After the two successful Pioneer Day concerts in July 2015, guest artist Laura Osnes sat down with us and discussed her upbringing in Minnesota, her childhood dream of becoming a Broadway star, her reality TV breakthrough, her advice for aspiring actors, and more.

When describing her transition from midwestern girl to city girl, she used one of her favorite songs as an example: “One of my theme songs is this song ‘Not for the Life of Me’ from a musical called Thoroughly Modern Millie. It was my college, go-to audition song. . . . It’s a song about this girl from a small town, moving to New York and saying ‘I’m not going back, not for the life of me.’”

In 2007, Osnes performed on a TV reality show called Grease: You’re the One That I Want! in which she auditioned for the role of Sandy in the Broadway production of Grease. It was similar to The Voice or American Idol, where the contestants perform live each week for America’s votes. “I ended up winning that competition, and so that was kind of my big break, and I got to move to New York with a year-long job in a Broadway show, which just does not happen,” Osnes laughed.

When discussing acting roles, Osnes stressed the importance of knowing where your boundaries are as far as what’s appropriate and what makes you feel peace as an actor. She often tells kids, “No matter what, don’t compromise who you are for a role. It’s not worth it,” she said.