Blog # 1 January 14th, 2017
This week was my first time being an intern. I have been interning for Stuart Barr at the Robert and Judi Newman Center of Theater Education for Denver Center of Performing Arts (DCPA) I learned that there is a lot that goes on within that building tht needs cleaning, organizing, and really busy work. I wasn’t that surprised, it was kind of what I already expected, the one thing I didn’t expect was everyone’s kindness. Everyone I met there is so nice and very helpful. I felt welcomed with arms opened wide. Melissa works at the front desk and she was really helpful and she gave me the basics on what to do and went over how each day is supposed to be. All the people I met are the kind of people I would want to be around most of the time. They are understanding and listen to what I have to say. They are also a little weird just like me have my same humor. Ivone the other Intern I worked with my first day, Monday January 9th 2017 was very nice, helpful, and she laughed at my jokes. I like her, I hope to work with her again and maybe become friends. So what Ivone and I did our first day was, we helped move tables and chairs into a room for an event that evening and we helped make paper flower fluff decorations while listening to music from different musicals. The second day, Tuesday January 10th, 2017 I swept up dirt and dust bunnies from this storage closet called Skid Row just like the name of the street in the musical Little Shop of Horrors. After that I moved chairs out of a room and back into a stairwell where they belonged, then I helped Stuart my sponsor move a bed box spring to the dumpsters. Then on Wednesday January 11th I went in to talk with Stuart and another man named Patrick to talk about my schedule and changing it so I could participate in my school’s play and still get 100 hours for the internship. So we talked about it and have found away to let me do both and i will be working with Patrick or also known as Pez more often. I engaged in code switching for half of the time maybe more, and then I didn’t have to code switch for some of it. For the most part they were accepting, but I stayed polite and did what was asked of me.
Blog #2 January 22nd, 2017
Prompt: What was the best thing that happened this week at your internship? How did it make you feel? What else makes you excited about your internship?
The best thing that happened at my internship was getting my schedule figured out so we finally had a set goal in the end. It made me feel like I wasn’t held back anymore and relieved that we had a set plan. Something that makes me excited about my internship is all the creative things that I will be learning over the next few months and how I have people to help me along the way. So this is what happened this week at my internship. When I went in and was about to take the elevator up to the third floor where my sponsor Stuart Barr usually is, he actually came around the corner and surprised me as if he knew I was already there. So we took the elevator up to the third floor together all the while talking about how Pez (Patrick) was wanting a copy of my schedule so he could know when I will be working with him and when I can’t work with him after February 18th. We have been trying to get together a schedule that will allow me to be in my school’s musical for Beauty and The Beast and one that works so that way I will still get 100 hours before may 12th. So far we have figured out that until February 18th, I will only be going to my internships on Tuesday from 3pm-5pm. Then after February 18th I will becoming in on Monday from 6:30pm to about 9:30pm (Or till however long they need me). Tuesdays I will be in from 3pm to probably 9:30pm (again, however long I am needed). Then I will come in on Wednesday at 6:30pm and stay around 9:30pm (Just like Monday). After the musical at school is over with in March, then I will be at my internship from 3pm to probably 9:30pm, just like on Tuesdays but instead it will be everyday until May 12th. I will also be in for I think two Saturdays. So we are still working on it but for the most part we think we have figured out a schedule that works. After getting Pez a copy of my schedule, Stuart gave me 4 things to work on. 1 was to take this super sticky tape off of CD cases that they found. The second thing was to test used batteries and place the good ones in a box and to throw the bad ones away. The third thing was to help organize the costume storage. Lastly the fourth thing was to help put of a new kind of road sign or something like that. So after showing me what to do, I got started with taking the tape off CD cases. It was hard at first to take them off because the tape was super sticky and I had to be careful so that way while taking the tape off I wouldn’t brake the case. It took a while but I got them all done. One case broke on me and one I couldn’t get the tape off completely. Stuart said it was okay though. My nail were a little sore afterwards. After the CDs I started on the batteries. I used a energy tester and tested all of them. I threw away some even though at first it didn’t seem like any of them were low battery, but in the end almost all of them except the few made it into the box used for still usable. I never made it to organizing the costume storage, since it was getting close to 5pm, so for the last few minutes I helped to make the new street sign. It wasn’t hard putting it together, it was actually a few simple steps. I had to re fix the legs though because I actually put them on upside down, but that was an easy fix. So I just flipped the legs around and then it was all done. That whole 2 hours was nothing but hand work. I can feel my hands a bit stronger now and more precise.
Blog #3 February 5th, 2017
Prompt: How do your actions affect your workplace? Do you contribute positively? How do your co-workers actions affect your internship? Which co-workers are you connecting with?
How my actions affect the workplace is important. I have to decide when and when not to take action. For example last week I helped my sponsor Stuart finish a TV flat. We finished most of it, until he had to go to a meeting. So he asked me if I could finish it, then when I was done with that to go to costume storage and continue organizing it. So I had to take action and finish the flat even though I never worked on a flat before. It wasn’t hard, it was actually easy, it was just different for me. If I hadn’t have taken action and fixed it, it would have shown I’m not reliable or able to be count on for simple tasks. I do contribute positively because I get done whatever is needed to be done and I usually get asked to help with things again if needed. I’m always positive in the working environment because everything I do there is pretty cool and i leave my personal problems away in the back of my mind until I get out of the workplace. Plus everyone always greets me nicely and smiles whenever I come in. My co-workers action affect my internship because without some of them, I wouldn’t have as much help or be able to have some of the opportunities that I have now. I don’t have too many co-workers, I usually am by myself, but the few that I believe I have connected with most is my sponsor Stuart and this woman who I met on my first day named Melissa. I think i have connected with them most, because I’m usually always with Stuart, and Melissa because she is very nice, understanding and helpful. Sh has been this way towards me since day one.
Blog #4 February 13th, 2017
Prompt: What is your favorite part about your internship so far? How many people have you made connections with? Did you discuss your project with your sponsor? What did you decide to do for your project?
My favorite part about my internship so far is working in the costume storage, since I have been in there the most. I love seeing all the cool and pretty costumes and props. It would be nice to try on some of them but i don’t want to mess anything up by accident. As much as I like the costume storage, I admit I do get bored sometimes because it is a lot of organizing, and that’s all I do in there. It’s a bit repetitive. Luckily I will be starting on some other things after the 18th, but until then I’m most likely just going to continue organizing the costumes. I have made connections with 6 people so far. I have made a connection with Stuart my sponsor, a woman named Melissa, a guy named Pez, and 3 other interns. I did discuss my final project with my sponsor. What I decided to do is make a little story or comic strip of an anime character that will probably represent me, being brought to the costume storage and being left to organize it. After being left to organize the storage, the character gets begins to organize but then one of the costumes catches her eye and then she gets the idea to try on some of the costumes. She puts on some music and has a little fashion show to herself, and is just messing around instead of cleaning and kind of making more of a mess. Then she gets caught by the sponsor who is laughing or something in the background.
Blog #5 February 19th, 2017
Prompt: How do you feel like your internship is going so far? What are the highlights and the “lowlights”? Do you feel like you are making connections with your co-workers? What can you do to improve your experience?
I feel like my internship is going pretty good so far. I have worked a good deal in organizing the costume storage, I have helped move things to where they need to be or where the staff wants them. Everyone there likes me and appreciates my help and hard work, and just yesterday I have now started on working to be stage manager for a play called Born Yesterday. Yesterday I got to meet the actors and we did a read through of the play and it was a pretty neat play. I liked how the actors reacted to each other and we really into the read through. I have got a lot done at my internship so far and it feels good. The highlights of working at my internship is getting to meet new and really cool people and creating relationships with them, and also getting to see the behind the scenes and working with everything that makes a great show. There aren’t really any lowlights at working at my internship, except that I do get bored working in the costumes storage most of the time, but luckily the other day i did some more moving around and did something different. I do feel like I am making connections with my co-workers. I don’t work with very many people personally, but with every person i meet, i learn new things and everyone is really nice and interesting. Something I can do to improve my experience, maybe ask if there is something more active that I can do, other than that I’m not really sure. I like my experience so far.
Blog #6 March 7th, 2017
Prompt: How do people at work treat you? How does it make you feel? If you have an intern one day will you treat them the same? What have you learned so far from your co-workers and sponsor?
People at work treat me very nicely. I am treated with respect and I am treated like the young adult I am with many responsibilities. I am treated the way I think I am supposed to be treated. No one disrespects me or treats me like a kid or an older adult. They ask me how I am and if I’m ever in need of help or if what I am doing is too much or not. I’m never expected to do something that I can’t do or if someone there can’t even do what is asked of them. I don’t feel like I’m just there, the other workers include me and tell me what the scoop is and also ask for my thoughts. It makes me feel good about working there. It doesn’t feel so much like work when they treat me this way. It’s fun and I like to be included. I like getting treated with respect, and I believe that I have earned it. I have given respect, therefore it has been given in return. As the saying goes, what goes around comes around. So if you give respect, you also gain respect. If I were to have an intern one day, I would completely treat them the same way that I have been treated, unless they give me reason otherwise. But if there are no problems then of course. I have learned from my co-workers that asking questions is good so there is no confusion. Communication is key. Treating others nicely but not to be a doormat is also to acknowledge. I also learned that not everything has to be rushed and not done all at once or their could be complications. Lastly I have learned that if you have an opinion about something,to speak up, but when the time is right, and in a calm and direct tone. You have a voice, let it be heard, but don’t make a fool of yourself either.
Blog #7 March 26, 2017
Prompt: What is the difference between working on personal art projects and working in a creative business? What have you learned about working in a creative business?
I think the difference between working on personal art projects and working in a creative business is that when you make a personal art project you only want to show it to certain people, or maybe just keep it to yourself for no one to see and you work on it by yourself, compared to working in a creative business, whatever you make is usually shared with everyone. You show almost everyone you work with what you have done, you share ideas on what could be done to make it better, or what else to do with the project, and it isn’t just you working on the project anymore. It becomes a team project. What I’ve learned about working in a creative business, is that whatever you’re doing is like a puzzle. You need certain things and others help to complete the task at hand. You ask for help when you need it or just when you want a second opinion or more. You watch and learn from others around you, and you also ask for advice on certain things. Without the help from others or knowledge from others, whatever you work on probably won’t get done as fast or have as great of quality that it could have. Without all the pieces the puzzle can’t be complete. So without everyone and all the steps and plans, the project could not be complete. So in a creative business, everyone is essential and is important and has important parts in the process of the business, compared to just working on a personal project. It’s all about teamwork and what you can provide to the business.
Blog #8 April 3, 2017
Prompt: How is your internship project going? Describe the progress of your project. How did the conversation about your project go with your sponsor? (If you haven’t discussed the project with your sponsor yet, how do you plan to do so?) Did they have good insights into how to improve or expand the project? How does your project bridge what you do at your internship and what you like to create for yourself? Has your relationship with your sponsor evolved as you have engaged in a creative dialogue about your project? Art there any challenges you are experiencing planning or doing your project?
How my internship project is going is kind of slow to be honest.. I haven’t started on it. I have the idea in mind and what I want to do and how I plan to do it, I just haven’t gotten started yet. I have been really busy trying to get other stuff done for school and my internship, and life in general. I will get it done before it’s time to turn it in, I just have to find some time to work on it, which should be easier soon, since I have gotten a lot finished for everything else. So getting time for it should get easier. The progress on it mentally is good, but physically the progress is in progress since I haven’t started drawing yet. The conversation about my project with my sponsor Stuart went well. I told him what my idea was and he thought it was kinda cool. We didn’t talk too much on it, but that was okay because I told him what I was doing and he was fine with it. Stuart didn’t really give me any insight or anything on how to expand my project. I kind of did though. I thought I could add in some drawings of me stage managing. My project is a bridge to what I do at my internship because it will be a little drawing compilation or “comic” of what I have done at my internship, just a bit more exaggerated. Stuart’s and my relationship has evolved bits at a time over the few months I have been working there, but not because we engaged in creative dialogue about my project, more so over me stage managing for the production of Born Yesterday. Some challenges I am experiencing with my project is as I mentioned before is just finding time to do it. Other than that, there are no challenges.
Blog #9 April 18, 2017
Prompt: What have you seen or experienced in your internship that has inspired you the most on your own artistic journey? Has this experience changed your artistic ambitions? How?
Something that I have seen or experienced in my internship that has inspired me the most on my artistic journey is watching the amazing productions that others perform in. I love watching musicals and plays, I love being in them more. I have now gotten to see two performances at DCPA, and will soon be watching a third. I have watched The Christians and Mamma Mia. The next show I will be watching is The Secret Garden. The shows have inspired me the most because I know how fun it is to perform on stage with others and give everyone a good show, and when I watched the shows, I could see how much fun they were having and how they had made connections with each other and became friends. I want to do what they do for the same reason. To have fun, make connections, and give everyone a good time. This experience hasn’t really changed my artistic ambitions, because I already wanted to be an actress and perform on stage. It actually enhanced my ambitions to continue on my artistic journey, because what I saw was amazing and I want do amazing things like that and make a career out of it because it is something I love. So I’m going to continue working hard to get where I want to be, which is up there with the stars. Everything I have been doing has been helping me to get where I want to go, which is why I wanted to do this internship, because I knew it could help me get further in the right direction, and because I could learn more about what I want to do and just have the great experiences.
Blog #10 April 18, 2017
Prompt: Has this experience been a rewarding one for you? Why or Why not (keep it positive, if you had negative experiences, focus on what you learned- make yourself look good!)? How has the reality of your internship matched or contrasted with your expectations? What is the most important learning you did during your internship?
The experience has been rewarding for me because I have gotten to learn some new things, I’ve probably gotten stronger physically from all the stuff I’ve had to move around, and I’ve meet some really cool people and made relationships with some of them. I’ve made connections, that I probably would have never made if it wasn’t for this internship, so I am really glad and grateful that I have been able to have this opportunity, to expand my horizons. I don’t think I’ve had any negative experiences. It has always been pretty positive for me. There have been times I have gotten bored or didn’t feel like doing something, but that was because I have been tired and just want to rest sometimes, not because I didn’t like what I had to do. Even though I felt that way sometimes, I still did what I had to, because I don’t give up easily, and because I didn’t want to let anyone down or waste anyone’s time being there and doing nothing. I can’t just do nothing there because it is my job as an intern to help out with whatever is needed, and do what I’m asked of, even if I’m not in the mood for it. The only time I can get away with that is at home, which is okay, but not for the workplace. The reality of my internship has contrasted with my expectations at first because I thought I was going to be doing some acting stuff, but in reality I’m working behind the scenes, and doing everything that is very important for a show other than just the acting parts. The most important learning I have done during my internship is to not be afraid to ask questions or for help if I need it because if you ask questions, even if they may seem silly, you will get the answer you’re looking for. Another thing I think that was important that I learned at my internship is that every aspect of the work place, even if it doesn’t seem that important. Like stuffing folders for example. IT doesn’t really seem to be too important for acting or behind the scenes, but it helps to keep things organized and to help get word out about the acting and stuff.