My Plan: Part One

Here is the first part of a rather lengthy blog entry I am writing. I was going to publish it all at once, but figured I would get better readership if I split it. Enjoy this part, the second is coming in the next day or so.

I think it's important to have some sort of goals in life. Over the past year or so I've been giving thought to a growing life goal of mine: bringing professional theatre to Dubuque, Iowa, my hometown. Please bear with me, to tell this story properly is going to take a while.

Essentially since sophomore year, maybe even the end of freshman year of high school, I've wanted to do lighting for theatre. I loved doing theatre and lighting in high school and for much of my time at Dubuque Senior High School theatre and lighting we're an activity I could claim as my own. Before too long, however, it was time to think about college and I had convinced to look in other places for a career. Nothing really fit though, and so I went to the University of Northern Iowa to do the "theatre" thing and see what happened. Freshman year was a little confusing but before too long I had figured out that theatre was the right place for me. Luckily, I still absolutely feel that way.

Part Two: I grew up in Dubuque, Iowa and spent most of that time convinced I would never want to come back as an adult. This is certainly no longer the case. Maybe it's some manifestation of homesickness or maybe I just have increasing love and respect for the town which shaped me for 18 years. A big part of that shaping was getting involved in theatre. I have been surrounded by it for a long time thanks to my parents, especially my dad, who acted so often in community theatre. When the second chance for me to get involved in theatre came (I missed the first in 7th grade) in 8th grade, I joined the Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) Program at Washington Jr. High. In May of that year, I ran my first light board and haven't turned back since. Theatre has been a big part of my life since age thirteen thanks to the wonderful programs in Dubuque. The great thing is, these programs don't just exist in the schools. There seems to be a huge passion for theatre in Dubuque. Off the top of my head I can think of seven community theatre groups which have produced in Dubuque at one point. Many still do, in fact. This is not including the local colleges which also have quality programs. The point that I'm trying to make here is that live theatre is a really big deal in Dubuque, however, to me, it seems far to spread out. I want to fix that...