A TV show, play, and movie all have one thing in common– acting. Acting is no easy feat, especially when it comes to performing in front of thousands of people. There could be problems where an actor or actress messes up entirely. This disturbs not only the entire play, but also interrupts an actor’s momentum or their ‘flow.’

Sophomore Miles Freese took on acting when he was in middle school. Since then, his acting career has grown tremendously. Having acted in plays such as Cinderella, The Odyssey, and the upcoming play The Legend of the Sleepy Hollow, he has been able to pursue his passion for acting even further.

Freese was also able to participate in First Avenue’s 2021 play, When Bad Things Happen To Good Actors and Instructions for Hugs. His acting skills were only getting better and fine-tuned each day.

His favorite roles “would be all the comedic roles and characters that I’ve gotten the opportunity to portray.”

When Freese was younger, his environment was really what started his love for acting. With some influence of TV shows and movies inspiring him, his sister and cousins helped that love grow. Acting requires passion, creativity, and love.

“Creativity has always been encouraged within my family, and it was something I enjoyed doing,” Freese said.

As Freese entered high school, he wanted to continue acting. “The professionalism that our theater program values and the passion of the art of all the other students in the program has inspired me to fully encapsulate my love for theater,” Freese described.

Acting also requires multiple people, as a show cannot be directed, played, and managed by just one person. The people around him have helped Freese grow, meaning he doesn’t have to worry about getting anxious anymore.

He also stated that “everyone in theater shares a common passion and goal for creating something special, and because of this it was easy to find people that shared the same values as me.”

Acting may seem easy to someone without prior knowledge. They might assume that all an actor or actress has to do is read the lines. This is not the case, as one of the most early-on issues in theater is stage fright. Stage fright can easily overwhelm someone, as it usually depicts an actor or actress scared of performing in front of others.

Freese isn’t scared of performing in front of others, nor is he scared of messing up on his own. Rather, “the fear comes from my fear of letting my castmates down.”

Arcadia High School (AHS) offers thorough and detailed classes for a wide variety of classes, theater being one of them. The district puts a lot of effort in making the theater shows around the city both well known and top-quality. As the year further progressed, Freese’s classes are filled with high level lessons in regards to acting and stagecraft.

Acting not only takes passion and creativity, but also hours of practice. With five other classes and extracurriculars to worry about, Freese would definitely be in a bit of trouble. However, he was able to avoid that.

“I tend to try to get all [my] homework done in class,” said Freese.

Freese spends multiple hours practicing and rehearsing. Taking other classes requires time and dedication, not to mention that he would also have to worry about his future and college. Finishing work in class is something that he has always done to ease his after school schedule. If there is any free time during rehearsal, Freese would also take his homework out to complete it.

“With theater being such a large time commitment, the balance of school, social life, and theater is difficult,” Freese said.

Acting is no easy task, and Freese was able to build an impressive career around it. Being able to consider others before himself, being extremely productive, and creative allowed him to fully learn and grow from the art of acting.