About
River An



Peddie School 27’


As a singer, actress, writer, and visual artist, I pursue presence, precision, and emotional truth. I study structure—a song, scene, image, or sentence—and then let instinct shape the rest. I listen for what’s unsaid and try to connect quietly and with care.
Musical Theatre
Vocal Performance  
- Performer

SEPTEMBER 2023 – PRESENT

  • Lead roles: Fiona (*Shrek*), Gloria Thorpe (*Damn Yankees*); selected as lead vocalist for school events and Blair Day band.

  • Chapel/memorial soloist; Peddie Singers (10th), Treblemakers (9th); repertoire across jazz and musical theatre.

  • Actor’s Studio & private voice: control, nuance, emotional expression; performance as practice in empathy and presence.

  • Learned to prioritize connection and joy on stage; will continue voice study and pursue musical theatre in college.

Visual Storytelling 
Amphion 
Literary Art Magazine 
- Artist and Editor

SEPTEMBER 2022 – PRESENT

  • Independent study in anatomy & color; Scholastic submissions recognized (Silver Key).

  • Amphion 2024 cover artist → layout editor; curate work and mentor contributors.

  • Process: rigorous observation, iteration, and design—structure gives expression room to expand.

  • Plan to lead Amphion and apply visual–narrative strategies to independent work and critique in college.

Peddie Student DEI 
Leadership Council 
- SDEI Leader

MAY 2025 – MAY 2027

  • Liaison between DEI office and students; collaborate with affinity groups; lead community workshops.

  • Focus: moving from awareness to respectful dialogue; amplifying underheard voices.

  • Core skill: listening and facilitating to reach compassionate solutions; carry this work into college leadership and academics.


Peddie Arts Citizenship Committee
– Theater Representative

 2024 – Present

  • Represent theatre in arts programming; link performance with civic dialogue around identity, inclusion, and responsibility.

Peddie Creative Writing 
Signature Program 
- Participant

SEPTEMBER 2025 – MAY 2027

  • Two-year seminar: deep reading across literary history, research-informed original writing.

  • Junior-summer in-person program (2026); final portfolio and public capstone reading.

  • Goal: strengthen language for eloquence and efficacy across creative and academic work.

Law & Psychology Research on Juvenile Vulnerability 
– Researcher

JULY 2025 – NOVEMBER 2025


  • Completed 20-page paper: How are linguistically underdeveloped or impaired juveniles disproportionately at risk for mistreatment in the juvenile justice system?
  • Integrates psychology & law: language vulnerabilities, trauma, development × interrogation tactics and courtroom dynamics.
  • Manuscript complete; currently preparing submission to NHSJS and AJSR.
Columbia University High School Law Institute (HSLI) 
– Student Scholar

Fall 2025 – Spring 2026

  • Accepted and will join in Fall 2025; year-long courses in Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Moot Court, Saturday seminar.

  • Weekly 3-hour sessions: lectures, case readings, discussions, briefs/oral arguments—complements my juvenile-justice research.

Princeton CIEL Senior Center
Intergenerational Musical Volunteer

MARCH 2025 – PRESENT

  • Bi-monthly performances and visits; music as a bridge for memory and conversation.

  • Shifted from performing to listening; moments of healing informed my archival project of elders’ stories.

Independent Project
- Founder/Artist/Interviewer

JUNE 2025 – PRESENT

  • Interview, illustration, writing, and voice recordings to archive elders’ memories and perspectives.

  • Purpose: give voice to underheard stories; long-term aim aligned with advocacy for representation.

Peddie Varsity 
Girls Golf - Athlete

SEPTEMBER 2023 – PRESENT

  • Varsity team member; MAPL team champion (2025).

  • Built resilience, patience, and team mindset; value humor and cohesion alongside technical skill.

Languages

  • Korean (mother tongue, native fluency)

  • English (second language, native fluency)








Acting : Musical
Damn Yankees,
Peddie Musical, 2025


Gloria Thorpe
As a sophomore, I was cast as Gloria Thorpe in Damn Yankees, a lead role typically given to upperclassmen in Peddie’s Winter Musical. It was a bold, fast-paced part with sharp wit and vocal firepower—and one I embraced fully. My teachers saw something in me and trusted me with that energy, and on stage, I returned it with everything I had. Gloria let me be unapologetically loud, clever, and commanding. I wasn’t just playing a character—I was inhabiting a kind of power I didn’t always show offstage. That role didn’t just grow me as a performer; it affirmed how performance can reveal dimensions of the self that others already believe in.

The Prom, Peddie Musical, 2024



Ensemble MemberAfter performing in Peddie’s Freshman Musical early in my first year, I auditioned for the school-wide Winter Musical The Prom—a production typically led by upperclassmen—and was cast as an ensemble member. Though not a lead, the role challenged me to stay present through group choreography, harmonies, and silent acting. I learned that performance isn’t always about being seen—it’s about building the emotional current beneath the story. Ensemble work taught me to listen, support, and contribute with quiet intention.
Shrek, Peddie Freshmen Musical, 2024


FionaIn my first semester at Peddie, I was cast as Fiona in the Freshman Musical Shrek. Though I had theater experience before, this was my first time stepping into a lead role in a completely new community. At a time when I was still learning names and navigating unfamiliar hallways, I found myself building something real on stage—with people I barely knew, but would soon laugh, fail, and grow with. Playing Fiona—a character both outrageous and sincere—helped me ground myself in presence, humor, and risk. That show didn’t mark my start in theater, but it did mark the moment I began to feel at home through it.