Senior drama major Maya Lawrence, C'2017, lights up the stage wherever she goes and is looking forward to a career in theater and film.
Last summer, Lawrence was one of three students selected for Alliance Theatre's Spelman Leadership Internship program which is designed to increase diversity in the top leadership positions of non-profit arts and culture institutions.
During her junior year, the New York native co-produced the Spriggs-Burroughs Drama and Dance Ensemble’s "Art After Dark" event and acted in three consecutive main stage shows produced by Spelman's Department of Drama. She served as Alice in the play "Gee’s Bend" directed by alumna Jade Lambert Smith; played an array of roles in "Flow," directed by drama department chair Aku Kadogo; and Ruby in August Wilson's play "Seven Guitars" directed by drama professor Keith Bolden.
Lawrence is just as effective on stage as she is behind the scenes. She served as stage manager and assistant director for Spelman shows such as "In The Red and Brown Water" and "Once on This Island;" and she performed during the College's Founder’s Day Convocation in 2014, John Lewis 75th Birthday Celebration in 2015, and President Mary Schmidt Campbell's Inauguration in 2016.
During her collegiate summers, Lawrence acquired internships at top theaters and performing arts centers in the industry such as the Tony Award-winning Alliance Theater in Atlanta, Georgia, and the world-renowned Lincoln Center in New York, New York. She studied abroad in Rabat, Morocco last summer and worked as a production intern at The Public Theater in New York (an opportunity that opened for her after she and her classmates visited the organization when President Campbell's Book Circle traveled to New York to see the musical "Hamilton."
Aside from acting, Lawrence models, writes and performs spoken word. She is a self-taught visual artist, and serves as a lab leader in Spelman's Innovation Lab where she intersects art with innovative technology such as 3D printing and laser cutting.
The rising star believes Spelman not only developed her as a person, but also helped her hone her skills as a dynamic, purpose-living artist.