Oliver!

Background

Each year, countless OSC students put in hours of work to produce a senior production which takes place in December. This year, the performance would be a recreation of Oliver! the musical. Since the beginning of the year, I had wanted to become involved in a theatrical production in some way, but I wasn’t sure that I was ready to take on a role on the stage itself. Thus, working “front of house” allowed me to participate in the production and be apart of the process without forcing me too far out of my comfort zone.

Execution

The doors open and we begin to usher in guests (Photo Credits: Karven Chandrasena)

upon our arrival at the OSC auditorium on Friday, December 6th, we were immediately greeted with a tour of the backstage area. Upon its conclusion, we began to divide up the sections of the theatre into different zones that we would each oversee in order to ensure the easiest and most convenient experience for the guests. Another strategy we adopted was dividing ourselves into groups of ticket checkers and ushers (of which I was the latter) in order to help whoever needed it as effectively as possible.

Reflection

CAS Goal

Although I was unfortunately unable to participate in the backstage crew as I had originally planned, I still hoped to participate in some way, and thus, as I previously mentioned, I joined the “front of house” crew. Ultimately, although I did not technically meet my goal, I was still able to try something new and to get out of my comfort zone. I was given an opportunity to expand my interests, and I did certainly achieve this through my participation in production.

Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate that challenges have been undertaken, developing new skills in the process
  • Participating in a theatre-related activity has taken me out of my comfort zone and has allowed me to develop a multitude of valuable skills such as collaboration, communication, interpersonal relations, and team management (as I mentioned previously). Ultimately, this experience allowed me to demonstrate that I had undertaken new challenges and developed new skills in the process.
• Demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively
  • Through this experience, I was once again able to develop my collaborative skills. Moreover, participating in the “front of house” crew has provided me with a renewed understanding of the importance of these skills and the role that they play in determining the success of everyday interactions. Ultimately, this experience has allowed me to demonstrate the skills and recognize the benefits of working collaboratively.