Welch earns Third Honors
By KRISTIN SHERRARD BECK ‘05
Presentation Academy
From the theater stage to the animation studio, Third Honors recipient Ky Welch is heading to University of Central Florida to pursue her dream of studying art animation. She will major in art and plans to apply to the competitive animation cohort program.
“I love anything in the animation field but the dream is to direct things and manage stuff,” she said. “For the past year and a half I’ve been our theater ‘s stage manager/assistant director. I really love leading projects, I love telling stories, and I think I would like to be in the more storytelling aspect than, ‘Make the thing, color the thing.’ I like my creative liberties.”
Ky was heavily involved in Presentation Academy Top Hat Theatre over her four years, taking roles both on stage and behind the scenes. “Anything they would give me, I would do!”
Ky became the stage manager/assistant director during second semester junior year. Since then, she said she has been to every tech day and rehearsal.
“It’s been really nice, not just because of the responsibility of doing the job but it’s been about mentoring people and I’ve gotten to be a mentor to practically everyone in the theater department, and it’s been really special. It’s what I really wanted out of theater, even if I didn’t realize it at first. I wanted to be good to other people. I wanted to help people become theater kids—the very classic theater kid, loud and in your face and yourself because I was already that but other people wanted to be.”
Several underclassmen told her she inspired them and thanked her for helping them. “It means the world to me, just everything that theater and PATH has done for me,” she said.
Ky was president of the drama club for two years, as well as president of the art club for two years. She was also vice president of National Honor Society senior year and president of an online art magazine called “Girl Talk” during her sophomore year.
During her time at Pres, Ky took the following classes for college credit: AP human geography, honors dual credit U.S. History, honors dual credit English and honors dual credit calculus. She was also a member of the Senior Independent Program—a dream of hers since freshman year. Ky chose to write a book of poetry and short writings about her life entitled “State of being: A snapshot of life.”
“I felt like I had figured myself out enough to give a solid definition of who I am right now in this moment, which it’s constantly changing as the days go on. But having, in my mind, a picture of who I am, to have that on my bookshelf to look back on and reflect on is most what I wanted. I’m not writing this book for other people; I’m writing it for me and if other people want to know my opinions and all the things I’ve gone through and about my life and reflect on their own life through poetry, then, by all means, buy my book!”
Ky plans to finish the book over the summer and then publish. “The last section I need to write is about growing up so I think it’s very fitting that I haven’t finished that last part yet, and I finish that part of the book as I’m finishing up this section of my life.”
Ky said her favorite Pres memories are Honors Day, particularly sophomore year when her best friends graduated, and the Big Sister/Little Sister program. Her Little Sisters were both members of the theater family. “I love them so much. I got both of them to do theater, one’s an actor and one’s a tech, and they’re really sweet and they remind me so much of me at their age and I’m really proud of them.”
Ky said she has loved her time at Pres and has gained mentors for life. “I love Pres so, so, so, so much. I didn’t even get to shadow here because COVID happened, but I did take a tour and I did see a show. Something in me knew that this is [where] I’m going to be. … It’s just been so magical here.”
