I began Stage Managing in High School when I stumbled into a role that needed to be filled and ended up loving it.

I Stage Managed all through High School and then went on to get a BFA in Technical Theatre (focusing on Stage Management and Costume Design) from Northern Illinois University. While I was at NIU I worked as Assistant Stage Manager and then Stage Manager on 9 shows. In my senior year I was voted to be “Head Stage Manager”, a paid role where I mentored, taught, and acted as a resource for the other Stage Management Students. My role was to support the other Stage Managers, ensure the season was on schedule, and act as a resource for them wherever needed. This involved being a backup for rehearsals, attending Production Meetings, and going to Technical Rehearsals for every show in the season (15/16 shows per season) to assist the Stage Manager in whatever way they needed. I found a lot of pride and enjoyment in this role.

I have a background working with children and through my role as Head Stage Manager I found those skills were cross compatible. In working with children you learn how to explain things in a way the child can understand, and you also learn that all children learn things differently and benefit from different explanations. Adults are not that different from children, we all learn differently and have different ways of looking at and understanding the world. As Stage Managers our role is to communicate effectively, and to do that we have to find the common denominator in our mutual understanding of a procedure or schedule or script; working with children has helped me understand this need in a unique way.

During school I took several professional roles acting as a Company Management Intern in Chicago for two shows at the Organic Theatre Company, “Out of the Blue” and “The Good Doctor.” I was the Stage Management Intern in Sharon, Connecticut, working on “Minor Character: Six Translations of Uncle Vanya at the Same Time”, “Far Away” and a production of “The Music Man.” I also worked as the Assistant Stage Manager for Eclipse Theatre Company’s production of “Little Flower of East Orange.”

After I graduated I had some unfortunate health issues that arose so I had to take time away from theatre to heal and get back on my feet. After my recovery I was hired by my alma mater to act as a Stage Manager for them for a virtual production of “Angels in America” and later a production of “Kernel of Sanity.” I then worked for the Glass Apple Theatre Company as the ASM for “Lighthouses in the Desert” at the Raven Theatre.

Since then I have had to focus on my personal life and found that my skills in Stage Management were valuable soft skills that many employers look for: Time Management, Good and Thorough Communication, documentation of policy and procedures, and following a task through to completion. This has led to me working as an Operations Specialist for Private Investment Firms where I am responsible for documenting our internal work procedures, internal policy documents, managing projects and tasks, and training other coworkers on those policies and procedures.