ACCELERATOR Artist Profile: Emma Irene Olson
“Clown has taken a lot of pressure off my own work, and it made me less afraid of how I’ll be received and more willing to take risks without needing things to feel polished.”
“Clown has taken a lot of pressure off my own work, and it made me less afraid of how I’ll be received and more willing to take risks without needing things to feel polished.”
“It can be isolating and disheartening to be the only person of color in a room, especially in spaces dominated by older white men who hold the keys to the city. What helps is knowing that many women of color are doing this work all over the world, even if we don’t always see each other.”
“I’m the person who texts someone at 1 a.m. with an idea I just had. Writing the novel put me in a more intimate space with language. No bodies, no logistics, just words. It’s lonely, but I like that too. With theatre, I’m always thinking about the audience. With the novel, I’m just asking, how can I make myself laugh?”
Bringing experience in theatremaking and human-centered design, Jazz is LAPP’s new Programming + Producing Intern.
“When you make music together, when you dance together, and you have ideas—something clicks in, where you are connected in a very deeper way than having a conversation without that.”
“After my last show in high school, I tried to let go of theater for good, telling myself that it would be better to focus fully on my academics in college. That lasted all of three months.”