His first year out of graduate school, Drama alum Ross Beshear, class of 2008, was prepared for the professional world and he knew that the next important step in completing the transition into the industry would be to get his Equity card (which admits one into the actors’ union). Little did he know he’d quickly be invited to join the union and have the opportunity to tour the United States at the same time, having been cast in TheatreWorks tour of The Color of Injustice the beginning of this year.

“Life on the road is fun, but tiring,” remarks Beshear. The company travels in two big vans—one for the set, costumes, and props; the other for the actors. “We do all the setup and breaking down for each show,” he explains, “and we switch off driving. Sometimes we're at the same venue for a week or so, which is nice because then we don't have to load-in and load-out everyday.” In his free-time, he explores the cities he’s in, as well as taking advantage of the hotels’ fitness rooms and pools, not to mention the maid service.

The company will be performing primarily on the eastern coast. “Usually we perform at whatever the major venue is for that city. We've already performed in 2,000-plus seat theaters all the way down to school gymnasiums—so it's good to be flexible and just roll with it [the performance].”

A big challenge Beshear states will be keeping the show fresh over the course of five months. “We’ll do 165 shows total, so it could be easy to fall into auto pilot mode. The training I received at The New School for Drama has given me the freedom [as an actor] on this tour to continually try new choices on stage. Also, learning how to truly listen on stage and understanding how that keeps an actor concentrated and living seamlessly moment-to-moment are part of Drama’s technique. In other words, if the actor is really listening and truthfully responding, the show will always maintain its freshness and spontaneity.”