John Degon is a current GLS student who is originally from Massachusetts. He lived in Maine for 18 years before moving to Middletown with his husband.
He took nine months off between the move from Massachusetts to Maine and thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail. After spending some time on campus, John decided he wanted a creative outlet and to be a member of the Wesleyan community. Joining as a GLS student was a perfect fit.
How far along are you in the program?
By the end of fall semester, I will have completed five courses.
What is your area of study?
Originally, I was accepted into the MPhil’s Science concentration. After an unexpected discovery, I’m now energized by the Arts concentration.
What were your initial goals when starting the program and how have they evolved?
Originally, I planned to build from my interest in environment sciences. I had rudimentary plans for my thesis. I suddenly changed direction in the fall of 2019 when I took Corey Sorenson’s
Acting for the Camera. He teaches and is a working actor. I jumped at the chance to follow up with his Experiences in Acting course in the spring. The first class lit a spark and the second fanned a flame.
What has been one of your favorite courses and why?
Besides the classes with Corey Sorenson, Suanne Epstein’s Reverse Engineering the
Research Process was a great reentry into reading and writing scholarly literature. It put me back on the academic track.
Tell us about your acting career, how did you get started?
I toyed with the idea over winter break and got back to campus ready to try. I located the professional sites for stage and film casting calls. I started using Backstage and Actors Access along with sites specific to Connecticut and New England. I also took professional advice from Corey Sorenson.
My goal is finding work as a local-hire character actor. I generally answer calls for independent films, student films and local commercials. I am booking jobs. I am taking advantage of every free resource available; Zoom calls with faculty, stacks of Olin Library books, working actor podcasts and free local theater workshop that Theater professor Maria-Christina Oliveras recommended. I got advice from Corey Sorenson about resumes, headshots, and self-tape auditions.
My first gig was with a student director I had worked with at MxCC. Since then it has been about persistence, making connections and learning as I go. Like everyone else, I lost jobs when Covid shut down spring productions. By June, tiny film productions started opening under heavy restrictions. They are exactly what I want, so I’ve been busy.
What are some projects you have been working on?
Right now, I have a happy niche in small horror, sci fi, and dystopian films. They offer juicy character roles. So far, I have been a dark anti-hero, a menacing villain and an execution victim. I have been shot, mutilated, and chased by monsters. In any other genre, I’d be stuck with grumpy dads, sweet uncles, and fatuous golf partners.
I just finished a passion project with a group of Wesleyan undergraduates who want to keep theater alive on a locked down campus. We worked together to write, direct and perform eight original monologues for a live virtual production called MonoLogon. I turned a wall in my garage into a 1990’s blue-collar gay bar and teamed up with a 19-year-old student who turned my rambling stories into a beautiful script and directed from her quarantined room.
What is next?
Being in my 50s, I get odd looks and reactions talking to people about my new career. It is a far cry from being a librarian. Right now, my biggest challenge is finding education and training for building whatever talent I have. I attend virtual lectures and workshops when available through Wesleyan and local theaters. I attended a terrific master class hosted by theater professor Maria-Christina Oliveras. Once my acting gigs start paying, I will funnel resources into professional classes. I will also continue wandering around my back yard reading scripts and creating characters.
How have your experiences in the GLS program helped shape your personal or professional goals?
I would not have discovered these new possibilities without GLS.
What advice do you have for anyone starting the program and/or pursuing a career in acting?
If you know it is what you want, throw your whole self into it.
Anything else you would like to share. Links to events/shows!
Wesleyan student production of eight live virtual monologues.
Performed on October 24th, 2020