Sydney Stephenson Archives - Dramatics Magazine Online

Change Happens

Sydney Stephenson — Mon, 13 Mar 2023 18:52:43 +0000

Change happens fast at the International Thespian Festival. #ThesFest is the biggest theatre festival for students each summer. I didn’t expect my experiences there to affect me as powerfully as they did, but now I tell every Thespian I know: Go to ITF! Here are three ways to use your time at the festival to grow yourself, your resume, and your career.

Change Happens in Workshops

Among all the offerings at ITF, workshops are one of the biggest draws. There are workshops on everything from dance to technical theatre to writing, and even specialized areas like stage combat. Teaching artists and professionals lead the workshops: spending time with these experts is an experience full of opportunities to ask questions or try new skills.

Attending a variety of workshops is a huge step you can take for yourself – go to sessions on topics you love and also try several that focus on skills you don’t yet have. These workshops are hands-on opportunities to get feedback from the best of the best. They help us get ready for our careers after high school, so don’t be afraid to stretch yourself into new and exciting areas. And don’t be afraid of trying something new – there are thousands of other Thespians at ITF with all levels of experience. It’s a supportive environment perfect for trying something new.

Change Happens When We Network

At ITF 2022, I got the chance to be the stage manager for both the commissioned play, Spring Break by Joe Calarco, and the commissioned musical, ERNXST, or The Importance of Being by Bree Lowdermilk, Kait Kerrigan, and Justin Elizabeth Sayre. Both shows gave me experiences I will never forget.

The biggest takeaway from these two unforgettable experiences was the networking I did. By working on two separate creative teams at the very beginning of the creative process of new works of theatre, I got to watch the way professionals in the industry worked, gain real life experience, and make connections that I’ll use in my future theatrical career.

Another way to network at ITF is by connecting with all the exhibitors present. ITF brings in the best in the theatre industry, and the exhibit hall is a great place for students and troupe directors to learn about new products and meet with industry professionals who make a living in their respective fields. Chat them up, learn something new, and make a professional connection!

Opportunities Are Everywhere

ITF offers so much more than just an opportunity to perform and receive a Thespy^® Award. Opportunities really are everywhere: attending workshops, meeting with representatives from college theatre programs from all across the country, watching chapter select one-acts and main stage shows, meeting other Thespians and making friends, and possibly even going to rehearsals.

Other opportunities you may not know about include being part of a commissioned work written exclusively for a debut at ITF or participating in student-written 24 Hour Plays. College auditions are another huge opportunity that rising seniors can take advantage of at festival (be sure to add this opportunity when you register for ITF). Connecting with representatives from schools and learning things about their programs in person is SO MUCH better than flipping through a booklet you received in the mail. Plus, by going through the college auditions at ITF, you get a jump on the process and expand your access. Dozens of college theatre programs are always looking for new talent at ITF.

My experience with the International Thespian Society and its parent company, the Educational Theatre Association, have been unique. I didn’t go to #ThesFest expecting it to jumpstart my career and make me fall even more in love with the arts. When I became a member of ITS, I felt like I had officially become an artist and creator. Going to ITF, I was excited to compete in the Thespy Awards on an international level. I didn’t know I would get to stage manage two shows, meet and work with writers and producers who make a living doing what they love, lead two casts of high school artists (who I still occasionally catch up with), participate in college auditions and callbacks, and get into one of the college programs I auditioned for! I wouldn’t be where I am in my technical theatre career without the opportunities ITF gave me.

Everything that EdTA and ITF offer to theatre students is incredible. By providing these opportunities to young performers and technical artists, ITF opens doors that can’t be opened anywhere else. Take the next step in your career by planning your trip to Bloomington, where you’ll grow your craft, network, and take every opportunity it provides!

Sydney Stephenson is a writer and stage manager in high school. Go behind the scenes of her latest projects on Instagram.

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Stage Manage on Broadway

Sydney Stephenson — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 21:25:49 +0000

So, you want to stage manage on Broadway. Great! Let a dreamer who is now a do-er of just that tell you how he got there. You’ll be inspired and get a few easy tips you can use.

Jereme Kyle Lewis has been stage managing on Broadway for 10 years. He says, “The work is hard. The road to get [to Broadway] is hard. But the payoff to be living my dreams and to be a working artist is worth all the late nights, all the times I was told no or when I didn’t get the gig.”

Some of his credits include M. Butterfly, directed by Julie Taymor, Caroline, or Change, and his current show, MJ the Musical. Lewis joined the stage management team for MJ the week of the Tonys, and in a bit of a whirlwind will be leaving soon to start work on his 11th Broadway show, New York, New York, composed by John Kandar and Lin-Manuel Miranda and directed by Susan Stroman. This will be the first show he has been part of from the beginning of production.

Stage Manage on Broadway: Q&A with Jereme Kyle Lewis

Jereme Kyle Lewis

DRAMATICS: What is the hardest part of your job?

LEWIS: “The time commitment and schedule. There is so much we do outside of the standard eight shows a week. I’m here twice a week for understudy rehearsals and we are currently putting in replacement members of the company since we are in year two. I’m basically at the theater from 12:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday. In addition, there is the matinee on Sunday and occasional rehearsals or an evening show on Tuesday.”

DRAMATICS: As a high school student, did you see yourself where you are right now?
LEWIS: “I knew I would be in theatre in some way, but never did I imagine I would be working on my 10th Broadway show. There are several days I find myself walking through Times Square to work and have to pinch myself to make sure it’s real! Truly living the dream and I am so humbled to be doing so.”

DRAMATICS: Can you pinpoint a specific moment in your career you felt like you had made it?
LEWIS: “I know the exact moment. The year 2013; the show The Trip to Bountiful. The moment it hit me, that I was living my actual dream, was when I called the show for the first time. I did my top of show check-ins, standbys, and called the opening sequence: the scrim rose, lights came up on Ms. Tyson sitting in a rocking chair humming a spiritual, and the audience burst into applause. In that moment I realized where I stood and what an honor and dream I was living.”

DRAMATICS: How do you deal with work/life balance?
LEWIS: “It’s a hard thing to do, but vital to surviving in this business. For me, it’s the little moments. If I have an hour break between calls, I take it—which can be hard to do because there’s always work that can be done. I do not answer emails on my days off. I fully disconnect and walk away. I meet friends who are working on other shows. I go for walks on 20-minute rehearsal breaks. I get my nails done, or go dancing. Pretty much anything to bring a smile to my face allows me to recharge so I can bring my best self to work the next day.”

DRAMATICS: What is a piece of advice for a high school student pursuing a career in theatre?
LEWIS: “Never say ‘no’ to yourself! In the early part of my career, I would send my resumé to anyone or any email address I could find attached to a theater. Through that I had some random opportunities. Even if it wasn’t directly related to stage management, I showed up and did the best I could. By saying ‘yes’ I got amazing hands-on experience. i got to learn nitty-gritty details of a gig that I would never learn from a textbook or class. And I got to network with working professionals who I am still friends with and work with on the regular. They have become my colleagues, my sounding board, my support, and my family.”

The arts industry provides so many people with so many opportunities to grow as an artist. By taking every opportunity given to you, you’re not only growing yourself but you’re growing a larger network of connections. From front of house work, to wardrobe, props, carpenters, electricians, stage door operators, company managers, and so many more. In theatre, doors usually close quicker than they open. Sometimes you must open them for yourself. If someone closes a door on you, find a way to open another. You owe it to yourself to keep growing your art.

Sydney Stephenson is a writer and stage manager in high school. Go behind the scenes of her latest projects on Instagram @side.stage.with.syd.

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