ABOUT THE ARTIST
Selena Mykenzie Gordon has a passion for devising, writing, Theatre for Young Audiences, teaching, and musical theatre. Some of her performing credits include TheatreSquared, Shake on the Lake, Arkansas Classical Theatre, and Tectonic Theatre Project, where she has worked with award winning Broadway creatives such as Rick Sordelet, Christian Sordelet, Moisés Kaufman, and Leigh Fondakowski. Mykenzie just received her M.F.A. in Acting from the University of Arkansas under the mentorship of Amy Herzberg.
Mykenzie is SAFD certified in Rapier & Dagger, Two-Handed Sword, and Unarmed Combat.
After completing three levels of training with Moisés Kaufman and Leigh Fondakowski, she is certified in Moment Work - a devising technique that focuses on building theatrical units of time by using theatrical elements for the inception of storytelling. Mykenzie has also taught many units of Acting, Improv, Movement for the Actor, and Musical Theatre Appreciation.
AN EXCERPT FROM MYKENZIE’S THESIS
Through the Looking-Glass: A Process of Trust and Discovery
Over the years, one thing has consistently brought me back to the stage: connection. It is a privilege to build connections with the countless stories and characters I have lent my heart to, the connections I’ve built with an audience, and with my collaborators. It is these connections that fuel my work and give it meaning. At the end of each process, I am filled with a deep sense of joy, knowing that I have made those connections.
I am aware that being an artist, especially in a world filled with so much uncertainty, is a gift. The ability to connect with others and to feel empathy is a gift. The opportunity to step into a character’s life and inhabit different worlds is a gift. There have been times in my life when I have taken those gifts for granted, before understanding their true value. Joy and connection are needed now more than ever, though it can be easy to lose sight of both within the work. I believe that a sense of play is essential. It invites risk and curiosity, which leads to discovery.
I want to cultivate spaces, both in rehearsal and performance, where joy can exist within the work and artists feel driven to collaborate, grow, and celebrate what is innately human in all of us through storytelling. I now make a conscious effort to spend as much time celebrating my successes as I do worrying about my fears and failures. I trust myself, and when doubt begins to creep in, I remember the little girl I once was, the one who dreamed of being exactly where I am today. I imagine how proud she would be, the biggest smile on her face. It is that sense of joy that I will continue to nurture in every season of my life and my work as an artist.
“If you want to conquer worlds, concentrate. Draw your mind to the center, like a magnet. Couple that with common sense, a will to succeed, a kind heart, and you will move mountains.”
“All that matters is that you are making something you love, to the best of your ability, here and now.”