Duo of Inspiration: From Adversity to Artistry

00:03.61
Bruce Anthony
So like I said at the top I'm here with Ashley and aspen and twins that are very very creative I'm excited to talk to them. You know how much I love speaking to genz and their entrepreneurial and aspiration. And their spirit and their energy and these two young ladies exemplify that completely Ashley Aspen thank you for coming on the show I really appreciate you joining us absolutely look and and you guys have such an interesting story.

00:28.33
Aspen and Ashley
Thank you for having? Yeah, we're super excited.

00:37.86
Bruce Anthony
Um, but I want to go to the beginning So you guys are identical twins. Ah can you tell me a little bit about what it was like for you guys growing up or you're still growing but so far growing up as identical twins.

00:54.31
Aspen and Ashley
Dearmen sure. Um, yeah, it is interesting because people always ask us what it's like to be a twin and we don't really know how to answer because we've never not been a twin So it's just normal for us. Um, but I think that.

01:05.69
Bruce Anthony
Um, yeah.

01:11.87
Aspen and Ashley
We definitely had a very unique experience growing up because we are very similar in a lot of ways so we always kind of had someone who we could do everything with and who had the same interests as us and it as people say it is really like having a built-in best friend. Ah.

01:27.20
Bruce Anthony
A.

01:29.65
Aspen and Ashley
It was really ah, amazing and we're very grateful to have grown up having each other around. Um at the same time. There were definitely some challenges to growing up being identical twins because we often ran into the issue of people not seeing us as individual people and only seeing us as. The twins and so we struggled to like make friends and to have our own identities especially when we had different interests or we would have the same interest and we would try to do something together and people would just like group us together instead of.

01:55.90
Bruce Anthony
A.

02:06.74
Aspen and Ashley
Letting us be our own people. Um, so ah, of course there were some difficulties to being twins and having someone who was so Similar. Um I think it also caused us to fight a lot because we were just very similar and had the same kind of. Personalities and annoyances. Um, but overall growing up being twins was really a huge advantage and I think that we really just always had someone who could encourage us and support us and we would always support each other's crazy Ideas. So I think that it really contributed to our. Ambitions to have someone like that in our lives.

02:46.80
Bruce Anthony
So aspen can you expand upon that because I'm really interested is it just you two. Do you have siblings.

02:53.70
Aspen and Ashley
No, it's just us. We've always wanted a little sister but our parents said no.

02:58.86
Bruce Anthony
What let me just tell you as somebody who is the oldest and has 2 younger siblings I begged my mom for a brother and got a sister and then eventually got a brother and there.

03:10.93
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

03:15.92
Bruce Anthony
My sister doesn't agree that siblings can be best friends I disagree we're best, but it's interesting that you said that there's ah, a lack of people identifying you as something separate other than twins and I know my parents.

03:20.55
Aspen and Ashley
Um, the.

03:32.90
Aspen and Ashley
Um, and.

03:34.38
Bruce Anthony
Would often group us in together and we're not twins so Asin. How how difficult is that um that that searching for your own identity when you look across the room and there's somebody who looks exactly like you and has the same mannerisms. And um, enjoys some of the same things.

03:58.61
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah I think we definitely went through phases where it was harder and easier on us. Um, thankfully our parents because they saw us every day kind of going through the struggle of complaining that people didn't see us as individuals they. Really I think made a huge effort to let us have things that were separate from each other and try to encourage us to do separate things or like even when we were little we would go on date nights or it was just me and my dad and just Ashley my mom or something like that so that we didn't feel like we always had to be together. Um, but I think it is challenging because our whole lives. We've definitely felt like there's things that we can't do because we're twins even just like we have 1 class together right now we're both seniors in college and. Yesterday we were in class and she was sitting the way that I wanted to sit and I was like well everyone's going to think I look stupid if I cross my legs because I'm going to be sitting the exact same way as Ashley and it's like such a dumb example, but you're constantly thinking about okay, how do I differentiate myself from my sister and I think. When we were younger. It was a lot harder because we would definitely have experiences where people would be like like we had a director that we auditioned for for a play 1 time he called us and he was like I really wanted to work with both of you. But.

05:24.73
Aspen and Ashley
You just look too similar and I didn't know how to have 2 people who look so similar in the cast and I didn't want to only cast one of you and things like that would happen to us so often and it was just difficult because we were like we both have similar interests and we don't want to. Only allow one of us to do something. We're both interested in. But how do we reconcile that with always competing with each other and feeling like we look too similar to have people think of us as separate individuals. Um, and I think. Making friends especially in high school middle and high school was hard because people just assumed oh the twins are going to work together. The twins are going to do this together and the twins are just 1 person and um so it was hard to find people who. Just wanted to know me as aspiner just wanted to know her as Ashley and I think we kind of really resisted that for a while, especially the last couple years of high school in the first couple years of college and now we definitely. Still It's important to us to be seen as individuals and we try to do things separately. But I think we've also learned to not resist it so much because we know that we do better as a team and we work really well together and so I think we've come to embrace.

06:31.56
Bruce Anthony
Are.

06:47.60
Aspen and Ashley
Being twins and also still trying to have our own identities I guess.

06:50.25
Bruce Anthony
Yeah, no, that makes a lot of sense and and I think you know people who aren't twins and they see twins they think of a lot of the benefits right of having a twin a built-in best friend somebody. That's like you you can share clothes bounce ideas off of but they don't yeah. I'm sure this is eye openinging to my audience to to look at hear you guys and and hear the aspect of you know I'm a my own person. We're not the same. We have different names.

07:19.47
Aspen and Ashley
Is it.

07:26.36
Bruce Anthony
Even though we're identical. We have different characteristics. Um, we're not the same person so that's interesting that you had that growing up and that's that's eye opening another another obstacle ah or.

07:44.70
Bruce Anthony
Challenge That's a better word. Another challenge that you have is that you guys are survivors of twin to twin transfusion syndrome now I'm not too familiar with that and I know there are a lot of people in my audience aren't as well. Could you kind of explain what exactly that is.

07:46.45
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

08:01.70
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah, so oh go ahead? Sorry um so it is a betal syndrome that um, we had before we were born so when my mom was pregnant with us Ashley was. Getting basically all of the nutrients from the placenta and I wasn't getting any so um, at the time in 2003 it was there was a lot less research and treatment options than there are now so doctors were basically they told our parents that. They could terminate the pregnancy or just wait for us to die because they didn't think there was really any chance we would survive and my parents weren't willing to give up so they did a ton of research and they found a doctor in Florida who could perform in uterosurgery.

08:34.44
Bruce Anthony
A.

08:50.16
Aspen and Ashley
Um, so they flew out to Florida and got this surgery done and it saved our lives. Um, so of course we weren't born when that happened but it's had a huge impact on our lives because our parents started a nonprofit foundation after that happened to.

09:01.50
Bruce Anthony
Um, and anything.

09:08.76
Aspen and Ashley
Help other families with fetal syndromes and help provide support and awareness. Um, and as well as flying people out to get treatment because it's so hard to find um or providing hotels and travel and things like that and so we always grew up knowing Wow that was not good. Grammar. We grew up always knowing that um it was something that had a profound impact on our lives before we were even born and I think that that really contributed to us always feeling grateful to have each other because we knew that there was a.

09:30.75
Bruce Anthony
Um, think.

09:43.21
Bruce Anthony
Big.

09:47.62
Aspen and Ashley
Chance that it could have just been one of us or just been the other one or been neither of us. Yeah, there's a story of I think we were 3 or 4 and I don't remember this but my parents like to tell it we were just in the car driving to a restaurant or something and all of a sudden Ashley.

09:52.11
Bruce Anthony
Um, yeah.

10:05.71
Aspen and Ashley
Just like thank you Dr. Quintero who was the doctor that did our surgery for saving us because I just I don't remember exactly what what she said, but something about like she just couldn't imagine her life without her sister and um so I think.

10:20.32
Bruce Anthony
Oh.

10:24.26
Aspen and Ashley
That just really goes to show that even when we were toddlers. We knew that our lives were better because we had each other in them.

10:33.21
Bruce Anthony
That's sweet so your parents dealing with this went out on their own didn't give up hope found a solution found a doctor that could help. And then started a foundation to help people that were going through the same thing and and you guys are the poster child children not children anymore. But the the posters of of this foundation now. Okay this this is a difficult question.

10:53.11
Aspen and Ashley
Um, and if.

11:03.59
Bruce Anthony
Because you kind of answered it. Um because you're thankful for each other that you have this blessing of of you guys both being in your life is there. Another side is there a little bit of guilt at all. Um, for having to go through that.

11:25.78
Aspen and Ashley
Um I don't know that there's necessarily guilt about it because we weren't even born yet. So I think that we just we have always been aware of it kind of in the way that our parents have told us about it and that it has affected.

11:31.00
Bruce Anthony
Right.

11:43.73
Aspen and Ashley
Our lives now. So I think that it's always been more of something that we are grateful for. But I think um because of our parents' foundation. We've seen a lot of families not have a positive outcome when they've had fetal syndrome. So I think that it has really affected us because we've always known.

11:54.22
Bruce Anthony
Here.

12:03.28
Aspen and Ashley
How close we came to not having each other not even being Alive. So I think that we've always kind of felt like because we were given this chance at life that we want to make it meaningful and do something meaningful. Um, so I think that has. Really impacted the way that we go about the world because we feel like there must have been a reason that we survived when other kids don't get to um so I think that is more of how it's affected us I guess I don't know if you feel differently. Yeah. Yeah I think that makes sense.

12:42.93
Bruce Anthony
Yeah, okay so I didn't I definitely didn't ask that question right? but that answer was exactly what I was trying to get out that so so you answered a question that was poorly worded perfectly and ashman don't worry about um.

12:51.33
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

13:00.23
Aspen and Ashley
Um, faith it.

13:00.45
Bruce Anthony
Mispronouncing words or poor grammar because on us solicit perspectives. That's all I do all day long is is say things poorly. Um, when did you guys know because you're in college now when did you guys know that you wanted to do something different.

13:14.95
Aspen and Ashley
Um, this is.

13:19.12
Bruce Anthony
Because we're gonna get into your web series and your nonprofit ah theater and and your podcast but when did at what age did you know that? Okay, we have a personality and we want to show it to the world.

13:27.42
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

13:39.19
Aspen and Ashley
I think we were 3 and I can't remember which one came first. But um, the summer we turned 3 we decided to start a drive-through restaurant in our window at our house. That was not very successful. Nobody stopped but we were very determined like we made posters menus and signs and then that same summer we started a jewelry business where we made a bunch of. Jewelry out of like safety pins and paper clips and plastic beads and um sat out on our driveway for days on end trying to sell this jewelry to raise money for um, our parents' nonprofit and for children's hospital and we had 1 very gracious neighbor who came by every day and bought something from us.

14:15.60
Bruce Anthony
Life.

14:21.71
Bruce Anthony
Are.

14:28.66
Aspen and Ashley
Um, and then our best friend lived across the street and so she would come over and sit with us sometimes and bring us popsicles and stuff. Um, so I think that was the start of it. Yeah, yeah, we were. We were very ambitious kids We were always coming up with.

14:37.33
Bruce Anthony
So you're saying you're doing this at 3 or 3 or 4 is.

14:47.43
Aspen and Ashley
New businesses and starting clubs up on the playground at school. We were just like it was our whole lives. Yeah.

14:53.36
Bruce Anthony
So where does that come from does that come from your parents seeing them start a nonprofit organization to benefit other people and you recognizing this early as you said in the story somewhere around 3 actually you're thanking the doctor. For your best friend and and your blessing so where did you see this was it your parents was an example your parents was it television at this time Youtube wasn't really around I don't think so so where was it that you guys were getting this idea such a young age.

15:20.70
Aspen and Ashley
Know.

15:26.36
Aspen and Ashley
I Think it was our parents I think that it was kind of just such a big part of our development that I don't think we ever really even thought about it. It was just like we always saw our parents doing everything they could to help people and they. Our parents are also very ambitious. They started the foundation when we were born and then when we were 4 or 5 they started a business that they are still running and is super successful and we were just always seeing them do these crazy new things and so I think that we just thought that was how everyone.

16:01.71
Bruce Anthony
Um, in here.

16:05.00
Aspen and Ashley
Operated that everyone just has an idea and does it. Um, so I think that it was really just the way we were raised and our parents were always very generous and very um I guess like philanthropic and just always trying to. Help people. So I think that was just ingrained in us from like the day we were born that we always wanted to help people and we always wanted to raise money for their foundation and we just knew that it was so Important. So I think that was really just following in our Parents' example.

16:40.92
Bruce Anthony
That's beautiful and so you're you have this entrepreneurial spirit so young you have this kind of entertainment spirit so young. Um, what comes first is it the podcast. Or is it. The web series.

16:58.60
Aspen and Ashley
So the web series came first um, but even before that we were putting on like we would write in direct plays. Um and make like short phones. Just. With each other with friends. Um in Colorado which is where we're from and then during covid it was our senior year of high school and then our freshman year of college was twenty twenty so it was a huge time in our lives where all of a sudden we were.

17:30.65
Bruce Anthony
A.

17:31.34
Aspen and Ashley
Stuck at home our entire first freshman year of college was online and so we were just like this was supposed to be a big step forward in our lives and we were so ready to go to college and have this creative.

17:41.37
Bruce Anthony
A.

17:48.96
Aspen and Ashley
Just explosion I think because when you're going to Los Angeles and you were expecting to just like be immersed in creativity and instead we were locked up in our bedrooms. Um, and so we were like pretty much right after everything shut down in March of 2020 we were like we need.

17:58.16
Bruce Anthony
Yeah.

18:09.10
Aspen and Ashley
To do something. We can't just sit around and have no theater and no film and nothing that we can do and so at the time we've been acting for a while. Yeah as our main focus. Yeah, we had been acting for since we were like 10 um, and so. It started out as just an idea that we were gonna make a few Youtube videos of us pretending to be these kids who were home along during covid um, and then we needed one actor and we put out a casting call for. An actor to play our mom because our real mom doesn't like to act at all then we just had this insane response of because nobody was working and everyone was just desperate for something to do and we were like wow this could actually be really important to people to give all of these actors.

19:03.30
Bruce Anthony
Are the.

19:03.37
Aspen and Ashley
Something creative to do when there's so much uncertainty and nobody knows what's going on and um, so then we developed it into a 10 episode web series that had like I don't know like third thirty actors at least? um.

19:18.54
Bruce Anthony
Wow.

19:21.78
Aspen and Ashley
And we also just kept thinking about like our little cousins since we don't have a younger sibling I feel like our little cousins have always inspired us to do things. Um and we just kept thinking about them and like how they weren't going to have anything to watch. They were going to be sitting at home.

19:35.50
Bruce Anthony
Um, me.

19:41.21
Aspen and Ashley
All alone and be bored because they were just obsessed with Disney Channel and all of these shows and nothing could be made and we were like we want to give them something to entertain them so that was kind of I guess the inspiration. So then me. Just made this little like family comedy series and were able to include a lot of actors and give them something to do and it was a lot more work than we expected because it was a lot of editing. Obviously everyone was just recording on their own and editing is our very much our week um yeah you know a lot of logistics of sending all of the actors instructions and scripts and gathering all of their footage. Yeah, but it was a lot of fun and rewarding at the end of the day and our cousins and then the kids that we teach at the theater company that we run now.

20:14.69
Bruce Anthony
Um, yeah.

20:31.39
Aspen and Ashley
Love the show and they always talk about it so that even though they're probably some of the only people who've ever seen it. It's worth it because we made some people happy.

20:40.98
Bruce Anthony
So what I'm hearing and and tell me if I'm incorrect what I'm hearing is yes you have a passion to write at produce but that passion necessarily isn't for fame. It is to.

20:54.33
Aspen and Ashley
Um, this is.

20:58.57
Bruce Anthony
Bring something to the world and help people through whatever strife that they're going through when you say well we started this web series. You know, basically for our cousins because we wanted to make sure that you know they had something to watch and they had something to do during this difficult time. It isn't I'm not hearing. Yeah we did this because we moved out to L a and because we want to be big stars. We Want to be rich and and millionaires. That's not what I'm hearing I'm hearing I kind of just want to do something for others am I am I getting that right.

21:31.21
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah I mean I think it's certainly not a selfless pursuit because it's something that we really love doing like our passions are writing and acting and directing and everything like that. Um, so it's not like we. Hate it and we're just doing it to help others but um, definitely the purpose is that like the thing that is the most rewarding about it is bringing joy to others and I think that really the main reason that we did the web series in that we. The thing we look for whenever we're taking on new projects and with the podcast and everything is that it's just really important to us to bring good into the world and bring joy to people and so um, we certainly are not looking for fame or money or anything. We Really just do it. Because we have a passion for it and because we know how how important these kinds of things have been to us and having you know shows to watch or books to read or anything like that that can just take you out of your world for a minute and give you something. To look forward to or just bring some joy into your life. So I think that is definitely the reason that these things have been so important to us.

22:49.73
Bruce Anthony
So some of the challenges were the logistics of putting together a web series when it's very everything is remote So there's a there's a knock on not a knock. There's a negative on the fact that everything is remote but the positive is that you.

22:58.96
Aspen and Ashley
Are.

23:08.85
Bruce Anthony
Actually learned this entire process or did this entire process in 1 of the most difficult ways possible aside from the logistics where were some of the other complications and rewards for doing the web series.

23:24.89
Aspen and Ashley
I Think probably one of the biggest maybe not complications but just challenges was as I think is usually a huge challenge with anything creative is just um, getting the word out there and marketing it because.

23:40.13
Bruce Anthony
A.

23:42.66
Aspen and Ashley
We are not good at that and we felt like people had put so much work into it and we wanted people to see it and also um because we really wanted it to just make people laugh and make people smile and. Be able to bring a little bit of joy to people's lives and so we wanted to get it out there as much as we could and I think it was um, we dealt with a lot of discouragement of it like our first few episodes got a lot of views and then some got like. Ah, hundred and so it was like that's still you know some people are watching it. But um I think there it was definitely like hard to get over it or not get over but just like to not feel disappointed. Um, and. I also think another major challenge was that we were locked in the house together Twenty four seven and so it was hard and we have I mean we work really well together. But we have different ways of handling stress and dealing with work and um.

24:39.22
Bruce Anthony
Um.

24:51.49
Aspen and Ashley
Approaching deadlines and things like that and I'm very type a and a little bit of a control freak and I think we're both very much controlled. Yes I was gonna say she's a little bit of a control freak too. But I think in a different way and so we would get on each other's nerves sometimes and a lot of times it was.

25:05.91
Bruce Anthony
Is.

25:10.28
Aspen and Ashley
And we were both also working. Um, and so our schedules didn't line up all the time and so we would be like she would get home from an 8 hour shift and I would be like okay we need a thumb and she was like no I just want to take a shower and like um so yeah I think that was definitely a challenge but I think.

25:22.92
Bruce Anthony
Um, a.

25:29.64
Aspen and Ashley
Like I mentioned earlier I think the most rewarding thing is just we would do Zoom calls with our family just to see everyone and our cousins would be like that was so funny.

25:42.92
Aspen and Ashley
You said blah blah bar just like seeing because even if our 8 cousins were the only people who ever watched it if they genuinely enjoyed it and it made them smile and could take their minds off of that it felt like the world was falling apart I think. That was super rewarding and then um, some of the actors that were involved especially some. We had a lot of kids that were in it. Um and them and their parents especially would just express so much gratitude to have something that they could work on and um, see their kids. Feeling joy and feeling like they were a part of something when they couldn't go to school and they couldn't see their friends and things like that I think we didn't really consider how much of an impact it would have on the actors and I don't think everybody was like oh my gosh. This was such an amazing experience. Because some were just like wanted an imdb credit. But I think that some it really meant something to them and um, so that was definitely an impact that I didn't expect to have that was really meaningful to me. Yeah, and I think even though it was very difficult to do it remotely. It also.

26:41.37
Bruce Anthony
And.

26:58.82
Aspen and Ashley
Allowed us to have actorss from all over the world and so that was a really ah amazing experience to get to work with so many different people and make some really great connections with people Some of the people were still in touch with who worked on the project and so I think that was. Oh Huge benefit of having to do it remotely was getting to connect with so many people.

27:29.48
Bruce Anthony
So it's so interesting. You know you talk about being siblings and working together because you know I have a show that I do with my sister and we are very different as far as our work management is concerned. Um.

27:42.97
Aspen and Ashley
Um, he's not.

27:43.87
Bruce Anthony
I am the producer I know she's gonna be upset that I'm throwing it at the bus. But I've said it online before like I am the producer and there's a lot of times I need to balance the show from her ideas because she can kind of go off in one area and I'm like we need to keep the audience kind of in this pocket here.

28:03.30
Aspen and Ashley
Um, me.

28:03.51
Bruce Anthony
Um, so you guys do the web series and then you start a podcast. How did all of that come about how did that transition happen.

28:08.23
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

28:13.86
Aspen and Ashley
Um I don't quite remember it kind of a longish story but I guess the short version is um so after we did the web series we did a film spinoff of it. Um, a Christmas movie because we love Christmas a lot. And then um after that year we finally got to come onto campus for school and so we were on campus for about a year and a half and then we kind of took a pause from I mean we were still doing stuff but that was when we started our theater company so we kind of took a pause from um, creating things in line with the web series and everything.

28:57.44
Bruce Anthony
Okay, so wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You do the web series then the theater company happens then you do the podcast. Okay, let's let's let's backtrack a little bit because I want to talk about the theater company because I I love the idea of it so much so you started stage Bugs theater.

29:03.95
Aspen and Ashley
Um, yeah, okay.

29:16.98
Bruce Anthony
Um, you're that's catering to underprivileged youth. Can you explain to my audience the transition to start this where why? why did you? What did you see that you saw that this would be important to do and how did you even get this started.

29:34.70
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah, um I mean stage vs was something that we had kind of had a seed planted for for a while. Um, when we were Teenagers. We had always thought that it would be really fun to be able to teach theater and we had. Done a little bit of that just like with our high school. We would go to the middle school and do some teaching and stuff like that and we always loved it and we kept saying that we would love to start a summer camp or start a theater company and our parents were like well you're 15 so people aren't going to. Like entrust you with their kids for a week. Um, and but we had always wanted to start a theater company and our senior year aspen wrote and directed a play to raise money for a parents foundation. Um, so we were always interested in that and then um.

30:10.77
Bruce Anthony
Great.

30:27.13
Aspen and Ashley
Aspen had interned at a summer camp that was theater based um and we were like we could do that? Um, and that was the summer before our sophomore year of college um night oh yes I think I was just gonna say um.

30:35.84
Bruce Anthony
A.

30:45.44
Aspen and Ashley
During that internship experience I think we both kind of noticed that it was a good program but it was very exclusive. Um, just like a lot of I don't want to say rich kids but like rich kids it was.

31:02.60
Bruce Anthony
You go look this is this is unsolicited perspectives go ahead and say what you want to say.

31:04.87
Aspen and Ashley
And her expensive. Ah, um, yeah, and it was It was very I Guess there's a lot of like theater politics that I think we experienced when we did educational theater when we were kids um where it was like. You're either the best or it feels like you're just not valued and nobody notices you and so during my experience working as an intern I think we both were just like we feel like there needs to be something that.

31:27.19
Bruce Anthony
See.

31:41.14
Aspen and Ashley
Every kid can just have access to where every kid feels like they can just explore a theater and try it and they're important and they're valued and they're talented just because they are who they are and not that if you're not the bestinger Then. You're paying $1000 to do this camp where you're just swaying in the background we wanted it to be. You can come and be a part of this regardless of your background or your experience or your family's financial situation because we just felt like.

31:58.98
Bruce Anthony
A.

32:14.79
Aspen and Ashley
The good experiences that we had in theater were so instrumental to our lives and we wanted to make that more accessible to anybody. Yeah, and I think we had when we were growing up. We like Asman said we had some really amazing experiences in theater and we also had some that were. Extremely discouraging and um I don't think that necessarily anyone who taught us was purposely doing that. But um, we were both like very shy kids and so we often felt like we were just put in the background. Um, so we had always thought that it would be really. Amazing to be able to do something where we could kind of lift up all kids regardless of their personalities or their backgrounds. Um, so then during our sophomore year of college our parents were kind of encouraging it after aspen had that internship they were like. Yeah, you could do this. You should try it and so we were just like okay, let's try it and um, we spent a lot of that year just making plans and figuring out all of the logistics and how we could or if we could realistically start this business and um.

33:14.79
Bruce Anthony
In here.

33:29.79
Aspen and Ashley
Then we did our first summer camps the summer after our sophomore year and we had a very very hard time filling them up and getting people to participate also because it was still during covid we had to do them outdoors. Um, which I think people were not.

33:40.69
Bruce Anthony
Okay.

33:46.83
Aspen and Ashley
As inclined to sign up for but we ended up we did not think it was going to happen. We kept thinking we were going to have to cancel them because we didn't have enough kids but miraculously we filled them up enough to run them and then um during our junior year we were able to get. Um.

33:47.00
Bruce Anthony
Here.

34:05.69
Aspen and Ashley
Approved as a five one c three and we kind of just like really grew during that year and we were able to sell out all of our summer camps the second year which was last summer and we've just had um, we do our best to really just make it accessible. We do a lot of.

34:13.81
Bruce Anthony
A.

34:23.92
Aspen and Ashley
Free programs. We do some pay what you can classes and then we offer scholarships for our summer camps. Our goal is to someday be able to offer all of the programs for free and run solely on donations. Um, but that is a long way. Yeah, a long way out. Um, we definitely. Realized why some theater programs are so expensive because there are a lot of expenses but we really just do everything we can to make it inclusive to kids with all backgrounds and all needs and um, it really is just like the most rewarding amazing thing that. At least for me that we've done I just I could talk about it all day I thought we've been talking, we've made this a very long answer but it is just my greatest joy in my life so far.

35:10.31
Bruce Anthony
That that wasn't a long answer when you're talking about something that's your passion. It's never a long answer and I'm not trying to gas you up. But I'm gonna gas both of y'all up. This is another example.

35:17.90
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

35:22.98
Aspen and Ashley
Um, so.

35:25.64
Bruce Anthony
Of you just trying to spread joy to the world and include everybody this is part of the reason why I went to have you guys on the show because I I really feel like you 2 women are remarkable and what you're doing especially as I look at the school system. And seeing arts being taken out of the school system over the last thirty forty years just programs being eliminated. That's the arts whether it's banned and theater programs being eliminated for you that access that used to be there for people is no longer there. And you are supplying that access. This is a beautiful thing and I don't care if it's a long answer because when anytime you're talking about your passion. Let your voices be heard I love that so you start this theater and to transition Now, you've done the web series.

36:19.39
Aspen and Ashley
Um.

36:24.29
Bruce Anthony
You done the theater y'all have been doing stuff since you were 3 years old you're about to be seniors in college somewhere along the line. You start this podcast. Where do you all have time to study.

36:26.00
Aspen and Ashley
Nothing.

36:36.18
Aspen and Ashley
Um, we don't sleep very much. Yeah, like midnight we're like okay and starting my homework wish me.

36:44.15
Bruce Anthony
So tell me a little bit more about the podcast because you guys are twins and like I said I have a sibling that I work with but not nearly as much as you guys work together. So you're doing all of these ventures together and and you start this podcast.

36:56.82
Aspen and Ashley
Um, the.

37:01.94
Bruce Anthony
How the okay you said you kind of don't remember. But as we're transitioning you're doing the theater. The podcast is a thing So what is the purpose of the podcast because it seems like everything that you guys do has a purpose and a meaning behind it.

37:06.38
Aspen and Ashley
To her.

37:17.55
Aspen and Ashley
So second semester of our junior year which was last january um, we both very much not on purpose to had to take um. Leaves of absences for health reasons different health reasons and we did not intend for it to be at the same time. Um, we were a little bit not annoyed but just like we. Have to be so similar that we are taking the same semester off and like it was for completely unrelated reasons like she I had already decided that I wasn't coming back to school and I was at home. She flew back to l a for the first week of school and um, we.

37:43.80
Bruce Anthony
First.

38:01.93
Aspen and Ashley
My mom and I were driving out to move all of my stuff out because I had been here first semester and um, like the day before we were leaving to come pack up all of my stuff Ashley called and she was like she had been going through a lot of health issues and she called and she was like I can't go to any of my classes like I am. Can't do this semester I'm gonna come home when you come get asked them stuff and I was very very hesitant like my parents kept telling me I should take the semester off and I didn't want to and then when I heard aspen was going tribes like no way we can't take the same semester off that would be so weird. Um. But we since we were both going to be at home. We were like well this had to have happened for a reason like she said earlier, we feel like I mean we've always just been big believers that everything happens for a reason and um, neither of us were happy about taking the semester off we both. Always been very studious and um, just kind of workaholics. Yeah and like following the path that we feel like we should be on so we were like we need to take advantage of this and during the health issues that we had both been dealing with. We had found a lot of comfort in.

39:02.53
Bruce Anthony
With.

39:17.89
Aspen and Ashley
Um, podcasts and blogs and books and things where people were very honest and vulnerable and sharing their stories and just seeing and reading and hearing things where other people were going through struggles and were able to. Make the most out of it and come back from it and be resilient and we felt like it was hard to find things like that and there's just so much negativity everywhere you looked of like the world is ending and everybody hates each other and we were just like this is enough. We.

39:43.00
Bruce Anthony
Nice.

39:51.99
Aspen and Ashley
We want something positive. Um, so we were like well we love listening to podcasts. We both had like our whole mom. Not our dad but our mom and Ashley and I had this podcast that we listened to all the time and it was just like. Something that we always looked forward to and so we were like we should just start a podcast. Um everyone was doing it. Yeah I right now. So it. We just I guess we were like let's just do it like we wanted to.

40:17.26
Bruce Anthony
Um, length may.

40:24.40
Aspen and Ashley
Tell Ah, other we want to tell our stories and we wanted to tell other people's stories and it started out as an idea just to interview other people who had inspirational stories but we also know that people are really fascinated by twins and ever since we were little people would just always say you guys should have your own show. It's just so. Funny to listen to you talk and so um, we every other week we do interviews with inspirational people and then the other weeks we do a segmented podcast where we just talk about life as twins and us as 20 something year olds who are.

40:45.50
Bruce Anthony
We've.

41:01.46
Aspen and Ashley
People think are 12 and who feel like we're 80 and um, what it's like to run a thousand businesses together and um, when we just kind of talk about life and yeah, it's been a lot of fun. We both are kind of introverts and so.

41:05.23
Bruce Anthony
Um, yeah.

41:19.92
Aspen and Ashley
Interviewing people every other week has really been quite the experience and like made me so much more comfortable just talking to people and like really helps you realize how everyone has a story and everyone's going through their own things that you can't see and um.

41:31.80
Bruce Anthony
Here hit.

41:37.49
Aspen and Ashley
I enjoyed a lot more than I thought I would talking to other people and then I text Ashley like nightly and I'm like we need to record another podcast episode I just have so much to say because we are we have crazy lives and ah.

41:47.51
Bruce Anthony
Yeah.

41:55.90
Aspen and Ashley
Do a lot of like stupid silly things that we just like to talk to each other about and why not just record it. Um, so yeah, yeah, it's mostly just our family that listens to it. But um, we're like might as well like let them see inside our lives and.

41:55.14
Bruce Anthony
Um, today.

42:00.60
Bruce Anthony
Um, if if.

42:12.59
Aspen and Ashley
It's kind of the only time that we not really but pretty much the only time we talk to each other That's not like a business meeting. So um and people are always texting or emailing or calling us and being like I was listening to this episode and I was in the grocery store and then I just started cracking up and everyone was staring at me and.

42:19.80
Bruce Anthony
Um, they.

42:31.69
Aspen and Ashley
Like you just need to keep making this because it makes me happy and I love listening to it so we keep doing it. Yeah.

42:40.60
Bruce Anthony
Yeah, so okay, podcasting is an interesting game to get into what has been so ah and you guys are doing a podcast for the positives. But when you're putting you're presenting yourself to the world.

42:43.38
Aspen and Ashley
Yes.

42:56.61
Aspen and Ashley
Are.

42:56.76
Bruce Anthony
As I've found out. Um,, there's some negativity and some drawbacks that comes with that has there and has there been any of that for you guys or is it just been. This is an opening experience for you guys? Um, internally. That that is helping you blossom as a person.

43:17.76
Aspen and Ashley
Um, yeah I think I mean we are still very much in the early phases. We've had our podcasts for a little over a year, but we're still relieved trying to gross so I don't think we've been like super public enough where we've gotten a lot of negativity but we've definitely had. Some things like we um, post like clips from our podcast on our Youtube channel and everything to try to help with marketing and there's been a couple of clips that have gotten a lot of attention and some really weird just like very negative comments for no reason. Um.

43:42.30
Bruce Anthony
In.

43:52.78
Aspen and Ashley
Which of course is par for the course and we know that it happens to everyone in the world. But we're also very sensitive. So it's hard for us to not be bothered by it. Um, and especially because we're trying to make something positive. It is disappointing when.

44:00.30
Bruce Anthony
Um, yeah.

44:07.78
Bruce Anthony
Okay.

44:11.84
Aspen and Ashley
We feel like people are just trying to find ways to be negative about it. Um, but I think really we do our best to ignore those things and also understand that everyone is just human and the people who are saying those things are probably struggling with something and. Um, so we try to not take it too personally? Um, but yeah I think for the most part it has been a very positive experience but we've definitely had some um run into some negativity or had some you know interviews that have felt a little bit. Negative or uncomfortable. But I think that is a good thing to learn how to deal with especially in all of the professions that we want to go into. We know that we are going to have to learn how to deal with that and develop some thick skin. So I think that. Is yeah, just it's just part of the game.

45:10.70
Bruce Anthony
You said some negative interviews.

45:17.13
Aspen and Ashley
And not um, very many but we've just had like 1 or 2 where we just felt like it was very uncomfortable or someone was trying to like track us into saying something like I don't know. But yeah, um, how how to like explain it but had um.

45:31.68
Bruce Anthony
Ah, okay.

45:35.92
Aspen and Ashley
I mean I think sometimes it's hard because we are young and we also look obviously your listeners can't see us but we look younger than we are to most people and so I think sometimes we'll have guests come on and then they're like they don't really take us seriously. Um and so that can make it a little bit uncomfortable or they.

45:49.76
Bruce Anthony
A.

45:55.25
Aspen and Ashley
Try to um preach like their political views which just isn't what we want our podcast to be and then um, we've done a few interviews for other podcasts and this one of course has been amazing. But we had like she said we've had people who it seems like.

45:58.75
Bruce Anthony
Yeah, yeah.

46:13.23
Aspen and Ashley
Really try to spin what we say into a negative and kind of like trick us into saying something that we don't mean and I know that sounds weird but just like um it feels like they want to start up controversy and we're just not people who like to be controversial. We just.

46:32.61
Bruce Anthony
Ah, spread love and joy. Yeah.

46:32.68
Aspen and Ashley
Want to? um yeah, but for the most part we've had some most of our guests are just so amazing and inspiring and we just are beyond grateful that we get the chances to talk to them.

46:47.80
Bruce Anthony
So what's next for you 2 you guys do so much and once again the driveth through wait a minute and I need to ask a question about the drive through. Okay I let it slip earlier but how did you have a drivethrough to your house.

47:05.80
Aspen and Ashley
This really.

47:07.00
Bruce Anthony
For a window outside did the window lead to like a street or a drive or was it the window right to the driveway where people could drive up.

47:12.76
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah, it was just the window like on the next to the Porch Fire driveway. So It wasn't even scoops. It wasn't even that close to the Street. So I don't think anyone saw it. Yeah, we just like put we would like tape signs outside like on this. Um, stop signs and stuff like pointing to our house and then we put signs in the window and um, yeah, so I didn't think that's why we didn't get any customers because we really see what's going on but we sat by that window and made it all day for people just waiting for someone to stop by.

47:31.33
Bruce Anthony
Please.

47:47.22
Bruce Anthony
Um.

47:48.59
Bruce Anthony
So you guys have been entrepreneurs for almost twenty years now what's next what? what does the next fifteen to twenty years what are some of the goals that you guys have for the next fifteen to twenty years

47:50.14
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah, the moon.

48:05.52
Aspen and Ashley
Wow, That's a good question. Yeah, um I I think that I mean everything we have so many goals and we are obviously graduating college in.

48:06.76
Bruce Anthony
Okay, let's go 5 Let's not think that far ahead. Let's go 5

48:22.62
Aspen and Ashley
A month. Um, so we're really trying to figure life out and I think we have so many passions that it's hard for us to really choose a direction um because we've kind of just been doing so many different things. But I think we.

48:40.80
Aspen and Ashley
We would really love well I guess I'll just speak for myself. Um, we would really love to continue stage bugs and try to build it up into a bigger program and be able to offer more affordable and accessible programs. Um, and I mean I just really love doing it. So i. Can't imagine giving it up at this point. Um, but I think it is also hard because the other professions that we want to explore are not necessarily in Colorado um, which is where our company is but I think we would love to continue the podcast. We would love to grow it.

49:09.56
Bruce Anthony
In.

49:18.44
Aspen and Ashley
As much as we can. Um I think we we wrote and produced a pilot for a series over the summer um so we would love to be able to get that made. But um, obviously that's a very big ambition. Um, but we really love. Like writing and producing things so we have like a little production company and we would love to be able to keep making things and we both love acting. So I think we ah are going to continue just grinding and auditioning and that kind of stuff and um. We've always wanted to open a bakery. So maybe someday that will be down the line. We've also thought about opening a dinner theater since we love baking and cooking and theater. Um, yeah I don't know it's kind of all jumbled because there's just so many things that we want to do so and we don't know where. Life will take us and what things will be successful and what will not but I think we're just going to um, keep creating as much as we can try to find jobs where we can make some actual money and and continue our passions on the side until they hopefully.

50:26.52
Bruce Anthony
With.

50:33.70
Aspen and Ashley
Take off. Um, oh we're writing a book too that will hopefully be published. It's a christmas book. So hopefully we'll come out next Christmas um yeah what else I don't know.

50:43.31
Bruce Anthony
Yeah.

50:47.18
Aspen and Ashley
Yeah I mean I think you covered it I think um, our short term plan is we have programs. We have summer camps at stagebugs this summer and we'll be continuing the podcast and um, working on getting our book published. Yeah, um. And then I think from there, we both can't really imagine our lives without stage bugs and we can't really imagine our lives without acting and producing and writing and so just finding a way to do all of those things and um.

51:26.55
Aspen and Ashley
We'll see where see where life takes us. Yeah, we like she said just keep creating and doing the things we're passionate about will definitely the podcast is one of my biggest ambitions to continue and grow right now. Um, and then I.

51:45.87
Aspen and Ashley
Think I am going to be focusing a lot on writing because that is a huge passion for me and then um I'm going to try to be a nanny for a while because I love babies just like on the side while we're doing all this stuff And yeah.

51:54.46
Bruce Anthony
There you go who so much. Y'll, Want to do plug everything tell everybody like I said in the intro everything that you guys do will be in the description section and both the audio and video. Um, of this episode but tell everybody from your own mouths where they can find all of your information to get all of this good stuff that you guys are producing.

52:21.71
Aspen and Ashley
Yes, um, well first of all, please check out our podcast. It's called. It's a twin thing you can find it on Spotify or anywhere you listen to your podcasts and then you can watch our web series called quarant twinned that's quarantined but with twin in the middle. Um, just search corn twin on Youtube or you can search up at the summerwins on Youtube. Also you can find us at the summerwins on Instagram and Tiktok and stagebugstheatre.com if you know any kids in Colorado who want to. Participate in theater or um, we of course we always accept donations and we also have a lot of free ways to support us. For example, if you live by a krober you can sign up for community rewards and then basically when you go shopping they donate money to stage bugs for free. So.

53:17.19
Bruce Anthony
Oh wow, That's beautiful.

53:20.20
Aspen and Ashley
Um, just anything like that is always appreciated. Um or you can just see the see what we're offering and um, see the pictures of our two kids. Yeah, yeah, yeah I think I think those are the big things.

53:32.69
Bruce Anthony
Um.

53:35.67
Bruce Anthony
Okay, Ashley Aspen I want to thank you guys so much for coming on the show. Your story is amazing and inspirational as well and it teaches us to follow our dreams. Follow our passions.

53:49.34
Aspen and Ashley
Who get it.

53:53.50
Bruce Anthony
Thank you so much for coming on the show and sharing your story.

53:54.80
Aspen and Ashley
They were. Thank you I should say I forgot when we were plugging stuff if you are interested in learning more about our parents Foundation. You can also check out fetalhealth.org Um I should plug that too. But yeah, thank you? so. So much. This was really amazing getting to talk to you? Yeah, Thank you.

54:12.18
Bruce Anthony
Yeah, thank you so much.