Behind the curtain

The historic Hibbing High School auditorium is alive with movement; people are whispering; kids are babbling and pointing at the hand-painted ceilings; all eyes are focused on the closed grand curtain. Suddenly, the hundred-year-old chandelier lights begin to dim, music starts to play from speakers hidden in ornate columns, and the sound of voices dissipates in anticipation. The aisle lights illuminate only the stained glass and ornate wood of the doors. The curtain opens with a swish. The show has begun.

The historic auditorium has lost a bit of its grandeur for the 40-plus students who have spent every day after school for the past two months rehearsing to present this show. The auditorium for them is not a place to witness performances, but rather a place to perform. What does it mean to be the ones behind the curtain?

Hannah Warren, 9th grade student in her third year of theater says of her experiences that “being an actor is a lot of fun, but it’s very challenging. You have to learn all the lines and blocking and stuff, sure, but you also have to be alive… on stage, even though you’ve done every scene hundreds of times. It’s a new experience for the audience, but you as an actor also have to make every performance a new experience. It’s easy to fall into the trap of doing things on auto-pilot, but that’s not what makes good theater.”

High school junior Abby Neimi agrees, and says, “It’s terrifying waiting for the curtain to open, or for someone to say your cue, but it’s also really thrilling. Being on stage is like getting to be someone else for a while, and there’s nothing like bowing after a good show: knowing all that work paid off.”

High school junior and stage manager Keira Ouke says of the backstage experience, “It’s weird being a part of tech because the whole purpose of our role is to not be seen.

If we do everything right, the audience won’t notice that I’m sitting up at the light booth in all black calling cues and helping with the more complicated light changes. I mean, I have to keep lights, sound, and the running crew on track no matter what, and the whole goal is that the audience doesn’t give any attention to us.” Props master and stagehand Lily Sixberry adds, “If the audience doesn’t stop to think about how the scene changes happen or what the light cues are or how the props were made, that means we’re doing our job.”

All of them agree that being the ones behind the show is stressful, but their experiences in drama have been mostly positive. “Being in theater is a lot of work, but the process is also a lot of fun. You learn a lot just watching the people around you grow into their roles and responsibilities.” Ouke says. Tyler Nash- a theater student of five years- agrees, and adds “It’s really great to see the audience’s reactions. The applause is nice, definitely, but the excitement and awe is way better.”