Student Spotlight: Syara Villarreal To Close Final Semester in Performance Studies With ‘Ordinary Days’ Musical
Syara Villarreal is in her final semester as a senior Performance Studies major, and is directing her first musical — “Ordinary Days” by Adam Gwon — for her senior capstone project.
The musical will be performed April 25-27 at 7 p.m. in the Black Box Theater in the Liberal Arts and Arts and Humanities Building. The story follows four people who live in New York City and have “separate troubles and tribulations,” she said.
“’Ordinary Days’ has always just really resonated with me because it encapsulates the young adult experience of living in a big city and feeling like you have no idea what you are doing,” the Houston native said. “It is a fully sung-through show, so there is no speaking, just singing. ‘Ordinary Days’ is accompanied solely by piano, creating a unique and more personal musical experience.”
The production has been in the works for more than a year, after Villarreal secured a four-person cast, a music director/pianist, costumes, lighting and the rights to perform the work. The contracts and details that go into a production have been challenging, she said, but worthwhile. The reward will be seeing the production come to life just before she graduates in May.
“It has been very educational,” she said. “I knew I wanted to direct this show at the beginning of my junior year. So I had to gather grants to pay for the rights to the show, and I have just been able to see what goes on beyond the directing.”
Villarreal’s initial love of the art form started with a high school production of “Beauty and the Beast.” She took a theatre class her freshman year just to earn the fine arts credit. But she enjoyed it, and she was encouraged by her teacher to audition for the production.
“I am definitely an actress first, so I was very nervous to audition for a musical,” she said. “But I got into the ensemble, which was my first show at 14. I loved it and have done shows ever since.”
Villarreal has an abundance of theatre interests, including stage combat. She has managed to incorporate her lifelong favorite movie series — and its weapon of choice — into her college career.
“I’ve always loved ‘Star Wars,’” she said. “It’s always been my favorite thing. And I like spinning lightsabers. There’s a whole art to it, and a group of people on TikTok who spin them.”
A stage combat course in her sophomore year allowed her to learn lightsaber choreography and movement. She then took a directed study course with Angenette Spalink, assistant professor, which included research in theatre and violence, falling properly, intimacy coordination and learning how to use a broad sword.
Choreography was new to Villarreal, but Spalink assured her that every person is a dancer on some level.
“We all move our bodies, so we all do choreography every day whether we realize it or not,” Villarreal said. “So, with something like stage combat, it may not seem like traditional ‘choreography’ at the surface, but it is! It’s all about where your body is, the placement, and how we use our bodies to tell a story.”
Spalink called Villarreal a “dedicated student and artist” who has accomplished much during her time in the program.
“It was so exciting to watch Syara develop her broad sword skills and kinesthetic awareness in relation to staging combat,” Spalink said. “Syara is creating interesting and rigorous performance work, and I am excited to see where her commitment and talents take her.”
Villarreal’s stage work has included a role in “Rhinoceros,” the Eugene Ionesco play that was a collaboration between the Performance Studies program and Blinn-Bryan Theatre Troupe in Spring 2023.
“It was a great time,” she recalled. “I really enjoyed working with Professor Anne Quackenbush and Blinn Director Greg Wise, and getting to grow my friendships with people in Performance Studies. It was great getting to meet and work with all of the students at Blinn, too. It was a huge moving piece, and you need all of the little moving pieces to make it work. So it was a big collaborative effort.”
Wise reached out to Villarreal and other Texas A&M students after “Rhinoceros” to invite them to audition for a Blinn show. Villarreal was cast as the lead in “Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley,” which was performed in November and December.
Villarreal is also a social media intern for the Texas A&M Division of Marketing and Communications, assisting in the university’s content creation on Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, LinkedIn, Reddit and YouTube.
“There are so many super-fun day-to-day tasks,” she said. “We go out to make Instagram Reels, we work football games and we share A&M’s story with students, former students, incoming students and anyone who wants to see what A&M has to offer.”
Villarreal she said she originally wanted to become a high school theatre teacher. But the college experience has helped her to find that there is more “freedom to be expressive,” she said. She credits her professors on their influence and instruction.
“I have amazing relationships with my professors,” she said. “I can talk to them about anything and utilize their expertise when I need help. With a project like ‘Ordinary Days’, none of this would have happened without them. They were amazing, helpful and want to see their students succeed. Whatever project a student may want to do, the faculty is always there and great at helping and bringing your visions to life.”
As for future plans, Villarreal will pursue a Master of Fine Arts degree in theatre with a specialization in directing at the University of South Dakota.
“I am extremely excited about this program and opportunity as they only accept one directing graduate student a year.” she said.
Villarreal is just as optimistic about the future for the School of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts. She said she appreciates the smaller class sizes because they allow for a more personal connection with professors and the ability to grow sustainable friendships.
“In terms of performance and the fine arts as a whole, Texas A&M is experiencing such rapid growth,” she said. “With the birth of the School of Performance, Visualization and Fine Arts, Aggie creatives have been given a space to connect and grow their craft with other like-minded artists fostering a strong community among students.”
