By: David Berman, Villanova Media Relations
Ryan Henry was the only freshman in her Playwriting class during the Spring 2019 semester. On the first day of class her professor tossed a box of matches onto a table and asked each student to tell their entire life story before the match burned out. Ryan lit the match and, like many of her classmates, was still struggling with what to say when the flame started to burn her hand.
"That first class sticks with me as a writer and a performer," Henry recalled. "Everyone was a mess. My professor, Ed Sobel, said to remember the match in how to approach storytelling. It doesn't have to be big and elaborate because those things burn you. It was so deep. I was 18 years old and had no clue what was going on."
Ryan Henry was a first team All-BIG EAST selection and earned third team Mideast All-Region honors last season.
In early Spring 2020 the Villanova softball team had played 27 games and was on the doorstep of opening its BIG EAST schedule when the season was halted and ultimately cancelled due to the COVID pandemic. Ryan Henry had played in 14 of those games as a sophomore catcher on the Wildcats roster and had four hits in 31 plate appearances. Fast forward a little over a year and Henry has developed into an NFCA Mideast All-Region selection and one of the top power hitters in a deep Villanova lineup that was headed to the first NCAA regional in the program's 45-year history.
"I think a lot of it strings from failure," Henry said of her progress on the field. "I have changed. My life has been thrown into so many loops the last four years, getting diagnosed with diabetes right after Fall Ball my freshman year, dealing with anxiety – performance anxiety and generalized anxiety, the loss of my grandmother midseason. A lot happened and I had to step up, learn and hold myself accountable for the moments when I did slip up. It was a big learning process because – I'm going to be honest – it wasn't easy. I am a lot more open about it now and I think that is one of the things that has allowed me to excel. Learning from my failures has been a big part of it."
A Unique Academic Curriculum
Just months before she will graduate from Villanova with hopes of remaining on campus to pursue a Master of Arts in Theater, Henry took time to reflect on the unique confluence of experiences over the last four years that have made her a standout performer on the softball field, on the theatre stage, as the host of her own podcast and in plenty of other roles that continue to form her personal journey.
Henry is a Communication major specializing in Performance Studies with a minor in Theater. Her academic curriculum began with introductory Communication courses such as Public Speaking and Survey of Communication Studies. Next was a theory of performance studies which teaches different performance structures and theories. She described the elective options in her course load as "the more fun parts" to the major. They include Storytelling, Performance Ethnography, and Performance and Intersectionality. Her program combining traditional Communication classes with a Theatre minor is both specialized and unique. She could think of only two other students in the exact major and minor as hers.
"I learned that I love the theory of performance," Henry explains about her academic and intellectual interests. "I am a really big fan of Dwight Conquergood who was a performance theorist from Northwestern that one of my professors studied with. He's fantastic and I love his articles. The main performance structures are Prose, Ethnography and My Story. I specialize in My Story which is the incorporation of pop culture into personal text or academic text.
Performance Theory
It doesn't escape Ryan's attention that she is the only person who shows up to her Theater classes in Athletics gear, or that she needs to be persuasive in convincing her teammates to attend the opening night of theater performances with her. Even on the softball field she is a keen observer of the variety of roles she must take on at any given moment.
"It is something I have been studying a lot recently, how we play different roles in our lives," Henry said. "We play these roles and I think sports are really interesting in that it allows us to go somewhere that normally we wouldn't be allowed to go. There's something when you step on the court or the field, you can be someone that is 100 percent without judgment or ridicule and it's awesome. For me there is a different version of who is sitting here right now, but then there is Ryan on the field who is loud, can be emotional at times and I would say is more aggressive and exhibits more dominant features. I would never do that in a classroom, but [on the field] is when I feel my most confident. That character, she's in it to win it and that's why I love season."
Ryan Henry performed her one-woman show, "Turn Me On" at Garey Studio last month.
Ryan the Storyteller
"I come from a big, loud family. Storytelling is part of how I get to know people. The connection you make – and you see it in sports journalism – telling the stories is like getting rid of all the fluffy stuff and diving right into the personal. I love telling stories and making people laugh. All my performances in my storytelling class had a comic base for the most part. In a way that could make you feel very vulnerable, but it is also very empowering. Making people laugh makes me happy. It's something I find very comforting and welcoming."
Ryan describes herself as an open book. She is quick to offer, "Ask me anything" and is just as comfortable giving the answer as she is inviting the question. Her answer will just be heating up when a burning match runs out, but the best storytellers captivate their audiences without needing to speed up the plot. Storytelling is a role well-suited to Ryan, but what is her own personal story?
College Life and Softball
During her freshman year at Villanova, Henry was part of a Wildcats team which advanced to the final game of the BIG EAST Championship and went down to the wire before falling to DePaul by a single run with a chance for the program to win its first-ever conference title. That year remains the only uninterrupted season of college softball Henry has played, with the 2020 campaign halted by COVID and the 2021 season beginning late amidst constant uncertainty about whether teams would be able to play a full season. There was a silver lining to be found in the long pause that accompanied the early months of the pandemic.
"For the first two years of college [playing softball] felt like a role," Henry said. "I was struggling academically and athletically. Everything I worked for felt like I went five steps back and I wasn't the person I was meant to be yet. I am the only person who would ever say this but I'm thankful for COVID. The first two years I struggled to find a friend group and for the first time in my life I had a really hard time making friends. I got to go home and get my priorities straight. I focused on me and honestly took a step back from the game and focused on who I was. When I came back to campus last year things started automatically clicking."
Gallery: (2-8-2022) Ryan Henry - 2021 Season in Pictures
Music To Dance To
It is quick – momentary – but unmistakable. Ryan Henry steps into the batter's box, gets her feet set and then…dances? Every batter has their own routine at the start of a plate appearance, but Henry has been performing the same move for many years before she gets set for the first pitch. First comes the little shuffle where she snaps her shoulders back. Then she lines up her feet, sets up backwards and follows through with a hip twitch.
"I credit one of my professors, Dr. Evan Schares, and Dr. Heidi Rose who is the Chair of the Department of Communication. They brought up [performance theory] and I thought, 'Wait, I do that!' Their theory – I'm an example of it. I have always dealt with different versions of myself because the arts and athletics are very contrasting elements in society. I always struggled because managing it is very hard. It is different for athletes who are in [Villanova School of Business] or STEM because I feel like they are normalized. When I walk into class on the first day and I'm dressed in athletics gear, I have had friends think I was the stereotypical athlete. I am very intellectual in these fields and no one takes me seriously. I have always dealt with it and been curious by it. As I'm maturing and my time in athletics is narrowing down, it is kind of like this part of me is going to go away and how do I fill that hole?"
In all the roles Ryan plays, of which athlete and theatre performer are just two, it is quickly apparent that every role enhances each of the individual parts that combine to make up the whole person, the one who isn't a character but simply Ryan in real life.
"They are very intertwined and part of my brand," Henry says in describing the breadth of her interests. My grandpa is one of my biggest influences. If you came to a party, there would be a line to listen to his stories. I strive to be him every single day. He was my best friend, and just kind of creating that image where people can come to me and I can tell them a story, they can tell me theirs, and just having that effect. [Last year] I went random for housing with one of my teammates who I wasn't really close with at the time and I was the happiest I have ever been. Everything started clicking into place athletically, academically, artistically, and it correlated on the field. Last season was the most fun I have ever had playing and I think that is the best I have ever played in my life. Winning the BIG EAST and having that impact was amazing. I realize that in a way [playing softball] is playing a character, but it's my character and that's who I am.
The stars don't always align in such a perfect manner but over the past year while Henry refined her evolution as an athlete and a performer, even the physical spaces surrounding her were playing supporting roles by similarly transforming into an improved version of themselves. First came the opening of the Mullen Performing Arts Center, a state-of-the-art theatre that gleams in the sunlight as a brand-new venue on Villanova's picturesque campus. The theatre sits just steps from the Villanova Softball Complex, which is getting its own thorough makeover to improve the playing surface and amenities heading into the 2022 season.
Slaphappy was filmed in the Mullen Performing Arts Center, a brand-new, state-of-the-art theatre on the Villanova campus.
"It is a big upgrade," Henry said of the Mullen Center opening. "Last May I did Slaphappy which was a production that was filmed in the theatre. We filmed it like it was [a live performance] and it was so cool to be on stage and look up to see 300 seats. Last semester was my first class in there. I started taking a music class and there is a full studio, so just appreciating the acoustics and there are apparently different chairs for singing in. I didn't know that was a thing! The facility is gorgeous and it's right by the softball field too. That's a nice plus."
Athletics as a Changing Platform
As she traverses the many corners of campus and navigates the variety of activities she is involved in, Henry has come to understand that Athletics is just one part of her experience even while she gains an appreciation for the opportunities provided by playing a Division I varsity sport. She is eager to use that perspective as an influence on her teammates.
"Athletics is walking around with the backpack on and having that image on campus," Henry said. "Some days it is a lot. It's a lot of pressure, it's a lot of strain, it's a lot of soreness. Sometimes you need to step back and realize there is more to the story than that. I always talk to my team about getting out there because being a student-athlete, especially at Villanova, is an amazing privilege. The experience is amazing, and I always encourage them to go out and try something new, become friends with non-athletes and just network. I get invited to the opening nights at the theatre and I [tell my teammates] just come with me, you never know who you're going to meet. Doing something outside of your comfort zone is going to expand the way you see the world."
It may still be the case that Henry is the only member of her theater classes wearing Athletics gear, but she has seen the seeds of change start to bear fruit during her time on campus. The changing culture of college athletics is unmistakable.
"It has definitely changed in the last four years," Henry said. "My freshman year was a lot more stagnant and less diverse in the means of inclusion, and I feel like everyone was a Business major. I see on my team now that I am really the only Arts major, but people are now getting more interested in other career options. The employment pool has new job titles every single day, so just expand. You can do whatever you want at Villanova; my curriculum is basically make your own major."
Looking Ahead to Future Roles
Even as diverse as Henry's journey has been, from the plurality of simultaneously being a student, an athlete and a performer to the many roles she has acted in on stage and the willingness to expand her horizons into the world of music, she has not lost sight of her specific goals as she nears graduation at the end of the Spring 2022 semester. Villanova offers a Master of Arts in Theater program which aligns with her interests and would help her strive to realize both her short-term and long-term dreams.
"I do act but I would say I am more of a writer/director," Henry explained. "I love directing so much and I love adapting works. I did a project adapting Every Man which is a really old classic play and I did it in a frat house. I would love to be a writer. The goal long, long term is to have my own late night TV show and write/direct that. So more writing/directing [as a career], whereas the acting is more my persona.
"Hopefully if everything goes right a [Master of Arts in Theater] would be fantastic just to expand my knowledge as a theater maker and an artist. MA is very rare for theater programs; [Master of Fine Arts] is more common. You would do an MFA in writing or acting or directing. Most of the time you need experience to get into those programs and I don't have a lot of experience. MA is more an interdisciplinary track. It will allow me to do everything. By the time I graduate I will leave here with nine graduate level credits by taking a directing class and two dramaturgy courses. Dramaturgy is a whole field of itself and it's a lot, but it's very interesting and I am very fortunate for the opportunity."
Inspiring the Next Generation
The road that led Henry to where she is now has been a winding one and the turns have not always been easy to navigate. Finding her way through her own personal experiences amidst a global pandemic and a changing world around her feel like a microcosm of the creative arts experience itself. When the path she is on leads her away from the softball field or the comfortable familiarity of a college campus, her journey will be an inspiring one for future generations of performers.
"I would just honestly give in to doubt," Henry said of the advice she would give to anyone following in her footsteps. "You're going to have it, especially in the creative arts because it is a scary field. It is a lot of rejection and putting yourself out there, fixing things, adjusting things, learning about yourself and giving in to the fear. The amount of rejection emails I have; it's a lot of heartbreak. It is a scary part of the industry but when you get that break or you get that opportunity, you take advantage of it and use it to the best of your abilities. I remember the first role I got was last Spring in the middle of the softball season. I thought 'Do I take this part; I'm going to be in season' but I knew I had to do it. That role was my one shot, and it was the best experience."
Villanova is the defending BIG EAST champion and was picked as the preseason favorite in 2022 in a poll of league head coaches.
Performing Under a Spotlight
For the first time in the history of the Villanova softball program, the Wildcats will take the field as defending BIG EAST champions in 2022. The team overcame the uncertainties of the 2021 season to win 37 games and the program's first-ever BIG EAST title. Villanova dogpiled in front of the pitcher's circle after defeating Connecticut on its home field in the conference championship game last Spring, then gathered on campus one day later to watch the NCAA Tournament selection show. The Wildcats were headed to Tucson, Ariz. where they defeated UMBC to mark another milestone with the first NCAA Regional victory in school history.
The dawn of a new season has arrived, and Villanova will have a target on its back when it takes the field this year. The majority of the team returns in 2022 and expectations are high both internally and from the outside. The Wildcats were picked as the preseason BIG EAST favorite in a poll of league head coaches. Henry is among several members of the Villanova team who will be looking to replicate their success from a year ago.
"The spotlight is great, but I don't like to think about that when I play because you could be humbled," Henry said. "Once the game starts you still have to earn it. It's not like once I step onto the field or step up to bat, I'm automatically going to hit a home run. I still led the team in strikeouts last year; I still struggled. Every time I have to go earn it and the fun part is that when I have fun I play better, so I can't be super serious when I step on the field. I say 'okay, time to go have fun.' That's my mentality."
There were no lit matches during the interview for this story, but Henry was asked to give an elevator pitch on Villanova Softball and she immediately thought back to the lesson she learned from the box of matches on the table on the first day of that Playwriting class freshman year. The flame would not have burned her hand this time.
"Get ready for a lot of laughs, a lot of learning and a lot of hard work."
