Behind-the-scenes glimpse at new magnet program

Damari Wright watched in awe as her light design of purple and magenta beautifully flowed together on the stage at Ocoee High School during a performance of “Addams Family” last school year.

She purposefully chose magenta and purple during the tango to have bold yet intimate colors for the scene with Gomez in purple for his mysterious nature and magenta for Morticia. She wanted to emanate passion, mystery and love as the characters danced. Everything surrounding them was dark, making the colors from the lights pop. 

The lighting sequence showed her how far she had come since her freshman year doing lighting for “Matilda,” when she wasn’t the biggest theater fan. 

Now, as a senior, she’s teaching students in the new Ocoee High Technical Theatre Academy about lighting before she graduates and begins The Walt Disney World Live Entertainment Technical Theatre Paid Apprenticeship. 

The Ocoee High Technical Theatre Academy provides students an in-depth look at all behind-the-scenes aspects of theater from set building to lighting to costuming, cosmetology, stage management, publicity and more. 

Curtain opens

A. Xan Kahn, the technical theater scholastic academy coordinator and lead instructional coach, noticed there was a lack of educators and  training at the high school level for the technical theater arts when her daughter began demonstrating an interest. 

Kahn designed lessons with her daughter’s theater teacher to enhance her learning. She reached out to local organizations in search of classes her daughter could take but found a lack of resources available. 

“Coming from working for Disney and Universal and having those connections, we realized this is a huge industry in which hundreds of thousands of people are hired to work and make the magic come alive in theater, but the pathway to those careers are not visible to students,” she said. 

With a desire to create more opportunities for her students, especially those who love all aspects of theater, she worked with her husband, Kris Kahn, a drama teacher at Ocoee High, to develop Ocoee High Technical Theatre Academy. 

Students from across Orange County as well as Lake County can apply to attend the magnet program, which has up to 50 seats. Kahn said she would like to keep the program around 25 students, but with open enrollment, they won’t say no to students who want to enroll.

Academy students will receive priority scheduling to ensure they are enrolled in the classes necessary to graduate while also being in two theater classes, which is a requirement. As a freshman, Kahn said it’s most beneficial for students to take a theater class and a technical theater class to build the foundational skills necessary on both the performance and technical sides. 

The technical theater courses cover a plethora of behind-the-scenes theater aspects. Stage Craft I through IV teaches students about design and construction of sets and props, expanding on painting and stage craft techniques. 

There are advanced classes in lighting and engineering, a props and scenery course, costume and cosmetology class, and more. 

The director and stage manager course is aligned with the advanced acting course so students serving as directors and stage managers can see a show from the foundation all the way through performance of their own productions while the advanced acting students serve as the cast. 

Students receive hands-on experience, creating all the sets, light designs, costumes, makeup and more for every production performed at Ocoee High.

Kahn said Ocoee High Technical Theatre Academy mirrors courses at the college level, but the high school program works with professional partners to expose students to current professional standards through workshops and field trips. 

Benefits of the partnerships for students are the connections and mentorship opportunities. 

They also are able to work with professional theater companies on productions. For example, Wright worked on stage lighting for Bridge Theatre’s “Anne & Emmett.”

“One of the biggest worries parents have about their students going into theater is you can’t make a living at it,” Kahn said. “But the reality is that you can absolutely make a living, and you can make a living without necessarily incurring hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. Technical theater, especially for theater kids who love live entertainment, is that avenue toward a profession that is sustainable.”

Kahn said there is no shortage of opportunities for live entertainment not only in Central Florida but also across the country. Students can go on to work weddings, conventions, plays, showcases, concerts, campaigns and more. Any time there is a stage, there is a need for lighting designers, sound engineers, runners, riggers, set designers and more. 

The Ocoee High Technical Theatre Academy will give students the skills needed so they can enter the profession directly after graduation. 

Finding new passions

Freshman Myra Voltaire was zoned for Evans High School, but after hearing about the technical theater academy, she knew she wanted to be at Ocoee. It’s been a dream come true for her. 

She initially was on the performance side of theater, but after being exposed to set building and lighting, she found new interests and passions. 

“I don’t even know how to explain how amazing this opportunity is,” she said. “Just being here is making me learn so much knowing that I could possibly have a future in this, and I really want to have that future in it.”

She’s looking forward to diving into costuming, directing and writing to see what other aspects of theater might inspire her. 

Sophomore Preston Marquez works on publicity for Ocoee High performances as part of the academy. With an interest in filmmaking, he wanted experience using a camera to take photos and video. 

He created the “meet the cast” video and other promotional videos for the school’s upcoming musical, “Hadestown.” 

Marquez said he originally didn’t take an interest in theater at all, but after his first theater course, he was inspired to attempt acting. Now in the academy, he’s expanding his horizons and has found an interest in lighting. He looks forward to having the skills needed to be able to enter the industry upon graduation. 

For Wright, who was one of six students in Orange and Osceola counties selected for the Walt Disney World Live Entertainment Paid Apprenticeship, her real-world experiences will continue at Disney. 

While the Kahns were developing the academy, Walt Disney World Live Entertainment leaders approached the Kahns as the leaders noticed they were lacking applicants and were struggling to fill positions in the backstage aspects of live entertainment. 

Together, they created the three-year The Walt Disney World Live Entertainment Technical Theatre Paid Apprenticeship. 

During the apprenticeship, Wright will work with Disney’s entertainment teams, gaining industry experience in lighting, sound, set construction and other essential disciplines. The apprenticeship is a salaried position with full benefits, as well as access to Disney Aspire, an education initiative offering 100% tuition coverage for continued professional or academic advancement. 

Wright’s theatrical journey started her freshman year. The long nights of rehearsal made her doubt her interest, but once she was behind the light board and learned what to do and all she could create, her mind began to change.

The opening night of “Matilda” had her hooked as she saw how the show came to life. 

She saw how lights can convey emotion, bring attention to something on stage and enhance a production. 

From that night on, she has dedicated herself to taking on new challenges and learning as much as she can about lighting, set building and more. 

Being accepted as an apprentice for the Disney program means everything to her as she knows her hard work has paid off. 

She said sometimes she felt like her work wasn’t being acknowledged because it was done behind the scenes while the actors on stage were receiving applause. But she learned “being behind the scenes doesn’t mean you’re any less.”

“It means you’ve done such a good job that the actors were able to shine, and they were able to shine in their work,” Wright said. 

Through the apprenticeship, she plans to take in as much knowledge as possible working on various types of live entertainment to branch out of theater. 

She hopes some day to have the skills necessary to become a freelance technician, allowing herself to travel and work any entertainment project she could want.