Escapism for Soda Walker wasn’t found in a “High School Musical.” It was found in a theatre track at a music and arts summer camp. Even though Walker didn’t enjoy the camp, the theatre track helped her grow into her talents. One of the “roles” Walker didn’t see herself playing was a student at TJC. “I was supposed to go to a different college, but I had things that restricted me from doing that, so I had to stay in Tyler, and so I chose to go to TJC,” Walker said.
Through a theatre class, Walker was invited to a Las Mas Party from Las Mas Adviser and Theatre Professor, Denise Weatherly Green (better known under her nickname W.G.). Walker said she joined Las Mas “because I love theatre and I wanted to pursue that.” Walker’s choice gave her the opportunity to become the 99th Las Mas student secretary and a reason to push through life and her education.
“I was really struggling with a lot of mental health issues and having, like, a fun way to get all of that out of my body by dancing and showing that part of myself creatively was very helpful during that time,” Walker said.
While living on her own, Walker said she needed someone looking out for her. That mentor for her was W.G. “W.G. has been almost motherly to me,” Walker said. “I don’t have any family up here, and it’s nice to know that if I had an issue at home, I could go to W.G. and talk to her about it, and she has provided me with food and shelter. I know that there’s always somebody I can go to if I’m struggling with anything.”
From “Frankenstein” to her recent ensemble role in “James and the Giant Peach,” Walker learned something beyond her psychology books. “My major with psychology is a lot more science oriented, and that can be a little mind numbing at times. It’s a lot of math, and it’s a lot science and it’s a lot of studying, but having a place that I can go to, where I can, you know, paint or make a little project, or, you know, have time with fun people and get to know people, that’s always just a really good outlet,” Walker said.
A standout reflection Walker expressed was a time “J.D.” better known as TJC Theatre Professor Jacob Davis offered his home to anyone alone during Thanksgiving. This moment caused Walker to feel like Las Mas provided her with directors who care about the wellbeing and safety of their students.
While Walker is not a theatre major anymore, Las Mas shows appreciation for all of the artistic endeavors Walker embarks on.
“I oftentimes will paint at home and come to school and show off my work to my directors, and they’re always very excited about it, and also it’s nice to have somebody on your side,” Walker said.
Walker worked her way to become the 99th Las Mas Secretary, where she plans out time frames for productions and makes sure everything is done in a timely and correct way.
“I feel like theatre is a very task-oriented thing. There’s always something that needs to be done, and showing up for 15 minutes can help a production go from being done in a week to being done in a couple days,” Walker said.
As the secretary, Walker is the one who manages and updates their OrgSync to notify students of any meeting times and events and keep note the service hours and attendance for Las Mascaras. On top of this, Walker keeps track of the minutes of each officer meeting. The work she does provides structure to productions and event planning and set ups through her venue committee. Walker’s TJC theatre experience has given her a new lens of artistic creation and what it takes to make dreams become reality.
“When you act and you watch movies, it’s a different view of a movie, because you know what the person’s doing. You know that they’re acting because you have done it yourself. And you know the amount of effort that goes into movies, and you know the amount of effort that goes into like, the can on the counter, or the wall in the background, like, you know the effort that somebody put in to make that set so beautiful,” Walker said. “Las Mas puts in that effort every day for their shows, and it just makes you have a higher appreciation of what you’ve created and what other people create.”
Walker’s work at Las Mas is paving the way for her walk, not in her own shoes, but through shared experiences. She works to maintain the outlet. The setting. The stage. The plays. And moreover the connections fostered throughout the decades. In the framework of Las Mas, it doesn’t take a runner to reach milestone, sometimes it takes a “Walker.”
“I feel like there’s so much diversity in this world and so much hate and so much like hardship that people go through. I feel like one thing everybody can agree on is when you watch a movie that is done right, or you watch a show that is done right, you get the point, and you can put yourself in somebody else’s shoes for a little bit,” Walker said. “I think that’s important as humans, that we have an outlet to show what we’re feeling.”
