Shane Strawbridge grew up in a small East Texas town called Lone Star - a place with almost no exposure to the arts. Strawbridge participated in what arts he could find during his younger years - finding himself involved in everything from elementary Christmas plays to the high school marching band. His first actual stage experience in high school was an accident. While walking through the auditorium before his high school's rehearsal of Grease, he was heard singing along with the accompaniment and was recruited on the spot to play the Teen Angel. The week of opening, another cast member was removed from the production due to discipline problems, and Strawbridge was asked to step in. After this show and one other foray into his high school's One Act Play competition, his involvement with theatre would take a long break. This was due to a glancing comment by an upperclassman in college. While contemplating whether or not to audition for the fall musical his freshman year of college at Howard Payne University, he overheard someone behind him say "Don't bother, you won't get cast anyway." So he didn't audition - for anything - for the next 3 years.
In 2003, Strawbridge was going about his normal day in college when he and his friend John Easterling happened upon an audition announcement for Alpha Psi Omega's production of "Hank the Cowdog: Thank you, Lord for Makin' Gals". They both attended the audition for fun, hoping, at most, to be cast as Rip and Snort, two minor supporting players. They were cast as the two leads, Hank and Drover. And since then, Strawbridge has been going non-stop.
