Connor Healy's decision to pursue his passion at UT is opening new doors.

After studying electrical engineering his freshman year, Forty Acres Scholar Connor Healy realized his classes were making him unhappy.

He'd chosen engineering because he was good at math and science in high school—but they weren't what he loved.

"In high school," Healy says, "my passion was acting. But when I chose my major at UT, I wasn't thinking about my passions; I was thinking about my skills."

In November, Healy made the decision to drop his electrical engineering major in favor of studying Plan II Honors and history. He also decided to pursue his high school passion by joining the Plan II Honors theater troupe, the Broccoli Project.

Healy has acted in two Broccoli Project plays so far: God's Ear, where he played the tooth fairy, and Paganini, where he played several goofy minor characters. Before this semester, Healy had always stood in front of the curtain. But he's ready to change that.

"I’ve only ever had control over my own acting, and I wanted to have control over the whole creative process," Healy says. "I chose to be a director because I wanted to help mold performances. I wanted to be on the other side for once."

The play Healy will direct—which cannot be named until creative rights are obtained—is a one-act play featuring only two actors. He says the play is about existential loneliness and learning to have genuine interactions with other people.

"My biggest hope, on a basic level, is for it not to be boring," Healy says. "The actors really have to breathe life into the show. You have to be able to relate to both of them, because if you don’t, they’re stale."

Healy will begin auditions for his play soon. Though he's not certain what life will look like after graduation, he says he isn't worried.

"I’m getting such a great education that, no matter what, I’m going to be okay," Healy says. "It’s much more important to me to study and do what I love than to study something just because it might guarantee me salary security."