Perspectives: Ellie
I'm surrounded by some pretty amazing people here at Sight & Sound. I'm enjoying writing this blog and giving you all a glimpse at this experience, but mine isn't the only perspective! There's 11 months left, and 11 other students who are also learning and growing and experiencing new things. It would be a shame to not take a peek at this whole Conservatory thing through their eyes!
So each month I'm hoping to have one of them write in and give you their viewpoint on what's been happening. I'm calling this my Perspective Series (because I think it sounds cool). And my first guest post? One of my roommates who also happens to be one of the most bubbly, excited, and organized people I've ever met: my dear friend Ellie!
The following blog post is composed of Ellie's words, and I added the pictures (so captions are from me!) Please enjoy reading about how this has been going through the eyes of my sweet roommate. And Ellie, thanks so much for being willing to write in!
Hi readers! Wow, Kinsey’s blog – I’ve finally made the top! ;)
My name is Ellie, by the way, and I’m one of Kinsey’s roommates. It’s been such an awesome pleasure getting to know her the past month plus, and I can’t wait to spend the rest of the year with her! Love you, Kinsey!
I’m 22 years old, from North Carolina (just outside of Raleigh), am the second oldest of seven kids, a college grad, and homeschool alumni!
So, how did I get to the Sight & Sound Conservatory you might be wondering?
I’ve been doing musical theatre since I was seven with a Christian youth theatre group called Spiritual Twist Productions (www.spiritualtwist.com). In my 15 years at STP, I was not only a performer, but volunteered as a teacher’s assistant, lighting manager, make-up artist, prop manager, stage manager, assistant director, and director. In March 2016, I had the immense pleasure of directing a show I wrote! Ever since I was little I LOVED performing and telling stories, but I never thought I’d go anywhere with it.
Ellie's cast, the performers of her original show, Rumpelstiltskin: A Tale of Gold.
When I was 19, God used a lot of different circumstances to give me a new direction. I finally saw that He’d given me gifts and passion in theatre for a reason and that I could use them to glorify Him. In my search for professional training, God led me to the Conservatory. He got me through SO much to get here—of which the entire story could be it’s own blog post! Needless to say, He is AMAZING and I am so incredibly thankful to be here!!!
So, moving on—Kinsey wanted me to give y’all a bit of my perspective on the process thus far.
Honestly, I think one of the biggest things I’ve loved, nay, ADORED about rehearsals is the detail, structure, and organization put into everything! You may not be able to tell from my tone, but I am, in fact, “type A”…though really, I’d call myself a free-spirited Type A-ist…if that’s a thing…which it is now.
Anyway—they are so stinkin’ organized! Growing up in a youth theatre, the differences were (wonderfully) shocking at first! We’re working with professional directors and stage managers—people who went to school for this, who’ve done this a million times, who are getting paid to do this. Obviously there’s going to be some major differences from back home.
Our director, Wally Calederon, is AMAZING! From day one, he knew the blocking he wanted for almost the entire show for every. Single. Person. And this is a cast of 50+ people, y’all. Again, type A here—I can’t tell you how much I love this kind of detail! He’s got so much riding on him, but he manages to stay very calm and collected, while also taking time to check in with us students and make sure we’re doing ok. From day one, he knew everyone’s names! 50+, y’all. I can’t wait to see how he takes us through the next two weeks (yikes!) before the show run starts!
I adore our stage managers—Curt, Amy, Jasmine, Amberly, and Lydia. They are the backbone to Wally’s skeleton! They’re more in the background, but they do SO much to keep things working like clockwork. Curt is primarily in charge of the schedule and announces the next day’s rehearsal time before we leave each day. He’s also our (students's) liaison if we need anything or have any questions about the show process. He is a super cool guy! Whenever I talk with him, he has a big ol’ smile on his face. You can tell he loves his job and he’s very good at it! Anyway. Super cool.
And this really leads to another point—I’m astounded by how much goes into putting on a production like this! There are SO many people involved—lights, sound, props, costumes, deck technicians (i.e. stage hands), animal handlers, electronics, special effects, actors, etc.—and the stage managers have their hands in all of it. So many plates spinning. So many things to coordinate. Yet from my perspective, at least, they do it seamlessly!
They also don’t abuse their authority over all these people. The SMs (stage managers) are some of the most gracious people I’ve met here. They know how to keep things moving, but are ready and willing to take on problems and questions the moment they’re needed without being condescending. They’re as quick to shush as they are to get us praying!
Our fantastic stage management team was kind enough to pose for a pic after rehearsal. Me, Amberly, Jasmine, Curt, Kara (the children's stage coordinator), Lydia, and of course Ellie!
And these SMs are going to be with us throughout the year! After rehearsals, Wally will move on to other things, and the SMs are in charge of keeping the show the way Wally wanted it. They call that keeping the “show integrity”. This is just another level to the SMs job and skill—not only do they need to keep the technical things afloat (haha…Jonah…afloat? ;) ), but they watch over the creative side as well! For example, if any actor starts doing something that they weren’t originally asked to do that draws away from the story Wally wanted to tell, the SMs will talk with that person.
So cool, right?! If I don’t make it as a performer, I think I’d love to be a stage manager. Never a dull moment!
I feel like I could go on and on about how amazing our leaders are, but I think you get the gist.
In conclusion… ;)
I am greatly enjoying the rehearsal process (though it can be exhausting at times) and the cast and crew I get to work with! I cannot WAIT to get into the show run!!!
Ellie, over and out.