Student Blogger: Paige Rosko

Will there probably always be issues with people looking down on dramaturgs? Yes. But, do I feel better now about where I stand in the industry and with my peers? Also yes. The confidence that I've gained in my work has allowed me to find my place in this community and know that I deserve it just as much as every other person in the room. 

I think the spring semester is really hard, especially in the beginning because the end of the year is so close yet so far at the same time. I'm still taking it day by day and there are some days when I get so much done and then there are days when I do not. I've been trying to accept that both days are good to have and that I should not be pushing myself to exhaustion.

It's the end of January, which means everyone is making their way back to college. I've been back on campus for almost a week now and it's just a very strange time, on-campus and off. So, I've decided to give some hopefully helpful advice about this semester and just share what I'm up to!

Happy 2022 everyone! In my last article, I wrote about my favorite moments from 2021, and towards the end, I included some of the things I'm excited about for 2022. In this article, I am going to be diving in-depth into some of the things I talked about and also some things I forgot to mention in that article. The return of live theater is something I think we are all very excited about for 2022. While many shows made their return in 2021, there are many openings still to happen, on Broadway and around the world. While shows are currently being postponed or canceled due to the rise in Coronavirus cases, we can only hope that by the end of 2022 we will see pre-pandemic levels of theater engagement.

My friends, we have finally done it. In just a couple of weeks from now, we will be leaving behind the mess of a year that was 2021 and going into the hopefully bright future of 2022. Let's take a trip back through 2021 and talk about some of my favorite theater moments we experienced this year, from next-level movie musicals to the re-opening of Broadway.

No matter what someone does in the theater, respect them. We are all working people trying to do what we love. No matter if it is the dramaturg or the technical director or the lead actor or the front of house manager: we are all here. Every single person in the theater has put their life-blood into making it work and there is no reason why anyone should feel like they do not deserve to be there or that their work is not useful to the company.

Taylor Swift just dropped her second re-recorded album, Red (Taylor's Version), and I am more obsessed with it now than I was when it originally came out in 2012. So, in honor of this momentous album and all of the wonderful songs on it, I've decided to assign a broadway character or relationship to each of the 30 songs on the album, excluding acoustic versions and songs that are on the album twice. Also, I will be skipping 'Ronan' because that song makes me very sad and cry a lot and I cannot emotionally handle analyzing it.

I also have a lot to be thankful for within the theater world and community. I think that it is incredibly important for everyone to be able to sit down and think about what we are thankful for during this crazy year.

It's freezing cold here in upstate New York which means it's October and Halloween time. I love both Halloween and Broadway, so it's time to put those two things together and create a list of the best spooky Broadway songs and Halloween-related songs.

t's almost midway through the fall of my junior year and I'm dramaturging my first show! We've been in rehearsals for a while now and the rehearsal process this semester has changed from last year and the years before, but the process is just as exciting as always. This process has been something incredibly special and I am so excited to be a part of it. I feel very involved in the process and my director is using me, as the dramaturg, a lot. I am so excited to get this show on the stage and finally allow audiences to experience the energy that we've created.

While we were squished on top of each other, as is normal in a theater, I did not see anyone who was not wearing a mask. Everyone seemed to be following the rules and no one made a big fuss about having to wear a mask. Before being let into the theater, every audience member had to show a staff member their vaccination card and photo ID. While this did slow down the process of getting everyone into the theater, it was worth it. I have seen a few live, outdoor shows since the beginning of the pandemic and I do still feel more comfortable seeing a show outside, but I'm not opposed to seeing shows inside.

We've all given up so much in the last year and a half and I want to go back to Broadway, but I think the hesitation of it all is going to last a very long time. I also believe that the way we all act in the next few weeks are going to be crucial to the survival of Broadway.

'My college experience so far has not been easy, but I know that I have grown in the best possible ways because of it. So, I'm going to give some of my best tips and tricks to hopefully help you become comfortable at college.'

I believe that my biggest source of growth is from working and managing a kid's theater camp. I've never been a huge fan of children and while working with them this summer has not absolutely changed that, I feel like I understand them much better. The kids were aged 4-15 so I had a huge range of kids to understand, work with, and learn about. Sometimes the kids took a lot of energy out of me, but I enjoyed it.

There are certain elements that every production of theatre must have to make it theatre. The necessary elements do change with each persons opinions, but I pulled out what I believe are the most basic elements of theatre: performers, audience members, a director/crew, a theater space, design aspects, and a script. I personally believe that not all theatre performances have to have every single one of these in the traditional aspect, but most performances do. The Olympics also have every one of these elements in some shape or form.

We want to make tickets more accessible for everyone else and we want everyone to be able to enjoy theatre. There are economical issues with every part of the theatre industry, but we should all be able to enjoy a Broadway show without breaking the bank.

One topic of conversation surrounding the trailer was the fact that many thought that Evan Hansen was queer. (In this article, I will be using the term 'queer' to describe the LGBTQ+ community because as a queer person, I feel comfortable with the term). An article, that can no longer be found online, described Dear Evan Hansen as a gay musical.

Seeing both of these movies and comparing their teams has shown that Hollywood needs to let Broadway people work on movie musicals. There is an understanding that Broadway people have of musicals that Hollywood people don't. 

During my time working and making theater, I've learned that rejection is something constant and you are never going to stop comparing yourself to others. It's not a good feeling, but it comes with the industry. During this article, I'm going to go through some of the most relatable lyrics from 'sour' and how they connect to my work as an artist. 

I've discovered that once I start working on theater productions and I feel that magic and joy, I don't want to stop, which leads me to seek out new opportunities.