This book is a love letter to the theatre. Although I love writing, it’s the theatre that has had my heart since I was a very little girl, and I want to say a heartfelt thank-you to everyone who has ever shared a stage or a corner of a darkened theatre with me. There is a piece of every single one of you in this book. I particularly want to send love and gratitude to the following . . .

Lincoln County On Stage, the small-town community theatre that grew me up.

The University of the Ozarks theatre department, where I truly learned the craft and art of acting.

The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, where I was lucky enough to spend six wonderful summers as an intern soaking up seaside sunshine and rubbing elbows with legends. The beautiful, fog-soaked grounds of Whisper Cove were inspired by the truly breathtaking setting of the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center in Waterford, Connecticut.

Also, thanks and all the love in the world to all of the Stages Theatre kids who shared so much of their lives with me in so many beautiful moments, on stage and off, over the years. To Caitie, Robert, Hannah, Lauren, Faith, Blakely, Cason, Dustin, Talley Beth, Weston, Jessica, Kelsey, Kimmie, Colton, Lexie, Suede, and all the others who I would love to be able to name here . . . but I’d need pages and pages. What we did together was magic, and you guys have no idea how proud I am of you and how much of my heart you take up, even after all this time.

And to my friend Bruce Brown, who shares my passion for the theatre. I will never forget our three-hour lunches and long conversations. I’m grateful for all the adventures we got to share, both in the theatre and out in the world.

Last, to my own bold, beautiful, brilliant, red-headed best friend, Weston Allen Kemp, to whom this book is dedicated. Thank you for being the kind of friend I never knew I needed until you took me so wonderfully by surprise. The shock of recognition between us was instant and inevitable. It’s what you once called “the magic of you and me,” and you were so right. You will always be my favorite partner in everything, on stage and off. You’re my one big YES, and it gives me so much joy to be able to share this story with you. I’m so incredibly grateful for all the second . . . and third . . . and fourth . . . chances we’ve given each other over the years. It hasn’t always been easy, but we have always been worth it. I more than love you, Wes. Please keep your candle burning, because you are anything but ordinary, and the world needs your light almost as much as I do.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR