From clowning around ““ red nose and all ““ to jamming on his guitar, Colin O’Brien-Lux always brings his bit. His artistic interests span various platforms, but he said he always holds himself accountable for bringing his best work.
O’Brien-Lux, a fourth-year theater student, is a musician and actor deeply involved with the UCLA and greater Los Angeles area arts communities. He is a singer-songwriter who enjoys playing acoustic guitar. He acts in popular as well as experimental theater. Most importantly, he is a creative force in all of his artistic endeavors, whether it be composing his latest song or developing the Los Angeles theater scene.
As an artist, O’Brien-Lux often has to be creative on the spot and act under pressure. He explained how he has to be self-motivated to be inventive, especially when others are depending on his fresh ideas.
“It’s something that I enjoy doing. It’s a challenge at times, especially if it’s under a deadline. It’s hard to force something, and being inspired, out of yourself,” O’Brien-Lux said.
The Ahimsa Collective, a small experimental theater group in which O’Brien-Lux is very engaged, requires him to contribute to the creative process. Ahimsa is currently putting on a play titled “Epilogue” as part of its Living Room Tour.
Instead of performing at a traditional theater venue, the Ahimsa Collective performs its three-actor show in people’s living rooms throughout Los Angeles and Orange County.
Efrain Schunior, a UCLA alumnus who first met O’Brien-Lux as his teaching assistant and later worked with him as his director, spoke of how his former student “goes for broke” in his performances.
Although not affiliated with the Ahimsa Collective, Schunior praised the theater company for undertaking the risks involved with the Living Room Tour.
“They’re not going to get into the living room until they’re there the day of their performance. They have to stay open to the changing dynamic of the new space every time,” Schunior said. “You don’t know what’s going to happen. So the fact that (O’Brien-Lux) puts himself in that situation … is a great thing about him. And he’s not really afraid of doing that.”
In attending UCLA, O’Brien-Lux had to learn to adapt to his surroundings. He was born in New York and moved around frequently. He attended high school in Scaggsville, Md., where he lived with his mother.
It was while visiting his father in California that he fell in love with the Golden State. After a tour of the UCLA campus, he decided that this was where he wanted to study theater. While his formal training focuses on acting and theater, music is one of O’Brien-Lux’s greatest side passions. In 2008, he was the only male competitor in the solo performer category at UCLA’s annual Spring Sing. The experience was both a challenge and a validation of his musical talent.
He first picked up a guitar the summer before he started high school, simply because there were so many at his father’s house. He listed Modest Mouse and Bright Eyes as bands that most stoked his songwriting fire.
“(My music) is very songwriter-driven. I am most excited usually when I’m writing words that I really enjoy. It’s folksy; it’s mostly guitar and my voice,” O’Brien-Lux said.
After his almost four years at UCLA, O’Brien-Lux realized that he is most interested in live performance in general, whether it be on stage, in a living room or at an open mic night at the Kerckhoff Coffeehouse.
“Now it’s not even strictly acting that I’m excited about. It’s the idea of what you can accomplish in the live scenario. It’s really endless, which is why it’s exciting,” O’Brien-Lux said. “Lately I’ve been getting into clowning. I’ve been … composing for live theatrical events. It’s about getting people together in a room … and creating a connection between them.”
After graduation, O’Brien-Lux foresees remaining in Los Angeles to continue work with The Ahimsa Collective, but also to try to cultivate the Los Angeles theater scene.
“I think a lot of my friends in the theater department want to get out of the city, but I’m the opposite. I want to stay here,” O’Brien-Lux said. “I think because L.A. is such a film and TV town, the theater isn’t getting the attention it deserves.”
Joe Olivieri, O’Brien-Lux’s current acting professor, recognized that his student’s creative vitality would allow him to contribtue to L.A. theater.
“He’s one of those young artists that once you have him in your class, you look forward to having him for the rest of the year,” Olivieri said.
He also commented on the theater in Los Angeles and what his student should expect from it.
“Often, artists work in theater in Los Angeles to feed their souls … and then do film and television to pay the bills,” Olivieri said. “Theater in Los Angeles is a passion and a love. I’m sure Colin will have a plethora of avenues to work in that way. It’s just, unfortunately, not very lucrative.”
Schunior described O’Brien-Lux as a committed actor who always tries to find the best way to connect with his craft as well as the audience.
Hard-working and persistent, O’Brien-Lux is determined to sing loud, act out and clown around, all in an effort to reach out to his audience.