Second-year St. Thomas University student Wei Qing Tan is from Malaysia; she has studied in Fredericton for two years. The 20-year-old is the assistant stage manager of Theatre St. Thomas (TST).
Her first experience with theatre was when she was 15 years old and worked backstage for the musical Seussical.
“It’s pretty much what I’m doing right now, keeping people organized and making props,” Tan said.
Tan thinks those magical moments that captivate audiences can’t happen without backstage work. Every show has different requirements, so she has had the chance to learn a variety of things when working in TST.
“In The Bacchae, there is a lot of quick costume changes and transitions, so I need to run from one point to the other,” Tan said.
With The Trickster of Seville, Tan started to play the role of stage manager, giving notices, rescheduling actors and preparing and managing props. She made sure everyone on the team felt good. If there were any problems, anyone could go talk to her.
“I like doing it. A part of the fact that I just really like doing all of the things is also just the people I work with. Everyone is welcoming and appreciates the work you are doing,” Tan said.
For her future, Tan doesn’t have a particular direction. Theatre is still a hobby right now. However, she wishes that she could incorporate the elements she has learned from theatre into her future career.
