The lights, the costumes, the sets. The actors are singing and performing, and the audience is cheering. But the show wouldn’t be possible without all the stagecrafts members behind the scenes.
Monte Vista’s stagecrafts program is currently working on their upcoming production, Little Women. When deciding which show to put on, students will read scripts and take into consideration how many actors are available, if the show will work with the stage, and if there is a role for every stagecrafts group.
Once a production is chosen, the different stagecrafts groups (sets, tech, props, costumes, and hair/makeup) work together to make the production possible. Kate Loughery, a junior at Monte Vista and a member of the stagecrafts program, often works on styling the actors’ hair and makeup for the show. She studies each character individually, their personality traits, and how they’re feeling in every scene before deciding on their hair and makeup look.
“Last year, we took heavy inspiration from the [Mean Girls] broadway musical for Gretchen’s hair, (her hair is so full of secrets), but we put our own twist on it based on the actor’s hair type and color,” Loughery said.
After creating the actors’ hair and makeup looks, she then presents slideshows and moodboards to share her ideas with the rest of the stagecrafts program so that they can coordinate with each other.
The stagecrafts class environment is highly collaborative. The props group is crafting their own designs, actors are going on Savers runs to buy costumes, and everyone is using power tools to build sets.
“[Stagecrafts] is what you make of it. The more you put into the class, the more you learn, and you’ll have a better experience,” Loughery said.
Stagecrafts members who are newer to the program know less about various aspects of production, such as operating lighting and sound. They often learn from the more experienced stagecrafts members, and the skills that they adapt can be utilized outside of the theater.
“I learned how to do layers- it’s so easy, actually,” Loughery said. “I cut one of my friend’s hair during the comedy show last year, and that was really fun. We pick up all kinds of side skills.”
After weeks of working on the production, opening night rolls around. Tensions are high, but there is a buzz of excitement in the air. Stagecrafts members and actors all come together and eat dinner as a group before the show, and they carry out other pre-show rituals to help get themselves in the right mindset.
Opening night can often be nerve-racking. Sometimes, actors have to multitask and get into hair, makeup, and costumes while they’re still eating. In addition, stagecrafts members must be alert for malfunctions so that they can make any necessary last-minute adjustments.
“Last year, during a comedy show, one of our actors had a quick change—which is really fast—and he almost went on stage without pants,” Loughery said.
Loughery enjoys working with all the stagecrafts groups and the actors. The highly collaborative stagecrafts program allows her to create shows and performances to be proud of.
“I never would have thought that we could have a real production that’s actually big and [high] quality at a high school,” Loughery said. “But everyone works really hard, and I love how we can create our own world onstage.”
