Inside the booth, on the catwalk, and adjacent to the stage of Centennial Hall works the stage crew. Primarily supporting the production of the fall play and spring musical, stage crew offers students an arts niche unlike any other.
The theater department clearly cultivates high levels of acting and singing on the stage, as the community witnessed in last weekend’s performances of Beauty and the Beast. Off stage, the Haverford stage crew quietly shines, helping put on various productions without interruption since the height of COVID.
The spotlight rarely seems to be fixed on stage crew, and maybe that is the way it is supposed to be.
“If we do our jobs right, you will never know we were there,” scenic designer and Centennial Hall Director Mr. Dex Woodward said. Alongside Mr. Woodward, Centennial Hall Technical Assistant Mx. Victoria Gill-Gomez exercises great influence over stage crew. The two have established an environment that is open, fostering strong connections not only between students but also between themselves and the students.
“It is interesting how tightly knit we are with the faculty,” Sixth Form stage crew member Reilly Pryma said. “I mean I love Dex, I love Victoria, basically everyone on stage crew does.”
Along with the relationships created through stage crew, the day-to-day activities can be enjoyable and rewarding.
“Every day was pretty fun,” Sixth Form former stage crew member Amir Ibrahim said.
During his time in stage crew during his Fifth Form year, Ibrahim occupied multiple roles.
“I worked in the workshop, building props for The Farnsworth Invention,” Ibrahim said.
In the workshop, stage crew students develop skills in carpentry, craftsmanship, and painting in order to create props and even create set pieces such as walls for each production. Typically the workshop is occupied more in the weeks leading up to the show, whereas during the final week of preparations—tech week—stage crew students often occupy different roles less to do with preparation and more with performance.
“During the show [and tech week] I was assistant stage manager, working on stage right,” Ibrahim said. “[In this role] I have a script, and I take notes on where I’m supposed to bring stuff in, so when stuff comes in and out from my side, that is my responsibility,”
Compared to earlier preparations for the show, tech week offers a new level of strain and pressure to the activity.
Lighting designer Reilly Pryma said, “One of the more difficult things is show runs. The actors are able to rehearse for months and months, but we have to get tech, sounds, lights, and transitions in one week. Also you don’t really know the blocking [the movement of the actors] until you get into tech week, so it’s [about learning] quick.”
Even outside of tech week, finding consensus on what the play or musical should look like can be difficult.
“Trying to make creative decisions while fulfilling the director’s vision can be hard to work with,” Pryma said.
“Get involved. Stage crew is the place to be if you want to be a part of the show, but not in the show.”
Sam Jiru ’24
Accompanying these specific difficulties is the sheer time commitment itself. Stage crew is open from 3:30-5:00 every day, and Mr. Woodward and Mx. Gill Gomez expect stage crew members to attend at least three, preferably four sessions during the week. Not to mention the increased time requirement during tech week, where students are tasked to stay from 5:30-9:00 pm.
Due to this, stage crew offers one credit for completion of one season, such as completing the fall play, and two credits for year-long involvement, such as the fall play and spring musical. For those who need a sports credit, stage crew is a fine opportunity to fill that space, and many members of stage crew believe that the sports credit serves as a strong recruitment incentive. Outside of its use as a sports credit, there seems to exist a consensus among stage crew members that the activity is thoroughly worth it and that more people should join.
“Get involved,” said Sixth Form stage crew head Sam Jiru. “Stage crew is the place to be if you want to be a part of the show, but not in the show.”
Despite this, some think that stage crew and its leaders could do more in terms of advertisement. While there is an email sent at the beginning of the year about the opportunity to students and parents, this can easily be lost in the early flood of emails.
“I think it is a lot of [hearing it from] friends,” Ibrahim said. “I don’t think stage crew is advertised a lot.”
In spite of little self-advertisement and a tight-knit culture, stage crew does not have an insurmountable learning curve. Beginners are able to learn, and they grow into effective members of the team quickly.
Mr. Woodward said, “I’ve had several people come through the scene shop here and work with carpentry, having never picked up a screw gun or saw before and then discovering, ‘Oh hey, I’m actually a good carpenter.’”
Outside of the physical learning process involved with picking up stage crew, the activity also offers students the keys to a new social environment that has the added objective of preparing them for life beyond the arts.
According to the school’s website, “As a member of the cast or stage crew, your son will create relationships with all different types of people, he will learn how to trust others and to trust himself, he will practice communication and collaboration, and he will gain empathy and perspective.” This mission statement certainly speaks to Mr. Woodward, who instills these values into the stage crew.
“We try to be a safe space here and as welcoming as possible to everybody, I want them to be able to learn both physical skills and interpersonal skills, even if they only take theater in high school,” Mr. Woodward said.
Regardless of whether stage crew students decide to further pursue a career in theater, through his own personal experience, Mr. Woodward proves that the relationships created through theater last a lifetime.
“The theater community is such a small community that these interpersonal relationships are so strong and important,” Mr. Woodward said. “To this day occasionally I have people come through venues or in the area that I’ve worked with years ago, and they still show up.”
