Artist of the Week: Alana Rowan

Senior Alana Rowan has been involved in theatre for the last ten years. Throughout high school, Rowan has explored her love for theatre by taking on new roles like directing and crew. Theatre has been an outlet for Rowan to express herself and one day hopes be a script writer for tv shows or movies. Rowan is directing her first Frequent Friday from an online script she began adapting last May into her own unique show which will be performed Feb. 8 in the little theatre.

Read more about Rowan in the Q&A below!

Where do you find your inspiration while directing?

“Mainly through other directors I have had in the past. I have seen the good things and the bad things that directors have done. I have picked up on them throughout the years and in high school during Frequent Fridays. I have been thinking [about] what I do want to do and what I don’t want to do. I have seen what works well and what produces the best results and then what doesn’t work.”

What do you think works best for directing your own Frequent Friday?

“I think that letting the cast explore their characters instead of telling them exactly what they need to do works a lot better because they have their own creative freedom to get to know themselves as their characters instead of just me telling them every exact movement and every inflection they need to have.

What made you want to direct your own Frequent Friday?

“I started theatre when I was nine and just have been obsessed with it ever since. I am usually always on the acting side, but sophomore year I decided I wanted to try to get into different aspects of theatre more. I just really wanted to try it all with theatre. When you are an actor and you try crew or try to be a director, you appreciate everyone else more because you realize how hard they have to work getting everything together to make a good show. It’s not just the actors that contribute to the show.”

How do you feel like theatre is an outlet to express yourself and your art?

“I feel like it’s an escape. Especially here [at East], it is such a great community of people and everyone is so loving. Whatever you choose to do with theatre, they will support you and lead you. I love that I get to be that for the underclassman now and to be the one that they turn to when they have questions or just want to talk about shows.”

Do you feel like you have creative freedom in theatre?

“Yes, it is very overwhelming but also so cool. I just have the script and get to do everything else. Lights, set, costumes, it’s all up to me. It’s a lot of creative freedom and it is really exciting, yet nerve wracking.”

What is the most important thing about being a director?

“I have to trust my cast to respect me enough to perform their best, and I have to respect them enough to let them have their time to think creatively about what they want to do with their characters.”