Senior Spotlight :TJ Green

It's easy to get used to familiar faces in the SAU Theatre Department. Even now, there are some actors that are expected to make an appearance on stage because they are simply good at what they do.

T.J. Green has become one of those familiar faces as he is full of talent and has established his place on stage. As he enters into his senior year, the community needs to prepare themselves to see him take the leap into the professional world. As someone with years of experience, many people are excited to see his next steps into adulthood.

Green is a theatre major with a minor in public relations.

"I picked that minor because I'm really bad at bragging about myself. I chose to do it because during auditions I can use that knowledge to market myself better," he said. "Plus, if everything falls through, and no one hires me, I can fall back on it."

Green has been a very active member of the Theatre Department since he started school at St. Ambrose. During that time, he accumulated many memories. But, which was his favorite?

"I have a lot of them. The easy one is just getting the call that I was Caliban in The Tempest my freshman year," Green said. "There was also that time Sarah, Luke, and I danced to the call time in Rumors. They told us to be back at 6:58, so the whole break we went, ‘6:58, feelin' great.' It was great. Also, KCACTF is always fun. I liked making it to finals in SDC."

After so much time here, it's hard to have just one favorite.

Being such a popular face on the Allaert stage has given Green the opportunity to travel with the Department to the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival.

"I've got this weird track record where I've been nominated for Irene Ryan's every year since I was a freshman and have never made it past prelims," he said. "It's exciting working on stuff, it's nerve-wracking, and even when you do it and it doesn't turn out the way you want it, you still have a sense of pride that you did it. That's what I want to advise everyone else: Do everything you can. If you get asked to be in an SDC scene, do it. If you get nominated for Irene's, do it. It feels like a vacation that's full of work. Even in the competitions: compete against yourself, not others. Work to do better than you were a year ago."

With all his experience, Green has lots of wisdom to share about getting involved and pursuing theatre.

"I would say, do it. I hear a lot of people say, ‘I'm not going to try because I don't have an audition ready' or things similar, and to that I say just look up some monologues on Google. Just do it. Sign up. We're here to learn, and if you don't know something yet, you just haven't gotten there yet. You'll learn it," Green said.

He has become a familiar face to many people on campus because he is as involved in theatre as he possibly can be. His tall stature also makes him recognizable. He has managed to be cast in a plethora of shows at Ambrose, but there is always a favorite.

"When I think of a show that I really enjoyed doing here, I'd probably say Rumors. I really had a good time with it. I've played comic-relief characters before, but this role was just nice to be funny for a while and to get to do a two-page monologue," Green said. "Another show I loved doing was The Tempest because that was my first show I did here. It was good, but now I feel like Rumors is the one that I came into myself in."

Both plays were remarkable and so memorable, so it's easy to see how it would be hard to choose between the two!

Because it's his senior year, the future is coming quickly. With TJ's abundance of talent, everyone wants to know his plans after college.

"I plan to just do it. I want to write stuff. I want to try and do professional theatre and see where that takes me. I'll move away somewhere, wherever the road takes me," Green said.

Still, Green hopes he will leave an impact at St. Ambrose.

"I want to be known as someone who was there. I want to be known as a person that, even when I found success, was able to separate myself from it and still be a compassionate person and still have humanity and humility. I want to be remembered as the cool, tall guy who says funny things sometimes and was really nice," he said.

It's easy to believe that this legacy will be around for a long time for not only the Department but also for people who Green has met throughout his journey.

Still, the year has barely started, and there's a lot of time for more experiences and memories. There are more show opportunities, and another year of KCACTF is just around the corner.

SAU's Theatre Department is excited to send Green off into the real world and watch him spread his wings. The world isn't ready for his storm of talent to hit.