La Jolla Playhouse
Artistic Internship - A love letter to my ART
Dear Past Me,
Right now, you're in high school, juggling band, choir, and theater, wondering if you're stretching yourself too thin. But let me tell you—every single thing you’re doing matters. Every moment spent rehearsing, every note played, every line memorized is building you into the artist you’re meant to become.
I’m writing to you from a place you never imagined you'd be: La Jolla Playhouse, working as an Artistic Intern. I’ve spent the last six months surrounded by incredible artists, learning, growing, and pushing the boundaries of what I thought I was capable of. And guess what? There’s still more ahead. The people I once saw as distant inspirations—are now my colleagues. It’s surreal.
You’re going to doubt yourself a lot. You’re going to question whether you fit into this industry, whether you’re “enough.” I won’t lie to you—those thoughts don’t disappear overnight. But one day, you’re going to have a realization: You’re an Artist. Not just because of the work you do, but because of the way you see the world, the way you engage with stories, and the way you make space for your own voice. That moment will change everything.
You’ll find yourself diving deep into work that excites you—devising new work, analyzing plays, and creating dramaturgy research packets. You’ll nurture relationships, experiment with immersive shows, and support new works in ways you never anticipated. You’ll organize, communicate, and facilitate creativity, and it will be thrilling. Exhausting, but thrilling.
And you’ll pick up your flute again! Remember how music used to fuel you in ways you never quite understood? That passion never left—you just needed time to rediscover it.
So keep going. Keep pushing yourself, keep exploring, and most importantly, keep believing that you belong in this world of artistry.
Because you do.
With admiration and encouragement,
Your Future Self
La Jolla Playhouse is a place where artists and audiences come together to create what’s new and next in the American theatre, from Tony Award-winning productions, to imaginative programs for young audiences, to interactive experiences outside our theatre walls.
Meeting with such incredibly talented peers each week during our Intern Seminars has truly been the highlight of this experience. I'm confident this cohort will continue supporting one another, and I can't wait to see where everyone's journeys take them.
Top: Tash Gomez, Diego Gonzalez, Lauren Witkowski, Janessa Whitlock, Trey Rosemond
Bottom: Isabelle Louis, Lula Britos, Haley Hughes, Ebony Erickson
Me at Three Summers of Lincoln opening night
