BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – Sameehan Patel ’12 is all too accustomed to the reaction when he tells people he is studying both fine arts and biology at Illinois Wesleyan University: “Theatre and science? Why put yourself through all that pain?”
But for Patel, a theatre major working towards completing Illinois Wesleyan’s pre-dentistry program, combining the two seemingly contrasting disciplines isn’t about pain—it’s about passion.
“Ultimately I think of every class as a series of questions,” explained the Niles, Ill. native. “When I’m in a theatre class understanding a play, I’m exploring why we exist and how we relate to one another. When I’m in a biology class understanding a natural phenomenon, I’m exploring how we exist and why we relate to each other. While they’re extremely different in their methods, fundamentally I see both theatre and science as parts of a human investigation.”
The perception of theatre and science as complementary pieces of a larger whole is one Patel shares with Delta Dental Health Theatre (DDHT) in St. Louis, Mo., where he is spending his summer as an intern acting, organizing, writing and developing science and theatre programs. At DDHT, staff members strive to promote good oral health and overall healthy life habits by designing interactive presentations, exhibits and performances with the goal of raising awareness and combating two of the most common diseases affecting American children today: tooth decay and obesity.