“You don’t need a lot of time on this planet. You don’t need a lot of time in your industry, in your field to make a positive impact on the world, on the people next to you. You don’t even have to think so grand as far as the world. Sometimes it’s just your community, your inner circle that you can inspire,” said Rebecca Celestin, graduating acting major in the Chadwick A. Boseman School of Fine Arts, on Boseman’s impact and what it means to be a part of the first graduating class of the school renamed for the actor in 2021. 

Originally from Miami, Florida, Celestin’s path to Howard wasn’t as straightforward as some of her peers. “I actually went to film school,” she said, graduating from Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida — after which she joined the Navy. “I served in the Navy for eight and a half years, and while I was in the Navy, leading up to my second contract, I knew that that was going to be my last contract because I was like, ‘I don’t feel fulfilled.’ Almost like I wasn’t doing what I was supposed to. What I was meant to.”  

“I chose Howard because of Chadwick A. Boseman. The way he lived his life, to know that he was going through what he was going through and still was fulfilling what he believed was his purpose.” 

Bitten by the acting bug around age 14, Celestin didn’t initially pursue a career in front of the camera, worried that her Christian Haitian parents wouldn’t approve and dealing with self-doubt about her appearance that even actors like Viola Davis have spoken about overcoming, and which the graduating senior has also conquered, noting “if you believe in God and that he created you in his image — he didn’t make a mistake.” That said, she decided to enroll in acting classes at the University of California, San Diego while finishing up her Navy contract, eventually applying to Howard University — inspired by the very man her college is named after. 

“I chose Howard because of Chadwick A. Boseman. The way he lived his life, to know that he was going through what he was going through and still was fulfilling what he believed was his purpose.” She continued, “He still did what he felt God wanted him to do, and wanted him to leave on this earth, and I thought that was just a powerful, beautiful thing,” she said, also acknowledging the many lauded alumni who’ve graduated from Howard’s acting and musical theater programs. “I’m like, ‘I want to be that; I wanna do with what they’ve done, and I want to make the impact they’ve made in the industry.’” 

While the Navy wasn’t her dream job per se, Celestin’s experience prepared her for a future at Howard in several ways. For one, it enhanced her desire to reach for the next level, continuing to work toward the goals she’d set for herself, whether it be in terms of military rank or gaining admittance to the top-ranked HBCU. It also instilled discipline, the long and “weird” hours preparing her for an industry that also requires some odd scheduling. “You can have watch at 1 in the morning the same way you can have a shoot at 1 in the morning in the film industry,” she joked, noting that a friend once claim that the industry “loves veterans because you guys are programmed for it.” 

In addition, and most arguably most importantly, her time in the service provided the actress with some real-world experience to draw from while further developing her craft. “I benefited a lot from it, making friends, traveling the world, getting that kind of experience,” she said. “I fell in love for the first time while I was in the military, and I knew what that felt like. Since I’m pursuing this at an older age, I have so much that I can grab from to say, ‘I’ve dealt with this, I felt this; I know what this is,’ so I can bring it to the work that I do on stage or on film.” 

Studying what she calls the “foundation of acting,” the theater major emphasized the importance of her coursework within the College of Fine Arts, which she explained began with theater but included some of everything, giving her and her classmates a “well-rounded thing to start our careers.” 

“Most of our classes were stage acting — how to project, how to enunciate operative words, and analyzing the script,” she said, to determine “what the character is after; what do they want.” She also took classes in playwriting, dance, and even singing. “I joined in singing for the Performer, because I can sing, I’m just not trained in it, but I think that would be something to have, especially as a Black artist,” said Celestin, mentioning the often-shared sentiment that a Black artist must be “a triple threat.” “You can’t be one thing; you got to be better than everybody else pretty much, because they expect you to be the best.” 

Celestin (whose stage name is Rebecca Celeste) has worked hard to be the best, with roles in productions like “Long Time Since Yesterday,” which was her first production with the Howard Players where she felt the impact of her work. “That was the moment I was like, ‘you know what? This is good! This play is so good, this feels good, and people are reacting to me performing.’ It’s making an impact.” She’d go on to participate in stage reading at the Shakespeare Theater Company via a program by Howard alum, actor, director, and choreographer LeeAnet Noble (BFA, ’05), performing in “In the Blood” and “The Dilemma of a Ghost,” where she played a grandmother, to name a few. The future film, screen, and television actress was even recognized by her peers, winning the 52nd Owen Dodson Award for Best Supporting Actress for her comedic role in “The House That Will Not Stand.” “It’s an award show that the College of Fine Arts puts on every year,” explained Celestin of the honor named for the Harlem Renaissance era poet, novelist, playwright and former Howard professor who chaired the drama department. “I was like, ‘what, that’s crazy!’” she laughed. “I got an award and everything!”

Celestin will take fond memories with her from Howard, including the classmates and teachers she met and learned from along the way and the opportunities she was offered by the likes of Noble, as well as attending the British American Drama Academy in Oxford to study Shakespeare. “I ended up falling in love with Shakespeare,” she said, developing a new level of understanding and appreciation for the playwright’s work. “Now it’s one of my goals to be in a Shakespeare production.” With the foundation she’s built at Howard and a desire to keep learning and growing, that’s one more goal she’s likely to meet. In fact, she recently performed his work at the British Embassy, another opportunity she credits to her soon to be alma mater. 

“Howard has given me a lot of opportunities that I’m grateful for that have allowed me to grow — that have allowed me to try new things.”