Playing to Strengths
Tech Prep Program Unites Artistry and Ingenuity
Technical theater students at Centerville High School gain experience in all aspects of creating a theater production, as well as rigorous academic preparation for college.
Ohio students who aspire to careers in theater and those who participate in the state's Tech Prep programs may seem to be on very different roads. But at Centerville High School, those two roads converge in a technical theater program that promises an exciting range of career possibilities.
Technical theater is a Tech Prep program that combines a college prep curriculum with development of both creative and technical skills in all facets of theater production—sets and props, costumes, lighting and sound, as well as stage direction and production management. While some students who enter the program view it as a stepping stone to careers in acting or directing, many are looking for work that combines creative opportunities and interesting technical challenges.
Mike Cordonnier, whose engineering background and theater experience make him an excellent teacher and role model for students in the program, says the classes taught by him and colleague Joe Beumer represent a range of talents and interests—exactly what is needed to create the magic of theater.
"Some students are more interested in the creative side of the profession like set design. Others will be the builders and workers," he says. "Students can play to their strengths."
An Outstanding Training Ground
In addition to rigorous academic work, Centerville's technical theater students work on major projects each quarter of the school year. They also participate in a Tech Prep showcase sponsored by the Miami Valley Tech Prep Consortium. Cordonnier says students who participate in the showcase choose individual projects that interest them. One student, for example, built a working windmill prop while another chose to create a portfolio that exhibited aspects of the work involved in managing a production.
The high school's new performing arts center enables students to gain extensive practical experience in their field. It includes a 1200-seat auditorium with a large stage and state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems, as well as practice rooms, a green room, a scene shop area and a dance studio. The facility hosted 160 events last year, including performances by schools, community groups and professionals. Students in the technical theater program had the opportunity to run those events, gaining valuable experience practicing their craft and sometimes receiving payment for their work.
They also helped with productions at Sinclair Community College and the University of Dayton. Cordonnier says such live events are the best training ground for students. "They learn to be fluid and flexible, to think on their feet and improvise," he says. "They get to work with people other than their teachers, including some professionals who have very high expectations." Cordonnier says outside groups are very impressed with his students' professionalism and the quality of their work.
Exciting Career Possibilities
Students in Centerville's technical theater program are on a fast track to an associate of arts degree in theatre technology from Sinclair Community College, which offers a $3000 scholarship to qualifying Tech Prep students. Jon Wesney, Centerville's Career Tech principal, says completers of the program also will be well positioned to enter other two-year and four-year postsecondary programs if their career aspirations change.
According to Cordonnier, jobs in theaters and other entertainment facilities are not the only opportunities for his students. "There are jobs for them in the cruise ship, casino and amusement park industries. They also can work for companies that create trade show exhibits or the environments used in themed retail," he says.
Growing Opportunity and Interest
Since Centerville's technical theater program is new, student success stories are still to come. But prospects for such programs are good, says Steve Black, who directs the 35-year-old theatre technology program at Fort Hayes Arts & Academic High School in Columbus. He says completers of his program have successful careers in set design, stage management and other technical areas, and he sees growing interest in those and other segments of the entertainment industry.
A new Theater Arts Career Academy launched this year by the Six District Educational Compact in Northeast Ohio demonstrates that interest. It also illustrates the diverse range of possible content for theater arts programs. The Theater Arts Career Academy will provide a direct pathway to a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Akron's College of Creative and Professional Arts. It includes concentrations in acting/directing, design/technology, arts administration and the history, literature and criticism of drama.
It is likely that such Tech Prep programs in the arts will be more common in years to come. Nick Wilson, interim director of the Miami Valley Tech Prep Consortium, says that over the past few years, interest has been growing in the Arts and Communication pathway, which includes technical theater and also prepares students for careers in other areas of the performing arts, media arts and visual communications.
This article was published in June 2009
Read other articles about how arts learning helps prepare students for future careers.
