Collin Van Son is a recent graduate of the Schreyer Honors College at Penn State University, where he earned a bachelor's degree in physics with minors in English and mathematics. His English honors thesis, a short story collection titled "If You Don't Laugh, You Cry," was awarded the English department's Henry W. Sams Award for Best Creative Thesis. His physics research experience includes monitoring space weather events for NASA and analyzing finch birdsong patterns. As a member of Penn State's No Refund Theatre, he acted in seven shows, won first and second prize at an annual playwriting competition, and wrote and directed the original play TARVA. Several of his stories and poems have appeared online or in print, including "The Seawater Lighthouse: An Annotated History," recipient of Hofstra University's Mill Prize, and "And Your Bird Can Sing," recipient of Penn State's Edward J. Nichols Award for creative non-fiction. Collin is excited to join the STAGE team and is looking forward to improvising both on stage and on paper.