My Journey in the Theater
By Michael Barajas
Education Intern
GRoW @ The Wallis
I remember coming in on the first day. I was desperately trying to find the front entrance while I was attempting to hide the nervousness shown in my face. I had my phone on my hand, looking through old emails to assure me that this was the right place, time, and day. Fortunately, I did find some people standing around in the education courtyard and, after explaining my situation, they let me in. Turns out they were members of the Wallis Youth Theater Company, the very company that I will be working with as Assistant Director. They were putting up their winter production of Disposable, an original devised piece drawing from the actors’ own experiences of human displacement, either as immigrants, refugees, or members of the LGBTQ community. The piece also draws heavily upon the disposable culture, a culture of plastic that we see every day and how it pollutes our lives and our environment. It’s a culture that is killing the very planet we live on. The damage is often invisible to our eyes until it’s too late.
I have never been in the position of Assistant Director before. Although it was unknown territory for me, it was also a nice change from being on the sidelines. My job varied from taking notes, updating the script, reading stage lines and directions, to just observing. Actually, a lot of my time was spent observing Madeleine Dahm and her directing process. I saw how the actors further develop a specific scene or their characters. It was incredible to see how much the final version of this piece differs than from what I first seen when I started working here. The piece was tenacious, brilliant, and necessary considering the current political and social climate. On closing night, I felt so proud of the work we did, and especially all the effort the company put into this. As a sign of their appreciation, I was given a beautiful flower from the Company, something I definitely will keep in my room back in Bennington College.
Outside of the Youth Theater project, I was given marvelous opportunities to partake in the many Wallis courses, workshops, and even watch student matinees offered at the Wallis. These included Story Pirates, a company that performs stories written by kids. In this case, they visited the school a couple weeks before the performance and asked the kids to write stories. Fast forward, the kids finally got the chance to see their story, which they wrote, come alive onstage. You can see the excitement in the children’s faces when the performers announce whose story they will perform next.
It is now the last day of my internship. I will have lunch later today with the Education Staff and Madeleine Dahm in celebration of my time here. It’s hard to believe that it’s been nearly 6 weeks since I first started. I’ll always remember everyone I had the chance to work with, the knowledge I gain here, and the overall experience I had here at the Wallis. Thank you!