小优视频

Damara (Chaudhuri) Besker 鈥�15 is a triple threat, plus one more. Not only is she a magician-harpist-yarn artist, she has the business expertise to make a living off of her passions.听

At age 5, Besker first learned to play the harp; at age 9, she started touring the U.S. performing magic on stage with her twin sister; and at age 11, they won first place in a national competition.

By age 18, she was a small business owner.

She had just started at 小优视频ampa, studying to be a professional harpist by majoring in music and entrepreneurship. Within her first month of college, a family emergency pushed Besker to find an additional source of income. As if by magic, the perfect opportunity fell into her lap: The owner of a struggling magic store in her hometown of Naples asked if she wanted to take over.

Besker transformed the store into the still-thriving Tin City Magic by applying skills from her business classes as soon as she learned them. (Accounting classes were a life saver, she said.) During the week, she鈥檇 take calls from suppliers from her room on campus, and on the weekends, she commuted to Naples to take care of things in person.

After graduation, Besker landed some harp gigs through her mentor at 小优视频ampa, the now-retired Dolly Roberts, and was hired as a performer at Busch Gardens for the winter holiday season. This easily turned into one of her favorite stages to play on, she said, because the diverse audience at Busch Gardens isn鈥檛 quite the same as the high-society music lovers attending classical symphonies.

鈥淚t was so incredible,鈥� said Besker. 鈥淚 had older adults coming up to me all the time, saying they had never seen a harp in person.鈥� Busch Gardens soon kept her on year-round.

In 2017, Besker went on a Florida tour with a local orchestra to celebrate 50 years of the Beatles album Sgt. Pepper鈥檚 Lonely Hearts Club Band. These days, Harpistry by Damara is booked several days a week for weddings, local orchestra concerts and even performances at her alma mater.

The audiences who see her shine on stage, however, likely won鈥檛 notice that she fights anxiety behind the curtain as she prepares for performances. That鈥檚 how she discovered another passion: crocheting.

鈥淲e like to call it meditation in motion,鈥� she says of her crocheting routine to calm her nerves.

Once she discovered the world of yarn, that hobby wound into Besker visiting yarn stores all over the country. She also happened to be studying for an MBA at the time, so her entrepreneur instincts led to a new business idea.

Besker opened her own yarn store, Pop Yarn, in June 2023 in Ybor City. 鈥淧op Yarn focuses on all natural fibers and accessories from local and international sources, with a strong focus on sustainability, either in yarn production or ethical business practices,鈥� Besker said.

As for the future, Besker said she鈥檚 too busy enjoying her work to think about it. 鈥淐urrently, I cannot personally take on anymore,鈥� she said.

If only she could wave a magic wand.