The Perfect Getaway:

It’s three weeks before finals week, and this is when the stress of final projects and tests begin to pick up. Saturday and Sunday I was truly at home with my mom, grandma, Uncle Andy, Aunt Bridget, and my cousins Connor and Dylan. I didn’t realize how much my little self-needed to go home to Fremont. The pace was slow, the question as to whether someone was going to come into the room at any minute was thrown out the window, and family love, support, and care was filling the space. I’m so glad I got quality time with my family and a deep breath before my home stretch to finals!

Gratitude Corner

Thank you to my family! Thank you for letting me be a kid again the last few days, but thank you for loving on me most of all. I never wanted to let you go when I had to leave, but I will see you all again quite soon.

What is Gluten Free?

I asked that question way too many times in the city. Seriously. Is there really not a single gluten-free place in all of San Francisco? Is there really not a single gluten-free option other than salad? Apparently not except in the Nordstrom restaurant (that adventure is a story on its own) and the food court in the Academy of Sciences in Golden Gate Park. Long story short, it was frustrating but I did get some delicious and high quality food when saying hello to the golden gates! Also, I highly recommend visiting the Academy of Sciences! It was a really fun place to roam around and play like a kid again. The jungle dome was the coolest (actually, the hottest) exhibit but my mom would beg to differ and claims that the jelly fish and staged animal habitats were the best. Either way, what can go wrong with an albino alligator room?

Art + History + Love = Hamilton

So, I did a thing this weekend. I saw one of the most touching, relevant, unique, innovative, moving, diverse, inclusive and daring musicals I’ve ever had the gift to see: Hamilton. Going to San Francisco with my mom all together was a blessing also. It melted my heart to see her back home, a place she has longed for, for over 10 years. She showed me all the places she used to live, we took the walks she used to walk, and we investigated the areas that had been built back up again that she wasn’t familiar with. But then we landed at the theatre, and neither of us could believe we were there. Our usher happened to be a retired AEA actor and is now a drama teacher, and told me all the secrets of the theatre and show, and allowed me to go down to the stage and take pictures and talk to the orchestra pit. After the show I met the actors who played Hamilton himself, King George III, and John Laurens/Phillip Hamilton. The show itself was absolutely breathtaking. During intermission, there was a moment when I sat and remembered why I’m a theatre major, why I am an actor, a writer, a designer, a dance, an artist. The theatre was full of electricity that was infesting each and every person, bringing out the very best in all of us and opening every mind to what we didn’t know was possible. The theatre was changing and moving lives. The actors were authentic. The musicians were riveting. The audience was actively listening and absorbing it all. Hamilton is a show that turns racial identities upside down, and takes the word “musical” to the nest level. I have never seen a show touch so many people, and I’ve never had the honor to attend a musical that reaches out to so many underprivileged youth. For an overwhelming amount of audience members, this was their first time stepping into the theatre. This is what theatre is about. This is how art changes lives. This is how storytelling influences and creates change. This is why I’m an artist.