For Haley Salem, acting is more than just a form of entertainment – it’s a way to express herself and grow as a person.
Salem grew up in De Smet and moved to Aberdeen to study musical theater at Northern State University. She has been acting since she was nine years old, starting with church and school productions. Her mother was also into theater and the arts. Salem’s first “official” acting role was the Mayor of Munchkinland in The Wizard of Oz.
“I had a group of friends that went out for Wizard of Oz,” she said. “Once the theater bug bit, it was history from there.”
She continued to act throughout school, but she began to pursue acting more seriously in her college years. Salem first got involved with the Aberdeen Community Theatre in 2014, when the Johnson Fine Arts Center was remodeled. During construction, NSU and ACT put on combined shows. Working with ACT was a great experience, so she continued to perform with them after graduation.
There are so many aspects of theater that Salem is drawn to that it’s hard to narrow it down.
“For me, it’s not just one specific thing,” Salem said. “It’s about personal development, a sense of community, a creative outlet, and it’s a way to challenge myself. A lot of people assume acting is pretending to be someone else, but it’s about finding yourself in the character. The more you put yourself out there, the better.”
One of the highlights has been the friendships that she has formed with her fellow actors.
“There’s a special connection when you get a group of theater people together,” she said. “When you spend that much time with people, you form bonds.”
While theater for entertainment value has its own purpose, Salem prefers to focus on the artist merit behind certain productions. She isn’t the type to turn down a role she’s never done before, but she does prefer shows with darker, serious themes.
“I want to make people think and answer hard questions,” she said.
She also tends to gravitate towards straight plays, but as her voice has developed, she’s grown to really enjoy musical theater roles as well.
“It’s mostly about the people I’m with,” she said. “If it’s a fun show with a fun cast, I’ll enjoy it.”
A recent favorite role of hers was Alice Murphy in Bright Star.
“That was a dream role. The plot and music are so brilliant,” she said.
One role that she’d love to play in the future is Mrs. Lovett from Sweeney Todd.
“It’s the perfect musical theater piece. Sondheim’s music is brilliant,” she said. “I’m a true crime buff, and I like darker stuff. The show is ridiculous and amazing and awful.”
Salem has also tackled a few improv roles. She played Sheila Wonderly in ACT’s dinner theatre production Murder at Café Noir, which included plenty of improv with audience members.
“Improv is the scariest,” she said. “But like everything else, you need to practice and flex that muscle, then it’s not so scary. I’ve learned that in life, if something is scary and you don’t want to do it, you just have to try. The show must go on.”
Salem’s experience on the stage isn’t limited to just acting. She was the staging director for The Story of Hazel Miner at NSU, Huron Community Theatre’s production of The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds, and will be directing ACT’s production of Out of Order this July. She has also directed a few murder mysteries that she has written herself.
Salem also encourages people to give acting a try for themselves.
“ACT is very welcoming of new people, and they want them to give acting a shot,” she said. “A lot of what acting is is vulnerability and putting yourself out there. You can always start with a backstage role and get used to it. You could also audition for a smaller part, and look for shows with bigger casts as opposed to small casts.”
When Salem isn’t acting, she and her husband Aaron run Diamond Dry Cleaning. She plans to keep acting for as long as she can.
“Acting has always been a passion, and my goal is to keep flexing that muscle so I don’t lose it. I try to be in as much as I can, as my schedule allows,” she said. “Acting provides a service to the community, and it allows art to thrive in a town that doesn’t always have that stuff accessible.”
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