Artist of the Week: Violet Ecklund-Johnson

Since hosting her Frequent Friday titled “The Case of the Crushed Petunias” on Nov 18, senior Violet Ecklund-Johnson has had her love for theater grown with the help of her classmates and teachers.

What made you get into theater? 

“Well, I’ve always liked it. In middle school, I took a performance class and then I saw that there were several classes, and I was like, ‘I’ll do that’”

How long have you done theater for?

“I think I started theater in seventh grade, in general. And I’ve done performance classes, but I’ve also done theater outside of East is the Heart of America Shakespeare Festival and then more school-affiliated stuff.”

What sparked your Frequent Friday idea

“Last March, [theater teacher Tom] Defeo gave us a big list of shows that we all had access to in our library and we can kind of pick from those or we can pick a different one. I was scrolling through the list and that one [‘The Case of the Crushed Petunias’] was in there. The title was intriguing and I like mysteries. I read through it and I really liked it.”

What do you think was most successful about the Frequent Friday?

“I was really proud of both my set and my actors, I thought that my actors did a really great job. The set was the thing that I’m most proud of that I feel like I did. Because the actors were a lot of their own talent, and just me guiding them in the right direction. For the set, that was me putting it together and creating it.”

Do you want to pursue a career in theater?

“Theater is more of a hobby for me, and I think it’ll stay that way. I don’t necessarily want to do it as a career, but it’s something that I want to continue.”

How has theater made an impact on your life?

“I’ve gotten lots of great opportunities to do things like the Frequent Friday show and like, through this I’ve made good friends here. It has always been a nice community of people.”

Who has been an impactful person from East theater?

“I think that the biggest thing that has been the most impactful, was the teachers. They were always helpful, and always there to guide you.”