Tasneem Islam (Ronnette) is a senior at Duncan College, double-majoring in Theater and Sociology. This semester, she is thrilled to be acting in her fourth VADA production, after assistant choreographing The Drunken City, acting as Mariane in Tartuffe, and assistant directing this past autumn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Additionally, she has acted in several college productions, appearing as Nadine in The Wild Party, Nehebka in Aida, and Magenta in The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
What has been your favorite part of the rehearsal process?
I really enjoy learning the music and harmonizing with my fellow Duwops. It’s a grand feeling when the harmonies are tight.
What has been the biggest challenge in this process?
Learning how to dance like a badass while singing your heart out. It’s quite difficult.
Tell me your favorite line from the show:
Without a doubt, when Mr. Bernstein says “Of course not, but are you gonna be happy when you do Seymour…sweetheart…dollface…bubbelah…” Bubbelah. What a magnificent word (I know you asked for favorite line but that word just gets me).
If you somehow came to possess an alien man-eating plant, what would you name it?
Bubbelah
Anything else you’d like to say about your experience so far, or about the Rice Players/VADA in general…
Being a VADA major and part of the Rice theater scene for the past four years has been integral in shaping not just myself as an actress, dancer, and singer, but also my future. Rice is lucky to have such a fantastic, symbiotic theater faculty and students who genuinely support each other. It really is a rare thing.
Rice University Theatre 