“I grew up in Draper, Utah, and I’ve been involved in theatre my whole life. I did my first show in kindergarten. It’s funny because I started with a company called Studio Kids, which was an after-school program, and then during my undergrad, I got the chance to teach for them for a few years. That felt really full circle.

I’ve always loved all things theatre, which is why I chose theatre teaching. It’s the perfect blend because I get to do everything—direct, act, produce, create—and then I get to watch kids fall in love with something that I love so much. It’s magical.

I’m graduating with a BFA in theatre teaching. It’s a program that’s part of the theatre department, but also collaborates with the College of Education. I’ll graduate with an endorsement for K–12 licensure. This fall, I’m starting a job at Salt Lake Arts Academy teaching fifth through eighth grade drama.

Theatre has always been my language, and now I get to teach others how to speak it too. That’s the dream.

I love music—live music, writing music. I play guitar, ukulele, and piano, and I’m learning the banjo right now. I used to teach ukulele lessons in high school which is part of what made me fall in love with teaching. That’s one of the reasons I’m so drawn to teaching theatre—because I get to share something I’m passionate about with young people.

I really love Shakespeare, so in high school, I played Julius Caesar. But I’d say I’m more of a director than an actor. Recently, I directed a reading of a musical I wrote in the fall.

The musical is called University (T)wits—it’s based on the University Wits, a group of Elizabethan playwrights like Christopher Marlowe and Thomas Lodge. Shakespeare wasn’t actually part of that group, but in my musical, I imagined what it would be like if they were a college club and Shakespeare tried to join, but they wouldn’t let him in. It’s kind of like a frat house, Elizabethan-style. I wrote it after studying abroad in London, where I learned about the University Wits and saw a musical that inspired me to try writing one myself.

The show is about an hour long, and it was my first musical that I didn’t feel embarrassed about showing people. We did a stage reading of it with just three rehearsals, and we performed it in November. It was a quick process, just to get feedback for future rewrites. I’d love to do a more official performance in the future.

I’ve written a few plays. My first one was called Consolation Prize, and it’s about mental health. It was chosen for a New Works Festival on campus my freshman year. That play was staged in the same space where University (T)wits was performed, so that was another full-circle moment.

Mental health is something I’m really passionate about. I’ve done some research on how participation in theatre and visual arts can positively impact mental health and presented that research on Capitol Hill. I also wrote a children’s book as part of that project called Ollie Does Not Love Science. It’s about a kid who hates science but uses the skills he learns in his arts classes to complete a big project. It’s really a book that advocates for an arts-centered curriculum in schools.

I’ve been fortunate to receive several scholarships during my time at the U, including the Sterling Scholar Scholarship, the Promising Young Playwright Scholarship, the Beverley Taylor Sorenson Fellowship and the Jack Lunt Endowed Scholarship. These scholarships have made it possible for me to pursue all the opportunities I’ve had here.

This summer, I’ll be interning in Washington, D.C. with a theatre education program. I might also work with the U’s theatre department, possibly even stage University (T)wits at a festival. I want to keep writing, directing and advocating for arts education. Teaching is my foundation, but I definitely want to keep creating as well.”

—Lauren Carn, Class of 2025, BFA in Theatre Teaching, College of Fine Arts, from Draper, Utah