Today we’d like to introduce you to Emma Rose Tarr.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
I am born and raised here in San Diego, and I’ve lived here my entire life except for the years I spent earning my bachelor’s degree up at Chapman University. I started taking piano lessons when I was 4 taking vocal lessons formally at the age of 11. Music has always been such a formative part of my identity… I’ve always said that I don’t believe anyone can truly know me or understand me unless they’ve heard me sing! However, despite the fact that it is my strongest passion in life, I hadn’t always believed I would enter the musical theatre industry… it’s something that I had to grow into.
I spent my academic years trying to stay open-minded to all types of careers, and it wasn’t until my last semester of college that I knew without a shadow of doubt that musical theatre was what my heart needed to pursue! Since then, I’ve never looked back. The last couple of years since I’ve graduated college, have been the most trying yet the most amazing, I have ever experienced. I love what I do! I am constantly learning and growing, meeting new people, and creating art… what more could I ask for!
Please tell us about your art.
I am a musical theatre performer, which means that I work at various venues singing, acting, and dancing.
My weekly life is full of driving around to various auditions, recording self-tapes, attending dance classes/vocal coaching’s, and of course rehearsals and performances!
One thing that I love the most about my art form is that each show that I am cast in gives me an opportunity to share a different message. Sometimes, the characters in the show call attention to something socially relevant, and sometimes the message is more about a topic that is more universal and timeless, like love or forgiveness. And sometimes, the most beautiful part of my job is simply allowing the audience to escape from the “real world” for a couple of hours. We as human beings spend so much time stuck inside of our own heads, surrounded by personal stress, anxiety, or depression… but when we see a story unfold onstage, no matter how ridiculous or silly the story is, all of that other stuff fades away.
Do you have any advice for other artists? Any lessons you wished you learned earlier?
I think the simplest advice is just “do what you love.” An artist who is not producing art will never be happy or satisfied, that’s just the truth. So, even if it seems daunting, you owe it to yourself to at least try. I think one of the biggest reasons that I took so long in deciding to pursue my industry was because I am a person who very much likes schedules, structure, certainty… and I know that in this industry, contracts can last anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months, so sometimes you’re not sure where you will be working next after your current contract ends.
I was under the illusion that if I pursued a different career, I would have control over my life, and that felt safe to me. However, what I learned a couple years ago, which is something that I wish I would’ve realized even sooner, is that you will never have control over life! The nature of life is to be unpredictable and to be full of constant change. We can either look at that with fear, or with excitement. And that is true of any industry that you are in, not just a performance industry. So, once I realized that life would be unpredictable and full of change no matter what… that’s when I realized that I may as well spend this crazy life doing what I love the most!
Also, an artist has to remember to never let those negative voices take over. The reality of this industry is that you get a lot of closed doors, a LOT of closed doors, and you have to learn not to let that get you down or cause you to doubt yourself as an artist. The right doors will open, the right doors will close, and if a door closes all that means is that that door wasn’t the right one for you. If you don’t trust in that, then you will take every closed door as personal rejection or a sign of personal failure, and that mindset will cause you to spiral very quickly.
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
Most often I am performing at theater — most recently I worked at a dinner theatre playing “Sandy” in a production of “Grease!” I also work at theme parks — for example, this last summer I was a performer at Legoland, and currently I am spending the Christmas season doing a holiday show at Seaworld.
Due to the nature of my industry, the location I am performing changes frequently. The best way to find out where I am currently performing is through my social media! I always post all of my performance updates on my Instagram (@emmarosetarr) and my Facebook page (@emmarosetarr).
If you’d like to support my work, please come to my shows! In fact, just support the arts in general… go to theaters to watch live musicals even if it’s not a show that I’m in! There are so many incredible theaters right here in San Diego brimming with the most amazing, talented performers.
Contact Info:
- Email: emmarosetarr@gmail.com
- Instagram: @emmarosetarr
- Facebook: @emmarosetarr
Image Credit:
Photocreds go to Reed Byrd for the following files:
-EmmaRoseTarrHeadshot
-EmmaRose2
-EmmaWoods2
-CandidEmmaRoseTarr
Photcreds go to DawnEllen Ferry for the following file:
-GreaseEmma
Photocreds go to Adriana Zuniga-Williams for the following files:
-SmokeyJoe’s1
-SmokeyJoe’s2
-Rm1Emma
Photocreds go to Joshua Powers for:
-RedFlowersEmma
Getting in touch: SDVoyager is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
