ABOUT ME
Having grown up with a creative impulse that expressed itself through poetry and short stories, I found my first true calling my sophomore year at Duke University where I inexplicably took an Intro to Acting class. A chemical reaction occurred in this painfully shy 19 year old that sent me on a journey in and out of LA and then, by way of San Francisco, off to Chicago for 14 glorious years as a theatre artist.
After 10 of those years as an actor, I found an adjacent passion in directing for the stage, which led me to the Directing MFA program at Northwestern. This was quickly followed by a move back to my home state of North Carolina, where the seasons were appropriately spaced, our then two-year-old had more dirt to play in, and my own artistic voice was clearer and more authentic. In Asheville, I’ve co-founded two local non-profit theatre organizations committed to the community, American Myth Center & A Different Myth.
While I plied my craft in those two arenas, I found a new outlet for my theatrical passion, which was teaching in the Drama Department at the University of North Carolina Asheville. My two favorite classes, which I also taught the most, were Playscript Analysis and Intro to Acting, where it all began. After five full years of teaching and directing seven shows, including helping guide the department through the pandemic, the University shuttered the Drama Department along with Religion, Philosophy, and Ancient Mediterranean Studies. It was a genuine existential crisis for the community.
Having lived through many chapters of a theatrical life, I began looking elsewhere. I looked at my skill set and meditated on my mission to add value to the world. With a clarity familiar from earlier life transitions, all signs pointed to the space of non-ordinary consciousness. When I immersed myself into the Third Wave’s Psychedelic Coaching Institute, I was amazed and inspired by the substantial intersection of the world of the arts and this new space. Furthering my education with Elemental Rhythm Breathwork has only amplified this discovery. As you can see below, I am using the same tools I have honed over many years and many projects; only now, I believe my impact has the capacity to be more direct. Through this transformation, my mission remains the same: help people be better humans by curating the potential for their own awakening. ~ Aaron
BA, English & Drama, Duke University
MFA, Directing for the Theatre, Northwestern University
Certified Psychedelic Coach, Third Wave Coaching Institute
Certified Breathwork Facilitator, Elemental Rhythm
CREATIVE CURATION
THE 3 CIRCLES OF CREATIVITY
On the first day of Intro to Acting, I would tell my students that it did not matter if they ever went to an audition or stepped into a theatre again after my class. What they would learn is deep listening, empathy, and imagination. Essentially, they would leave my classroom a better human being. This same skillset often arises as a result of non-ordinary states of consciousness: expansion of presence (deep listening), feeling of oneness with humanity (empathy), and new pathways in the mind (imagination).
DEEP LISTENING: This is an act of humility, patience, and concentration that starts with the ears and eyes, and then uses the entire body. The ego must recede, so that one can fully listen and only respond authentically in the moment. This skill leads to presence.
EMPATHY: This is the act of putting oneself in someone (or something) else’s shoes. One must withhold all judgement and practice total curiosity through asking a neverending series of “Whys”? This skill leads to understanding.
IMAGINATION: Any child proves that we are born with a vibrant and fertile imagination; one that sees the unseen and is not inhibited by the experience of age. Without the space to practice, it is dulled and numbed over time. Yet, its potential forever remains. This skill leads to new possibilities.
These three circles can be in relation to your closest friends or complete strangers, to your community at home or at large, to nature in your backyard or the entire Earth, or even simply to yourself. Working together, these are the skills needed for Creativity.
DRAMATURGY OF YOUR LIFE STORY
For my own non-profit and others, I have worked as a Dramaturg, which I describe as the curious mechanic of the story. This is where I get to use the skills learned as a professor of Playscript Analysis. I’m not there to give opinions on character, or thoughts on themes, or judgement on ideas. I am also not a co-collaborator, as I have no voice in or ownership of the plays. My sole job is to ask the right questions that have the greatest possibility of sparking the most exciting ideas within the playwright. Then I get out of the way.
I bring this same skillset to Creative Curation. The only difference is, instead of a play, I am dramaturging your life story—starring you, and written by you.
In PREPARATION, we work to describe your stasis (where you are now), your objective (what you as protagonist in your own story want more than anything), and what your obstacles are to this objective. You use this thrust statement (e.g. I want this in spite of that) as a talisman in your journey.
In INTEGRATION, you revisit your objective, making sure it holds. If the journey reveals something else to you, which it sometimes does, you refine this objective. After exploration and interrogation, and once the objective is confirmed or evolved, you will develop an action plan to achieve tangible results in your day to day life.
WHY CURATION?
As with any alternative field, the terminology is fluid and there are many names for the services I offer. Among the most commonly used are Coach, Guide, and Facilitator. While absolutely valid for much of the work in this field, none of those are quite how I see my offering to the space. When I first founded my non-profit performing arts organization, I took a hard look at the traditional titles in the theatre, namely the Director and Artistic Director. I have an MFA in Directing and I still don’t love the word. It implies that I just direct the actors where to go and what to do; that’s not the craft as I know it. My job as a theatre director is to create the safest environment possible for leaps of vulnerability, to establish a shared understanding of the story with a personal point of view, and to meet everyone where they are in the spirit of collaboration. After ruminating on that, I came up with a different title that also applies to what I want to be in this space: Curator.
curious? LET’S CHAT.
Please be advised that I strictly comply with all applicable local, national, and international laws regarding the use, possession, and distribution of controlled substances. I unequivocally do not condone, facilitate, or participate in the use or procurement of illegal substances. Also, in the context of my services, I don't do the duties of a medical or mental health professional. The information offered about substances is solely for educational purposes aimed at promoting harm reduction, responsible use, and safety. It does not encourage or promote their use in any manner that violates existing laws.
My goal is to encourage informed discussions, critical thinking, and ethical decision-making concerning psychedelics and related topics with the intention of harm reduction and safety.