  {"id":211324,"date":"2026-03-20T14:12:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-20T18:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/?p=211324"},"modified":"2026-03-20T14:18:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-20T18:18:14","slug":"caroline-lynch-desmarais-24-on-life-in-the-theater","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/2026\/03\/20\/caroline-lynch-desmarais-24-on-life-in-the-theater\/","title":{"rendered":"Caroline Lynch Desmarais &#8217;24 on Life in the Theatre"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Caroline Lynch Desmarais &#8217;24 is making her mark in the professional theater world, crediting her time on campus with shaping both her artistry and her career.<\/p>\n<p>Graduating <em>summa cum laude<\/em> in 2024 with a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/theatre-and-dance\/academic-programs\/undergraduate\/bfa-musical-theatre\/\">BFA in Musical Theatre<\/a> and a minor in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/justice-studies\/\">Environmental Justice<\/a>, Caroline was also a member of the Honors Program, and an active performer during her time at Montclair.<\/p>\n<h3>A Day in the Life of a Performer<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;While it depends on the type of show I am doing, the most important thing I must do is ensure I get enough sleep after a late performance,&#8221; Caroline says. Her performance days will then start with hydrating with plenty of water, drinking a hot beverage and utilizing a vocal steamer, rolling out muscle areas of tension, eating a protein-packed meal to boost energy, and getting in a workout to align her body physically for the day.<\/p>\n<p>On two-show days, that preparation intensifies: &#8220;After my workout I&#8217;ll do a vocal warm-up while putting my hair in wig preparation before I head to the theatre,&#8221; she explains. &#8220;Once at the theatre, I&#8217;ll then do a proper physical warm-up, finish perfecting my stage makeup, put on my microphone, wig, and costume, and complete whatever other tasks I have deemed necessary to guarantee I am ready for that specific show.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Many of these habits were shaped during her time at Montclair. &#8220;These daily practices have been developed through the lessons I learned from my professors&#8221; she says, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~hrousisi\">Eren Sevasti<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~harviecovinl\">Lisa Harvie<\/a>, Mark Hardy, and Sharon Milanese.<\/p>\n<p>Outside of performance, she makes time to explore. &#8220;If I only have one evening performance, I love to utilize my time exploring whatever city I am in,&#8221; she says. &#8220;It is important to me to make wherever I am living for a particular contract feels as much like home as possible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_211326\" class=\"responsive-image-holder wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mlt-responsive-image\" data-original-image=\"\/arts\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/03\/anytime-annie-go-dance.png\" src=\"\/responsive-media\/cache\/arts\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/03\/anytime-annie-go-dance.png.0.1x.generic.jpg\" alt=\"As Anytime Annie in 42nd Street - Shaffer Photography\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">As Anytime Annie in <em>42nd Street<\/em> &#8211; Shaffer Photography<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>Building a Career<\/h3>\n<p>&#8220;My training in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/theatre-and-dance\">Department of Theatre and Dance<\/a> at ÌÇÐÄvlog was instrumental in establishing the career I now have,&#8221; Caroline says. &#8220;I found my voice in ways I couldn&#8217;t have even imagined.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>She credits <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~flynnpe\">Peter Flynn<\/a> with helping her grow as an actor and collaborator, while her studies in the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/cali\">John J. Cali School of Music<\/a> strengthened her musicianship. Daily ballet classes alongside dance majors refined her technique, while <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~jamesbr\">Clay James<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~mccannl\">Lori McCann<\/a> helped her develop her voice as a choreographer. Her work assisting Mark Hardy with Musical Theatre auditions strengthened her confidence as a leader.<\/p>\n<h3>The Power of Connection<\/h3>\n<p>For Caroline, one of the most meaningful parts of her journey has been seeing how college relationships evolve over time. &#8220;It is a wildly exciting and rewarding thing to witness how the connections you make in college blossom into consistent working relationships in the industry,&#8221; she says.<\/p>\n<p>But she emphasizes that success goes beyond networking. &#8220;It&#8217;s not just about who you know; it&#8217;s about being a kind, hard-working, collaborative individual who fosters professional relationship through being a dependable artist.&#8221;<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_211327\" class=\"responsive-image-holder wp-caption alignnone\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"mlt-responsive-image\" data-original-image=\"\/arts\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/03\/BA7A1B8C-2812-4455-A183-0DDEAF688FDB_1_105_c.jpeg\" src=\"\/responsive-media\/cache\/arts\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/164\/2026\/03\/BA7A1B8C-2812-4455-A183-0DDEAF688FDB_1_105_c.jpeg.0.1x.generic.jpg\" alt=\"Caroline Lynch Desmarais with John Kearney (&apos;27) and Chase Fontenot (&apos;23). They performed in 42nd Street at The Lexington Theatre Company together in the summer of 2025. Caroline and Chase were the Co-Dance Captains.\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Caroline Lynch Desmarais with John Kearney (&#8217;27) and Chase Fontenot (&#8217;23). They performed in <em>42nd Street<\/em> at The Lexington Theatre Company together in the summer of 2025. Caroline and Chase were the Co-Dance Captains.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h3>Advice for Students<\/h3>\n<p>Her advice to current students it to embrace every moment of their time at Montclair. &#8220;Enjoy this time to grow and learn about yourself as both a human and performing artist,&#8221; she says. &#8220;Soak up the time you have&#8230;because the time will fly.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>She also encourages students to explore beyond their primary field of study. &#8220;Take advantage of all of the academic pursuits beyond the realm of the arts,&#8221; she says. &#8220;It will only enrich your wealth of knowledge as an artist.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>Story by Web and Digital Media Manager <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/~thelinal\">Alexandra Thelin Blackowski<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Caroline Lynch Desmarais &#8217;24 is making her mark in the professional theater world, crediting her time on campus with shaping both her artistry and her career. Graduating summa cum laude in 2024 with a BFA in Musical Theatre and a minor in Environmental Justice, Caroline was also a member of the Honors Program, and an [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":37,"featured_media":211325,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-211324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news-and-announcements","category-190_theatre-dance"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/37"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=211324"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211324\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":211330,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211324\/revisions\/211330"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/211325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=211324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=211324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/arts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=211324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}