In the midst of the latest election, it's hard to talk about anything else but politics. But, I wanted to take a pause on that. Not that I'm being oblivious to our current political state, but most of us have had enough, and we need a break. And speaking of taking a break, I've recently taken a break as well, just in another way.
Just recently, our school show of "Once Upon a Mattress" closed. I usually act onstage, but this year I decided to do tech. Most people have asked me questions like "do you miss acting," or "why didn't you act?" And the answer is, no, I didn't miss acting, and I didn't at because I realized it wasn't for me.
So many people think that once they start something, like drama, they need to keep acting or keep doing tech. What they don't realize is that you can easily shift between acting and teching. I'd been acting for three years, and last year, I realized that acting in a show didn't make me happy, and it's not what I wanted anymore. Sure, I'd always thought it would be cool to be in a show, and afterward a child coming up to me and asking for my autograph or a picture. But, even when I did act, no child wanted that from me... instead, they would always walk up to one of the leads; the characters they actually recognized. It made me feel frustrated, after all, I'd put in just as much hard work as them but no one seemed to care. But then I realized that I shouldn't be seeking that from children, that's not what drama is about. So I shifted to tech crew. They're always the unsung heroes: they do so much but are rarely ever recognized, but I was ok with that. In the cast, I always felt like the show had to be perfect, or that so much drama occurred within the cast. But then once I came on tech, it was a whole new atmosphere.
Everyone on tech was so chill. They didn't mind that I was an actor that decided to tech, there wasn't any drama between the tech members. They all were like one big family. Before each of our shows, we always do a power circle, a way for the cast and crew to come together to focus our energies and wish everyone good luck. After the regular power circle, there's always a tech power circle. During this, the tech crew comes together to do the same thing. Then, during the show, the two tech crews on the opposite sides of the stage always have a dance battle. It's experiences like this that make me glad I'm on tech crew.
After the shows over and people I know see me in the lobby, they say, "oh, so you did tech," wondering how come I didn't act. And simply, I tell them "yes," and then I go on to explain how much I enjoyed that. Sometimes people say that they wish they'd done tech at some point, so it makes me glad to know I did both, and I didn't miss out on my opportunity. I'm glad to be a part of the tech crew family.
"Don't go chasing applause and acclaim, in that way lies madness." Ron Swanson, "Parks and Rec."
