My most memorable academic moment

Performing Maya Angelou's poem, Preacher, Don't Send Me

My most memorable academic moment at UNC occurred while in my Comm 60 class (Introduction to Performance and Literary Analysis). Each student had been assigned to select a poem, analyze and interpret it, and then perform it in class. I selected the poem “Preacher, Don’t Send Me” by Maya Angelou. I spent three days analyzing the poem and visualizing exactly how I wanted to portray my interpretation to the class.

On the day of my performance, I used costume, props, and even class participation. Before this Comm 60 class I had had no prior training as an actress, but by the time I finished my performance, my professor and everyone in the class all agreed hands-down that my performance was one of the best they had ever seen! I nailed it!

I recall how in tune I was with the character I was portraying (the speaker of the poem). My professor even told me that it seemed I had almost a natural ability as an actor to step into a role. I really enjoyed my Comm 60 class because performing in that way was so new and exciting to me. Most of all, it was particularly memorable because I nailed that performance!