“Put yourself out there and do different things,” senior Olsen Burr said.
Burr is well versed in many things: His hidden talents include knowing how to hunt down the ideal lawn seat at any crowded concert venue and being able to distinguish between different brands of coffee just by tasting them. But more outwardly, he has the ability to take the stage with confidence to recite a script, or play a song in full just by hearing it one time.
Burr’s childhood was filled with more than just music and coffee, though. He began his journey on the baseball diamond. “Ever since I could, I was maybe about five years old, my dad put me in baseball. I did that for about eight years of my life,” he said. While Burr played baseball, he also thrived in basketball, soccer, flag football and even pursued karate. “When I got into middle school, I dropped all that and then did tennis full time.”
While Burr picked his tennis racket up for the first time, he also began to play violin in the school orchestra. While this was short-lived it served as a segway for him to try his hand at another instrument: bass guitar. He played bass, but then was introduced to its six-string sibling. “Then, I got a guitar.”
Today after a long journey, Burr’s main instrument is still guitar, though he dabbles in drums, and can play anything with four to six strings. He is known by his family to stop in any music shop, pick up an instrument and play. For him, this is just trying out the instrument, but for others around him, a beautiful song fills the room.
This love of music led him to join a program called “Band Builders” towards the end of middle school. Here he met Mattie Meyer, a now senior at Center Grove High school, who is the current lead singer of their band Polyantha. Later along the line he found Nik Bauerle, a bassist and a junior at PMHS.
As Burr’s performance with a guitar in hand was building, his first experiences on stage were happening. “When I joined improv my freshman year, I had no idea what it was. I just showed up because I heard it was comedy.”
The sponsor of Improv club, Thomas Tutsie, was also the director of the spring play, “Radium Girls”, during Burr’s sophomore year. “[Mr. Tutsie] is always pushing me to do different things,” Burr said. Tutsie’s support of Burr in trying out for Radium girls started a new chapter for Burr. “At the end of my sophomore year was the first time I ever tried scripted acting…” he said “and I just fell in love with it.”
He was cast as the lovesick cowboy in “Radium Girls”, wooing the crowd with comedic relief in the heaviness of the play.
“I came into junior year, and I wanted to do FEST. But, the first day of auditions, Ms. Davis came in and said ‘If you’re doing a sport, you need to leave.’” At the time, Burr was teetering between his love of the stage and his roots in athletics. “So then I just made the choice… I want to do FEST.” Burr had been “falling out of love” with tennis, but FEST gave him the opportunity to ground himself where he knew he was happiest.
“FEST is my favorite thing we do at Perry.” The creativity element of FEST is what draws Burr most. This is very similar to what he loves so much about music. From a young age, Burr has valued the individuality that comes with performing arts. “My parents, [when I was little,] instead of having me just stare at a TV, they got me a guitar, and that immediately took all my interest away from video games,” Burr said. “[With music] you’re learning other people’s art form and making it your own.”
As Burr takes the stage his senior year, he plans to continue both of his passions of theater and music. His band does not have any current confirmed gigs, but @polyantha_music on Instagram posts upcoming performance information. Polyantha travels all around Indiana and performs at local restaurants and small venues. Close to home, the curtains open for the first showtime of the school year on Thursday, August 28, where Burr will play Caden Jensen in “Resonance”, a student written play.
