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| Kelsey Garrett 11th grade, Middletown HS South |
1. What inspired you to write Mirror?
The primary inspiration for writing Mirror came from daily
life; the books, tv shows, the conversations with friends, and the mirror in
front of me. I think it's so easy to fall into this trap of comparing yourself
with every body else and no matter what finding reasons why you simply don't
measure up. Look at any campaign marketed to a teen demographic, you'll read
taglines like "how to lose 10 pounds in three weeks" or "how to
get the guy" or "how should you dress for your body shape?" It's
so destructive. We're inherently telling our girls that they are not good
enough in their natural state, and that they have to spend money and time and
effort to make themselves attractive. Intelligence and virtues aren't talked
about it, it's all about the looks. Confidence is only talked about in terms of
how it relates to sex appeal. So one night, I couldn't bring myself to
pick out an outfit for school because nothing looked right, and I could not
stop putting myself down. I grabbed my laptop and just started writing down
every typical battle friends have told me about, or that I've had while picking
out clothes, and I put in it the form of two different characters. That's what
it feels like, when you have this low moment and you're staring at your
reflection, trying to justify why it's okay to eat junk food or wear something
tight against the angry tirade of this inner voice explaining that your legs
aren't long enough for that skirt, your stomach looks huge in that or that
maybe you should just stay home because you'll be the ugliest girl at the
party. Writing it all down helped me realize how absurd, how hateful I can be
to myself, and sharing it with others made me realize I'm not alone with this,
nearly every girl and woman who's talked to me about it can relate to at least
one line. It's both relieving and terrifying.
2. Which do you prefer most: acting or writing?
The fantastic thing about acting is that you can explore a
whole new realm of emotions and experiences that you may never actually explore
any other way. As tough as a decision as that is, writing not only lets you
explore this new realm, it lets you create it. Writing is an expression of
acting in itself, so I'd definitely pick writing.
3. In your bio you talk about taking your first dance
classes when you were nine years old. Do you still dance? What styles of dance
do you enjoy?
I stopped taking dance classes in my freshman year, but I still
continue to dance in school productions. My experience with dance classes
definitely contributed to every one of my performances. I couldn't really
narrow down a favorite. Musical theater allows you to experience so many
different types of dance and merges them together to create something
incredible, that the type of dance doesn't matter nearly as much as the effect
the performance has.
4. You have an impressive record of volunteer and community
service. Please tell us a little about the programs with whom you work.
I primarily volunteer with my youth group, Saints by the Sea.
We strive to help our communities in different ways, but we mainly work with
donating food to our church's food kitchen and sending school supplies to needy
children. The experience is absolutely incredible, it's so gratifying to watch
a group of people come together with bags of bread and cold cuts or boxes of
pencils and notebooks and then a couple hours later be able to pack 50-100
sandwiches in lunch bags and deliver them or receive a letter from a teacher
explaining that the school children were thrilled by their new coloring
books.
5. If you could tour with any band or celebrity, who would
it be?
Scarlet Johansson. She's just an incredible role model and
actress. At ComicCon one year, an interviewer was bombarding the males of the
Avengers cast with questions concerning redemption arcs and character development,
and the reporter turns to Scarlet and asks her about her workout regime and how
much weight she had to lose, and she simply refused to answer, saying to her
fellow castmate "How come you get the really interesting existential
question and I get the like, 'rabbit food' question?" I love that she
refuses to release her weight or her diet plan because she wants to encourage
confidence rather than a two-week plan. To see a woman like that, who is
respected in Hollywood and across the country and still able to shut down
anything suggesting sexism or promoting weight loss for the sake of weight
loss, isn't exactly common. I'm a huge fan of her, and I'd love to see more men
and woman follow in her example.
You can find Kelsey's bio, as well as bios for the other high school playwrights from 2013, on the NJ Young Playwrights Festival at http://www.ptnj.org/miscpage/2013-new-jersey-young-playwrights-high-school-bios
You can find Kelsey's bio, as well as bios for the other high school playwrights from 2013, on the NJ Young Playwrights Festival at http://www.ptnj.org/miscpage/2013-new-jersey-young-playwrights-high-school-bios
