Hey y’all! I’m Annalyce: I am a Woman of God, Singer, Actor, Writer, Director, Model, and Dancer – and the order is important.
I have been performing for over a decade, building myself a buffet from performance specialties: commercial, film, training catalogs and PSA’s, Shakespeare, musicals, live character interactions, theme parks, and more!
I started performing as a small child because of my mother. Lovingly, she needed me out of the house and found a community theater for me to participate in. I stayed in the performing world because I fell in love with people. I love learning what gets everyone going in the morning, what makes their hearts heavy, how they see the world, and they’ve been forced to learn when life got tough. Getting to know me is often jarring because I want the real, not the perfectly curated; Small talk is not on my agenda. My favorite weird question to break the ice is, “Which toe on your left foot is your favorite?” I know, I know, pretty weird… but truly, it works. I believe when we allow ourselves to get out of the automated responses of society, and into “weird” territory, suddenly honesty and specificity don’t seem so bad. The more honest and specific we are with each other, the more we create connection, foster love, and build empathy.
While I love being able to perform and do what I love for a living, that is not where I gain the most important pieces of my Identity. I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter – Day Saints, and identify as Christian.
(1 Cor. 10:31; 2 Ne. 32:9) I am a daughter, sister, friend. I am a powerful voice of love and connection.
But most importantly, I believe:
“The power of art can break the shackles that bind and divide human beings.”
– Daisaku Ikeda
That’s why I’ve stuck around as long as I have.
My first love is the theatre. I have always loved the ability it has to create safe spaces of vulnerability and catharsis for those in the audience. The ability to receive live feedback to your emotional journey in the seat, from those on stage, is unlike anything else. Performers are given a chance to learn to read each other, yes, but also the audience. They learn when to give space for joy, by holding for laughter. They learn when to give space for praise, by holding for applause. They learn to pace emotional releases with a collective, rather than simply on their own. I love the space it gives for performers and viewers to be participants alike.
Learning from the powerful lessons theatre has taught me, and the curiosity I have always had about people, I found something where the two merge. I am deeply interested in, and passionate about, the psychology of the human brain. The way our neuropathways are built, the systems in the brain, and the way our world is built to affect us starting from the inside – it all fascinates me. So, I have spent a lot of time studying. When I’m not on set, stage, in class, or writing, you can find me working with My Story Matters as one of their Certified Guides. Through their program, I am on track to complete my EQ Apprenticeship path with the US Department of Labor.
The tools within their Captain Your Story curriculum changed my life. I found their curriculum in the middle of a very difficult time of constant change, upheaval, emotional distress, and hopelessness. They introduced me to my brain; they helped me acknowledge my story – the happy, sad, lonely, complicated, joyful, and painful – and forgive myself for the shortcomings I continually allowed to hurt me. They helped me find a community of support. Most importantly, their framework has given me a foundation to take my love of people, theatre, and connections and start building the life I love.
(My Story Matters is a catalyst for lasting change, introducing participants to tools to help them live the life they create, and tell their stories. Learn more about them at www.mystorymatters.org)
(Not So) QUICK FACTS:
I LOVE to travel!
I love to experience and learn about other cultures. I am very grateful to have a family who has made travel a priority throughout my life and who has made it possible to have seen so much of the world. Some of my favorite places I have had the chance to visit are those with historical wonders such as Greece, Türkiye, and Italy – all places I am making plans to live… eventually!
In 2023, I had the wonderful opportunity to travel to Kumasi, Ghana in partnership with My Story Matters and Families Mentoring Families to bring the I Am Amazing music curriculum to schools and literacy centers throughout Kumasi and Accra. I traveled with two other individuals and, while we were hoping to extend the adventure, we stayed for a few weeks. We brought over supplies to fill new and existing literacy centers, met with women in the FMF Trafficking Recovery Center, and helped maintain a few of their educational buildings. It is one of my favorite experiences I have been blessed to be a part of. It taught me many lessons about building connections, loving others, and bringing hope in meaningful ways. Learning about a new culture, teaching others how to find their personal power, and to get to do that all through the power of music – it doesn’t get closer to my idea of heaven than this!
I love fiber arts! I love learning how things are made, and textiles are no different. I have hyper-fixated on knitting, crochet, weaving, tatting, cross-stitching, quilting, embroidering, felting, and making natural dyes for all sorts of different projects. My favorite pastime on set or in rehearsal is knitting – you’ll always find me with a new project!
I am really good at falling and screaming… Yes, really – I love to faint, trip, stumble, fall, and shriek my way through life. According to my parents, my screaming skills have been developing steadily since birth. My singing background has given way to sustainably using my extended periods of time with extreme stress; or, in simpler words, I train my voice to sing, so I can scream. Dealing with many physical challenges as a child, I quickly fell in love with the floor. (Most of the time, you can find me recovering while laying down.) Then came my first stunt class in middle school, and I fell in love with hitting the floor. Violently. On purpose. For the love of the craft.
I LOVE photography!
Yes, I am a model. You can visit my modeling portfolio above it you want to see more pictures of me.
AND – I love taking a moment to appreciate the beauty around me. At any point in time, my phone is running out of storage because a.) I had to film too many auditions in a row, b.) I’m arranging a song and have a million reference recordings, or c.) I’m taking photos of the beauty around me. Flowers, landscapes, and the occasional animal are my preferred subjects. (People are just hard to photograph, okay!) Because you read this far down the page, and stuck around with the verbose storyteller, you get to see some of my photos!
The little guy in the middle was the kindest Mona Monkey I met while I was in Ghana. She sat so perfectly for photos we didn’t even have to try to get her attention!
Thank you (again) for taking the time to read this far down the page. Obviously, I love telling stories – and I write long ones. I am also a collector of stories, for those who want to share. If you’d like to share something – funny, true, made up, lonely, hard, sad, or otherwise – I’d love to hear your story sometime: annalycechandlerwriting@gmail.com
<3 Annalyce!