Behind every great idea is the mom that thought of it first.
Exhibit A is Auburn senior Tara Folio’s new blog about the Auburn theatre program’s production of "Assassins," which will be Folio’s last play at Auburn.
Folio, music theatre major, was recently chosen by broadwayworld.com, a website that Folio describes as having “all the theater buzz that goes on in the U.S.,” to be a student blogger after her mom advised her to apply for the position.
Folio said she was looking on broadwayworld.com one day, and her mom suggested she apply for a student writer position.
She wrote one piece, and they liked it. They then asked her to continue writing.
Although she is not paid for blogging, as someone who plans to potentially write as her profession one day, Folio appreciates the experience and the chance to put her communication minor to good use.
“One of my backup plans for a couple of years now has been to be a critic or a blogger for shows in New York or on Broadway,” Folio said. “It’s a good test run to see if I’m actually good at it.”
Hannah Rae Faulk, also a senior in music theater and one of Folio’s best friends, thinks the opportunity to blog on broadwayworld.com offers Folio a way to share Auburn theater and herself with the world.
“It’s a great way for her to promote herself, but also to promote the theatre department at Auburn," Faulk said. "And it’s a great way for her to put her insight into theater into the world."
The blog’s loose structure includes one post a week in which Folio gives her perspective on an aspect of the production process and one in which Folio interviews a fellow "Assassins" cast member.
Folio said in the post from her perspective she normally just writes about how she feels when she gets home from rehearsals or what she has been working on for the show. For the interviews, she said she tries to talk to someone who has an interesting position in the production.
Still, Folio said the most challenging part of the blog is coming up with fresh, engaging ideas each week.
“It is kind of intimidating because I have to keep thinking of topics to write on and articles people will find interesting,” Folio said. “It’s definitely kept me on my toes the past couple of weeks.”
Folio’s friends and cast members have been thrilled with the direction the blog has taken, according to Faulk.
“It’s been cool to see the different things you can do with the show with perspective,” Faulk said. “It can be funny or it can be educational, and we’ve all enjoyed being a part of it because we are like, ‘We get to tell the world about Auburn theater. How exciting.’”
Emily Baade, another one of Folio’s friends and a music theater major at Auburn, said she thinks the blog is making great use of Folio’s talents.
"She is a great writer really, so it’s great that she is able to use her talents and love of writing and her passion for theater,” Baade said.
But friends and family are not Folio’s only audience, despite Folio’s expectations.
“At first, when I’m writing them, I’m just like, ‘Oh well, no one is going to look at these. Like probably five of my friends on Facebook.’ But I went back and looked at one of my first articles, and it had had close to 100 shares on Facebook by people I didn’t know,” Folio said.
Folio’s blog can be found here.
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