Highland drama team senior loves acting, art and learning
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POCATELLO — McKinley Spitzer is a senior and member of the drama team at Highland High School in Pocatello.
Spitzer said she began acting in local theaters as a child but really dove into it headfirst when she got to Highland.
“I really ended up getting into it in high school and just participated in everything throughout the past four years. I really love it,” she said.
“It’s just a way to express yourself,” she added. “I love different art forms, and this is one of them — but I also love the community because everyone is just so inviting and welcoming.”
Spitzer also dabbles in drawing and music.
She said she likes to create “realism art” — like portraits — and charcoal drawing. She also has an interest in making music. Although she enjoys expressing herself in those forms, it is something she doesn’t usually show to her friends at school.
What she does around the school is acting.
Asked what types of roles she is most attracted to, Spitzer said she is normally cast as the “ditzy” girl.
“I’ve actually found that to be a lot of fun, because I’m actually very clumsy myself — I just, kind of, play that up,” she said.
While acting is among Spitzer’s passions, she does not plan to pursue it as a career, though she has kept it in her mind as a potential minor in college.
“I think it would be fun to do on the side in the future, but it’s not like I’m planning on being an actor,” she said.
Spitzer will graduate this spring, but her love for learning will not end there. She plans to attend Utah State University in Logan, Utah.
Asked what she will miss most when she leaves the Highland halls, Spitzer said it will be tough to bid adieu to the wide array of people she befriended there. And not just her classmates she said. Spitzer has developed great relationships with the staff and faculty.
She said the teachers at Highland have helped nurture her joy for learning.
When she does leave, she knows that the joy of learning will go with her. For now, though, she does not have a path set for herself.
“I’m gonna see where life goes, I guess.”