Stage Manager Job Application Essay

Upon entering the halls of my high school, I knew I was going to join the theatre program. However, I was unaware of what theatre was going to do for me. Thanks to my sister, an avid thespian, I had attended every production for three years prior to my arrival. After many musicals and plays, I developed a love for theatre that I knew I wanted to pursue. Freshman year I participated in two productions, working the technical aspect for our fall play, and the acting side for the musical. While I enjoyed these roles, there was one position in particular that caught my eye; the stage manager. At the end of that year I told myself that I was going to become the stage manager in the next fall play, not realizing how much responsibility it required. The show that we produced that autumn was Fools by Neil Simon, an eccentric show about a town cursed with stupidity. Fools taught me the qualities of a good stage manager, and how to acquire them.
I could not sit at rehearsals and only accomplish a few tasks, like I had done in the past, so I researched the duties of a stage manager. The job required me to manage rehearsals, actors, technicians, props and costume fittings, and consult the director. When I finally saw myself as an adult, the cast and crew recognized this change within me as well. Without realizing it, all of these duties had changed me, from a young teen to young adult. When I sat down in room 223, the director’s first words were “Is there anyone interested in stage managing? My old one just graduated.” Overcome with excitement, I thrust my hand into the air faster than a nimble cheetah chasing a gazelle and loudly proclaimed “Me!” My director, Mr. K must have recognized the zeal inside me, because he gave me the position. It also could have been that I was the only one interested in the job, but I prefer to think it is the first option. Fools was my first show where I was the stage manager, this