Dear Harlan,

In middle school, I became involved with drama club and loved it. When I went to high school, I gave it up. As the child of a single parent, I had to work to save money. It wasn't until about the end of senior year that I began to realize how much I had missed out on. The regret still haunts me. When I came to college, I put work second and activities first. I went to a tiny private school without a musical theater department. Last weekend, I went to see my boyfriend in "Grease." It was amazing and brought back all that regret. This is something I want to do so badly, and I'm transferring to his school next year. I REALLY want to get into musical theater, but there are two problems: (1) My boyfriend and I don't think I should be around him when he's doing shows. He's very intense and focused, and we're afraid it could cause problems. We've been together almost two years, and the relationship still is very positive. (2) I have eight years of dance experience, but no real acting training. What do I do about my boyfriend? Do I not audition for shows he's auditioning for? What about competing against all these people with training? How do I get involved and find people to help me? It's becoming an obsession.

Dying to Dance (and Sing)

 

Dear Dying to Dance,

What kind of boyfriend doesn't want to share a stage with you? Here's the deal - make yourself the star of your life. Audition for whatever you want. Stop worrying about making everyone else happy. As for training, find mentors on campus. Take acting classes in school. Use your lack of experience as an asset. When you get rejected, find out what you can do better. Work on stage crew. Lean on instructors and upperclassmen who want you to be successful and who you respect. If your boyfriend is too threatened or can't share the stage with you, find another stage or another boyfriend. He should be your No. 1 fan and biggest supporter.