Arnav Nawani is an aspiring professional actor who started his career when he was 9 years old.
He made a major step toward that aspiration last year with his debut at The Abbey Theater of Dublin when he played supporting character Benny in Rent: School Edition. his first pre-professional show, but also led him to be awarded Best Supporting Performer in a Musical by Broadway World Columbus.
Nawani is excited to be part of a standout team at the Abbey Theater that is showing a major commitment to the Dublin community, and making a name for itself in both experienced and emerging performing arts talent.
“This was much more serious than other shows I have worked on and really gave me a sense of
working professionally as a theater performer,” Nawani says. “Acting is reacting, that’s what we say, and you know, having fellow characters who are so into it really helped push me further.”
Behind the scenes
Theater Supervisor Joe Bishara came into the position with a plan to create a theatrical hub for people of all ages. The organization has won seven Broadway World Columbus awards, including Favorite Local Theatre and Best Production; evidence that Bishara’s plan is coming to fruition fast.
“My aspiration coming into this position three years ago was to have the Abbey become an incubation space where artists can feel safe and evolve,” Bishara says. “Being acknowledged for my vision for what the Abbey Theater can become just three and a half years into the plan is very humbling and also gratifying.”
The theater produces six shows a year that focus on pre-professional artists and two more with professional actors putting on world premiere plays. The world premieres also include endless collaboration between the community and local universities as well as many well-accomplished national playwrights.
For the pre-professional shows, the Abbey collaborates with Otterbein University’s Playwrights Collective and other organizations including Evolution Theatre Company, Original Productions Theatre and Stage Right Theatrics, all of which produce theatrical seasons at the Abbey Theater.
Making an impact
With a focus on serving all ages, many plays are written directly by creative writing majors at Otterbein University and then produced by the Abbey Theater with the goal to create world-class productions.
“Everything that is in our tech booth is the same kind of stuff you will see if you go into a Broadway theater and there is just not a bad seat in the house,” Bishara says.
The growth of prospective actors like Nawani show the direct impact the Abbey Theater makes on central Ohio and its theater enthusiasts.
“Soon after (my time at The Abbey Theater), I became a performance intern for the Short North Stage,” Nawani says. “I have been doing theater for a while, but Rent was the first show where I really started taking it seriously.”
There is a clear mentoring component at the Abbey Theater making it special and allowing for such personal growth, Bishara explains.
“It is neat to watch them not only as they grow by the number of years on this earth, but also how they evolve as a storyteller,” Bishara says. “It provides a chance for kids to explore all there is to explore about the art of storytelling from various entry points, while also seeing how it can potentially be a profession. Not just as an actor but as a technician, a stage manager or even a playwright.”
This year, the Abbey Theater received the Central Ohio Theater Critics Circle citation – an honor given to just one theater in central Ohio each year.
“The city of Dublin prides itself on providing world-class services and that is what we want the Abbey to be,” Bishara says.
Grady Libertini is an editorial assistant at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
