Graphic by William Gao/The Choate News
Ever since second grade, I’ve known that I want to be a writer. But I didn’t think that high school would be the time to pursue that passion. In my mind, the purpose of attending a college-preparatory school like Choate was to, as the name suggests, prepare for college. So, I suppressed my desire to write until further notice. Instead, I thought I had my Choate career all figured out — I wanted to join the swim team, be principal cellist in the Symphony Orchestra, and participate in Advanced Robotics Concentration.
And yet, halfway through my first term at Choate, I already began shifting away from this plan. I quit Symphony Orchestra due to the extensive workload I felt like I had, leaving more time to focus on school and clubs. Little did I know that freshmen fall was only the tip of the iceberg.
For my afternoon activity freshman fall, I signed up to be the assistant stage manager for the production Clue. Funny how one email saying “I’ll do it” could have such a lasting impact on my Choate career. Because of my work on that production, I grew to love theatre.
So, instead of joining the swim team in the winter like I had planned, I auditioned for the winter production. I couldn’t pinpoint what exactly I loved about theater, but I knew that the sense of community I felt on the stage was greater than what I had found in any sport or other extracurricular. From that point forward, I decided to dedicate myself to Choate Theatre.
Still, I didn’t love theater as much as I loved writing. Instead of seeking out more opportunities to practice what I loved, however, I blamed the little time I spent writing on the School, convincing myself that Choate didn’t provide creative writers with enough opportunities to practice their craft. With that, I set the issue aside yet again.
Freshman spring came around, and in front of me sat a list of applications for Signature Programs. The way my prefects talked about it made it seem like participating in a signature program made you cooler. There was more respect for people who were involved in them — at least that’s what freshman me thought. So, I made it my goal to be accepted into a Signature Program.
Though I was passionate about it, I was doubtful about whether to apply to Theater Arts Concentration because I felt I wasn’t a very skilled actor. My parents scratched their heads and said, “What is the future? Robotics and machine learning.”
“Apply to ARC,” they told me, so I wrote the application.
One day, while catching up with Mrs. Doak, I told her I was applying to ARC. She looked me in my eyes and asked, “Why do you want to do ARC?”
I remember being unable to answer her. I remember rethinking my whole high school plan.
Then she asked, “What do you want to do?”
I knew the answer immediately. Writing. My roots were in writing.
I told her there weren’t any creative writing programs at Choate. In response, she told me about the Playwriting Arts Concentration.
It was risky. I hadn’t developed my creative writing skills or written for fun outside of class, but I realized that I’d already dropped swimming and Symphony Orchestra, the two extracurriculars I felt the most comfortable with. I might as well try something new.
What ultimately drove me to apply for Arts Con was the desperation to write. I’ve always known I was meant to do it. I had it wrong; I was thinking about writing like it was hanging photographs on the wall — a menial task that can be put off for later — but it requires skill and time, just like any art.
I wasn’t able to pinpoint it then, but I can now: what I love about theater is the twist of reality to tell a story. I wouldn’t have discovered my passion for playwriting and screenwriting if I hadn’t tried something new. Looking back, I realize how essential it is to take risks. Choate is a wonderful place for that — you can try new things with tremendous support from the community.
And so, my Choate experience has looked nothing like what I had imagined. Instead of spending my afternoons at the pool or in the robotics lab, I’ve come to call the PMAC my home, where I’ve worked on mainstage theater productions. I’m now a part of Playwriting Arts Concentration, and I’ve loved every moment of it.
You might think you know what you want to do going into the next chapter of your life, but plans don’t always work out. In fact, the only plan that doesn’t fail is no plan at all.
