By Zahra Kizaraly
When we think about theatre, we often think about actors. They’re at the forefront of what we see when watching a play or musical. They sing, dance, and act on stage to put on a beautiful show for audiences. But who designs the costumes for the actors to wear? Who creates the set for the actors to walk on? Who programs the lighting effects on stage? Who keeps the actors and crew on task? TECHNICIANS!
Technicians, or techs for short, do everything that the audience doesn’t see. Designers create the sets, costumes, and props that the actors walk across, wear, and use. Techs enhance actors’ performances by spotlighting them onstage and strapping them into a microphone. Technicians are slick in the darkness, moving around backstage to pull the curtain on or push a set piece off. They call the shots and make all the magic come together. Yet, they rarely receive recognition for all the hard work they do.
At Westmont, we have some of the most talented student technicians and designers working in our theatre department. For the past three months, these technicians and designers have been working tirelessly to put the spring musical, “9-5,” on its feet. This massive show has hundreds of costumes, a two-story office set, unique sound effects, strobing lights, and multiple mobile platforms.
Keep reading to learn about different technical departments and the student designers who carry Westmont’s Theatre Department. Let’s celebrate those who never get enough applause!
Name: Alisa Shpolyansky
Grade: 12th
Position on Production Team: Production Stage Manager
Describe your job in three words: Chaotic, coordinating, leadership
What does your job entail?
My job entails running rehearsals, taking notes, and keeping track of where things are and what needs to happen.
What do you do during the show?
During shows, I call all the cues and make sure things happen when they should.
What is your favorite part of your job?
Probably calling shows because I get to see everything happen at the same time. Very satisfying!
What is your favorite part of theatre?
The community. I’ve done a lot of different jobs, so I can’t choose one favorite thing.
Name: Ruby King
Grade: 10th
Position on Production Team: Set Designer
Describe your job in three words: Sawdust, drawing, painting
What does your job entail?
I design the set. That involves reading the script and figuring out all the set pieces we need. And then, I figure out how I want them to look and research for the time period. Then, we figure out how to build it and sometimes that can be very complicated. We figure out colors and we paint all of it.
What do you do during the show?
I’m on deck, which means I move all the things on and off stage. I make sure all the set pieces are where they’re supposed to be before they’re going on stage and all that stuff.
What is your favorite part of your job?
Seeing it when it’s all finished because it’s this thing you’ve been designing for months is actually there. It’s really, I don’t know, it’s kind of in awe that it’s actually there now.
What is your favorite part of theatre?
How fun it is. And the people are really nice.
Name: Noella Thu
Grade: 12th
Position on Production Team: Lighting Designer
Describe your job in three words: Preparation, programming, performance
What does your job entail?
The job of lighting design can be widely or roughly split into three different sections, the first being preparation. I read the script and then set up all the lights by hanging and then patching them into the lighting board, which we used to control our lights. The second part is programming, where we actually write the cues that will be seen on stage by the audience. The third part is performances, where we just run the cues.
What do you do during the show?
Like I said, we just run the cues. Sometimes if there are things I need to fix or if Jeffrey Bengford [Known as “Mr. B” to Westmont’s Theatre Department] has something that he’d like changed, I will do that live. Usually, the cues that are recorded are what you will see on stage.
What is your favorite part of your job?
My favorite part of my job is probably writing the cues themselves. Even though there’s a lot of pressure to get things right, it’s a lot of fun. It’s really fun getting to see what you worked on for so long on stage.
What is your favorite part of theatre?
My favorite part of theatre is probably the people. I know, everyone’s answering that. For a less cliché answer, I really like seeing everything come together after all the hours I put in it and all the hours everyone else put in it. It’s really cool seeing everything come together and make our show.
Name: Katie Lee
Grade: 10th
Position on Production Team: Assistant Costume Designer
Describe your job in three words: Clothes, wigs, measuring
What does your job entail?
I’m one of the costume designers, which means that I pick out what the actors wear during the show.
What do you do during the show?
During the show, I’m the greenroom manager, which means I make sure that actors have all their costumes and help them if they need help.
What is your favorite part of your job?
I like my job because I get to pick out what the actors wear. 🙂
What is your favorite part of theatre?
I like theatre because it’s fun. You get to meet people and see shows.
Name: Margaret Donley
Grade: 11th
Position on Production Team: Technical Director
Describe your job in three words: Communicate, assign, create
What does your job entail?
What I do as a technical director is keep people on track, assign jobs to people who come in to help, support the flow of communication between the different departments and the director, and just help wherever I can. Mostly in set, because that’s usually the biggest job.
What do you do during the show?
During the show, I make sure there are enough people where they need to be and help things run smoothly. I also make sure that everyone can communicate with each other, so things can go as well as they can.
What is your favorite part of your job?
My favorite part of the job is that the pressure’s not solely on me in a specific department, like it is with some other jobs in the theatre. Instead, I get to help others with the pressure, spreading it more evenly, so no one gets overworked. I try the best I can. 🙂
What is your favorite part of theatre?
My favorite part of theatre is just the little moments and memories with the other crew members.
Name: Mona Khodabandelou
Grade: 11th
Position on Production Team: Sound Designer
Describe your job in three words: Sound, loud, cable
What does your job entail?
I’m currently the Sound Designer for “9-5,” so my job entails that I search for the necessary SFX (or sound effects) that my director wants. I mic up actors during rehearsals and shows, and I’m responsible for any and all mics that we need to use.
What do you do during the show?
During the show, I run mics from the soundboard up in the Sound Booth, making sure actors can be heard over the loud orchestra.
What is your favorite part of your job?
I don’t really have a favorite part of the job, but micing and taking mics off actors is probably the most enjoyable part.
What is your favorite part of theatre?
I don’t have a favorite part of theatre. 🙂
Hopefully, next time you head to a theater, you’ll clap a little louder for the technicians and all of their creativity. Try to notice the set design, intricate costumes, handmade props, beautiful lights, and all the technical elements and how they help enhance the story you see on stage.