Let me tell you a secret that I harbored for a year.
Last year, I was smiling – and they said it was good.
Deep inside me, I wasn’t satisfied with how the technical production on my own end was done. Sure, it was our first time and whatnot, but frankly, it could have been done way better.
The lights could have been better, the videos could have been better, the creative vision could have been better, etc.
Guess what? 1 year to fix it and with consideration to the given format of the production…
Thus, I made it my personal mission to ensure that the stagecraft for this year’s edition is improved by leaps and bounds. Anything less than that and I would have considered my part in the musical as a failure.
I’m happy and thankful that I succeeded, with the help of the people around me.
I’m not comfortable when it comes to the aspects of management and direction. My idea of leadership is twofold: First, to inspire people by example and strength of best practices; second, by doing it behind the scenes.
Thus, still find it weird whenever my superiors do the “American way” of delegating responsibilities. If not for the fact that I saw the concept in multiple novels, I would never have had any idea on how I should handle such a situation.
The concept is called “maximum autonomy, maximum responsibility, maximum transparency” – basically, you are given everything you need and you have the power to make the final calls over decisions that affect you and your team. It’s almost as close as one can get to having a carte blanche.
There’s a catch though: Succeed, and it will reflect on your excellence and on the sagacity of the entity that gave you that authority. Fail and you’ve got no one to blame but yourself – not to mention the fact that you should be held accountable for everything that happened in that instance.
Sometimes, I’m able to handle it easily, especially if the responsibility given to me is something that I’ve already experienced in the past. Other times though, I am left paralyzed, as I have not determined the exact course of action that I want to have for that situation.
It’s just a passing thought that exemplifies the quintessential Spiderman quote: “With great power comes great responsibility.”
With that being said, I was relieved by my opposite numbers from the High School Department after an hour of directing stuff and praying that shit doesn’t hit the fan.
Well, it turned out to be a great musical. Thank God.
Especially when I received the feedback, I felt like I was walking with my head up high in Nirvana.
Yes, it felt so good – because I knew that I was able to deliver my job in the best way that I could,
Frankly, it was so satisfying.
I’m now back to being an ordinary teacher whose main objective in life is to hammer grammar and composition rules!
It was exhilarating while it lasted!
Maybe a full-blown stage production next year?
Maybe it’s time to relegate this format towards, say, the Recognition Day?
The possibilities are endless!
While at it, I actually started reading and researching best practices in stagecraft. Let’s see if they can be executed and applied in the best way possible.
Some people may ask, why do I put a lot of effort and detail in doing even small parts.
The answer is that I want to be able to deliver the best form on the table…especially during the times that it matters the most!
Until the next school presentation in the coming academic year!