How I Express My Faith in Theatre

Well, many people have been telling me to share about my expression of faith through theatre…so I figured why not? I have a huge passion for the arts. I love to draw, paint, sing, act, and play piano. Music and art are my whole entire life and I love them so much. I could not imagine my life without them. However, even though I love these things…sometimes things can get messy. But what’s art without a mess?

One of the biggest art forms that has taken on a big prominence in my life is my acting. I’m no Hollywood celebrity, but I’m planning on getting there one day with God’s help. He can and will do anything I ask in His name, and it will happen according to His plan and purpose. Having said that, here is how I discovered my love for the theatre.

Since everything came to be from God himself, that is where I began my journey as an actor. I started in my amazing home church; I began singing in choirs…and eventually landing a lead role in a musical (completely involuntary of course…I was 8 years old). Ever since I can remember, me and my sister have always been acting. We created characters, we acted out Disney movies, and we always sang; so it is no coincidence that we love musical theatre…and straight plays. Then when my mom and dad told me that the people in movies do it for money, 5-year-old me immediately thought, “I MUST DO THIS!” So here I am now, fresh out of college…and planning a move from Texas to the west coast.

I have been a Christian for a while now…and I have gotten mixed reviews of my career choice. I’ve been praised for my gift, and I’ve been ostracized because of it. Other Christians question my faith because of the people I associate with in the theatre world, and other Christians have been amazingly supportive of what I do. Some Christians have asked why I act for little to no money, and some Christians believe that I am going to be very successful one day. I’ve heard of the “evil of Hollywood.” I have also been told, “Be careful, because that industry belongs to Satan.”

Now, here’s what I’ve heard from the outside the four walls of the church. I cannot say that I have been ostracized and ridiculed here, at least not out loud. However, I have been criticized by one of my peers for not having an “aesthetic point of view.” I have been reminded numerous times to, “agree to disagree.” There’s criticism everywhere, but I think that I have learned to accept and love others in the theatre more than at church. It is sad to say that, but it is true. At church, I learned what the Bible said to do, but I never learned what it really meant until I was put in an environment where I couldn’t do anything else but love.

In the theatre world, collaboration is key. No one wants to work with someone who is insulting or mean to other people. So my first goal when I am in a show is to befriend everyone. Through this, I have met some of the most talented people with such big, loving hearts. Of course, not all of these people are Christians, but why let that stop me from being their friend? Why make the job more complicated? One way of showing Christ through theatre is the way I work with others. I’m not there to save people; I’m there to do a job. If they ask me about it, of course I will share it. Why shove it in their face?

As far as the content of the shows I do, that is just a matter of choosing. Personally, I have made a choice to not participate in anything that will blaspheme my Savior. Of course, you have the shows with heavy content. I was discussing this with some of my cast mates for “Funny Girl” and they brought up the fact that sex, and other traumatic things are parts of life. In my experience, the “sex” parts are not in the entirety of the play/musical…I usually hope that audiences will see the big picture. Theatre plays always have some sort of message, but religious people are always quick to analyze and judge. I wish that were not the case.

One show, for example, is Into The Woods; a musical about what happens after the “happily ever afters” of fairy tales. This musical covered a wide variety of things: adultery, revenge, obedience, lust, patience, etc. I had the amazing opportunity to be in this show, and it told an amazing story…and even ministered to me, and this musical is not even about God.

Theatre does one thing primarily, it tells a story. Some are good, some bad, and some disturbing. There is always something to take away, and discuss. I just love being a part of a big picture for people to see. When people I know come and support the shows and tell me all about how they enjoyed it, it just puts a huge smile on my face. I don’t want them to see me, I just want them to enjoy seeing something we as a cast worked so hard to put on.

Being a person of faith in the world of acting is just so inspiring, and I think I’ve learned a lot about who I am through it. Of course, when you have any type of talent or ability (athletics, arts, business, teaching…whatever) it is so important to use it to the fullest. Even though I say these are my gifts, in reality they’re God’s gifts from Him…to me. Of course, I want to flaunt them. People have told me to tone it down, or to put them away because I “can’t use them to make a living.” I think that when you use your gifts, and grow them…they’ll only get bigger and better. Like Jesus’ parable of the talents and the servants. The other two servants invested their talents and multiplied them, while the other buried it and kept it to himself, and made nothing out if it.

I know that when God asks me what I did with His gift, I want to be the one who multiplied it. You can use anything you do for the glory of God, it doesn’t always mean you’ll get praise from people…but God sees you, and if you know in your heart that God wants you there…then He’s proud of you. Every time I get onstage, I know I’m doing what God wants me to do.