Senior Shelby Edwards, of Oshkosh, is setting the stage for a career in theater with her work on the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh production of The Comedy of Errors, which runs Nov. 21-24 at the Fredric March Theatre.
“I plan to stage-manage professionally after I graduate in May 2020, so it was important to me to have one final opportunity to stage-manage this year in school as I prepare for the professional world,” said Edwards, who is majoring in integrated theatre arts and French liberal arts.
The duties of stage manager track along with the entire creative process from auditions and rehearsals to production meetings and performances.
“The stage manager arrives first for rehearsal, is the first contact for when actors are missing or running late and is the last to leave at the end of the night after closing up the theater,” she explained.
Add to that organizing paperwork, schedules and checklists, which equates to Edwards spending about 30-35 hours per week working on the show.
“I love that how no matter how difficult things get during the rehearsal process, the show always comes together better than you could have imagined,” she said.
Edwards, who also has served as a peer mentor and president of the Theatre Arts Student Community at UWO enjoys the collaborative aspect of theatre.
“Theatre is based on working with others to create a piece of art,” she said. “Every production teaches me more about communication, which is a skill that transcends majors and coursework. Being transparent and authentic with your designers, directors, colleagues, crew and actors is vital to the process.”
The Comedy of Errors, directed by UWO theatre department chair Jane Purse-Wiedenhoeft, will be performed at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 21-23 and at 2 p.m. on Nov. 24.
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