Jermiya Gaines Stevenson (BA) is a theatre arts major.
What are you studying at Pitt?
I’m studying Linguistics and Theatre Arts here at Pitt!
How do you see your theatre education contributing to your future goals?
I have always loved the arts, especially theatre, so I would love to continue acting in the future as a career. Many people have asked me how I plan to use linguistics and theatre together in my future career plans, and honestly there’s so much versatility in the two fields that it is hard to answer. I’ve thought about voice acting or even accent and dialect coaching, but honestly, I’m just focusing on getting through college now.
Is there a research opportunity, production, internship, class, etc. that has been instrumental to your time at Pitt or in helping you form your post-graduation goals? If so, please tell us about the experience.
During my freshman year, two of my classes were profoundly impactful in rekindling my love for theatre and the performing arts – Introduction to Performance with Delilah Picart in the fall and Black Female Playwrights with Professor Bria Walker in the spring. Intro to Performance was delightful and Professor Picart was so kind and understanding with how the pandemic had impacted us freshman that semester. She would do daily check-ins to see how we were feeling and even adjust the class if many of us were just not feeling it. The following semester in Black Female Playwrights was just as fulfilling. Professor Walker was a phenomenal teacher and the plays we discussed during the class quickly became some of my favorites. Discussions were well-structured and the class was genuinely engaged with the material.
What do you hope to do when you graduate?
I would love to continue acting! I love being on stage and would also love to explore voice acting as well since it’s something I’ve always loved and enjoyed seeing the behind-the-scenes work for. I have also thought about doing professional translation or language tutoring for children.
What do you enjoy doing outside of academics?
I love making art, so I can always be found with a sketchbook either in my hand or somewhere near me. Cooking and baking are very therapeutic hobbies for me. I love trying out new recipes and having my friends and family try them. I also love just relaxing and listening to music.
Is there something you would like to share that you wish we asked you about?
My love of theater has been something that’s been presence since I was young. I come from a very artistic family, so I knew that a career or hobby in the arts was my fate. When I was 7, I suffered from a traumatic brain injury and throughout my recovery – and long afterwards – theatre and visual arts have served as my refuge. My comfort place that I could always fall back to whenever the world became too much. I just want to give my thanks to all those who’ve helped me on my journey thus far and for allowing me to share this same undying love with the Pitt community.