Once upon a time, at the Kimo Theatre in Albuquerque, New Mexico, I saw the play Plaza, by Denise Chavez. The company of Nuevo Mexicanos had just returned from a successful run at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. I was captivated, and even though I lived 2 hours away, I signed the volunteer sheet to usher.

 

I was living in a time-warped village along the Río Grande in northern New Mexico without running water or a telephone when I crossed the neighbor’s field to answer the call from the director of La Compañía de Teatro de Alburquerque who cajoled me into making the trek to the city to audition for the next play.

 

After my first performance, no cajoling would be necessary. 

 

Instead of taking tickets, I would take direction.

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Instead of ushering patrons, I would usher in my lifelong vocation.

 

Over the years my commitment to the theatre would be colored by artists and companies dedicated to cultural expression, and social justice.

 

As my own methodology developed, I began to see Acting as a spiritual act---the ability to focus, to be truly present onstage, became for me, the rehearsal for mindfulness offstage... for me, to be an actor is a continuous examination of the human condition and how to be a better human.