Leanna Rae Concepcion: From Combat Boots To Broadway

How often can someone say they traded military precision for the unpredictability of the arts? Meet Leanna Concepcion, a woman whose journey from military school to Broadway is as fascinating as it is inspiring. An unexpected transition, Leanna shares how her skills from military school - discipline, tactfulness, leadership - became her arsenal in the world of theater. She reveals the trials of navigating college auditions, the unwavering support of her mother and the struggle to be understood beyond her outward enthusiasm.

A former dancer, Leanna shares how her regimented training sculpted not just her dance routine but her life. She talks about the importance of loyalty to oneself, setting boundaries, trusting one's instincts and, most of all, living in the present. As our conversation deepens, she opens up about her journey of self-discovery, learning to shift perspective instead of trying to fix everything. We also explore the beauty of our industry and how the connections we make stay with us throughout our journey.

Listen in as Leanna takes us through her highs and lows, her dreams and fears, and her never-ending quest to be true to herself. She shares what makes her tick, what makes her laugh, and what inspires her. We also get a glimpse of Leanna's energetic choices, her survival stories, and her future dreams. As we wrap up, we reflect on the top three things that have happened to her today and what she is looking forward to in the future. This is a conversation not to be missed, an exploration of self, artistry and the beauty of imperfection."

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Chapters

• 0:24 From West Point to Broadway
• 8:12 Passion for Dance, Overcoming Doubts
• 16:16 Living in the Present Moment Complexity
• 27:51 Energetic Choices and Survival Stories
• 33:09 Left Field Exploration and Self Loyalty
• 43:59 Discovering Strengths and Embracing Change
• 49:52 Appreciate and Live in the Moment

Transcript

Lisa Hopkins: 0:24

This is the Stop Time podcast. I'm your host, lisa Hopkins, and I'm here to engage you in thought-provoking, motivational conversations around practicing the art of living in the moment. I'm a certified life coach and I'm excited to dig deep and offer insights into embracing who we are and where we are at. When my next guest was growing up, she had ambitions to attend West Point and continue a career in the military until her junior year of high school when her life took a complete 180. She traded her military ambitions and combat boots for her artistic endeavors and has never looked back. A proud Filipino-American, she recently starred as the first Asian-American, joanna Jefferson, in Paper Mill Playhouse's production of RENT, and is currently making her Broadway debut in the company of the first Broadway revival of Steven Sondheim's Mary Lee. We Roll Along, starring Daniel Radcliffe, jonathan Groff and Lindsay Mendez. I've had the pleasure of working with her in the dance studio at Pace University and I am so delighted to catch up with her today. Leanna Concepcion, welcome. Hi, it's so amazing to have you.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 1:41

Thanks for having me. I'm super excited.

Lisa Hopkins: 1:44

It's just so funny because so many of you that I've worked with I know you just. I just know you're going places right. It's so nice to continue in your journey as a teacher. You come in and you come out of my world and then I watch vicariously Me also moving on in my career a little bit and being more from this angle. It's so nice to be able to check in with some of the folks that I've worked with.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 2:11

Yeah, absolutely that is. I think that's the beauty of our industry. I think that sets us apart from everyone else is you can move on from certain things, but the people you've met along the way are still somehow in your orbit. I think that's one of the best parts of what we do.

Lisa Hopkins: 2:28

I agree, I absolutely agree. So, okay, we have to. We have to. You have to tell me about this West Point dream. I didn't know about that and I think that's really interesting.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 2:37

Yeah, I went to military school. It was like a type of like ROTC, but it was for a program specifically in California called the California Cadet Corps, and I did that for six years. I started seventh grade until I graduated high school, and I did it first to appease my dad because he was a Navy vet, and then my mom's dad was also a Navy vet, so I was like, yeah, I'll give it a try, and I ended up really following along with it, so I was convinced that I was going to actually do that with my life.

Lisa Hopkins: 3:07

That's amazing. So what was it that you loved about it? I'm so curious.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 3:11

I think it's actually interesting because when I decided to give that up and go into theater, I was like, wow, this sucks, I'm never going to use any of these skills again.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 3:20

And I've come to realize over the years I'm like, actually so many of the skills that I think drew me to it I used to this day, such as, like the time management aspect of it. I think I've always been a very disciplined person, so being in that environment allowed me to kind of blossom in a way that I think I needed something to do with, like all of whatever that was, and it kind of gave me something to put all of that energy into. Yeah, so there's something about just like the discipline that I really enjoyed and it just worked a different part of who I was Like. I thought it also helped build my ability to lead and like to understand tactfulness, which has also been super useful in my career so far. So, yeah, so it just gave me a lot of, I think, outside skills that I had no idea would transfer into the acting world. That they totally have.

Lisa Hopkins: 4:13

Oh my gosh, that's pretty cool. We could just talk all day about this. I find it so fascinating because I believe that, no matter what we do and no matter what we're doing, that what came before there's stuff to excavate and to take from there. There are gifts and skills, right.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 4:28

Absolutely.

Lisa Hopkins: 4:29

Yeah, so you said the tactfulness. Talk to me about how that's helped you.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 4:34

Yeah, I mean, you know, having tact.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 4:38

I guess it's very similar to having empathy right in certain situations, like it's just it helps.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 4:46

It has helped and obviously it's still something I'm still working on today. But in situations where I could become maybe upset, frustrated or irritable, it just kind of allows me to try and understand from a different perspective and then like meet those people or meet those situations with just a little bit more ease or a little bit more like level mindedness, rather than allowing myself to like get upset because you know, at the end of the day, like I'm not discrediting what we do, but we are, you know, putting on a play. So it's not like the biggest, it's not it is a big thing because I love it, but you know what I mean. It just allows me to kind of put into perspective the things that are maybe making me upset in the moment and allowing me to like hit it head on and do better about navigating through things and just like, I don't know, being kind to other people, which is like kind of what tact is is just like being a good person to other people in situations that may merit a different response, if that makes sense.

Lisa Hopkins: 5:48

No, that makes a lot of sense and it's interesting because tact kind of it's such a cool word when you think about it, so thank you for bringing it to the table. It's kind of interesting to for me as a coach to think about it because, yes, I'm hearing that it's big picture, thinking right which helps you, which is like removing yourself from the immediate. And also what comes to mind for me is it's the responding rather than reacting, so it's that part before you act. So tact, yes, it does you know, sort of in an engagement in war, of course, is more tactical because you need to win or save your life, but in a conversation.

Lisa Hopkins: 6:23

Right yeah, there's such a peril.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 6:25

It's yeah, I mean it's even like that, even in conversation, military wise too. Right, because you're always dealing with power dynamics. Right, because you're going to have people who are a higher rank than you. So it's one of those things where you should always be, like, respected as a leader rather than feared. And respect comes from being tactful, because if I had someone who was above me, who I am in the wrong but they're constantly berating me or yelling at me or telling me that I suck and I'm terrible, like my respect for that person is going to go like down right. But if I had a leader or someone I looked up to who understood maybe I did make a mistake, but they have an understanding of like how to speak to me or like wanting me to get better, there's a difference between that and just like telling someone they suck because you can and you're not going to get in trouble for it. That makes sense.

Lisa Hopkins: 7:19

Absolutely. That makes so much sense. You're speaking to the opportunity to learn when you're working with a good leader. Usually when something didn't work, the person knows it didn't work. They don't need somebody to tell them.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 7:35

To tell them precisely, precisely.

Lisa Hopkins: 7:40

Therefore, the open-ended questions and again that's my world is to say what did you learn from this? You said that your dad you're kind of following your dad's footsteps. At least it sounds like he encouraged you a little bit to do this. Yeah, was there any resistance on your part, or was it just like? What were you honoring? Were you honoring his wishes, the choice to do it? Talk?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 8:04

to me about that. Well, you might think that the answer is to honor his wishes. But in reality, actually, this program while I was super interested in it, it also got me out of doing PE in school. So that was actually the real reason why I was like, yeah, I'll try it. And I ended up literally falling in love with it and I was like, yeah, I'll never do PE again in my life. But that's actually the real reason why I decided to pull the trigger and do it. Oh, that's hilarious.

Lisa Hopkins: 8:41

Because I got my own PE. I too tried to get out of PE every time, every chance I could, which is funny because I'm a very physical person. I don't like it.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 8:50

Yeah, I mean same, but I just I didn't like PE, I just I don't know, I don't know what it was. I should probably like go see a therapist about it, but I just don't know.

Lisa Hopkins: 9:00

That's amazing. So where was the turning point for you? Where was that sort of? Oh, this is interesting.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 9:07

Yeah. So it was my my. So my sophomore year I switched high schools for like one semester because I was being bullied at my high school. So I was like I have to go. And so I went to this other school called Rev Redlands East Valley and I reconnected with a friend of mine named Carly and Carly was like, hey, like there's actually this new dance conservatory that's opening up in our town. You should totally give it a try. And it was called Brocass Conservatory. And I was like, yeah, sure, and another ulterior motive in my brain was if I applied to Westpoint and I danced, I was like it'll make my application look a little bit more well-rounded. I was like, yeah, I'll dance, why not?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 9:52

So I started dancing my sophomore year of high school and it was conservatory style, so I would be in school until like 2 30. And then we would start dancing 3 30. And I probably want to get home until around nine. So it was like really a long part of my day and I loved it Because, again this you know the discipline it takes to be in those dance classes and to want to get better and to like harness, whatever that is. I had been doing that for four years at that point with like, just like the idea of being disciplined. So I was like wait, this is another avenue where I could like really put all this energy into and I became pretty obsessive with it. I loved it. I like fell in love with dance to the point where I was like I'm going to be a ballerina at five to and short legs. But it was never going to happen. But at the time it seemed like a great idea. But yeah, so I started dancing.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 10:43

And then my junior year Brocus the dance conservatory. They had like a sister school in Palm Springs which was about like a 45 minute commute drive called MTU, which is musical theater university, and that's where I was first like shown professional theater. Because what the cool thing about MTU is? That it's it was made by this man named David Green, who is one of the founding people of OSHA, and basically it's this afterschool musical theater program where they would put on musicals and all of the like teen characters would be played by the students and he would fly out Broadway talent to play the adults. So you would get to do shows with like these amazingly talented Broadway performers. So it was just like super cool in terms of learning.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 11:34

But yeah, so the fall of my junior year I auditioned for Hairstory. That was like their first show that was ever happening at MTU and I ended up playing Penny and I was like wait, this is fun, yeah. And then the spring it's such a long story, but then the spring we did a chorus line and I played Deanna Morales and I just remember it's like something that I think about to the same. It gives me like chills, are like closing performance. You know we're all singing what I did for love and I just remember finishing that number and being like whoa, like I don't ever want to not feel this for the rest of my life. And then it was kind of just.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 12:18

From then on I had a summer, basically until the start of my senior year, where I started to have to apply to college and start auditioning to kind of learn as much as I could in terms of college audition process and what schools are good and what schools maybe aren't, etc. Etc. And I did it literally by myself, because I was the first person, I think, in my town to ever try to pursue a professional career in New York and in musical theater. Wow.

Lisa Hopkins: 12:47

What a great story. Did you feel, supported from your community, like in your family, to come out? It's funny because whenever we choose the arts right, our parents are reticent because they know how hard it can be.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 13:01

Did you?

Lisa Hopkins: 13:01

face any of that.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 13:03

Yeah, you know, it's so funny that you said that, because my mom I mean, my mom is like the best and but she's also brutally honest and I think that if she didn't think I wasn't good enough to do it, definitely she probably would have been like absolutely not, you were not doing that, you're going to military school or whatever. But because she believes that I actually could do this, she has been like so supportive her and my stepdad and all of my friends, everyone has been incredibly supportive but I think it's only because she really thought that I was good.

Lisa Hopkins: 13:37

That's so interesting because you think that every mother thinks they're good, their kid is good, but it sounds like you know that your mom has a certain honesty and material.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 13:49

Even now, she'd be like oh, that's interesting. Like wait, did you mean to like? Do that note like that, I'm like mom, you don't even know what singing is Like. You can't.

Lisa Hopkins: 13:57

But yeah, she's incredibly supportive.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 14:00

Honestly, I wouldn't have been able to even begin to move to New York or, you know, go to pace without her. So very supportive, even to this day.

Lisa Hopkins: 14:09

So that's so cool and would you say that she has tacked when she wants to Right. Probably her tactlessness sometimes is kind of like the reality check, right, it's like whoa yeah it's kind of helpful. Yeah, that's amazing.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 14:25

She brings me down to earth a lot, which is nice.

Lisa Hopkins: 14:28

What's one thing that you might tell younger self then, when your younger self was like no, this military thing is for me and go back as far as you want. What's one thing that you might tell younger self now that maybe they would have wanted to hear?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 14:41

Hmm, I think I would probably tell myself I do it now, but I feel like for a long time I didn't is to just allow myself to Nerd out and be so unabashedly in love with the things that interest me, and that's what's gonna make me happy. Right, like in the space I'm in now. I'm one of the youngest people and I am like such like Broadway fangirl. Some was constantly being like, oh my god, in this part of it and that probably, and a lot, a lot, and I'm so supportive and loved in that and it's like funny for people Because I think it reminds a lot of people of what they were when they were my age. Right, and it's something that I like hope that I have put the rest of my life as I as I continue on.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 15:35

But I think for a long time I was like embarrassed by like my love and my nerdiness of it all and and wanting to just talk about it all the time and Learn everything there is. But I think like that is such a waste Because, like why wouldn't you be excited about the things that you love and that make you happy? And like why wouldn't you want to share that and like lead with that? So I think I would go back and tell myself that it's like totally okay, because when I, when I do nerd out like that, I'm so excited, the people who that brings joy to, or the people that Join me in that, are going to be my people, and the more I do it, the more I will find those people. So I think that's what I would tell myself.

Lisa Hopkins: 16:15

That's pretty cool. Two things come to mind is one is isn't it funny how we call it, or how you called it Nerding out, as if? As if it needs some sort of caveat, right? So yeah, on the one hand you're letting yourself out, but on the other hand, you kind of maybe take it over the edge so that it could be called nerding out, so that you could then Laugh it yourself to right there's a tactfulness there again, right?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 16:37

Yeah, that's interesting. I never thought about it like that.

Lisa Hopkins: 16:40

Yeah. So what would be different, do you think, if it was full allowance? And it's interesting because, well, I have, you know, I have the advantage of knowing you and you, you are really good at presenting yourself way beyond your years, like when I first met you. You were so Together and mature and organized. You organized a lot of the programs at pace I remember you were. You were definitely a leader, yeah, and you would. You would be on time for class and you would be ready and you would know your stuff and and all of that. And it's interesting because you were in some ways hard to read this other side of you. And it's interesting when you, when you share with me that, you say now I'm, now I'm realizing. That sounds like you realize that you're letting that out, but you're still letting it out with that caveat, right, with that caveat of it's an, it's nerdy me, which does that feel safer.

Lisa Hopkins: 17:30

Do you think what? Why is that?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 17:32

Yeah, I don't know. I actually I really love that you you Said that about I'm very hard to read because I it's actually something that I still it's not even I struggle with. It's just like. It's just something that has come up. Like in the last show that I did, someone wrote me a card and they were like now that I've had more time with you, I completely understand who you are and like how you come off, and I was like that's so interesting because, because I think I spent a lot of my time up here and this like that like bubbly, like really excited when I come down and when I am like that discipline, focus and like all that like honestly, military stuff comes in that sometimes comes off in a certain way that like I don't tend for it to, which which means I just get really hard to read, or like I'm very in word or I'm very oh, what's the word Like in, like introverted in a sense, and and then immediately people are like, oh, she's mad. I'm like, oh, she's serious. I'm like well, I can be.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 18:30

But I think Back to your question. It's very interesting because I say this being like gosh, I wish people like understood that I am a complex person. Right, because we all are. But I think it's so funny because I'm like gosh. I wish people understood that. Like understood that when I'm not up here I'm still mess, I'm just like in a different way. But then we do the same thing, right, when we're meeting new people. We judge based off of what we are receiving and what we are seeing on the outside. But we and then but that we forget. I'm like, oh, that person's super complex and like they're not mad or they're not this because they're just like they're just processing the things that are happening in front of them. But I'm also processing in my way.

Lisa Hopkins: 19:10

It sounds like a really interesting. If I can just sort of Dig in there a little bit with I wish people saw me as more complex. Now that's interesting. Now I get that. I mean we all would like to be seen in the way, in the way that we are. So why do you wish that? Why is that important to you?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 19:28

um, well, because I think it's just a really good reminder because, um, actually, this is, this is really cool. It's like so many, so many full circles. The other day, sandy who's who's Dan's dresser on the show she like came up to me. She's like are you always happy? And I was like, yeah, like the most part, I'm always this happy. She's like that's amazing. She's like but the moment that you aren't like that Because of whatever reason, it's okay. And I was like, huh, like that was a really nice reminder too, because the complexity of that right of like I am gonna have moments when I'm not gonna be as happy and excited and whatever, and that, and like the allowance to like let that happen is also okay.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 20:12

And I think sometimes, when people are super optimistic or super happy all the time, the second they aren't. That then people are like oh, like what's wrong? Or because sometimes I'm like maybe I just want to be chill. I think I just want to be chill today, or maybe I'm just a little sleepy, so I want to like really hold on to my energy and like really use it and and allow it. So I think the complexity, even as simple as that, of just like I'm gonna bring my energy level here rather than here, but then all of a sudden it's like oh, what's wrong? But there doesn't have to be anything wrong, I'm just. I'm just bringing it down a little bit. You know what he means. I think it's even as simple as that. The complexities of just like I'm gonna be a little bit closer to earth today. You're having that up in the rafters, if that makes sense.

Lisa Hopkins: 20:54

But I hear you when you say that you know, when people say, are you like this all the time? It's so interesting because, yeah, your instinct is to say, yeah, I feel pretty good all the time. But you're feeling pretty good is not always gonna look the same true.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 21:08

True, there are some days where I am so happy and I don't really want to talk, yeah, yeah which which will be surprising to some people, because I feel like I talk all the time but there are some days where I'm just like I am just high on life and I just want to chill, but then the second I'm not talking. They're like what's wrong? And I'm like I'm fine and actually if you ask me what's wrong, I'm gonna get mad.

Lisa Hopkins: 21:29

So what's your definition of living in the moment?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 21:35

I think it changes, but I think what it is is allowing myself to experience whatever is currently happening and whatever is coming up whether it be thoughts, emotions and then allowing those in and not being afraid of them or wanting to push them away and meeting them head on.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 22:01

I think is the definition for me, because I think it's actually why I started journaling, because even my most best friend in the whole entire world I can talk to them about everything. But I think, no matter what, we as humans will always be afraid of judgment, even from the person that loves us the most, right. And that's why journaling is so awesome, because I really can say whatever I want and it's for me and I will not judge myself Right. And I will allow myself to say and think whatever I want, knowing that there is no judgment from the page. So I think living in the moment kind of has a similar thing of like. I should allow myself to feel whatever it is that I'm feeling and then try and understand it and work through it or whatever, or just take it as what it is and be like all right, I'm going to put that in my back pocket, you know, or like okay, say that for later. Let's talk about that later, if that makes sense.

Lisa Hopkins: 22:53

Yeah, for sure. And what gets in your way of that of being in the moment?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 23:00

I think I love to plan. I'm a big planner, super type A, and I think in our industry it's really hard to live in the moment because, for the most part, everything that we do has an end date and I actually this is something I learned doing Merrily Off-Broadway I had really only done limited engagements of all the shows that I've been doing. So there's an end date and I knew that on this day I will not have a job and I need to find a new one. So it's really hard for me to enjoy the end of processes because I'm always looking for that next job. But with Merrily I knew how special that that environment, that those people and that show was and I was like I cannot allow myself to let these feelings pass me by because I don't know if I'm ever going to get this again. So it was actually. I honestly turned.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 24:02

I turned some new leaf during that show and it completely changed my perspective and outlook of just like I need to enjoy it and whatever will come will come and it will come at its time and I shouldn't worry about looking for the next thing.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 24:20

I can obviously focus on it and put my energy there, but I shouldn't be held back on finding it and then missing out on like being here right now. So, yeah, so that's what kind of changed for me, and I've been able to bring that into like everything that I've done ever since, which is so exciting because you can do both, like you can't have one or the other, you can literally do both. And I think it's just like having that allowance of like the show that I will do next will come, I will put in the work, but it will come when it comes, and I can't just, like you know, I can't just wield it into existence, I can work my ass off, but we'll see right, there's so many other things that I can't control. So it's like, why am I going to waste energy trying to make it happen when I have something really amazing right in front of me as well?

Lisa Hopkins: 25:09

No, I mean, it makes perfect sense and if we were working together, I would call you out on some of the words you used when you're associating really great insights, right, really great turns of mind, right, and I would hold. Can I just point them out? Just I'll throw them out Sure.

Lisa Hopkins: 25:30

So you said I need to enjoy this right now and I shouldn't be thinking about those. Those are fear based values. Right, when we have need, then we're aware of scarcity as opposed to abundance. So when you shift the need that I need to right to I want to right and to choice with gratitude, which I call I get to, I get to be here.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 25:56

Oh yeah, I love to get, oh yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 25:58

Right.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 25:58

I love to get. So obviously I'm doing Maryleigh right now and it's going to be my longest run that I've ever worked on. So you know, with anything when you're doing something for a long time, sometimes it can be burdensome. On some days Maybe I'm going through some stuff and I'm like God, I really don't want to go to work, whatever. And I think like it can be super easy, especially with what we do, to be like I have to do this again, but, like you said, changing that perspective, I so, and I, like I said, I'm a planner. So I know, I know I have a chosen week, I know my show schedule, but I like to put it in my calendar because I know I have something to do. You know what I mean. So every show that I have up until the day that we close, I have it as you get to be on Broadway.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 26:46

Oh, just as a reminder just as a reminder, because there are going to be some days where I'm like I really don't want to do this or I'm like I'm feeling a little like I, you know, and I think just having that reminder of it's a get and I'm allowed here and I'm allowed to do this with people that I really love, it's just so exciting. So I love that you brought that up, because that is I agree with you so much with just like just those, it's like very small perspective shifts, oh yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 27:14

I really like that.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 27:16

Yeah, I think that's where I'm at now is I? I have switched that mentality of like it's not scarcity, it's happening right now and I want to enjoy it and I want to take every moment as what it is, and I get to play with some of my closest, most loved friends and also get paid, which is really cool, but, yeah, so I think I really love how you just showed that the five, whatever this is called, I can't explain it.

Lisa Hopkins: 27:51

Energetic choices.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 27:52

And our direct choices, because I think that is so right. I think that is so right because you're right that fatigue of should there is total fatigue there, but you have to have, I think you have to have those moments to get to the get.

Lisa Hopkins: 28:06

Yeah. And once again, it doesn't mean yeah. It doesn't mean that you know when you're not at, I get that you failed. That's the thing is. What it means is, when you're not at, I get, you can recognize that you're not there and then you look at, you look at where you are and you make choices about what adjustments you might make in order to shift your energy.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 28:25

It's just all about awareness, you know that's so cool, yeah, so what?

Lisa Hopkins: 28:31

what's the hardest thing you've ever done?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 28:35

Oh, the hardest thing I've ever done is when I was in military school. I did a survival course for six days, so I was paired with two other girls. It was six days. All we had were three knives, a tarp, canteens, iodine tablets to clean the river water so we could drink it. And is that all we got? Yeah, that's all we got.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 29:06

And we we survived in NorCal for six days and we had to complete different, different tasks, like we had to build shelter, we had to build a fire pit, we had to be able to send signals and then, as a final, well, we also had to hunt, like not hunt, we had to gather, see if we could find any food, which there was nothing, because it was the dead of winter in NorCal. The only thing we found were cat tails, but they weren't in season so we couldn't eat them, like the plant. And as a final, we had to actually catch and kill and prepare chicken a chicken, and if we could start a fire and we could eat it, which we couldn't start our fire in time, so we only were able to cook one little leg between the three of us and then we had to bury the rest because of bears. But yeah, that was the hardest thing I've ever done, because time is so crazy and the ability for us in our everyday life to tell time is amazing and when you don't have that, you're kind of like, what time is it? Like how much longer, right.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 30:14

And it's like that idea of like, so what are we going to do now? Right, but that's probably one of the hardest things I've ever done because by day three I wasn't really hungry anymore. So you kind of lose that. So it's mostly just a mental game of just like, how much longer are we out here for? Can we find anything? What else can we be doing? How do I survive without all of the necessities of like what I have at my home? So it's very cool. That's probably the hardest thing I've ever done. It was mostly a mental game.

Lisa Hopkins: 30:44

Yeah.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 30:45

But it was one of the coolest things and probably one of the things that I am most proud of that I was able to accomplish. That's unbelievable.

Lisa Hopkins: 30:52

It's unbelievable. Yeah, it was really cool.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 30:56

I will say, though, at the end of it, we finally like got brought out and they gave us a water bottle and an apple, and after drinking I and I in water, we really do take for granted filtered bottle of water it's like pretty incredible, like the taste of cold filtered water and yeah, it's like amazing. And I also never, ever, ever, say I'm starving anymore, because I actually have been starved and I am like I don't know what that is and like you know what you mean. So now I'm like I'm just really, really hungry.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 31:34

but I'm never starving, because I starved for six days and I don't know what it's like also that I've brought and I brought with me into life. But yeah, so that's probably the coolest thing I've done. That's amazing.

Lisa Hopkins: 31:47

No wonder, like doing a Broadway show is a happy thing for you I mean it's like you can survive six days. In that you can, I mean come on, yeah, it's play right Playtime.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 31:58

Oh God, yeah, that's amazing.

Lisa Hopkins: 32:01

What's the easiest thing? What's the easiest thing you've ever done?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 32:05

The easiest thing. Oh gosh, I don't know what is the easiest thing I've ever done. I don't know. Probably going to a music festival. I feel like that's pretty easy.

Lisa Hopkins: 32:17

Yeah, fair enough, I love it. Is there anything that you sort of dream of doing that you haven't put out there in the universe yet, like, is there anything kind of percolating back there, maybe just a little intuitive hit that maybe comes and goes a glimmer? Is there anything that you haven't put out in the universe yet that you'd like to do?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 32:36

Um, yeah, I think there are two things. Is that okay? Can I share two things? Yes, okay, because one of them is it really comes out of like left field. I really, really want to DJ. I really think that I could do it. I like really love like the EDM scene with like all the visuals and the lasers and stuff. And I was at a concert the other day and I'm like I could totally do this and I like I literally sent the entire concert like thinking of ideas. This is so funny. It's a very typical me, but I think that's the one I come out of.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 33:09

Left field is I think we want to try my hand in it. I got a lot of learning to do first, but, yeah, I think I want to try and try and see if there's anything there. And I think the other thing that's been percolating for a long time is I would love to also produce. Again, that's a lot of learning too, but I'm like excited by that and then excited to understand. I've always been like that.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 33:34

I don't remember where I picked this up, but some point in my life so far, someone was like the worst thing, one of the worst things that an actor can do is allow the money people and the people who do your contracts to do the money and to do your contracts and to have no understanding of what it is that they're talking about. So now, with like everything that I do, it's so funny. I ask so many questions to everyone because I just want to understand. I want to understand how everything works, even if it's just very surface level understanding of certain things. But I'm also just so curious. I'm so curious how what the audience sees happens and I have all of that information at the tip of my fingers. I just got to ask the questions. You know what I mean. So producing would be something that I'd be super interested in, because that is like a whole other part of our business that I think would be fascinating To not only understand but also to potentially like take part in at some point.

Lisa Hopkins: 34:31

What do you know? What do you know will stay true about you, no matter what happens.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 34:40

I think my loyalty will say, which I think is actually probably pretty interesting because you know, if you've been hurt or slide in any way, I feel like that's one of the first things to go, but I think I will try as hard as I can to make sure that I stay loyal to the people and the things that have brought me any sort of joy or have gotten me to like where I am today, right. So, in hopes that my loyalty always stays, no matter what, I think is super important. It's such a huge part of who I am and how I go through my life.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 35:28

So, I think loyalty.

Lisa Hopkins: 35:30

Hmm, I love that. How does loyalty show up towards yourself?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 35:37

Hmm, I think it's especially as I get older. There's so much power in yes, but there's also a lot of power in no and setting boundaries. So I think the loyalty to myself is is not being afraid of saying no, or not even if it's just flat out no, or maybe it's how about this? Or I'm going to question that. And I think, like being loyal to myself in that way of like, if there are questions, if there are curiosities, if there are hesitations, that I allow myself to figure out what those are and question the things that are making those come up in myself.

Lisa Hopkins: 36:15

Yeah, yeah, it's interesting and again, this would this would be a big tangent, but I'm hearing a little bit that loyalty to self necessary and this is a human thing, so it's normal Like it's. It's not like, oh you know, because we are some primitive beings. But when you, when you talked about it, and I've heard it before about loyalty to self, it's interesting how we bring up things like boundaries. It sounds almost like protection.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 36:44

Yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 36:45

It almost implies that right it's interesting.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 36:48

Yeah, I mean, yeah, yeah, I think I just think it's important to have those things, yep, but it's also loyalty to self in terms of, like, allowing yourself to experience new things there are going to be things that I didn't think I liked, but I actually do, right and allowing yourself to have new experiences, even though they might be scary, or maybe they're really exciting, or maybe they seem a little too good to be true. So I think it's just that, or it's just like I think it's just an allowance of, I think it's just an allowance of life, right, that's a great yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 37:24

That's a great distinction. I love that Right. It's the allowance, it's this sort of trusting and knowing. Yeah, no, I love that, yeah, and it just takes time to.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 37:35

It takes time because there are like certain things that I was like, oh, a year ago probably wouldn't have said yes to that, but now, hell, yeah, let's do it. Yeah. So it's really cool how you I have also like clocked that in my life to be like wow. It's so interesting that, like you know, leanna in X year probably would have said no to that, but now, because of life experience, I'm like, yeah, let's do it, or whatever. You know what I mean.

Lisa Hopkins: 37:56

Yeah, yeah, yeah, totally, and that's kind of trusting yourself. That's trust too, isn't it? It's kind of knowing and believing in yourself. Yeah, letting go of the fear and staying loyal to the come on, when I show up as me, I'm going to be fine, I'm going to be loyal to that. I don't know what it's going to look like, but that's okay, true, yeah, which is cool, and you're right, as you, you know. It's funny, because confidence, if you want to say, or you know, is a result, right.

Lisa Hopkins: 38:23

People always say I'll do it when I feel more confident. The only way you get confident is by doing Is by doing? Yeah, it's a result. It's a result, so you know, and so that's that's kind of what you're speaking to. Is right now that you can look back everything that, from here to here, has led you to hear it was there, but it wasn't developed, right? Yeah, exactly, super interesting, super interesting. And how? How do you want to be remembered?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 38:51

Huh, I think I think the way that I would want to be remembered is, I think, it's being a loving person. I think that is what I want. I think one of the qualities that I put to myself and in hopes that when people ask about me or to the people that know me like what are they think? Like how would you describe Leanna?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 39:24

Is that I love love, and I think that that also encapsulates a lot of things Like, yes, I also I love love and I love loving people, but I also love very hard and really fully and I'm not afraid of it, which is also interesting because I feel like I've been hurt a lot by it. But it's not even just in romantic sense, I mean. I mean even like friendship, wise, or like I love the things that I do, even though sometimes the things that I do really is painful when it doesn't work out the way I want it to or when a relationship doesn't work out the way I want it to. So I think I would I want to be remembered as someone who really loves in every and everything that I do, not just in terms of relationship.

Lisa Hopkins: 40:06

Yeah, that's amazing. It's really beautiful. I feel it. I feel it.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 40:12

It's visceral, oh it is yeah, I mean, that is like that is that is what how I feel it's so funny. I mean, obviously I am a complex person, right, but it always feels like my, my barometer of love is truly like, always at like. It has to always be up here and that's just kind of how I, how I, how I work. There isn't really an in between. It's either I'm like or I'm like. Oh, my God, right, I don't really get lukewarm love, love over here.

Lisa Hopkins: 40:47

That's funny and you're okay with that right.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 40:49

I am Cause I just like who. That is just who I am.

Lisa Hopkins: 40:53

I love that. Oh yeah, when I asked you, what, if anything, do you think stands between you and who you want to be, it was interesting what you said. You said I'd like to be more patient, a more patient person in certain aspects of my life. Talk to me about that.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 41:09

Yeah, I mean I am a very proficient person. I like proficiency. I also and this is some like a double-edged sword I, because I like proficiency, and I think you know I say this too because I have worked a lot of survival jobs and I think, honestly, working in the survival jobs have brought out the worst in who I am sometimes. And I say this because, like I don't know, like I'm a very proficient person, I see things very logically. So when things as easy as like I don't know, making coffee or something, when things just like don't happen correctly or they happen incorrectly, I'm like how, how, how, how can something so easy be done so wrong? And I get so mad and I'm like why am I mad? I'm like it's coffee, right. So it's just like having the patience to be like you've got to relax, like you cannot be mad at a $15 an hour job. You know what I mean.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 42:16

So I think that, like every time people are like what gets in the way of like being the person that you want to be, I'm like, when I'm in those situations, I tend to get so worked up and so angry and I'm like you know what, liana, it's so not worth it. Like you cannot be mad. You're getting $15 an hour, you're making fucking coffee, it's fine. So that is where I would like to work on my being zen and being like a good person is when I put in situations like that where I easily am like well, because I feel like I've done it for so long that my, my tolerance for it is like literally at like zero in some moments. So if it wasn't for survival jobs, I would be the happiest being in all the land. Does that?

Lisa Hopkins: 43:02

make sense. Well, you know, what's really cool about that is you're not talking about hating the survival job, you're hating the inefficiency of what goes on, and it's like you know how to do it, and when it doesn't get done that way, it pisses you off, is what it sounds like it pisses me off and it's just like I need to not be like it's like, it's like I need to just shift my perspective.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 43:26

I'm like girl, this is not your end, this is not your end. I'll be all just make the coffee, get your check and go home Like, don't be mad, Just let it happen around you, Do your job and that's it.

Lisa Hopkins: 43:39

And that's hard for you, cause that's not who you are. It's really hard.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 43:42

Exactly I like all in kind of gal.

Lisa Hopkins: 43:44

You know you want to yeah.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 43:46

Yes, I wanted it to be good. I want it and I want it. I want to be a part of it all and I'm like I don't need to be a part of it all.

Lisa Hopkins: 43:53

It's. No, it's true. It's so interesting though because you, it's you're, you know I'm, I'll call you out. It's it's judgment. I mean, I understand where it's coming from and I understand that it's funny because there is a barrier there, that that your, your mind is telling you it's not, it doesn't matter anyways, because it's a dumb ass job and you're going to be starting a Broadway, so who cares? That doesn't actually help you be who you want to be in that situation.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 44:17

It just makes you more pissed. No, it actually, oh my God, thank you, it literally makes me more mad. I'm like, no like, but that's the thing. I am still here. So I need to like, I need to be putting, I need to be, you know, putting my best foot forward. But sometimes people, some things and some people really test that patience, for me For sure.

Lisa Hopkins: 44:37

But that's the universe, though. That is that is inviting you to not default to your strengths, which would be to fix everything, is to do everything right and teach everyone how to do it efficiently. That's your strength, but you're you're not going to use your strength yeah. It's not, it's not asked for, but in your, in your, you know, sharing with me. You know I'm a complex person. This is an invitation to say show us your, show us a different side of you here.

Lisa Hopkins: 45:03

Like, go like go over what you can do to fix, let go of it. Yeah, not because it's pissing me off, but because I have other aspects of me and this is my invitation to do that now and then you can. It can become your practice.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 45:17

I like that. Maybe I will. I'm still serving that coffee. Maybe I will. I'm going to do that my next shift. I'm going to be like Zen I'm going to let the things happen around me, I'm going to make my coffees and I'm going to go about my merry day. See what?

Lisa Hopkins: 45:33

happens if you shift everything else I love it.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 45:36

I'm going to try it. I really I'm going to try it and I've tried to. You know, sometimes I've set that intention. I'm like I'm going to really try, and then I get five minutes and I'm like so I'm actually going to try.

Lisa Hopkins: 45:44

Well, yeah, and get and don't try just do Okay, I'm going to do, don't try, I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 45:50

I'm going to do it.

Lisa Hopkins: 45:51

It's so true when we say to our brain I'm going to try, it indicates that there's good. It requires some Like a struggle.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 45:58

Yeah, yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 45:58

Yeah Well, yeah, it comes to try not to actually do it, just do it.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 46:02

Okay, I'm just going to do it.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:03

Yeah, let me know. Text me and let me know I'm going to report back.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 46:06

Yeah, please.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:07

I would love that. All right, so just to finish up, I am going to yeah, so most people think Leanna is, but the truth is. Yeah, so most people think Leanna is, but the truth is.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 46:28

Yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 46:29

Um, uh that is hard.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 46:31

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Um, I think we should do it Okay. Most people think Leanna Ray Concepcion is this fun, light-hearted, bubbly person, but the truth is I am that and I'm married of other things like very disciplined hard-working, sometimes needs help with her patience, but at the end of the day, it's a very loving, hard-working bubble of a human. I think that helps encapsulate today.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:18

Oh yeah, I love that. I love that. All right, you ready for rapid fire?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:23

Oh God, yeah, let's do it All right.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:24

So I'm gonna say what makes you, I'm gonna say a word and you're just gonna say what comes to mind.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:29

Okay.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:30

Okay, so what makes you hungry?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:33

Oh chips.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:36

What makes you sad?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:40

Oh God, not having a dog.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:43

What inspires you?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:46

The people I work with.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:48

What makes you frustrated?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 47:51

Incompetence, that was easy.

Lisa Hopkins: 47:58

What makes you laugh?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 48:01

Oh, dad jokes.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:03

What makes you angry?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 48:11

Unfairness.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:12

What makes you grateful?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 48:17

This life? Are you kidding? This whole freaking life. It's quite good right now.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:24

I love that, and what are the top three things that have happened so far today?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 48:31

Today oh, today it's so early, it's 10 am. This is a great thing that's just happened, this conversation. I received my daily call and I'm super excited to go to work and I woke up before my alarm. Nice.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:54

That's always a great feeling, isn't it?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 48:56

Yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 48:58

So, what is something that you are looking forward to both now and then, also, what is something that you're looking forward to in the future?

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 49:08

I am the most looking forward to. I think I'm the most looking forward to having our first audience in a week or a week away from our first preview, so that I'm really looking forward to it. And I think the thing I'm looking forward to in the future is my mom is gonna come see the show, so she's gonna see me on a Broadway stage, which I am like getting emotional thinking about it, yeah. So I think I'm super excited for that, yeah.

Lisa Hopkins: 49:43

That's gonna be so special.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 49:45

I know I'm so excited. I can't wait. Oh my god, I'm all the way from California.

Lisa Hopkins: 49:51

I know I have to let you go. I cannot thank you enough for joining me today.

Leanna Rae Concepcion: 49:56

Thanks for having me. This was awesome.

Lisa Hopkins: 49:58

It's been my pleasure I've been speaking today with Leanna Rae Concepcion. I'm Lisa Hopkins. Thanks so much for listening. Stay safe and healthy, everyone, and remember to live in the moment. In music, stop time is that beautiful moment where the band is suspended in rhythmic unison, supporting the soloists to express their individuality In the moment. I encourage you to take that time and create your own rhythm. Until next time, I'm Lisa Hopkins. Thanks for listening.