It may not happen tomorrow, but Skylar Strickler has his sights on the world’s biggest stage — New York City.
“That’s my goal,” said Strickler. “I’ve wanted to perform since I was a little kid. Two years ago, at the start of my junior year, I decided that’s what I wanted to do as a career.”
At 18, he’s a veteran of school and community theater productions.
Strickler was graduated from Iola High School Sunday.
TO GET a taste of the Big Apple, Strickler went there for spring break.
It wasn’t his first visit. As a member of the IHS jazz band, Strickler played several concerts there when he was a sophomore. The experience whetted his appetite for big city life and all its opportunities.
During the break he rented an apartment and “went to a lot of restaurants, jazz places and Broadway shows,” Strickler said. “I tried to get a sense of what it’s like to live in New York full time. I met some Broadway actors, made some friends who are experienced in theater and actually worked with a voice coach.”
The coach, Judy Hages, seldom teaches students as young as Strickler, he was told, but “she thought I was good and wanted to help. I learned a lot in the time I had.” A graduate of Carnegie Mellon University, Hages has taught voice 38 years and also has performed.
“She has a lot of college-age students who are trying to get into shows,” Strickler said. “One of her students recently opened for Justin Beiber,” who at 16 is a popular Canadian pop singer.
Among the Broadway shows Strickler saw was “Fantasticks,” which Iola High students staged at the Bowlus Fine Arts Center this spring.
“I got to meet and talk to the actor who played the part of Matt, the same part I had in the show here,” he said. “It was exciting to have him explain the details of becoming a character. I was surprised he was so open and willing to talk to me, a kid from Kansas.”
THIS FALL Strickler will attend Allen County Community College on a theater scholarship to take advantage of drama instructor Tony Piazza’s depth of experience.
He also plans to find a part-time job and be tight with his earnings.
“I want to save enough so I can get to New York as soon as possible,” he said, “hopefully after a year at Allen County.”
NEW YORK CITY is far different from small towns, Strickler said in understatement that might seem naive, but was meant as an observation.
“The most valuable thing about living there is that you become a part of a bigger network, and I mean other people not the entertainment possibilities,” he said. “Here you easily can live a mile from anyone else. There you have people living six feet above you and six feet below you in apartments.”
Even so, the country boy said, “I felt at home in New York.”
The hard part will be getting his foot in the door as a performer.
“There are a lot of starving artists,” he acknowledged, but remained undeterred in what he feels is his true calling. If anything, he said, he owes it to himself to give it his best shot.
He is willing to take the risk of having to adopt a spartan lifestyle for the opportunity. From his perspective, acting can “change lives, mine and others, by telling stories. An actor can change himself by the character he portrays and he can change the lives of the audience, who always can take something from the story the actor tells.
“That’s what I want to be a part of. To be able to change someone’s life, even in a small way, would be a grand experience. Being an entertainer is a part of who I am.”
Continuing his love of theater was nurtured by two tutors, he said.
“Jennifer Jones and Richard Spencer helped me realize what I wanted to do as a career,” Strickler said. Jones ws his high school forensics coach and Spencer his director in several stage productions.
While in New York, he was able to hook up with another Iola High grad, Neil Magnuson, who honed his skills on the Bowlus Fine Arts Center stage and now makes his living in entertainment.
“He told me a lot about what to expect,” Strickler said.
ACTING IS in Strickler’s blood.
“When I was little I’d go with Mom (Kim Strickler) when she was in Iola Community Theatre plays and my grandmothers — Madge Strickler and Barbara Hafer — have been a great influence with their music,” he said. “We’ve always had music in our family.”
Strickler also credits the presence of the Bowlus Center and its extraordinary facilities for cultivating interests that led to his career choice.
“Having the opportunity to perform on the Bowlus stage means so much to me, means so much to everyone who does,” he said. “We’re so very blessed to have it in Iola, to be able to grow with it.”
STRICKLER’S DETERMINATION also probably comes from his farming roots. His father, Doug, an Allen County farmer, knows the challenges of succeeding in an uncertain environment — be it from nature or man-made.
That upbringing will stead Strickler well when his day comes to throw himself in with the mix, determined to rise to the top.
