Senior Spotlight: Morgan Fuller Posted on April 28th, 2020 by Mara Klein

The “Senior Spotlight” series honors graduating fine arts majors for their contributions to the Gustavus community.

Morgan Fuller is a theatre honors major from Vermillion, S.D. Continuing Assistant Professor in Theatre and Dance Larissa McConnell has worked closely with Morgan in several classes and on many shows. “Her intelligence, empathy for others, work ethic, thoughtfulness, and professionalism, are among many aspects that make her stand out,” she says. “I will always cherish our chats that wrapped up so many days.”

We asked Morgan to give us a little insight into her time at Gustavus and how she’s continuing to pursue theatre while living off-campus.

What will you miss most about theatre at Gustavus?
MF: I think I’ll miss the camaraderie the theatre majors and minors have built together the most. After four years, and many, many hours spent in productions and classes, we essentially become a working ensemble or troupe. We’ve worked together, cried together, rejoiced together, failed and triumphed together. We’ve pushed each other to be our best, and supported each other at our worst. It’s hard to explain in words, but I’ll miss that feeling the most. These people I’ll see again, and hopefully work with again! It just won’t be quite the same.

Can you tell us a story about what it’s been like to “be theatrical” at home?
MF: Well, for a class, I did a monologue fully clothed in a bathtub filled with water! It was fun because I don’t think any other circumstance would have had my group come up with the idea of performing in a bathtub. However, it’s harder to collaborate and direct each other over a video call. It’s possible! It’s just harder and takes a bit of an adjustment. Also, fundamentally theatre requires a live audience; otherwise, it’s something else. So, the hard part has been how do we keep it in the realm of theatre, without the project becoming a film. It’s just requiring us to think creatively and to adapt! This time has us all really pushing boundaries, and while it’s definitely hard, it’s exhilarating!

What’s one piece of advice you’d give to high school students considering Gustavus?
MF: A bit of advice I would have is: get to know your professors. Gustavus is small, which allows you to get to know your profs one-on-one. Many of the opportunities I’ve had at Gustavus and beyond is because I utilized the fantastic wealth of knowledge my profs possess. They are an excellent resource, and because departments and class sizes are small, you can really get to know them!

How are you continuing theatre in your new surroundings?
MF: Unfortunately, due to everything going on, our spring mainstage production of Mother Courage had to cancel in-person performances. However, right now the cast from Mother Courage and I, are working hard to still be able to perform our show in some way online! We’re brainstorming and tackling the concept of “theatre at a distance,” trying to answer the question, “How can we act together without being together?” I think we’ve come up with some really fresh ideas, and I can’t wait to show everyone what we’ve been working on (performance date TBD)!

What professor has made the biggest impact on you and why?
MF: That’s a tough question because so many of my professors have shaped who I am today. Many of them have been so impactful it feels wrong to choose. I can point to a lot of my values as a theatre artist and attribute them to a professor. But since I can only pick one, it would be our costuming professor Larissa McConnell. She has really impacted my life by introducing me to costuming and exemplifying what it means to be a professional in our field. Larissa has always pushed me to be my best, helped me find jobs, and has supported me as I pursued a double focus in both performance and costuming. I can really never thank her enough for everything she’s done for me.