Hey, there!
My name is Katelyn Hardeman and I am the fall intern here at Jobsite Theater! I am super excited to be here and begin this journey with such an awesome company. But first, let me take a minute or two to tell you a little bit about myself!
I am originally from Olive Branch, MS, but since maybe the only people who know where that is are those who live there or in that vicinity, I hail Memphis, TN. I basically grew up in Memphis, so I guess that gives me enough claim to it! For those of you who don’t know, Memphis is the home of delicious barbecue, the infamous Beale Street, Grizzlies basketball, and Elvis. Interesting, right? So, what brought me approximately 800 miles from home? I’m so glad you asked! I just graduated from William Carey University with my BA in theatre performance. I had a few offers for graduate school, but nothing that really felt right. Ever since grad school has been on my radar, I’ve wanted to go to Florida State University for directing. But, the directing program only takes three students every few years (I guess I just like challenges…prestigious grad school, moving across the country to a state in which I know zero people and have only vacationed to…but I digress). So, the FSU program isn’t accepting directing candidates until next academic year, meaning I had a year to do what I wanted. Well, the best move (literally) was to take the leap, move to Florida to gain my residency, and hope, pray, and cross my fingers that I would be able to intern at a theatre in Florida while still maintaining a day job that pays the bills (a necessary evil). So, I started doing my research and I came across Jobsite online. I was really interested because their past seasons had this quirky, eclectic mix of old school, traditional plays and new, kooky (but awesome) ones. Initially when I made contact, there wasn’t anything available. I was disappointed but I kept looking. Then, I received an email from them saying they found a spot for me (insert victory dance here)! I was so elated and my family (who has always been super supportive) was, too. So, here I am!
Enough of the boring, background stuff. Here’s a little more personal stuff:
- Favorite color: sea-foam green or purple
- Favorite food: Mexican food or breakfast food
- Favorite movie: Singin’ in the Rain, Sabrina, That Thing You Do! Wayne’s World, Princess Bride, Robin Hood: Men in Tights (that’s more than one, obviously, but you’ll get over it).
- Most embarrassing moment: When I was in second grade, my class was at library time and I really needed to use the restroom. You see, it had been loaded baked potato day in the cafeteria and my class’s library time was right after lunch (I’m sure you can see where this is going…). I asked the librarian if I could go to the bathroom and she said no. I went back to my seat, trying to hold it all in (don’t pretend you’ve never been there before) and sat down to continue reading Madeline. Suddenly, I sneezed. Big. And you guessed it! I pooped my pants at the same time. Awful when it happened, but makes for a good ice breaker now!
- Favorite plays/musicals/playwrights: Reckless, You Can’t Take it With You, All My Sons, Gidion’s Knot, Taming of the Shrew, The Tempest; Young Frankenstein, The Last 5 Years, [title of show]; Henrik Ibsen, Moliere, Sam Shepherd, Shakespeare, Arthur Miller, the list goes on….
- Pets: I have a kitten named Penny! She is adorable but very mischievous, which keeps life interesting.
- Hobbies: Reading, painting, shopping, thrifting, writing and receiving snail mail, and (embarrassingly) cleaning.
- Career goals: I want to obtain my MFA in directing and be a professional director, maybe even teach at the collegiate level.
Well, hopefully, I’ve done an okay job of introducing myself! I’m really looking forward to (hopefully) meeting and getting to know some of you in person! Feel free to find me on social media, if you like, but only after you’ve made sure to follow/friend all of our great Jobsite accounts!
-KH
