Where community takes center stage

By S. MORRISEY | Courtesy photos

Imagine it’s opening night. The first strand of music begins and for the next two hours, you’re transported to another time and place. You may laugh or cry, tap your toes or sing along, relive history or test out a new way of seeing things. This is the magic of theater.
When you experience this magic, you are experiencing the culmination of hundreds and hundreds of hours of work. On average, community theaters spend about four weeks producing a play and about six weeks producing a musical.

Here in Central Texas, we are lucky enough to have three nonprofit theaters: Tablerock Festival of Salado, Temple Civic Theatre in Temple and Central Texas Theatre in Killeen.

While every director and every theater has unique ways of operating, typically, the production team is in place long before auditions begin and have already met to coordinate the multitude of moving parts of live performance.

It starts with a plan

Every season is planned in advance. The resident director, play-reading committee, the board, or a combination of these, carefully chooses every show to provide a season full of entertainment.

Once the season is decided, the annual calendar is plotted to ensure enough time to prepare for each show. Next, the office staff will secure the rights to produce the play from the management company by reserving a time and paying fees.

With a plan in place and rights secured, it’s time to get down to business, one show at a time.

By and for the community

It takes a tremendous amount of talent and skills to bring a show to the stage — whether it’s a professional Broadway show or a production in community theater. While professional theater is a for-profit venture with a budget to hire the support they need, most community theaters rely on volunteers for nearly every aspect of production.

Through their shared passion, volunteers discover something money can’t buy — relationships. Prescott Hersey, a technical director and theatre instructor at Harker Heights High School, met his wife while doing community theater.

“People that I’ve met through community theater have become some of my best and closest friends,” he said. “In fact, all of the people in my ‘groom’s gang’ at my wedding were people I met through the theater.”

Visible volunteers

“Volunteering in community theater is amazing. It is a bunch of people, from different walks of life, coming together to create something,” adds Prescott, who volunteers at Temple Civic Theatre as an actor and stage manager. “Not because they are being paid, not because it’s their job, but simply out of the joy of creating something for your community.”

At the heart of every show are the volunteer actors who step onto the stage and share their talents with the audience to tell a story. These dedicated individuals spend weeks learning lines, memorizing where they need to be on stage, and rehearsing five or six days a week. They master singing and dancing, all while juggling their full-time jobs or school commitments — all to bring the magic of theater to life.

Keondric Pilgrim, 24, has been a passionate volunteer actor since his first show, “The Little Mermaid” in 2017. Keon, who volunteers in Killeen and Temple, finds theater to be a transformative hobby that allows him to use his talents and escape from daily life and be someone else for a while. He loves the unique and lasting friendships formed in the theater because of the authenticity of the people involved.

Hayley Hersey, head theater director at Ellison High School in Killeen, whose first community theater performance was in 2004, describes it as a stress reliever.

“Acting in community theater productions is great because it allows me to focus on being someone different for a few hours a day. I get to completely wrap myself up in looking at things from new perspectives and set aside my own personal thoughts and to-do list to do so,” she said. “Plus, getting to work with friends and meeting new people in the process is a total bonus.”

Brian Johnson has been volunteering at community theaters for more than 15 years. He loves the sense of community and shared passion that theater brings. Acting allows him to share his talents and let his craft shine. Brian, like most actors, is a storyteller at heart. He finds taking the audience on a journey while pretending to be someone else is an unparalleled experience that brings smiles, memories, love and laughs to everyone involved.

Behind the scenes

While the actors are front and center, the work behind the scenes is where the magic truly begins. After all, “Cinderella” wouldn’t be magical without backstage crews helping to design the costumes and create the “magical moments” you see during a live production.

There are many different opportunities to volunteer behind the scenes — set, props, painters, lights and sound, hair, makeup, costumers, dressers, stage managers, assistants and more. These are volunteers who spend as much, if not more, time on a production as the actors. Tanya McMillan, a hair and makeup volunteer, loves the challenge of creating period styles and special effects makeup.

“I love being part of something that brings happiness to the audience and fulfillment to those who share their art on stage,” she said.

Community theaters also need volunteers to help with day-to-day operations, helping to ensure that everything runs smoothly. These volunteer opportunities are diverse and essential. You might help to keep the grounds clean and tidy to ensure the theater looks its best for every performance. Or you could organize and clean the costumes, shoes and props closets, making it easier to find what is needed.
There’s always something to do, and every task, big or small, contributes to the magic of the theater.

“Volunteers are the ‘lifeblood’ of community theater,” said Natasha Tolleson, managing director of Temple Civic Theatre. “Our volunteers at Temple Civic Theatre are the driving force of our organization. Our volunteers become like a family.”

Tolleson has been directing at TCT for more than 30 years. Before that, she led the theater department at Temple High School, retiring from Temple ISD in 2022. While her wealth of experience has taught her many things, probably the most valuable is that everyone has a place in theater.

“There is something for everyone,” she adds. “Like all community theaters, Temple Civic Theatre needs people that can sew, paint, build, organize, and create. If you think you have no talent, we can discover it for you. Come out and PLAY with us — you will be so glad you did!”

Share Your Time and Talent

With so much help needed at our community theaters, how do you go about volunteering?

First, think about where your interests and skills are. Don’t worry too much if your interest doesn’t have the skills to match yet. In many cases, you can be trained or you can start out assisting and learn what you need from other volunteers.

If you want to be on the stage, watch the theaters’ websites and social media for upcoming auditions. When you find a show you’re excited about, prepare for your audition and show up on time. And always remember, if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!

If you want to work behind the scenes, reach out to the theatre where you want to volunteer.

Tablerock of Salado
Throughout the year, Tablerock of Salado produces a few shows, including annual performances of “Salado Legends,” written by the late Jackie Mills. The musical was chosen by the Library of Congress to serve as a record of American life in the mid-1800s. “A Christmas Carol” is another annual show Tablerock also offers various training workshops throughout the year. More information about Tablerock, including a volunteer sign-up form, can be found online at tablerock.org.

Central Texas Theatre at Vive Les Arts Societe
The Killeen theater produces several main stage and children’s productions every season. To volunteer, call 254-526-9090 during office hours (noon to 6 p.m., Tuesday-Friday). Visit vlakilleen.org for a list of upcoming shows.

Temple Civic Theatre
TCT brings the best of classic and contemporary theater to Central Texas, offering several shows per season, in both main and children’s series. Learn more at templecivictheatre.com or call 254-778-4751.