News Editor Valeria Garcia-Pozo holds tickets to a show at Ovens Auditorium on Jan. 6. Garcia-Pozo attended “Wicked”, one of several plays she has seen since “Beauty and the Beast” in 2013, which helped her discover a love for theater. Photo by Valeria Garcia-Pozo.
By VALERIA GARCIA-POZO – News Editor
News Editor Valeria Garcia-Pozo reflects on her love for theater and the reason she got involved.
When I was 12 years old, my parents announced they had a surprise.
I was thrilled — and then disappointed when I found out the “surprise” was four tickets to see a national tour production of “Beauty and the Beast” at the Classic Center.
Nevertheless, the night of the play, I admired the ornate, flower-encrusted background of the stage and hoped I wouldn’t fall asleep.
Then the curtains opened.
From my seat in the back of the orchestra section, I watched a tiny girl in a blue dress with an apron enter from stage left and begin to sing.
The minute she opened her mouth, I fell in love. In the dark of the theater, I became as much a part of the story as the people on stage.
As the three blissful hours came to a close, I realized I had been fully invested in the production.
I decided on two things.
One: I wanted to be on stage. Badly. Seeing that play inspired me to perform. I wanted to ignite the same spark that the performance ignited in me. I wanted to make people care about characters who, for three hours, are as real as those in the audience.
Two: I wanted to be in the audience again and again. Seeing that play also kick-started my love for watching stories come to life through actors and music and costumes and props.
Four years later, theater has become part of who I am.
I started participating in community theater productions with Athens Creative Theatre and can be found at Quinn Hall or the Morton Theater most days of the week. I’m happiest when I’m at play rehearsal, surrounded by people with the same love for the stage as me.
