And more importantly, I felt I knew how to communicate compassionately and effectively with them and teach them what I had learned.

Women's college did make me a feminist. A word I had never associated with before. And a word that means and has always meant the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes. I shied away from it for a few years until I realized that doing so was going backwards on everything my education taught me about how to be a strong, independent, brave, bold, thoughtful, passionate, and deserving woman.

And all of this is to say that Sweet Briar College closing is a sad and unfortunate event. It is not just women's colleges that are struggling at this time, in this economy. It is the small private institutions all over. But the reason that this closing is of such tantamount importance is that it takes away one more option from women who might never know how positive an experience attending such a school can be.  These young women who will be unable to finish their degrees at this institution will be looking for a new home. I hope every one of them finds as good a fit as the first one they found. And I encourage them all to look at Stephens College, and any other women's college out there. 

A women's education was the best education I could have given myself. Every excuse I made to people was true, and those were reasons I attended. But I took away even more reasons to encourage other young women to attend. Every woman having to leave Sweet Briar, I'm certain, has a similar story. They are leaving behind their sisters and their family. But they are stronger than many, and are prepared to make bold choices. 

Horse Girls and girls and girls and girls

I returned from my summer in the south reluctantly, but excited to start the projects I had signed on for. I submitted myself for the UPTAs in September. I started making my plans for the regional theatre movement I was attempting to start for myself.

The day after I got back, I had a photo shoot for promotional photos for the show. The reason I agreed to Horse Girls was not only the incredibly fun and challenging new script I had read, but because for the first time since college I was going to do an all women show! An ensemble based script, I was playing the lead Ashleigh, who was a preteen award winning equestrian. The director was a friend who had previously asked me to do a reading of the script a year before that I'd had to miss. Now, all these women were coming together to produce great work--at the perfect time. The subject matter starts fluffy but quickly turns dark. We ended up opening the show the week after a terrible school shooting in Marysville, WA. Because of this event, our opening night was poignant, tragic, and very real.


 We drove out of Seattle to a ranch that had offered us their horses and land to take some pictures. We hadn't rehearsed and we didn't know each other (as is often the case with these things) and got to bond over an afternoon of horses and girl talk. I couldn't wait for the next two months with these ladies.

As Development Director at Annex Theatre (who was producing this show as part of their season) I was a staff member, and company member, and now a cast member. Another of the cast members was also playing my sister Lydia in Pride and Prejudice, and before we opened Horse Girls we were already spending our days rehearsing for P&P.

I also had the pleasure for the first time since moving to Seattle to act with another Stephens College alum on stage. We were delighted to be working together after our time in college and it really brought us back to our roots in creating plays by, for, and about women.

The rehearsal process was challenging and exciting. We were working with a new script, a young director, and a great team. It was an incredibly physical show, not only in the sense of stage combat, but also the idea of putting yourself back into your preteen body and working so hard to be 'grown up'. We sang, we danced, we yelled, we cried, and we told our story.

In the end the New York based writer flew into Seattle to help us tech the show, and we opened to sold out audiences. The run of Horse Girls sold better than any other off-night show in Annex history. With an all women cast! I've attached the reviews below if you'd like to peruse them.


Seattle Times

Drama in the Hood

The Stranger

I had the thought during the run of the show that not often does it happen that I'll get to spend two contracts in a row working with mostly female casts! It was a joy, a gift, and a reminder of how I started and where I came from at Stephens College. I was inspired in those weeks to continue to do all I could to work with as many women in this field as I possible.

Shortly after we opened, a New York premiere of the show was announced, with another Stephens Woman in the cast!  The end of our run at Annex was sad, but we were all moving onto different shows and knew that we'd work together again.

I can say this show was one of the most rewarding experiences I've had in my professional career.

The Kilroys List 2014

Big news today from the New York Times about supporting women in theatre. Women playwrights to be exact. And with plays written by women comes more roles for women. Now that this list will be an annual occurrence, we can all rest easy knowing there's a central location to find great work by, for, and about women in the country. And then, you know, PRODUCE IT.

I had a long talk today about the way of the world of theatre outside Seattle, and it really got my brain churning on the things I've been becoming complacent about. One of those things is just the act of starting a conversation. To have a dialogue with professionals and peers about our theatre culture and where we want to take it.

I have these discussions, but not as often as I should, and certainly not for as long as I should. I'm missing a challenge and a dream, and I'm going to spend my summer finding where it's at.

The 'Busy' Trap, Indeed

The African Desert Turtle that came to visit work with the reptile petting zoo.

I can't believe that it's taken me so long to update. I've been very busy, but usually I can find the time to slip in a short post.

Monday through Saturday I rehearse about four hours per day after work. I have very little time between work and rehearsal to breathe/get anything done/sleep if I need it/memorize or work on lines. Of course this means my blog updating has suffered as well.

Here's the skinny:

Rehearsals have gone by so fast! This show was funny by week two, by now it's hilarious. Every day we discover something new and we're keeping each other on our toes.

We had a fight choreographer come in to build our combat scenes and  chaos scenes. We have quite a few. I believe I'm in four 'fight scenes' in this show, none of which are actually scripted. Director has added in all the fighting, and I think the next time I see a version of Shrew I'll miss the physicality of this show. All of the combat scenes add so much to our characters and really support the story.

Our fight choreographer wasn't able to stay on very long, but with his groundwork, the rest of us pitched in and created all the fight scenes. We're lucky to have three actors in the cast that are extremely well trained (and certified) in many specialties of stage combat so the fights are not only creative, but technically executed as well. I have adored every step of the process of getting these fights to where they are now.

We've had three entire days of rehearsal throughout the process dedicated to fight choreography and cleaning/sharpening movements. Some fights have changed drastically and some have just gotten longer. In both cases I've had an absolute blast being a part of them. I have a feeling I'm only beginning to understand how much I love stunt/combat work. I'm finally getting a chance to really partake in this side of theatre and film, and every time I do it I can't help but be more excited than the last time. I'm thinking about getting into some classes here on stage combat--and because I'm lucky enough to be working with some great actors who have already done so, they've been nice enough to point me in the right direction. It will definitely make me a more marketable actor, but honestly I'm going to do it because it's so much fun.

In these past three weeks we've been getting off book, getting to know each other, and tightening up the pace of the show. We're still not quite reaching the 90 minute mark that we should be at by the time we open, but we're getting closer every day. We've rehearsed in many different outside areas to simulate the different parks we'll be playing in. This week we're finally traveling to some of our performance locations so we can become accustomed to them. Because every park is different and will present different obstacles, we're learning now how best to adapt. Some parks have massive tree roots in the middle of the stage, others are near airports, while others will be a small metal flatbed truck provided to us by an island. In the end, we have to be able to change our blocking (and out fighting) to the space we're playing in.

This means we have separate blocking and fights to remember for those different parks. Before every rehearsal we have a warm up and then a fight call. Fight call is a rehearsal of all the fights in the show to assure that no actors will be hurt in the performance by forgetting a move. Fight call for our show has become extremely lengthy, sometimes lasting over half an hour. I love it.

We've long since added in props, and we're finally getting to the costume stages. Next week will be tech/dress rehearsals, so our designers are working hard to finish the show up. We've had to make sure that many of our costume changes will be able to be made fast enough (they're called quick changes), and that our costumes allow us enough movement to fight safely.

Personally, I've been waiting for the nice weather to kick in so that we won't have to rehearse in the cold rainy weather anymore. It's slightly refreshing, but I think I'll enjoy Shakespeare in the park when summer finally arrives. Seattlites say it happens after the 4th of July! Here's to hoping!

In other news I had a fabulous audition last weekend for an adapted play with two parts--one man, one woman. It was at a very reputable theatre here, and it was the most substantial role I've been able to audition for since coming to Seattle. Most theatres here have a list a mile long already of the young, tall, thin female that they're going to use, so it's not often that I'm given the opportunity to strut my stuff.

I prepared a monologue from A Doll's House with Acting Coach. I rocked my audition, and landed a callback! I was incredibly excited, especially since the Artistic Director I was auditioning for showed me a list of at least 35 women that he was auditioning besides me. Eight of us made it to callbacks, and we all auditioned in front of each other. I had a great time, and best of all I was able to work with an extremely talented and well known actor as my scene partner. In the end, I didn't end up getting the role, but I felt like I made a good impression on a lot of people and there's not much more you can ask for than that.

This is the slow part of summer audition wise in Seattle. There aren't a lot of audition opportunities right now which is simultaneously frustrating and relaxing. In another month or so things will be picking back up again, so I'm biding my time until then. Which, of course, actually means that I'm attending my weekly acting sessions and rehearsing every day.

My second film was put on hold, which is really great for my schedule because I'm not sure I would have been able to keep up with it. Instead, I was able to pick up a shift at The 5th Avenue, and I got to see the touring cast of Les Miserables. Now, I've read part of the book (then got so busy I couldn't finish it), and I'd heard a lot about the musical. I was absolutely blown away by the show. It was amazing. I loved every second of it, and it's definitely in my list of top five favorite musicals now. It easily became a musical that I will try to catch again and again with different casts. It's such a moving piece with beautiful songs.

I have this hang up--I can't listen to a musical's score until I see it in person. I hate to know the story before I see the show, I mean, it's like knowing how a book will end before you start reading it. What's the point? So even though Les Mis is a classic, and I've sang at least one of the songs in a voice class before, I generally didn't know what to expect. I'm so glad I didn't. It made the show that much better. And the singing was just phenomenal. It was an extremely talent cast and I'm glad I caught the limited run. If it was here longer I would probably go again.

Les Miserables inspired me all over again to continue on this path. I was so awed by the talent on that stage, and the power of the piece itself. It reminded me of all the reasons why I'm so passionate about what I do.  It was also incredibly relaxing to take three hours to sit back and let my mind wander. I've been running around so much lately, which I love to do, but there's been a little nugget in the back of my mind making me wonder what's so great about being so busy?


Yes, it's incredibly fulfilling if you're busy doing something you love. But I think it's also important to remember to take time for yourself, which is something I haven't been able to do lately. Now, don't get me wrong, I'd choose rehearsal over work any day, so I'm not tired of rehearsing. But I am interested in reevaluating my day job soon and really looking at what I need financially and professionally to fulfill me so that I can feasibly and regularly give myself the time I need.

If you have five minutes read this article about being 'too busy': http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/06/30/the-busy-trap/

It's a really interesting look at the effects of being busy, and it makes you take a hard look at the kind of life style you might actually want. Strangely enough, I had all these same thoughts before I read this article, so when I read it, it really cemented many of the ideas in my brain. It's time to sit back and smell the roses.  Good thing my first vacation in ten months is coming up in three weeks!

Unrelated news:
I've since purchased a bike and have begun biking to work when the weather permits. Staying active and taking some extra time to get around to places has increased the amount of time in my day I take to just breathe and think. Healthy body, healthy mind.