"When I turned twelve, I decided I wanted to devote my life to telling stories. I went to my parents and said, 'Mom. Dad. I want to be an actor.' My parents were both accountants, but they supported me from day one. They found Spotlight Productions and, just like that, it all started. I was an only child, and lonely growing up. From day one at Spotlight, I felt for the first time like I belonged somewhere; as if everyone was speaking a language I understood. For seven years, my summers centered around Spotlight. It became a mile marker for how I was growing, and who I was becoming. Missy and Penny became distant relatives, as invested in my future as they were the talents they were fostering. 

 

Since I left college, I have made my living as a professional storyteller. It’s played out in a way that twelve year old on her first day of camp never would have imagined. I have travelled the country at regional repertory theaters, performed the greatest roles Shakespeare has to offer, gone to clown college in the Redwoods of California and finally, I found my home in Williamsburg, VA. For the past seven years, I’ve had the role of a lifetime portraying and studying James Madison at Colonial Williamsburg. In 2018, I founded my own theatre company that lets me produce my own work, write my own material, and reach countless audiences throughout the United States. I am still acting, but have added so many mediums in which I tell my stories. Including music, directing, and authoring books (My first will be finished this summer!)  I have given lectures to foreign dignitaries, the US Senate, I have been interviewed by TIME, however the best thing I have done is speak to kids. They remind me of where I started and, when one of them tells me they want to be an actor, I wish so desperately they find a home like I did in Spotlight Productions. My dreams have changed a lot since that first production of Guys and Dolls, but the lessons never do. Spotlight listens to the dreams of their campers, and they make true magic in making sure those dreams don’t  diminish, even after a camper grows up." - Bryan Austin, Former Spotlight Camper