Matthew Tackles Social Media Strategy and Campaigns

I am taking a number of dance classes this semester. One of my favorites is Jazz 3. This dance class focuses on the jazz style of dance, which is the basis of dance forms such as hip-hop and the dances you see going viral on TikTok. Since Jazz 3 is still technically an academic course, there still needs to be some aspect of writing in the course. In the past, we'd have to write a research paper on a historical figure or movement in the dance style, but this year we are trying out weekly journals instead. They are rather informal and give us freedom to talk about our experience with the course content in and out of class. For one of our first journal entries, we were prompted to write about our goals for the semester, what we want to get from the class and what stands in our way of achieving those goals. I wanted to share some of my goals for the semester with you all on my blog! One of my main goals for this semester is to gain flexibility in all areas of my body, but specifically ...

For this week's blog I wanted to reflect on and share what I learned from some reading I did in a book called "The Actor's Business Plan: A Career Guide for the Acting Life," by Jane Drake Brody. It is a book I have to read for a class I am taking as a musical theater major where we learn about how to sustain ourselves as performers in the real world. While everything I'm writing about is specifically about my experience as an actor, there is wisdom everyone can use about navigating the real world or entering a career.  Brody tells actors they need to put in as much work in their real lives as they do for the shows they perform in or the acting classes they participate in. This involves research and determining what you want and need out of your life and career. For many actors it is hard to balance the two and they want to prioritize their work above relationships with families, friends, and romantic partners. I have definitely been guilty of letting my drive f...

Hello! My name is Matthew Brightbill, and I just started my senior year as a musical theater major at Ohio Northern University. Welcome to my blog dedicated to passing one of the last classes I need to get my public relations minor. It feels surreal to be back in a place that I had to evacuate due to the outbreak of COVID-19 five long months ago. It feels surreal to be back with my friends and peers again after spending all of March through July strictly seeing my immediate family every day, with visits to see my boyfriend on the weekends. It is tough starting this year knowing my friends are again so close to me, but also knowing it is unwise to get too close to them or spend time with them as we would in previous years because they just came back from all over the country and they could transmit COVID-19 to me without even knowing they were carrying it. With all this being said, it still feels good to regain some semblance of normalcy in my life. It feels good starting a new normal a...