Act, Play, Perform
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: Craig Quintero, Jen Shook, Karie Miller, or the email the student production stage manager.
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Dance, Move, Engage
- All dance and movements opportunities within the department are open to every body.
- Engage in a semester of Dance Ensemble.
- Enroll in a dance technique, choreography, or history/theory course.
- Seek out a student organization focusing on dance.
Want to learn more? Contact Kathleen Hurley or email the student production stage manager.
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Build, Stitch, Construct
- Take a practicum credit in your preferred area (paint, lights, costumes, etc.), which gives you hands-on experience working on a mainstage production. This often requires advance planning with staff to ensure the that production needs align with your schedule.
- Apply to work in the Department’s scene shop or costume studio.
- Enroll in a course that focuses on the techniques of stagecraft and design, such as costume construction or lighting design.
- Connect with student-directed MAPs or open space productions to see if they need helping hands.
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: Erik Sanning, Kate Baumgartner, Erin Howell-Gritsch, Stuben Farrar, or email the student production stage manager.
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Manage, Run, Support
- Join a run crew for a mainstage production. You’ll receive all the necessary education to fulfill your role, so no experience is required — the whole point is to learn! Roles may include deck crew, wardrobe crew, and operators for the lights, sound, audio-visual, or livestream systems.
- Join a stage management team for a mainstage production. Preference is given to those who have experience with live performance, but it is not a requirement.
- Student-directed MAPs and open space productions have similar production personnel needs. Due to the more independent nature of these productions, it is recommended that stage managers and run crew have some prior department experience in their production area.
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: Erik Sanning, Kate Baumgartner, Erin Howell-Gritsch, Stuben Farrar, or email the student production stage manager.
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Direct, Choreograph, Devise
Want to learn more? Due to the level of this work, students should contact their advisor or closest mentor within the department.
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Design, Imagine, Create
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: individuals: Erik Sanning, Kate Baumgartner, Erin Howell-Gritsch, Stuben Farrar, or email the student production stage manager.
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Mainstage Productions
- We incorporate a broad scope of genres, styles, periods, and modes in our mainstage seasons. Works may be scripted, devised, period, modern, dance, movement, performance art, digital, immersive — the list goes on and continues to evolve.
- Mainstage productions are directed by faculty, designed by professional artists, and built by production staff and student staff.
- Students participating in a mainstage production qualify to receive practicum credit if they so choose. Students participate as performers, stage managers, run crew personnel, assistant directors, assistant designers, dramaturgs, painters, and occasionally as build crew.
- These productions are “fully produced,” which means they have significant resources and support allocated to most technical and production aspects.
- Rehearsal periods run 5-8 weeks. You can anticipate a demanding but humane rehearsal and tech week schedule.
- For the safety of everyone involved, mainstage productions follow our department Standards and Protocols (login required).
Want to learn more? Contact any faculty, staff, or email the student production stage manager.
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Dance Ensemble
- Dance Ensemble is open to every body.
- It is equal parts dance (moving through space and time) and ensemble (creating and engaging with community).
- Ensemble does not audition students; instead, students are invited to attend an informational workshop at the beginning of each term to see if they wish to join as an ensemble member for that semester.
- The fall semester ensemble typically engages in a dance-inspired project within the broader Grinnell community.
- The spring semester ensemble typically explores a theme or issue, which culminates as a mainstage production at the end of the term.
- Ensemble typically meets Monday through Thursday after class and before dinner (roughly 4:30-6:30 p.m., contingent upon ensemble agreement).
- You may enroll in ensemble as a 2-credit class, but for-credit enrollment is not required to be an ensemble member.
Want to learn more? Contact Kathleen Hurley or email the student production stage manager.
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MAPs and Open Space Works
- Department MAPs and open space works are student-directed creative pursuits (not limited to “productions”) in your creative field.
- Note: this section is primarily intended to inform students who wish to participate in (not lead/direct) a MAP or open space work. Students who wish to apply to lead/direct one of these works should visit the department Opportunities and Awards page, as well as get in touch with their advisor and/or closest mentor within the department.
- Most MAPs and open space works need performers, designers, board ops, stage managers, and more.
- These works are low-budget (or no-budget) and are minimally produced.
- Due to the independent nature of these works, student designers should have prior experience in their creative area.
Want to learn more? Email the student production stage manager or contact any student directors for this year.
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One-Act Play Festival
- Each piece is directed by a student enrolled in the directing course.
- The festival auditions right after fall break and performs a full week before fall finals.
- Students audition as part of an open call and could be cast in any of the plays.
- Occasionally, the festival benefits from having an experienced tech/design student to assist with lighting design or other production aspects.
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: Craig Quintero or email the student production stage manager.
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Courses
- You can view the current course offerings in the Registrar’s course schedule.
- You are encouraged to pursue something completely new — department professors and instructors are accustomed to teaching newcomers alongside seasoned students. Newcomers enrich class projects and discussions by offering perspectives that may not be common to the field.
- Due to the interdisciplinary nature of this field of study, many mid-level courses are open to students who have not taken any introductory department courses.
Want to learn more? Contact any department faculty.
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Student Staff
- You can apply to work in the scene shop, costume studio, box office/front of house, or in an administrative role (such as props coordinator or production stage manager). Most of these positions work directly in service of our mainstage production season.
- These paid positions vary in time commitment, but most average out to three hours per week.
- Some students hold multiple student staff positions within the department.
- Students are typically hired for a one-year term (or one semester if a student is studying abroad), though most returning staff members are invited to renew their positions if they wish.
- Applications typically open around spring break, hiring decisions are made before spring finals week, and hired students begin their terms the following fall.
- On rare occasions, the department may need mid-year hires. Announcements for these positions will be distributed through the department's email newsletter and on social media. Join the email list and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @GrinnellTDPS.
- All open positions are posted to Handshake, but the application is via a Qualtrics form (linked with each Handshake description).
Want to learn more? Contact any of the following individuals: Erik Sanning, Kate Baumgartner, Erin Howell-Gritsch, or email the student production stage manager.
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Student Organizations
Student groups at Grinnell wax and wane depending on student interest and leadership, but there are always several that pursue creative performance opportunities! You can contact the Student Government Association (SGA) to learn about current/active student groups. Some examples of longstanding student performance groups include:
- The Neverland Players: You adapt and perform stories written by local fourth-grade students. These works never fail to delight audiences of all ages.
- Improv groups: Grinnell typically has a handful of groups that vary in form, style, genre, and performance frequency.
- Dance groups: Grinnell has seen groups specializing in hip-hop, salsa, swing, ballet, flamenco, contra dance, and more. Some of these groups just get together in a studio for fun, others perform on campus, and some have toured to social dance conferences and events.
Reach out to these groups to learn more.
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