Debuting Artist: Trisha Gillin
Trisha takes the stage for the very first time with OpenStage as Adalaide!
Tell us about yourself! What theatre or other experiences did you have in this discipline before working on this show?
I caught the performance bug when I was 4 years old at my first dance recital, and I was involved in many community theater shows growing up. I studied at The American Musical and Dramatic Academy in NYC, with an emphasis on musical theater, though I learned that Shakespeare was my true passion. I’ve done both stage and film work, most recently working on a student film at the Colorado Film School. Some of my favorite roles have been in “Iaga” (film; a gender-bent “Othello” retelling), “Hamlet,” “As You Like It,” and “The Illusion.” I took a break from acting to start a family, and I’m absolutely thrilled to tread the boards once more with OpenStage!
How did you hear about OpenStage?
I moved to Fort Collins in 2022 and was curious about the local theater scene. So I did a little Googling. The rest is history.
What has been the most fun part of the rehearsal process so far?
As a parent, I’m usually the one who has to “be the adult,” so it has been a blast getting to be the kid for once!
What has been the most challenging aspect of playing this character?
Oh man, where to start? I was both thrilled and terrified to take on the role of Adelaide. Diving into the depths of their emotions and bringing it all out to the surface while not getting swept away in the storm that is Adelaide has been a huge challenge. Finding that raw vulnerability, expressing such huge child-like emotions, and then wrapping it all up and walking away at the end of the night has taken new levels of self-awareness and release that I didn’t know I had!
What connections do you feel to this role?
I definitely know what it feels like to be uncomfortable in your own skin. To feel like no matter how hard you try, you just can’t “girl” right. And I know how it feels to be bullied and think, “if I could just be something else, then everything would be better!”
Why is a play like Six Years Old important?
In this current climate of trans-hysteria, we need more stories like this that are based on what trans folk actually experience. It’s important to put a face to the trans experience. A name. A person. We are not a new thing; we are not a passing fad. We’ve been here as long as humans have existed. It’s also important for parents to love their kids enough to let them be who they truly are. I think Amy gets there in this story, and it’s such a beautiful thing to see.
What do you hope the audiences get out of this show?
Support trans kids! Kids are far more perceptive and attuned with themselves than adults want to give them credit for. They know who they are. Believe them. Support them. Love them for who they are, not who you hoped they’d be.
What projects are you working on next? What is your dream role or dream show to work on?
Back to auditions! We’ll see what’s next. As for dream roles, I’ve always wanted to be Mrs. Lovett in “Sweeney Todd,” and while I’ve missed the filming of The Expanse tv series, it would be an absolute DREAM to be in the video games.
By Daphne Silbiger
Directed by Kiernan Angley
Sept 29-Oct 14, 2023
Playing at Foothills Unitarian Church
Come see Trisha take the stage in “Six Years Old” Sept 29-Oct 14!
Adalaide knows a few things: her stupid babysitter Kim is stupid, her younger brother Dewey is a naked mole rat, the film Godzilla expresses the paranoid id of the nuclear age, and she does NOT like being treated like a girl. She wants to be a boy—Han Solo from Star Wars, in fact—and she is willing to go to drastic lengths to make her wish come true. A comic and poignant story where everyone is played by adults (“no kids allowed”), Six Years Old reflects on the wild fantasies and serious desires of queer childhood.
