Our In Da Club series is an in-depth Q&A aimed at giving readers a look at one of the school’s clubs. If would like your club involved, please send us an email at [email protected].

The Theater program will host Love/Sick this weekend. Junior Celeste Tomaselli sat down with The Forest Scout to describe the hard work that goes on behind the scenes.

Describe tech as a whole.

“Tech is the building block of theatre. Tech is all the lights, all the sounds and microphones, and all of the sets. Tech is everything you need to make a performance look and flow above and beyond.”

 What is the crew working on now?

“The crew is currently working on developing the set and technical aspects of the play. We are currently focusing on developing a new kind of set for Love/Sick that we haven’t tried before.”

 Who is this year’s MVP so far? Why?

“In a group like tech there can never really be one MVP. We work as a group and that’s what’s so great about tech. We are all helping each other accomplish tasks. Every aspect of tech, whether it be lights and sound or set design, has at least a couple people working on it at all times. On top of that, this year we’ve worked more hours and welcomed more new faces than ever before!”

 Tell us about Ms. Toledano. What is she like as an advisor?

“Ms. T is our new Technical Director this year. She oversees everything we as students do in the theatre, and she helps us improve by teaching us new skills. She is extremely knowledgeable when it comes to the theatre, and she has helped us learn many tricks we may not have known before. She also makes sure that we understand everything we’re doing, so if a problem happens we can fix it on our own and fix it quickly.”

What kind of person would be interested in joining?

“I think anyone can join tech. We have a little something for everyone. If you like hands-on-work you can focus on building sets. If you’re more artistic, you can help paint sets and even pick props specific to the themes of the plays we do. If you’re more into technology, you can learn how to program microphones and even learn how to develop your own sound cues, which is my personal favorite. You can even learn how to program all the lights and hang out in the ceiling of the RMA!”

 What is your favorite part of tech crew?

“My favorite part of tech crew would be the people. I’ve made amazing and life long friends. We always have a great time together no matter what we have to get done or how much we have to get done. Everyone makes it worthwhile for each other.”

What is your favorite show you have worked on?

“I would have to say my favorite show I’ve worked on was this year’s frosh/soph She Kills Monsters. I got the opportunity to design the sound and it was amazing. There was so much good music to put in, and I even got to develop several of my own custom cues. On top of that, I met a lot of great people. I think I laughed the most during those rehearsals than I ever have. Tech can be stressful sometimes but She Kills Monsters was mostly fun and I could actually enjoy what I was doing and enjoy working with the people around me.”

What are some common misconceptions about the club?

“The first is that it’s only for nerds and the second is that if you do tech you can’t do any other extracurriculars. First, theatre attracts all kinds of people. Just because you’re in tech, doesn’t mean you have to sit alone in the sound booth all day (although I have been known to do this). You can learn all kinds of useful real-world skills all while being surrounded by a group of kids your age. Tech kids are actually pretty social when you get them in the right setting. The second misconception is that tech is a time suck. This isn’t always true. If you can’t make a rehearsal you can’t make a rehearsal. You just have to let someone know ahead of time. I myself do three other activities and always have conflicts but it’s okay because I make sure people know when I’m going to be missing.”

What should you do if you want to join tech?

“If you are interested in joining tech you can contact any of the students in tech. You can also send an email to Ms.T, at [email protected] or just show up the next time we meet. Tech usually meets during the week Tuesday-Thursday from 3:30-6:00 in the RMA or DMT. If that doesn’t work for you, you can show up in the RMA or DMT any time on Saturdays from 9am-4pm. There will always be someone there to welcome you with open arms!”