Cherry Stephens
Photo: New Photography Studios
Cherry Stephens has quickly become a major name in PWA. In just her 3rd year as a professional wrestler, she captured the Soul Of PWA Championship. But, unlike many of her peers, Cherry didn't grow up as a lifelong wrestling fan. In fact, as Cherry explained to Pario, her wrestling journey has actually been "a bit backwards".
Cherry recalled how she came to try out at PWA, "I was never super interested in wrestling. But, my housemate wanted to do a tryout & asked me to come along with him. I thought that was a really interesting idea just to try it out. Even if I didn't really think about taking it up seriously."
Looking back this random experience would change the course of Cherry's life. Not only would she discover that she had a natural acumen for wrestling. But wrestling would also provide her with a direction & structure for her life.
"I felt a little bit lost in life at that time," Cherry reflected quite honestly. "So it was the right time in my life for me to get into wrestling."
New Ideas & Perspectives
Coming into wrestling with little to no knowledge actually proved to be beneficial. Cherry didn't have any preconceived ideas about what wrestling should be. So, she was able to approach the entire process with a fresh perspective.
"I think about things from a non-wrestling perspective. So when I first started coming in with ideas they were usually a bit out there. Sometimes those ideas would be good. Sometimes the more experienced wrestlers would explain why they wouldn't fit within wrestling."
With no real context for wrestling training, Cherry had to quickly study up. Something which she was naturally inclined to do as a self-confessed "bookworm".
Gaining Experience
From the outset of her in-ring career, Cherry was pitting herself against the best of the best. In 3 of her first 4 matches, Cherry faced off against Jessica Troy, Madison Eagles & Shazza McKenzie. An "invaluable" experience, even if it was intimidating.
"Getting to be in the ring with those more experienced performers & having them guide me through my early stages was very lucky. It was definitely comforting knowing that I was in safe hands. I guess Madison was a little bit intimidating because everyone is intimidated by her," Cherry said with a sheepish giggle.
Once Cherry gained that experience she began to develop her character. With her character, Cherry wanted to maintain touchstones to her real-life personality. Thus the Cherry Stephens character that we see today was born.
"To be honest I am a little bit awkward in real life, so I wanted to keep that in my character," explained Cherry. "I thought ‘why don't I just build my character around my notebook & around me continuing to learn & grow."
Blending Passions
As mentioned previously Cherry is a fastidious learner. Whenever she's not studying wrestling she's studying her other passion for Japanese language.
Passions that unbeknownst to Cherry would soon come to cross over quite regularly.
As Cherry continued her wrestling studies she discovered New Japan Pro Wrestling. Then she found Stardom, an all-women's wrestling promotion in Japan. And before she knew it she had new idols & new goals.
"A lot of the girls in Stardom are people I really aspire to be like... I would love for the Stardom girls to come over if they could. Or if I ever had the opportunity to train or have 1 match in Stardom that would be cool too."
Until that opportunity arises, Cherry is focused on being an amazing representative for PWA.
"Unlike a lot of the other wrestlers who have had their dream of getting signed, I never had that. For me just being able to wrestle on PWA shows, which I hold in the highest regard, is a big achievement."
Follow Cherry’s Creative Journey on social media at: @CherryStephens_PW
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