“I want middle school, high school and college students to feel loved and cared for.  That they are more than just the talent they bring to the stage.  I want them to feel that they are worth knowing and treasuring.” ~ Emily Magera

Emily Magera caught her first big break in third grade.  She was cast in “Honk!”, a popular, Olivier Award-winning musical that retells Hans Christian Andersen’s classic tale, “The Ugly Duckling”.  For a young girl in the small town of Aberdeen, South Dakota–population 30,000–this was a huge honor.  By fifth grade, Emily and the rest of the Aberdeen “Honk!” cast found themselves in Japan, part of a world festival for children’s performing arts with the show.  While there, she witnessed kids from countries around the world, performing different plays in a variety of languages.  From this beautiful experience, she learned a valuable lesson in communication as she noticed how much of a story could be told through action and emotions that transcend language barriers.  This transformative and essential experience led Emily to pursue show choir, dance classes, plays and musicals throughout high school and college.

Towards the end of her stint at the University of Sioux Falls in South Dakota, Emily found herself, a little afraid and uncertain, debating between going to New York City to pursue an acting career and staying in South Dakota, close to family and the life she’d always known.  An acquaintance ultimately helped her make up her mind by asking what she feared more, failing in New York City?  Or spending the rest of her life wondering “what if” she could have succeeded in the Big Apple?

So...Emily took off for NYC and fairly quickly landed the role of core ensemble on the final season of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”, an Amazon Prime original series inspired by the real-life experiences of trailblazing female comedians in the 1950s and 60s.  During the filming of episode after episode, Emily realized that even though she was “technically” an extra, she still had the freedom to devote her heart and creativity fully to the role and to feel like an essential part of the show.

After “Mrs. Maisel” wrapped production, life called Emily back home to South Dakota where she could be closer to her aging grandparents and pursue new opportunities.

However, Emily missed the obstacles and challenges that were part of her daily life in New York City.  She wanted to learn more about how people communicate in a productive way, so she enrolled in a mostly long distance program at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington and obtained a master’s degree in Communications and Leadership studies.  As part of finishing her coursework, Emily gave a brilliant and uplifting speech at TEDx Sioux Falls, where I was fortunate to be in the audience.  Now, I feel fortunate to have Emily as our next guest, along this part of her journey, so that she can share her essential brilliance with you. 

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**Video broadcast available** on YouTube @imperfectbest

**Learn more about Jason Freeman** at AwkwardlyAwesome.com