Today we’d like to introduce you to Natalie Barshow.
Natalie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I have been involved with theatre my whole life. I remember creating little performances with my friends for our parents and families on camping trips. I participated in after school theatre productions from Kindergarten until I graduated High School. When it came to deciding my career path, theatre was truly my only option. I started out as a performer. However, I felt my passion for performing dwindle during my undergrad. In searching for a new path, I came to find costume design. I have always loved costumes. And thinking back, the best part of doing theatre as a child was helping create my costume. It became a natural fit for me.
After graduating from San Jose State University, I went on to work as a costume artisan and designer in the San Francisco Bay Area. I designed costumes for theatre, dance, and film, with designs seen nationally and internationally. I am currently taking the next step in my career, finishing up my MFA in Costume Design for UC San Diego. San Diego has been a world of creative opportunities. I have found a network of artists and collaborators that champion each other. I have designed both for theatre and dance, even having the opportunity to produce and costume design a production in La Jolla Playhouse’s WOW festival last year.
With the pandemic hitting the theatre industry hard, I have taken this opportunity to explore the art of storytelling and grow my skills as a storyteller. I have created digital animation work and explored the world of digital theatre. Theatre is the art of embodied storytelling, and whether it be through costume or digital performance, I am working to keep that spirit alive.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Theatre is not an easy industry. I feel that even when I work my hardest, I am still behind where I need to be in some way. Theatre can be exclusive and hierarchal. It is a hard industry to break into and to show your worth. In my first years after undergrad, I worked sometimes four jobs a day just to survive in an industry that I have so much love and passion for. There were a lot of times that I felt like I wasn’t a valued member of the team. There was a time that I never told anyone my age because being a young female presenting person, I would lose any respect that I might have gained. On top of the industry problems, I experience a lot irreverence about what I do as a living. Societally, entertainment does not seem like a legitimate career path. Whenever I tell people what I do for a living, it is usually met with judgment or sometimes “when are you going to get over that?”
However, has it been a smooth road? I feel really lucky for the people I have met and the productions I have worked on. I love what I do and I push through the struggles because at the end of the day, it is worth it for me. However, I recognize my privilege and know that the adversity I faced is sometimes tenfold for someone else. Throughout the shutdown because of the pandemic, I think our industry has really been working to show those two things: the institutional racism and exclusiveness has got to go and our billion dollar industry should be valued by our country. Those are our most immediate challenges and I want to help my industry overcome them.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I, first of all consider myself a theatre artist. I love the creative challenges theatre presents. I love the collaboration with a team of other artists. I have found my calling in costume design but I don’t always play in that box. As a costume designer, I love the storytelling and the details of personality that can be embodied in a costume. Just like every one of us dress ourselves everyday based off of what we feel most “us” in, I get to imagine that for characters in the world I create with my collaborators. However, my closets can be more wild or fantastical or period, depending on what the script and production call for. I draw inspiration from current events, art, fashion, and culture. When I first read a script, I can see the characters moving through my mind. That usually leads me to my first inspiration jumping point. And through research and collaging, the characters start to take shape, sometimes with or without that initial inspiration.
Through my work, I have also found a love of creating and producing productions. I have found collaborators that inspire each other and we have devised a few shows together. For as long as I can remember, I would go off on thought trains, creating stories in my mind. However, I am not the greatest playwright. These collaborations have given me a place to put that energy and grow the story with my collaborators. Especially during the pandemic, I have found sparks of inspiration in digital performance and digital animation. I can take my inspiration and grow it with the tools I have. A dream of mine is to own my own theatre company someday and these productions make me feel closer to that goal.
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I am currently finish up my MFA in Costume Design. When I graduate, I hope to work in both theatre and film as a costume designer. I am currently working on a few digital theatre productions through UCSD, including “Letters From Cuba” and I am excited for the world to see those.
As I mentioned, a long term goal of mine is to start a theatre company. I want to create a place where theatre feels accessible to all. I don’t believe theatre to be a “high art” but the art of the people. I want to create work that reflects that and supports those who might not feel like they would have had an opportunity otherwise.
Contact Info:
- Website: nataliebarshow.com
- Email: nbarshow@gmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/nataliebarshow.design/
Image Credit:
Jim Carmody, Manuel Rotenberg
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