Zachary Nystrom
absolutely adore acting and the rush that it gives me.
Inspiration
I am an actor at heart. I absolutely adore acting and the rush that it gives me. I think of acting as my drug. It's basically my shot of adrenaline. My favorite types of theater are absurdist, modern realism and comedy. I love to make people laugh, I love to make people think and/or question themselves and/or the society that they live within. I think art (including theater) is best when it is building upon a continual conversation with oneself and the community we live in.
A good play inspires me, or a good movie. Films like Lawrence of Arabia, American Beauty, or recently Half Nelson energize me to work. Mostly for two reasons:
1. They have fantastic acting. Personally when I see a good actor at work, well, it makes me want to create something. And more importantly:
2. A great movie can often show that people can change the world, can change how people view not just themselves but the world they live in. To see that it is possible to do create change energizes me to work towards creating change.
Music as well inspires me. I listen to music whenever I have any down time, and listen to almost any kind of music you can think of. Recently artists such as Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Mice Parade and Mogwai have been inspiring.
Another thing that inspires me is, of course, a good live show. A few recent favorites from around Seattle have been My Name is Rachel Corrie at the Seattle Rep and Native Son at the Intiman. I also really enjoyed the Broadway tour of 12 Angry Men which I was lucky to catch.
Influence
I actually became involved in theater not too long ago. I joined drama class in my sophomore year of high school and a few months later was playing my first role there. I have never looked back and never will again. Theatre is something that I could not live without now.
My parents were by far my largest influence in becoming involved with the art. They had actually pushed me for many, many years to take some local theater classes at PCT (Portland Children's Theatre). I never did and then decided to take it my sophomore year of high school after more encouragement from my family and some of my close friends, and I have never looked back.
Current Projects
No current theatre projects as of right now which is nice. With the two jobs I work and trying to attempt to see old friends from high school I just don't have the time. I wanted the break from it anyways. I still have been reading plays and seeing shows, but nothing else theater related.
However I have been doing some music projects. Recording some experimental stuff. It's really strange and honestly is really nothing more then a hobby that I enjoy.
I also am in the midst of writing a few short pieces. I have written poetry for a long time and continue to do so. I have also been working on a few short stories and short theater pieces but none have materialized to the point that I would be willing to try and get them out to the public.
Hometown
I am from Gresham, Oregon. It is a suburb of about 100,000 people just a few miles east of Portland. One of my friends called Portland the diet version of Seattle. And well Gresham is basically a while middle-class extension of Portland so you get the idea. I love Gresham for its access to both the city life and nature. Many beautiful places to go hiking and camping are twenty or so minutes away and feel like there would be no city within hundreds of miles, that is something that I wish Seattle had more access to. Seattle though has more access to art in all its form and just as good of a music scene so I can't complain at all.
Why Cornish?
Cornish was my top choice. I loved the atmosphere it created for an artist. Small class sizes and passionate teachers that were willing to be personable was my biggest priority and it was apparent that Cornish had both of these as soon as I auditioned and met a few of the faculty. I also wanted to stay on the west coast and the atmosphere of Seattle as a city where up and coming theater was embraced was basically the icing on the cake.
Experience
Well one year down and so far it has been pretty incredible. I loved the Freshman faculty and my section was extremely supportive of me. I feel like I have not just grown as an artist but as a person. I have learned a lot about my craft but even more about myself and I believe that that is much more important.
Hobbie
I used to be a huge, huge video game geek but now I just play occasionally with friends. Other then that I am not too quirky when it comes to my hobbies. I love to play guitar, fiddle around with electronic instrumentation (alright that is kind of strange) and read. I also love to go outside and throw around a baseball or frisbee, or play a few pick up games of basketball. I used to be really into swimming and cliff jumping but this summer I haven't been able to indulge since I only know a few places to swim and none of them have cliffs to jump from. I also really enjoy hiking and camping but haven't had the time in the last year or so to go sadly enough.
In 5 Years
I see myself getting my Master's degree. I will probably actually get it for something that isn't theater related. If I hadn't done theater in college it would of been english and philosophy so I can see myself working on a Master's with something like that involved. I will of course search for work as an actor but really I want to get a Master's. I also dream of moving to London and trying to join a conservatory over there.
Advice
I would tell them that Cornish is a school that is extremely intense, that is constantly evolving and consistently pushing it's students to discover themselves as artists. Mainly I think I would tell them that if they are looking to take there art the way that they want to take it that Cornish is the kind of school that is ready to help you build the fundamentals to be successful AND to realize your potential. I also believe it is a wonderful place to connect to a community of artists that are very supportive and willing to work and most importantly, experiment.
Process
I like to get up and work. I think the best way to create something that not just an audience will find interesting but myself will find interesting as well is to get on my feet and work. I love to experiment with my art. I also look to other types of art to become inspired to work. Often times looking or listening to another person's or group's view on the world can often help me look at what I am creating in a new light.