Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rachael Chau. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rachael, appreciate you joining us today. Have you or your work ever been misunderstood or mischaracterized?

Before I started my theatre training in high school, I was incredibly shy. In my opinion, I’ve always been an introvert (and always will be), but it was much more outwardly evident back then. Now, a decade after starting high school, most people are confused as to why I identify as an introvert still. I laugh and explain my reasons; meeting new people isn’t my thing, I prefer solitude or being with a small group of people I know & love & trust, etc. But the most interesting part of this misconstrued perception to me is that I feel I know myself and where I fit in the world better than anyone else, in my career especially. I don’t see myself as incredibly self-aware, but I know my heart & abilities enough to know what projects I would work most effectively in, and it’s brought me a handful of fantastic work opportunities over the years.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Hi! I’m Rachael (she/they) and I was raised in New Jersey by city folks. I played & sang music since I was a little kid, and grew that passion into songwriting and acting throughout my adolescence. I went to a rather intense magnet high school where I majored in theatre (my first true exposure to what it means to have training & craft) and went on to study drama at NYU Tisch. I’ve been working professionally since my senior year of high school, and I was lucky & hardworking enough to get representation during my last semester of college. I mainly work as a stage actor in plays and musicals and a voice actor in video games, and I continue to write in various mediums and am in the process of recording and releasing my own music. Unable and unwilling to escape my roots, I work & live in New York City.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The pieces that I find myself most drawn to are the ones that I can become obsessed with, put away, dig up time and again and resonate with in different, more nuanced ways in each instance. I hope to make something (and hopefully multiple somethings) that can be that important to people. The art may start with someone as a blindingly bright love affair, but then over time it expands and earns layers of comfort and hope and heartache and memory and release. I want my work to be a time capsule for people in that sort of way.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Once upon a time, for one reason or another, I got the idea in my head that talented people are rare. And that is simply NOT true. Not only are talented people abundant, but they can also be hardworking people who have honed their talents and grown them into skills, they can be the kindest souls, they can come from anywhere and everywhere or seemingly out of nowhere, they can be your worst enemies or your best friends or people you see on occasion and smile at. Bottom line: humans are miraculous! And the number of them–talented, skilled, kind, interesting, full of stories, just starting out–that I’ve gotten to come in contact with is one of the chief secular blessings of my life. What is the life of a creative person if not gathering new friends & loves & families to spin stories with?

Contact Info:

• Website: rachaelchau.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/rachaelmayc/
• Other: linktr.ee/rachaelchau

Image Credits
Amanda Pinto (Sub/Urban Photography) Deanté Gray