Warren is a Senior at Spring Grove High School, and has made an impact on many people in the school. I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Warren, and we covered many topics, including his involvement in theatre, reflecting back on his freshman year, and what comes next.
When reflecting back on his freshman year, Warren told me a few differences between then and now. He was not doing theatre, had different friends, and highlighted that he had made mistakes and learned from them. When asked for advice he would give his freshman self, he said to, “Say the joke you are thinking, because people will laugh.” I asked if there were any changes that people may not have noticed that he had made, and he said that he stopped caring about what others think. In another statement, he said that as he got older, he stopped overlooking the people around him, and that they pushed him to where he needed to be.
Warren said that he learned some “hard truths” throughout high school. He said that nothing is handed to you, and you need to work for things. When asked to describe his high school journey in three words, he said “cartoon” “nerd” and “problematic”.
Warren has acted in many plays and musicals at the school, and recently directed a One-Act, a short, senior-directed play. There are many challenges that come with theatre, and Warren told me that he has been able to use some of the skills that he has learned in theatre in everyday life, such as being patient when negativity tries to disrupt your focus.
Our conversation then moved to him directing a One-Act. He said that directing is very different from acting, and that there is a lot of stress that comes with it. He said that overall, he learned a lot from this experience, that this was an opportunity to see what it is like from the other side of theatre, and that this gave him more sympathy towards directors.
Finally, we talked about his time in high school coming to an end. Warren told me that the teachers that made the biggest impact on him were Mrs. Kirkpatrick (music), because she taught him to embrace his theatrical side, as well as Mr. Boyle, because he taught him many life skills. We talked about shows that the Spring Grove theatre department did, and he said that his favorites were Anything Goes, because he got to play the character “Moonface Martin”, and The Music Man, because he learned many skills from students such as Lucas Buhrman. A high school memory that Warren will miss most is his chats with Gabe Parrish in the IAC. He hopes that after high school he will move to New York City, and act in film and TV. I then asked Warren what kind of person he wants the school to remember him as when he graduates. He said that he hopes he is remembered as the big, silly, cartoony guy who wore a hoodie every day that anyone could recognize, even if they didn’t know his name.
When wrapping up our interview, Warren left me with a quote from Doctor Who.
“Never be cruel, never be cowardly, hate is always foolish, but love is always wise. Always try to be nice, but never fail to be kind. And never, ever eat pears.”
After interviewing Warren, I talked to a few other people, and they answered a few questions about him.
The first question that I asked people was “What is one thing about Warren that others could learn from?” People said that he never gives up, works very hard, has a good sense of humor, is very driven and determined, and that he takes charge when no one else steps up.
The second question was “If you could describe Warren in one word, what would it be?” People described him as passionate, unique, and multiple people related him to David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor from Doctor Who.
The third question that I asked was “If you could compliment or thank Warren about anything, what would you say?” Aidan Miller thanked him for “keeping everyone in line” and that he will be missed by many people when he graduates. Gabriel Parrish said that his One-Act turned out very well. Jareth Dewall said that Warren is an extremely funny guy. Ben Thatcher and Nick Herkel both thanked Warren for taking them under his wing. Ben said, “Thank you for taking me under your wing during the musical, it has been great working with you and having you as a friend for the last few months.” Nick said, “Warren, I appreciate you taking me under your wing and showing me things instead of having me learn the hard way.”
My final question for people was “Is there anything else you would like to say about Warren?” People had some very nice things to say. “Fantastic actor, he’s going somewhere.” “All around great guy, makes people laugh, does a lot for people.” “He is probably the most influential person in my theatre career.” “He has been blunt with me when I needed him to be blunt, and he has sugarcoated things for me when I needed them sugarcoated.” “He is very committed.” “He is a lot of fun to work with, and I will miss him when he graduates.”
It is clear that Warren has made a large impact on the people around him, and that he will be missed by the entire theatre department at Spring Grove when he graduates.
