2020 Arts Award: Marissa Caraballo
by Ally Lardner ‘21
Designer, actress, and singer, Senior Marissa Caraballo reflects on her time in the arts at Boston College.
Marissa Caraballo ’20
Major: Theatre and French
University Chorale
Council of Theatre Majors and Minors, President
Stage Design at Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival 2020: First place, Murder on the Nile and Jailbait
Actor: City of Angels, Back the Night, Noises Off, 9 to 5: The Musical, Hamlet, Night of New Plays, Peter and the Starcatcher, Mamma Mia: In Concert!, and Chicago
How have you been involved in the arts at BC?
I’ve done a lot of things in the theatre department. I'm an actor, a set designer, a costume designer. I am the president of the Council of Majors and Minors, which is the liaison group between the Theatre Department faculty and students. That’s something I've been a part of since I was a freshman.
I’ve also been a part of the University Chorale since freshman year. That was the first group that I auditioned for, and I've been a part of that all four years at BC, which has been incredible. And of course, I've taken a ton of classes in the arts!
What’s been your most meaningful experience in the arts at BC?
There've been a few! The two biggest parts of theatre that have been really my favorite are acting and set design.
I didn't really know that I wanted to be a set designer, or do design in any way, to be honest. But freshman year, spring semester, I had the worst pick time for class registration. So a lot of classes that I was planning to take, I didn’t end up taking. And there was one class in theatre that was open, so I was like, you know, I’ll just see what this is about. And it was Set Design with Crystal (Tiala), and I was like, Okay, I’ll do that.
Marissa’s set design for Murder on the Nile (2019), which won her first place at KCACTF.
And that decision right there ended up framing what would become a huge portion of my BC Theatre career, and my career at BC in general.
The decision to take that class changed a lot of things for me, because after that, I began set designing for student groups and the department, and it ended up being what pushed me to the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF).
Marissa’s set design for Jailbait (2019), which won her first place at KCACTF
I was given the incredible opportunity to show my work and my designs, and I ended up getting the chance to go to Washington DC. . . which didn’t end up happening! It would have been right now, I would be there now! But in theory, that opportunity would have been really awesome. And I could never have gotten that if I hadn’t taken that class and if Crystal hadn’t been an incredible mentor throughout the entire process. She’s always there for me every time I was struggling with something.
And then in the acting realm. . . the first production that I was cast in was Chicago (2017), when I was a sophomore and that was the jump start to my acting career at BC. I just went for every show that I could possibly go for. I was taking acting classes with Patricia (Riggin) and with Luke (Jorgensen), and the work with them and in shows that I got to be a part of helped form a lot of my acting dreams and helped me grow as a performer.
How has your work in the arts informed your next steps after graduation?
Production shot from Noises Off (2019).
I plan to pursue theatre in some capacity, whether that be through a design route or performing. It’s the sort of thing where I feel I can do that because of the skills I learned at BC through classes, and through every show that I've worked on in different roles. Everything I’ve done here has given me a toolbox of skills to apply to a lot of things.
So that’s the goal! I would love to continue to do something in the theatre, and hopefully at some point get to New York and then go from there. I mean, why not?
It’s such a crazy business to begin with, why not be crazy and brave about it while I can?
What advice would you give to underclassmen about getting involved in the arts?
I think something that I would tell myself as a freshman is to not be afraid of trying and failing.
Marissa performing in Mamma Mia: In Concert! (2018).
So often we’re met with this pressure to be perfect every single time on the first try, and that's not what theatre is about. It’s not what art is about.
It’s about a lot of growth, a lot of learning, a lot of self-discovery.
My first year, I auditioned for things and I didn’t make it. And my sophomore year, I kind of got off the ground, and it was because I kept trying and I kept going at it.
And that’s the other thing I would say: don’t give up. Keep going if it’s something you really want. And try new things! I tried set design, and it was something new I had never done before, and that became a whole new world to me. If I had gone to a conservatory and pursued one thing, I would have never gotten that opportunity to discover that about myself: something new that I also enjoyed and got to work at.
Don’t be afraid to try and fail. Try new things. And keep trying.
Who’s your mentor or inspiration in the arts?
Crystal Tiala has been one of the greatest mentors that I’ve ever had the opportunity to have, in more ways than one.
She's an incredible set designer, an incredible teacher, and she always pushed me to do my best work. And she’s more than a mentor to me. I’ve told Crystal she’s like my school mom! I always knew I could go to her for advice on more things than just set design. I am always so thankful that I met her and that she took me under her wing, and helped me become who I am today.
My academic advisor was Luke, and he has been such an influential person in the acting portion of my time in BC Theatre. I was in two Mainstage shows with him, and those were fantastic experiences all around. Luke has given me a lot of opportunities, and he has put a lot of trust in me. I think if Crystal is my school mom, Luke is my school dad!
