Nurturing the next generation of talent is at the heart of what we do: From our annual Arts Academy where participants develop their performance skills, through to internships and placements. At Bruiser, we're committed to offering hands-on professional development opportunities for young people and those in the early stages of their career.
On our current production of Mojo Mickybo by Owen McCafferty, we've had the pleasure of working with Emily Moore, our Technical Theatre Intern. We caught up with Emily in the final week of rehearsals ahead of our NI tour to see how things are shaping up in the rehearsal room and find out what she has gained from this experience.
I'm Emily, and my role with the company is Stage Manager through a Technical Theatre Internship offered by Bruiser. My role during rehearsals is keeping a note of the blocking for the show, following through the script for any prompts needed for performers, operating technical aspects of the show (such as AV, Sound, and Lighting), and keeping the stage manager's book up to date with cue points.
This internship has given me an opportunity to work in a number of areas on the show, I've learned about different softwares used in productions (such as QLab), and I've learned more about all of the planning and preparation that goes into developing a production. It has been great to learn on the job, and have to help resolve challenges along the way.
Rehearsals have been going brilliantly! It's great to be back in the room with such a talented bunch of people. I've particularly enjoyed having the opportunity to revisit the piece and see it again with fresh eyes so to speak. It's also been fascinating to develop an understanding of all of the elements required to take a production on tour.
It has been a phenomenal experience working on Mojo Mickybo. It's been great to find my voice as a Stage Manager and become more active in decision making, helping to resolve challenges and troubleshoot technical issues. I have also loved working in such a supportive environment which has encouraged me to get involved in aspects of theatre I've not been able to do before.
I've learned so many things from working on Mojo Mickybo, such as constructing a stage manager's book, how to notate blocking, and how to work QLab. But I think the biggest thing that I've learned is just how much goes into constructing a show and how it is all brought together for performances. Being able to help in decision-making has really helped me develop a stronger understanding of what needs to be considered in planning throughout rehearsals.
Mojo Mickybo is a fantastic production that highlights the universality of childhood innocence against the backdrop of the Troubles in 1970 Belfast. I love the play, and have done so since university - but Lisa, Terence, and Michael have done wonders to bring such a quintessential conflict piece to life. The energy in the show is electric, and I would say from the bottom of my heart - you do NOT want to miss this!
