Entering the dramaroom I am immediately surrounded by the familiar sights, smells and sounds.Streaks of light cast by the blinds of the tall windows send shafts of lightthrough the dusty air. I take a deep breath and the concrete and paint smellstickle my nose. I love everything about this room.

Some of the best timesof my life have been spent here. It's ironic, but the stage is the only placewhere I feel that I don't have to pretend to be someone I'm not. Like manyteenagers, I almost constantly think that people are judging me, but when I act,that feeling disappears. People only look at your acting ability, not yourclothing, money, choice of friends, or any of the other ways people are usuallyjudged.

When I'm on stage, everything else vanishes. All the worries andpressures of the outside world are put on hold. Nervousness is still present, butit's the excited and tingly kind, not the queasy feeling of being different andalone.

I absolutely love to work backstage and on lighting. I doubt youcould find another girl who would work on a ladder up to her elbows in cables anddust and love every second of it. It makes me unique and gives me a sense ofpride to know that I succeed in an area where few others - and virtually no girls- do.

High school is a difficult atmosphere, to put it mildly. Likeothers, I'm often insecure, not sure of who I am or where I'm going in life.Wherever that may be, I will always have the confidence I get from theater.