Interview with Andreea Damian

From a young age, Andreea Damian has spent most of her spare time on stage through theatre or musical theatre. Her passion for the performing arts brought her to the Arts York Drama program at Unionville High school where she learned more than she ever imagined about acting, and herself. During the evenings and weekends, Andreea would attend individual vocal lessons with her vocal coach, dance lessons at York Dance Academy, musical theatre training at Randolph Academy or rehearsals for community theatre shows. During her Bachelor’s and Master’s, Andreea continued writing plays as a creative outlet. By being a part of Daffydil as the assistant director last year and the director this year, Andreea continues to incorporate a lifelong passion while supporting a cause that is very personal to many of us.

Q: To start, can you please tell us a bit about yourself?

Hi, my name is Andreea. I'm currently a second year UofT medical student. Growing up, I did a lot of theater; I started with acting, then did “triple threat” training (learning to additionally sing and dance). I attended an arts high school and majored in drama. Up until Grade 12, my dream was to move to New York and work on Broadway. 

Things changed when my mom said, “You can do that, but first, get a degree.” So I thought, “Well, I really like microbiology,” so I did my undergrad at McGill in microbiology and immunology. I kind of fell in love with medicine and specifically with microbiology, so I stuck around and did my Master’s in it. I then did some work in neuroinflammation before entering medical school . It's been a long road to medicine but being here is really exciting because I’m involved with Daffy; I get to do theater as well as medicine, and I'm having the best time!

Q: Amazing! What interested you in theater to begin with?

Honestly, I don't remember. All I remember is that even in preschool, we had career days where I dressed up with a shirt that had a star on it, and I kept saying I was going to be a singer. I don't remember what started my love for theater, but I just know that the first thing I remember about it is that I loved it.

Q: For people who don't know, what is Daffy and what can they expect this year? 

Daffydil is a musical put on by UofT medical students, but we occasionally have undergrad students that contribute as well. The musical is produced, written, and directed by students, and the entire cast and staff are students. [Daffy] raises money for the Canadian Cancer Society, which is very important to me personally. There’s a lot of people who have been personally affected by cancer so it's great to raise money for it while also incorporating a passion for the arts. The arts, in addition to being enjoyable, helps to connect people and to motivate them to get through hard moments in life. I think Daffy is a wonderful way to give back to the community and also inspire people.

Q: How did you become involved with Daffy? 

Even before I came to UofT ( I actually interviewed three times here), I was dead set on being a part of [Daffy]. In each of my interviews, I asked the student interviewer, “Were you involved in Daffy? What was your role? How was it?” Once I got accepted, I asked around for positions that would be available for students. At first, I thought I'd be writing Daffy because I’ve written plays in the past, but I had a change of heart when I learned what all the different roles entailed. I became assistant director in first year, then director this year because I wanted to be as involved in all the creative aspects of the musical as possible. 

Q: What do you do as director of Daffy?

With my assistant director, Aleksandra Uzelac, we block scenes and we're in charge of all of the acting. We are also the lead of all the creative leads, overseeing everything that they do, and help with the visuals, sound, music, and dance numbers. We block some songs—the ones that are more “acty”  and not necessarily huge dance numbers (we leave the complex choreography to our talented dance leads). We also work closely with the vocal leads in order to ensure that the cast learn the music. We're in charge of rap songs, because although I have experience in singing, I'm not as musically skilled as our talented vocal leads.

Q: Are you involved in the process of selecting the cast? What you are looking for in an audition?

Yes, I was in charge of the auditions for the cast chorus. I didn't necessarily look at who was the strongest, say, vocalist. Rather, I looked at the ranges the vocal leads set, and as long as they met a bar, that was good for me. I then looked for who was the most enthusiastic and willing to take risks. A big part was also seeing who could potentially fit the character. 

Q: Do you have a favourite memory that you want to share from your time as assistant director or director?

My favourite memory of last year was just being in the theater and on the stage. Up until that point, we were working so hard for so many hours during the week but it didn't really feel like, “This is actually happening!” until we got into the theater and everyone got set up. Seeing everyone backstage bonding together was my favourite part. This year, even though we're not going to be in a theater, I'm still really excited to finally meet the cast, chorus, and dance team, and to work with them in person. That's always the best part, and it'll start to feel like we're actually making a musical again, even though it will be on film this year.

Q: What's been the most challenging aspect of being the director?

I think this year especially, everything has to be really organized. A lot is up in the air with COVID, and we are literally working with two show dates, or as we like to call it, two film weeks, concurrently in order to plan for any possible changes. You have to have a lot of flexibility.

Q: On that note, how has Daffy been adapted to COVID?

It’s adapted better than I ever expected. The team that we have this year is really determined and dedicated. Our exceptional producers have figured everything out logistically in terms of how we're going to make a film, and they have incredible foresight into every tiny little thing that we need to get this to happen. 

Our creative leads have adapted rehearsals to Zoom; for vocals, only one person gets to sing at a time, so we have to pre-record all the vocals beforehand. But the vocal leads and us (directors) have started putting the cast/chorus songs together and sharing them with everyone so that they can feel like they're together, and also get excited for the real thing. 

For the acting, we get cast and chorus to practice their  formations and rearrange their furniture as it would be on set. Then they have to, in character, turn around and pretend to talk to someone even though they're talking to themselves. A big part of acting is reacting so I have no idea how the characters are actually going to react naturally in front of the camera. During filming, things will change and they'll come to life, so I'm really excited to see the acting and dancing come together.

Everyone who's involved in Daffydil has been so adaptable and made it work really well. I think the show is going to be incredible. 

Q: Wow, I didn’t realize that Daffy will be filmed. How is that going to work?

Right now we're just waiting for lockdown to be amended. We have everything pre-approved—we're going to be wearing face masks, we're separated in groups under the size limit, and these groups will not overlap with each other. The producers have made a very, very explicit safety protocol for us to follow and the faculty has approved it so we are good to film in person once the provincial restrictions allow for it.

Q: What does the musical format mean to you and how do you think it works as a whole to create impact on the audience?

I was always trained that theatre and acting is life, so everything you show in a musical has to be relatable to the audience. [The audience] can recognize, “Oh, that's me, and if someone else can go through these experiences and make it through, maybe I will as well.” I think as medical students too, we really struggle with imposter syndrome and the uncertainty of why we got in and how we're going to do in the future.  This year's message really tries to show that even in the midst of a pandemic, everything will be okay and that you should be strong and follow your dreams.

Q: That's a really nice message. I'm looking forward to seeing it even more! What was the rationale behind making Daffy a comedy this year? 

Our writers are honestly the most hilarious people you will ever meet. As I mentioned earlier, because of the pandemic, we really just need an escape and some lightheartedness. We want to bring some joy to everyone and that’s where the comedy aspect of this show is really important.

Q: Do you think that the musical is going to have the same impact on its audience now that it is virtual?

I definitely love seeing a show live because the best part is when something happens and the audience reacts together. This year, I hope that everyone watching the show in their own home will still gasp and react, and feel connected through the show. We also have some virtual screenings planned to try and bring a sense of community back, because to me, that's the most important part when I go see a musical.

Q: You mentioned that Daffy is a big time commitment. How have you been balancing Daffy and medical school all at once?

It's definitely a juggling act. I love being busy though. As early as I can remember, even in high school, all my evenings were booked with theatre, vocal, or dance lessons and so going into university, I kind of kept that up as well. I’m also the type of person where if I'm busy I'm more efficient when I actually get to study. If I had nothing to do on my evenings I would probably be procrastinating, so this keeps me accountable—when I do have an hour or two to study, I’m making the most of it.

Q: What would you tell other students who are interested in the arts or music and also going through medical school? What advice would you give to them given that you’ve done a really great job with integrating both parts of your life?

Yeah, I think that's very important. I actually struggled with this a lot in undergrad. I completely ignored the artistic side of myself because I thought to get into medical school I needed to do A, B, C—and none of that was in the arts, it was all science, research and volunteering. So I always felt like something was missing. During my Masters, I had a bit more time and so I started participating in things like the Toronto Fringe Festival and writing plays. And so I realized, going into medical school, there's no reason I should cancel that part of me again now that I'm a student. I decided to make time for the things I love and prioritize them, because while it is busy and it does take prioritization, it's definitely worth it and I definitely feel happier and more satisfied with myself personally.

Q: That's great advice! For those who see Daffy this year and want to get involved, how would you recommend doing that?

Honestly, try everything. I say this about Daffy or anything you're passionate about. If you want to get involved, always try. Don't be afraid to fail. Rejection is common everywhere, but you gotta keep trying no matter what. And, if you love it, you'll find a place for it. We have so many students doing so many things—even if you don't think you can sing, act, or dance, you could design our costumes or paint our set. There's just a thousand ways to get involved so don't be afraid to reach out and try.

Q: Do you find that your passion for theatre has had an impact on your career in medicine? 

I definitely think my theatre experience will help me be a better doctor. I've always been a very empathetic person and I think that with acting, you always imagine yourself in someone else's shoes which leads to you being an empathetic person. Additionally, I think with acting, you get used to a lot of rejection. And that's helped me to be resilient and move on when things don't go my way. And lastly, there's a lot of improv in acting that needs to happen. Even as a script actor, things on stage go wrong all the time and you need to improvise at the last minute. It really helps in medicine so that you can adapt if something goes wrong and improvise a new solution.

On the other side of things, I don't know if I'll be continuing with the arts as a physician, but I do think it's important to get involved in it as a hobby, and also as a way to connect with patients and with the community.

Q: What role will the arts and musicals play in your life in the future? 

I always naively say that my favourite playwright, Anton Chekhov, was a writer and also a physician. So, my goal in life was always to be a physician, but hopefully write plays in my spare time and see them produced on stage—so that's the goal. I'm not sure if life will go that way, but medicine and Daffy have taught me that I want to continue it as a hobby.

Q: Is there anything that you want to leave readers with?

I just want to really reiterate that I know medicine can be overwhelming. And I think that I lost myself before joining medicine. So if anyone out there is feeling like they're losing their passion in the arts, I strongly encourage them to seek it out because I don't think you need to lose part of yourself to become someone else—I think you just need to grow with the different parts of yourself.