‘Working 9-5’ would be an understatement for Bowie tech students working on the Dolly Parton musical. Techs worked, prepped and perfected their tasks everyday in preparation for 3 weeks of shows. 

“We make sure that everything is on time, and prepped and ready so that we can start.” assistant technical director, Nadia Petru, said “And that everything is, like, safe.”

Behind the scenes of every musical is a slew of people, each of them with a different and specific job to make the show all come together. 

“There’s so many jobs, there’s probably around like 10 different main positions you could have,” Petru said, “they all have different smaller roles that come with it, so just a bunch.”

With so many different duties, it takes lots of collaboration and direction from every tech crew member.

“So it’s just a lot of managing, time managing, and making sure people are where they’re supposed to be.”Petru said.

So nearing weeks of shows, tech students are switched on early and all day.

“You wake up in the morning, we all go to school and it’s just like regular, we all have our theater classes.” Petru said, “And then right after school, we go to our theater room and we get dinner.”

While revving up to open, show days are fun but jam packed. Full of checking, double checking and triple checking. 

  “After that, technicians go and we get ready and start prepping things first, for about an hour,” Petru said. “Then after that actors will start getting in costume and getting dressed, then they’ll get mic checks.”

With all the hard work of a myriad of theater students, the musical is wrapped up into something for everyone else to enjoy.

“Then everyone will check all of their stuff, and then we’ll start the show! It’s really fun. ” Petru said. 

Prepping a musical is no small feat, but working with friends makes Petru’s, and other students’, tasks well worth the while.

“Not just talking with actors or just talking with technicians, you’re, like, communicating with everyone at all times,” Petru said. “I really like the social aspect of all of that together.”

With all the communal effort, tech theater is a close, dynamic, extremely adept group of students working together to build and create.

“I think my favorite part of being in tech is the new experiences and opportunities I’ve had.” Petru said.