Q&A with Greyson Price

Spotlight On 10th Grade Stage Manager for CAC’s Spring Musical: “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”

Tell us about your background in theater and how you became interested in stage management.

I participated in some summer theater camps here in fifth and sixth grade. At the time, there was a good group of seniors that got me interested in theater in general. After performing in my first couple of shows, I realized I wasn’t too good at acting, so I took more of an interest in the tech aspect of drama. I’ve always been intrigued by how things work, and after seeing a couple of shows at The Orpheum, I became even more interested in the mechanics. I realized it allowed me to mix theater and construction, so I began building on those skills.

How did you land the role as stage manager for this year’s production?  

Last year I was the assistant stage manager for “Beauty and The Beast.” If you saw the show, you will remember it was a pretty large set, so I gained a lot of experience there. I think it has really helped me, and it’s really fun getting to interact with all of the actors. Drama is like one big family.

What kinds of tasks does this role entail? 

Usually a stage manager on Broadway or somewhere like that keeps things organized and kind of acts as the middleman between the director and crews. But at CAC, you take on more responsibilities and perform a few different roles. The assistant stage manager Zac Griffith and I started building the set this week. So we’ll probably finish that up mid-February, and then we’ll hopefully get some rehearsal time before the show starts.

How do you begin designing a set for a show like “How to Succeed …”

Mrs. Thomas usually draws up the set — she’s the aesthetic design person. Then she will have me look at it, and I’ll say, “We can do that,” or, “We can’t do that.” This year I wanted to help a little more, so I did some research, read through the script and made some suggestions. Mrs. Thomas then drew up the set with a couple of my ideas in mind which was really awesome. After we figure out the measurements we start working on construction plans. This week we’re taking inventory on everything we have, and we’ll start putting it all together after that.

What will these months leading up to the musical look like for you?  

It starts off slow and pretty lax with practices right after school for a few hours. As soon as we start getting close to the show, practices start getting longer, and we have to figure out all the small details. Then we start having late rehearsals, especially that last week before the show when we have full dress rehearsals. Those can go pretty late, so you better get some sleep before then.

What do you enjoy most about working behind the scenes on CAC’s productions?

I like being backstage because you get to see how everything works. When you see the show, you see the actors and you see the stage, but you’re not seeing everything. So it’s fun to work out all of the technical aspects because there’s just a lot more going on than you expect.

What’s the most challenging part of being the stage manager?  

Problem solving. We don’t have the biggest theater in the world, so there’s a lot of spatial things we have to work out. Sometimes Mrs. Thomas will draw something on a piece of notebook paper and say, “Figure out the measurements — good luck.” So that’s always fun. It keeps me on my toes.

Do you think you will pursue stage management after high school?

It’s a toss up. My dad is a financial advisor, and I really enjoy what he does. I like math and numbers. That’s another reason I like building and those sorts of things. So it may end up that up that way, and if it does, I think that would be pretty cool.

How do you spend your time outside of working with the drama department?

I play on the golf team in the fall and manage the football team along with Ryan Tyrell. That keeps me pretty busy. Aside from that, I like traveling when I can. It’s fun to see different people and how everyone interacts differently even within the U.S.

Make plans to attend “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” March 12-14.