Hello fans of Him! We are so grateful to everyone who has subscribed, shared, and donated so far. Thanks for helping us spread the word.
My name is Rebecca Wahls, and I am directing and co-writing Him.
And now…
An origin story
Once upon a time, in early Spring 2016, I was holding auditions for the very dark musical comedy Dark Times at Grimesville High, which I was directing and producing that summer at the Capital Fringe Festival. I was feeling quite professional and grown up about it.
All actors know that auditioning is weird, like super weird, so weird and uniquely challenging that there are entire classes dedicated to the art of it. I personally love auditions as a director. You get to see and consider every possible version of the story during the audition process. But, the pressure is on. You’re looking for the one who can perform it, but also the one that you think - based on a ten minute audition and maybe a conversation - will thrive in the process you are creating. For a Fringe show like this, that meant some fast and furious, DIY theatre (fun fact, we had to store our entire set for this show in a 4x4 box. No height limit though, and we stacked those school desks high. Life hack!)
It is not an exaggeration to say that when Tess walked in the room, I knew that there was something special about her. She had “it” and, perhaps more importantly, I had the immediate sense that we had known each other forever. I offered her as the lead, thank goodness she accepted, and “the fam” was born.
OK Rebecca you also have to actually talk about yourself
Did I just use half of my “intro to me post” to gush about Tess? Absolutely. But that story contains a lot of key info about me as an artist. I’ll break it down.
First - I’ve never been afraid of self-producing. This industry loves to tell you “no” and I’m famous for responding, “haha, YES.”
Second - deep collaboration is key to my artistic process. In every one of my projects, there is at least one essential collaborator without whom the work would not exist. For Him, it’s obviously Tess. Shout out to some of my other all-time favs:
Becca Ballinger, co-creator of Rebecca and Becca in Space, our COVID-era comedy web series.
Maggie Marie Rodgers and SMJ, my co-creators of this old haunt, the new musical that I was off workshopping in New York last week.
Ruthie Rado, writer of Spills, the truly wild sex comedy that we produced in a house in 2019.
And the list goes on. I love my people!
Third and final key point - I learn by doing and I am always making.
And here are some other cool things about me
I am currently pursuing my MFA in Directing at Carnegie Mellon University as a John Wells Fellow. I an in constant awe of my teachers and cohort, and am honored to have been accepted to my goal program on a full scholarship.
I’ve directed many plays over the years, experimented with hybrid theatre/media projects since 2018, and in the past year have written and directed two short films. Hop on over to my website to check out images from past projects!
Teaching is an essential part of my practice. At CMU, I teach Acting for Non-Majors and Improv for Non-Majors. I’ve taught with Acting for Young People in Fairfax, VA for ten years; my students have ranged in age from 5 to 85. I’ve taught corporate improv workshops for companies including Marriott International and local Northern Virginia businesses. I also recently gave a TEDx Talk! You can watch it here.
I am a cat person, an avid fiction reader, and cooking is my favorite hobby.
And my husband Dylan ROCKS *heart emoji*
Let’s make a movie!
Thanks for being an early subscriber to our journey. We’re shooting in Sedona, AZ in January 2023, and we are going to need a lot of support, especially financially. We are committed to paying all cast, crew, and creative a living wage for this project. If you are interested in contributing time, money, skills, or wisdom, please reach out to us at himthefilm@gmail.com. For donations under $1k, please use our Paypal. You can also follow us on Instagram (and share posts!) and check out our project packet on our website.