My name is Erin Helm; I am 20 years old, currently living in Tucson, Arizona where I attend the University of Arizona as a biology major. I am here in Monterey for the summer. I come here every summer; actually it's home away from where the army sends us. I'm an army brat and I've really been all over: I was born in Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas - we then moved to Southern California, then Virginia, then Alabama, back to Kansas, to Heidelberg, Germany (for 7th-8th grade), back to Virginia (for my first two years of high school), and then back to Germany (for the last two years)?...whew. But no matter WHERE my dad happens to be stationed, we (my dad, my mom, my 16-year-old brother, Matt, and I) manage to make it back to Monterey for the summer and back to the Wharf Theater.

ANNIE - 1996

Angelo DiGirolamo, my Papa, built the Wharf Theater about 30 years ago. He produces the shows. When I was about four years old he introduced me to theater. He

SECRET GARDEN - 1997

brought me down to watch rehearsals, and after that I was in the second row by his side, every summer, every night, for the next five years. When I was 10 I did my first play. It was the Wharf Theater's production of GODSPELL. I played myself ("Erin"). I had a few lines, and I sang a few short solos. That year I also began taking lessons with the director, Gina Welch-Hagen (She's directed every show Papa has put on I think - at least every show that I know of). She's an amazing director - and an amazing vocalist. Well that same year, Gina had me do a recital, and one of the songs I sang was "Tomorrow" from ANNIE. My grandpa heard me sing it, and he asked Gina if she thought I could handle the part. She told him she was quite confident that I could, and sure enough, the following summer I did ANNIE. The

PETER PAN - 1998

next year I did Mary in THE SECRET GARDEN, then Peter in PETER PAN, Maria in THE SOUND OF MUSIC, Eliza in MY FAIR LADY, and then Maria in THE SOUND OF MUSIC once again (The summer after I graduated high school was the only summer we didn't make it to California. We were in the midst of a move from Germany to Arizona). However, the following year I was back to play Laurie in OKLAHOMA. And now this summer, I am doing Eliza in MY FAIR LADY again.

Why do I like theater? I am a fairly shy person ... some would say I'm quiet... but when I'm on stage, everything is different. I get to become someone else. I forget Erin, and a new being comes to life. And then I get to share her attitudes, mannerisms, her thoughts and feelings, with an audience...and to see their reactions and hear how much they enjoyed themselves - that makes it so rewarding. And there is another aspect I love about theater: the people. I've been moving around my whole life - and I could always make friends, because the theater is such a welcoming environment. The cast becomes a family. We all work together so hard, striving for a common goal. And it's such a thrill to be on stage with someone to play the game of give and take, act and react. It's just so much fun!

OKLAHOMA - 2003

Besides doing the show at the Wharf, I am taking a class at MPC this summer. I am also working in the gift shop next to the theater, and I hope to volunteer at the aquarium. I love animals - I'm majoring in biology to either become a vet or an animal trainer. I do know that I want to work with animals - whether I become a vet, a trainer, a keeper...there are a lot of possibilities, and I haven't quite figured it out yet. One thing I do know: no matter what I end up doing, and no matter where I end up living, theater will always be part of who I am.

MY FAIR LADY -2000