PROCTOR: You will not use me! I am no Sarah Good or Tituba, I am John Proctor!

You will not use me! It is no part of salvation that you should use me! DANFORTH: I do not wish to- PROCTOR: I have three children-how may I teach them to walk like men in the world, and I sold my friends? DANFORTH: You have not sold your friends- PROCTOR: Goshen High School Theater Internship Beguile me not! I blacken Fall all of them when this is nailed to 2013 the church the very day they hang for silence! DANFORTH: Set Design and Crew Management in a Public Mr. Proctor, I must have good and legal proof that youIndiana High School PROCTOR: You are the high12/3/2013 court, your word is good enough! Tell them I confessed myself; say Proctor broke Maryn E. Munley Goshen College--Theater Department Faculty Advisor Dr. Doug Leichty Caskey his knees and wept like a woman; say what you will, but my name cannot - DANFORTH, with suspicion: It is the same, is it not? If I report it or you sign to it? PROCTOR he knows it is insane: No, it is not the same! What others say and what I sign to is not the same! DANFORTH: Why? Do you mean to deny this confession when you are free? PROCTOR: I mean to deny nothing! DANFORTH: Then explain to me, Mr. Proctor, why you will not let --PROCTOR, with a cry of his whole soul: Because it is my name! Because I cannot have another in my life! Because I lie and sign myself to lies! Because I am not worth the dust on the feet of them that hang! How may I live without my name? I have given you my soul; leave me my name! DANFORTH, pointing at the confession in Proctor's hand: Is that document a lie? If it is a lie I will not accept it! What say you? I will not deal in lies, Mister! Proctor is motionless. You will give me your honest confession in my

Introduction My internship at Goshen High School started on September 17th and ended on November 24th, 2013. I was responsible for designing and building the set of the Goshen High School fall mainstage production of The Crucible, by Arthur Miller. I also functioned as the set crew chief and shop manager during this time. The performances were on November 21st, 22nd, 23rd, and 24th, 2013. My direct supervisor was Mr. Richard Snyder, the Goshen High School theater director and an English teacher. Mr. Snyder was the director of The Crucible, as well as the faculty sponsor for the Goshen High School Drama Club. The set crew was comprised of a group of student volunteers, primarily underclassmen. This after-school club ran Monday through Friday from 3:45 to 5:30 at night. There were two additional Saturday workdays leading up to the show. Participation varied from day to day since all of the students were involved in additional extracurricular activities or had family or religious obligations. The overall experience level of the group at the beginning of this process was quite low. There was one student with previous technical theater experience in my set crew. This internship was an eye opening experience for me. My role in this theater internship has four major components: Research and collaboration, the realized scenic design, the learning, and a retrospective performance assessment. The first step of the process was the researching the play and playwright and collaborating with the director. The Crucible is the most produced play of one of Americas most prominent playwrights. The script is filled with themes of human nature and allegorical messages that paint a landscape of American history while still being relevant to todays times. The director, Mr. Richard Snyder, has been the theater director at Goshen High School for over a decade. His dedication to the project and his pragmatic recognition of abilities of his students set clear and achievable standards for this production. The next component of this theater internship experience was the realized scenic design. The space and available resources were new to me. The design interpreted Arthur Millers theme of distorted truth and fear-motivated behavior while paying homage to the historic Massachusetts setting. The design went through many adaptations and compromises throughout the process. As a designer, I prioritized the sustainability of this build while staying on a shoestring budget. The third and most important category of my Goshen High experience was the learning accomplished. I learned about managing a shop and working with high school students. My set crew students learned how to use a variety of tools, execute projects, and paint with several different effects. I adjust my thinking multiple times, ensuring that my priority was making crew a learning opportunity for the students. The last component of my internship was a retrospective analysis of my performance. This assessment focuses on what I could improve upon in future experiences, as well as what I did well. Recognizing my strengths and weakness help determine how this experience shapes my future endeavors. 1

Research and Collaboration: The Importance of Time and Place in 1692, 1953, and 2013 The Crucible design started the same way as every one of my designswith numerous play readings, copious research, never-ending doodles, and a meeting with the director about his vision. The Crucible is the most produced play of one of Americas most prominent playwrights. This 1953 classic is part of the canon of American drama. Arthur Miller saw the theme of truth distorted by fear both in the history of Salem and his personal reality of the 1950s. My study comprised of research of the playwright, McCarthyism and that era of American history, the production and reception of this play in 1953, and the events of the Salem Witch Trials in 1692. The conclusions I made from research and script analysis are paramount in my realized scenic design of The Crucible. When one hears Salem, Massachusetts, the mind immediately thinks of the Salem Witch Trials. The memories of those events are integrated to that setting. In my design, the set to reflects the Massachusetts of the late seventeenth century. The set design communicates the gravity of this location through a connection to the natural world of Massachusetts at that time as well as a connection to Arthur Millers theme of distortions of truth rooted in human fear and weakness. Massachusetts primary biome is deciduous forest. Since Massachusetts is now the third most densely populated state in the United States, the landscape of the state has changed dramatically since the time of the Salem Witch trials. At the end of the seventeenth century, Massachusetts was mostly covered by old growth deciduous forests. The people of Salem would have depended on these forests. The forests provided the town with lumber for houses, furnishings, heating, and cooking fires. The forest was necessary for survival. In Act one, the lumber and wood is mentioned twice in reference to interpersonal conflict between Mr. Parris, Mr. Putnam, Mr. Proctor. Mr. Corey uses his land and timber holdings as part of his introduction in court. Lumber was necessary for life in Salem Massachusetts. The design pays homage to the forest biome through the abundantly use of wood grain pattern and the natural tones of the color palette. This connection the natural history of Massachusetts and life at this time enhances the sentiment that this time and place are crucial to building the magnitude of this plot. The Crucible is central in the canon of American drama. The play was first performed at the Martin Beck Theater on Broadway on January 22nd, 1953. Arthur Miller cemented his name as a great 2

American playwright with this great work. Given the historical significance of this play, this design reflects some of the same principles of minimalism and action-motivated design as Boris Aronsons 1953 original set design. The black box arrangement of this stage set up allowed the design even more freedom to explore the precarious balance of intimacy and distance. The Crucible is about the past and the present. Arthur Miller saw the theme of truth distorted by fear both in the history of Salem and his personal reality of the 1950s. The parallels between fearmotivated, life-altering judicial decisions of the Salem Witch Trials and McCarthyism are colossal. Miller wrote this play while he watched his friends and colleagues go to trial against Senator Joseph McCarthys anti-communism group. In 1956, Miller was questioned and convicted by the House of Representatives Committee on Un-American Activities. When Miller was called to testify, he practically paraphrased one of John Proctors lines in the closing act. Miller said I am trying to, and will, protect my sense of myself. I could not use the name of another person and bring trouble on him. In The Crucible, Miller demonstrates that fear has a dangerous disfiguring power over truth. This is a societal theme, as Miller, and many other artists of the 1950s, had the misfortune of experiencing personally. Because this theme is central to the emotional truth of this work, the design aesthetically reflects this distortion. The raked stage, the unadjusted set props, and the forced perspective application to the floor all create the sense that the world of the play is distorted and out of balance. The Crucible is rooted the setting of Salem Massachusetts while simultaneously transcending time period and locations with the universal human truths of fear and weakness. This precarious balance of past and present makes the message of this play reverberate with ones personal experience and history. The scenic design of this production communicates those principles through the commitment to the natural history of Salem, Massachusetts at that time and the expression of Arthur Millers theme of truth corrupted by fear. Collaborating with the director was just as crucial to the initial development of my design as the historical research. Without his overall vision, practicality and approval of the emphasized researchbased themes in the design, The Crucible design would have never been realized. The director, Mr. Richard Snyder, provided realistic expectations of the students abilities and the purpose of educations theater. Snyder has been the theater director at Goshen High School for over a decade. His past includes working professionally as an actor and in technical theater. Because of his previous experiences, Snyder

has extremely realistic views of the quality and purpose of his productions. During our first production meeting I scribbled these words of Snyders in my sketchbook: This is a high school. This will be a high school play, it will be a good high school play, but a high school production nonetheless. Those are kids up there. This may be their first and only stage experience for their entire lives. As a director, Mr. Rich Snyder had a big picture focus, leaving the details to my discretion and a great deal of freedom with the colors and textures of the design. Snyder was committed to making this a learning process for his students, rather than being absorbed by staging his perfect vision of Arthur Millers play. This pragmatic approach to educational theater is extremely refreshing and allows for student ownership of the artistic process. The most important thing I gleaned from working with Snyder is that the creative process is and always will be a learning process.

The Realized Set DesignAnd How We Arrived There Once we had a design, it was time to start the construction process. The resources available to build the set almost entirely comprised of what Goshen High School Drama Club already possessed in the shop, prop loft, stage, and warehouse. The scene shop was where I spent most of my time. I typically arrived at the shop around 11:00 in the morning and left at 6:00 in the evening. Before students arrived I readied the shop for the days projects, planned the build, gathered necessary materials, and I worked on projects that were beyond the students skill levels. At 3:45 in the afternoon, students arrived in the shop and set crew commenced. The set crew had weeks of hard work and a great deal of learning. Set crew construction projects entailed building the raked stage, masking flats, house platforms, and the set props such as a sink, benches, a tree, tables, and a bed. Set crew completed all the painting. The majority of the set props and the entire stage required complex paint treatments. The wood grain pattern, which was used extensively in this design, requires a base color, an accent color, and then a dark brown wash followed immediately with the rubber wood grain tool. The students also learned how to create natural textures by painting the natural texture on the tree and green areas of the stage. The stage was a large space with a proscenium arch that was about fifty feet across. The director decided this script would be ideal in a black box configuration. Set crew converted that space into a black box configuration. We made the playing area smaller by installing a forty-foot rake and moving the soft goods and cyclorama. We had limited wing space. I worked around this limitation with

extensive planning of the wing space. Setting up performance shells separated the back stage area from the house area. To create the house we set up seventy-five seats on three platforms that were fifty feet long. We constructed additional space for the light board and additional technical necessities. In the early stages of the production, the focus of set crew was cleaning and organizing the spaces. The shop needed a great amount of organization including assessing usable power tools, sorting through over a hundred cans of paint, dealing with buckets of miscellaneous hardware, installing a new tool organizational system, and sweeping up mountains of old saw dust. The shop and warehouse were never cleaned and organized since the hasty strike of the previous musical last spring. Large carts storing metal platforms hindered working in the scene shop. These large obstacles made maneuvering in the shop difficult. It segmented the shop, creating limited clear workspace. The theater spaces needed considerable effort to make efficient use of the space. My set crew and I made improvements to the theater spaces at Goshen High School. I created a designated first aid/safety cabinet. Prior to my arrival safety equipment like gloves, goggles, and the first aid kits were scattered throughout the shop. Establishing one orderly location with clear signs made enforcing safety protocol simple. Another improvement I made was returning the large table saw to working order. The shop had a Saw Stop table saw that was unusable because the safety stop was triggered during the previous show. I installed a new safety stop and blade, and recalibrated the blade alignment. The scene shop needed the cleaning, organizing, and updating we implemented. The faculty directors did not have the time or resources to restore the shop or warehouse after the musical last spring. The warehouse is the large storage facility across the parking lot. This is where the majority of the scenic materials, set props, and lumber are stored. This space is dangerously unorganized. The previous shows strike left precarious piles of platforms, flats, half-assembled set props, boards screwed together, and unsorted lumber with exposed hardware and sharp fasteners. In short, the warehouse was junk piled hazardously high. This added unnecessary difficultly to the construction of this semesters production. There was no knowledge or inventory of what the warehouse actually has in it. There was no organizational system. We could not easily get to commonly used items. We wasted time digging through piles to get to the flats, platforms, and set props. Despite its obvious organizational flaws, the warehouse supplied our production with the majority of the lumber, platforms, and the set props. This large inventory allowed us to use what we already had from previous productions. Cleaning the Goshen High Schools theater spaces identified installing

organizational systems as a personal strength. I had never thought of that as a personal asset. After going through that whole shop, designing easy-to-use organization system for tools, hardware, and lumber made working in that shop more efficient. I will frequently employ this skill in the future. If I were to work on another production with Goshen High School, I would highly recommend equipping the warehouse with organizational designations and taking an inventory of the scenic property. Throughout the production process, I had to make compromises and alternations to my design. This is true of all productions. It is part of working on collaborative art with a strict schedule while on a budget. In the beginning of the design process, the director and I had decided to create a suspended ceiling above the raked stage. This element would have strengthened the effect of forced perspective, communicating that message of a distorted world. After some conversation with the light designer, we decided to reduce the design to large foam rafters, to make lighting more achievable. On the last Saturday workday of the production, the beams were cut from the design. The beams were the only task I scheduled for that day. They were to be assembled and hung after the adhesive dried later that day. Two hours into the workday, the director and I decided to scrap them because we did not have time assemble them, to wait for the adhesive to dry and hang them and complete everything that the light design had scheduled for this day. This was a tough element for me to lose since I had spent over a week with my crew working on this project, but we had to prioritize. I cannot help but think if I had communicated with the light designer about what she had left to accomplish and assembled the beams the night before, that set element would have made it into the show. As a designer, I try to emphasize sustainability of the build while staying within the budget. In Goshen Highs production of The Crucible I kept my purchases of new materials to a minimum. I accomplished this by reusing existing lumber, paint, and props. This choice added a substantial amount of time to the construction process. The chaotic conditions of the warehouse did not make this commitment to reuse lumber from previous productions painless. I spent an entire day with my crew finding and sorting lumber into piles. The added labor was well worth the effort at the end of the production. By recycling previous set pieces, we kept a low environmental impact of the production. These efforts also helped our budget. We spent no money on paint. By mixing paint we already had in the shop, we eliminated a good portion of our potential expenses. We had less than $250 of set production costs. 6

Learning Accomplishments: the Creative Process is and Always will be a Learning Experience Upon reflecting on my internship, the learning that took place was my greatest accomplishment. My student crew learned a great deal and I learned just as much from them. I learned about managing a shop and working with high school students. My set crew students learned how to use a variety of tools, execute projects, and paint with several different effects. I adjust my thinking multiple times, ensuring that my priority was making crew a learning opportunity for the students. I quickly learned that my flexibility is vital for this production to go smoothly. Unlike my experience of set designing in college, at Goshen High, I could not be certain that I had the resources or skills to complete my design. As a designer, I had to let go of making each part of my design perfect and learn to prioritize certain elements. My crew was primarily comprised of underclassmen with little to no previous experience with construction or power tools. There was one student with previous technical theater experience; he had worked one Goshen High school show before. Since the level of experience of my crew was low, it took a lot longer than I originally expected to accomplish projects. I had to teach the students relatively basic shop skills, like how to use a screw gun or drill, a tape measure, chop saw, and socket wrench. Most days at the high school, I would accomplish more in the shop before the students arrived. I had to be flexible with my designs, my expectations of students, and even the plans of what we would accomplish that day. I learned that adaptability was the most valuable tool I had. Early on in this process, I made the decision to put student learning over my aesthetic goals. In my opinion, some parts of this set look very poorly done. This was far from the most beautiful or expertly crafted set I have worked on. However, my crew accomplished the biggest educational objectives of any production I have participated in. They went from relatively no experience to comfortably and safely operating a number of tools in the shop. They are all very proud of the set we created. My primary purpose was teaching, and my secondary objective was creating a provoking set. Keeping learning goals on the forefront while trying to run shop was rarely easy. This was a continuous learning process for me. I had to learn a few things about teaching, managing a scene shop, and the developmental level of these students. It was important that I kept meeting students where they were. On any given day, I had between three and ten students, all with different learning styles and speeds. They were easily overwhelmed and constantly trying to give up. I realized that since they were all so new to this type of work, their confidence in their work was very low, and one mistake would make them feel

terrible. Sometimes, they were terrible. Nevertheless, it is permissible to be terrible at something that one is just starting to learn and it was important they kept trying. It took me a while to learn how to explain or correct actions without making the students lose that little bit of skill confidence they had. My students did gain knowledge of basic shop skills and painting techniques. Sometimes the acquisition of the skills took a few mistakes. When introducing a new skill or project I would verbally explain the activity, demonstrate the process, and then I observed as the student executed the skill and made any adjustments necessary. This process was not always perfect; we had mistakes and projects we had to redo later. I found, for this setting, this was the most effective teaching method. I also tried to stressed that each student learned how to use a variety of tools. It would have been more efficient if I taught one student rather than the whole group. That method would have saved time while sacrificing learning, which was not my aim of this internship. Another important lesson I had to learn was recognizing these students still have maturing to do. Some may be the height of an adult, but they all have a great deal more growing up left in their adolescence. My crew was consisted of kids. This meant that some days, I was the babysitter or referee. There were times where I would have to discipline my group because they were way off-task or engaging in unsafe activities. There was one incident when a group of boys dragged a lumber cart with two passengers behind a car. I learned new depths of scolding that day. There was another day when one student managed to spill two gallons of rancid paint on herself. I was frequently shocked by their bad judgment and thoughtless actions. I did not enjoy my role as babysitter, mediator, or punisher but sometimes those kids needed that from me. In all of those instances, the students listened to me, and I believe that was because of the relationship we built and the authority I had because of my leadership in that setting. This experience taught me that I have power to cultivate student motivation. I quickly discovered that if I showed enthusiasm or passion for an activity, my crew would swiftly follow suit. I had a student tell me that her favorite activity was organizing the treacherous warehouse. There majority of the set construction process is not fun or glamorous for high school students. Nevertheless, by creating the right environment and attitude around the construction process, I had a crew that could not wait to get started on the next show. I established this atmosphere by making the shop a positive environment. As previously mentioned, I worked to build up my students confidences with tools and basic skills. Providing verbal praise was critical behavioral reinforcement. Regulating the positive environment meant that,

occasionally, I had to play babysitter and scold a student who was saying something deprecating or behaving inappropriately. Another key part of cultivating a positive atmosphere was keeping tasks lowpressure and always encouraging questions. The results of my management were daily enthusiasm and an accepting community. Overall, my students had a very enjoyable and constructive learning experience by participating in my set crew. I learned a great deal about effective teaching methods and managing a scene shop in an educational setting. Moving forward from this experience, all of them want to participate in the musical next semester. Two students told me that set crew was their favorite part of the day. At first, I rolled my eyes, but then I realized that this was an important experience for som e of them. It provided new friendships and shared experiences in the early stages of high school. Some of these kids come from very tough home situations, and having this extracurricular provided a community and stimulating alternative to going straight home. Some of my crewmembers had social skills that were far from honed, so this club gave them a community that they did not previously have. I think I had a positive influence on these students lives.

Retrospective Performance Analysis Reflecting on my successes and shortcomings in this internship process identify my strengths and growth areas for future projects. After this experience, I would like to work more with educational theater. I will probably never create a career out of educational theater, but I really enjoyed working with those students. I found the work challenging and fulfilling. Kelly McGonigal, a health psychologist who studies stress, said Chasing meaning is better for your health than avoiding discomfort. During this internship, I did things that caused me discomfort--I had to scold unruly behavior, deal with obnoxious teenagers, redo a project for the fourth time, and enforce red tape like student extracurricular eligibility. And I found Ms. McGonigals words rang true. Most days, I found my oddball set crewmembers hilarious and their enthusiasm refreshing. I learned a great deal during this process about managing a shop and teaching that I can use in future endeavors in and out of the theater setting. Unfortunately, the final set was far from breathtaking. My performance at this internship was adequate but not extraordinary. There were many things I could have performed better, learned quicker, or improved upon. The most obvious mistake I made was not directly confronting the Saturday workday conflict with the light designer. If I had communicated with her and planned farther in advance, I could have kept the large foam rafters in my design. Had I pre-built the beams before the last Saturday work day, the project would

not have been scrapped. If the glue had time to set, like the mock ups I made, the project would have worked. I should have sought out help and done more research into exactly how we could rig them, because tat added additional work that morning. I have very limited experience with rigging and did not realize the time requirement. The other area where I need improvement was increased efficiency in the shop. Some projects took too long. I do not believe I would have sacrificed more quality if I pushed my students to work more quickly. Having to redo or fix projects spent additional time and energy I had not planned for in the schedule. In regards to my schedule, one mistake I made frequently was underestimating the amount of time and training the students needed. I had planned activities and materials gathered but they always needed more direction. Some of this slow performance was due to low confidence their skills. My students needed a good deal of reassurance that what they were doing was correct. That said, when things did go wrong, they did so very quickly. A girl carved a checkerboard pattern into the foam rather than a staggered brick pattern. Three students legging a platform cut four legs all at different heights. And someone always spilled a bucket of paint. I ran around from group to group trying to solve problems rather than managing an efficient shop. The way I could have improved some of these shortfalls would be to have students take more ownership of their particular tasks. I establishing an additional student crew chief or student leadership could have helped by delegating some of the leadership responsibilities. This would be more possible in the future with a more experienced crew. I should have done less hand-holding. I think if I expected more of them, had them figuring out their own problems, they would have risen to the occasion. Lastly, relaxing my standards further could have helped the situation. Most things can be fixed with liquid nails, foam, or paint. In a high school shop, there is a huge amount of learning and just as many mistakes. Balancing the list of disappointments with a compilation of successes is necessary for an accurate perspective. Accepting that my expectations and desired outcomes needed to be flexible and adapt to the skills and resources available was one of the things I did well. Though it is easier to recognize the growth areas, it is extremely important to recognize where ones strengths are. During this GHS theater internship, I put in the required time and then some. I dedicated myself to the activities. This meant late nights, working weekends, creative problem solving, cultivating relationships and supporting students. Some of my success with this project is because of my organizational proficiency and leadership. Throughout the

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process, I had clear and constant communication with my director as well as my crew. I created a positive learning environment and an enjoyable atmosphere. This led to building strong relationships with students and an inclusive community. I believe that putting the focus on student experience rather than finished product was an extremely strong choice I made. By making my emphasis creating a learning experience, not fine art, I was able to adapt my design resources and circumstances available and have realistic expectations of my students skills.

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