Expert: Taylor Sheppard - 7/9/2008

Question
Hi,

Firstly, I am a 19 year old student at a university in Illinois. My main goal in life is to become a professional actress. While obviously fame would be cool, I truly just want to be trained and be able to be paid to do what I love, because the art of acting absolutely fascinates me and, as corny as it made sound, it has given me a purpose.

However, I am very practical, and with the way our country's economy is going, I know that a well paying job is necessary to be able to afford to just live comfortably. I am majoring in Speech Pathology, which is has very flexible hours and pays well, and up until two days ago, I was planning on majoring in theatre as well.

But now, I'm wanting to do just a minor in theatre because Speech Pathology is very difficult, it is considered Pre-med, and basically, I don't want to screw up my GPA and not be able to get into a graduate school and thus get a good job in Speech Path to support my theatre career.  so... i was thinking that after i get my masters in speech path... do you think it would be "do-able" to  work part time, attend an acting school part time and eventually pick up a some professional acting jobs (theatrical, as i would start out in Chicago)?

Answer
Hi Mariam,

That little voice in your head that says: "It's corny" isn't yours, it's what you perceive or imagine others think -not you. Acting gave my life renewed purpose because there is a true joy there that wasn't fulfilled elsewhere. You could psycho-analyze the reasons why, but some things really don't need examined. As Minnie Driver's character in "Gross Pointe Blank" said about taking stock of your lives: "I say: leave your livestock alone!" lol!

I understand your concern for wanting to get set in life before you take the plunge. It is a major gamble. Sometimes it comes swooping in on wings, other times it takes years. There are many who try and fail. You will have to play catch up when your done, and it may or may not be possible to take classes while in school at private schools, but that would help. You may want to talk to a person in your field about what it's like after getting out, because often, the learning only begins after you get your diploma, and you may find things get even more busy later.

Best,

Taylor