“I was never comfortable talking to people or looking at people, but theatre and musicals gave me the ability to step outside of my comfort zone and become more social.”

Senior Ellen Meeuwsen may seem quiet on the outside, but when she’s on stage it’s like a completely different person shows up.  

After being cut from the musical her freshman year, she was unsure if she was going to pursue theatre after high school, but she was determined to get a spot on the “Adams Family” cast list the following year–which she did.

Meeuwsen has been passionate about theatre for as long as she can remember.  She’s been taking private singing and dancing lessons for seven years now and has been involved in a variety of musicals here at Notre Dame as well as at Birder Studio in De Pere. 

She is in three to four musicals a year and will have a role in “Legally Blonde” at Birder Studio this upcoming September. 

In this story, we can learn something from Meeuwsen. Life is about being able to take the rejections and bumps that are thrown at you, especially in the world of performing arts. 

Meeuwsen is willing to take this risk. 

In a perfect world she still dreams of becoming a Broadway performer in New York City, and whether she fits the role or not, she doesn’t plan on letting anything get in the way of her dream.