Ever since I was a young boy I have always been artistic. It started with paint covering my hands and clothes; eventually, the paint reached the paper. This evolved into crayons, markers, colored pencils, water colored pencils, and charcoal. And who can forget my earliest introduction to construction, Legos. In Middle School I studied art through Black and White film photography and digital videography. Now in High School I have met the love of my life. Technical Theatre.
I was never one for sports. If you ask my mother about my sporting life she would gladly tell you about the time I had a meltdown on the soccer field because “my whole life I never wanted to play soccer” At the time I was 4. I preferred to spend my time being artistic whether I was painting, drawing my favorite Pokémon, or just doodling in my notebook. In Middle School I studied Black and White film photography. It sounded interesting, so I pursued it. I learned all about the parts of a camera, how to roll and develop film, and make prints.
Then I auditioned for Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music and Art & Performing Arts. I auditioned for Fine Arts and Technical Theatre, and I was accepted for both. When I attended the open house to choose my major, I met a group of tech students and the teacher in charge of the program. They seemed like a big family, and the teacher seemed like a person who cared not only for the program, but for his students. It felt right, so I joined LaGuardia’s Technical Theatre program.
From day one of the Technical Theatre program I knew that this was the right decision. I was fascinated by the environment and the culture. Over the next few months I grew to love Technical Theatre and carpentry, from the smell of freshly cut lumber, to the splinters I pulled out of my hands every day. In January of freshmen year I was chosen to be the Freshmen Technical Director of our school’s talent show case: Rising Stars. This was when I learned that I wanted to become a Technical Director.
I would love to become the Technical Director of a major production and be a carpenter for a professional scene shop. Becoming a stand out Technical Director and carpenter would be hard work, so I knew I was going to have to learn as much as I could. I started going to all of the weekend work calls, stayed later than what was required of me on school days, and focused on improving my skills. Over the course of three years I have put in over five hundred hours of work for perfecting my craft. In these hours I have learned how to use numerous amounts of tools, dozens of construction techniques, welding, and how to lead a crew. All of these skills allow me to reach my goal of becoming a Technical Director.
Not only do I spend a lot of hours working to gain experience, I also do it because I love the work. I love to construct sets, solve problems we encounter, and lead crews. The best part about my work is that it is something to be proud of. At the end of the day I can look up at the set I built and be proud of the art I have created. This makes all of the long nights worth it. Knowing that I can create something beautiful just makes me want to work even harder and continue my craft.
