Actor Colin McCalla ’16 returned to the stage in Walker Auditorium to perform with current students on December 7, capping off a week-long visit to the school.

Mr. Parker Reed, instructor in theatre, organized McCalla’s return to the school. Over the week, McCalla visited several theatre classes and worked with students to prepare a performance. On December 2, McCalla joined students in the faculty room for a Q&A hosted by the Film Club and the Hotchkiss Dramatic Association (HDA). McCalla spoke about his acting experience in Los Angeles and answered students’ questions about working in the film industry. On Saturday, he hosted an acting masterclass. His week finished with a performance of Christopher Marlowe’s Doctor Faustus with 13 student actors in Walker Auditorium on December 7.

While McCalla’s interest in theatre began at the school, he never anticipated he would continue acting as a professional career. McCalla said, “When I was [at the school], I never even had an inkling of an idea that [acting] was something I wanted to do professionally. So, I wanted to show the current theatre kids that there’s someone to look to who can show them that there’s a genuine possibility [of acting as] something that they want to pursue.”

He took part in several productions as a student here including Ragtime, The Crucible, and Measure for Measure. McCalla decided to step back on stage during this visit. He selected Doctor Faustus to have an opportunity to return to the types of plays that he’d taken part in as a student and because he wanted to perform something traditional in “Old English.”

McCalla initially studied Applied Mathematics at Pomona College in in California. There, he became interested in a career in the film industry during travel to Los Angeles and Hollywood. By his college graduation, he had obtained multiple credits in television productions and decided to pursue acting full-time. McCalla is currently a regular on the television series Tyler Perry’s Ruthless in the role of River.

During his time as a student at the school, McCalla was also a member of the Varsity Football and Track teams. He was also a head of Bluenotes and a proctor in Tinker. Former Chaplain Mr. Lou Pressman invited McCalla to give a speech at the Baccalaureate service for his graduation class on finding his voice and fitting in.

Throughout his week at the school, McCalla hoped to encourage students to grow out of their comfort zones and not fear performing on stage. He said, “I hope students can understand that theatre can also be a personal art form, and that we actors can also be individuals acting uniquely.”

Students found McCalla’s visit helpful and insightful. Lucy Hall ’25 said “[McCalla] gave us a lot of tips that really helped me when performing. One note, in particular, was to "think your characters."