Student Blog: DITL Summer Stock Theatre

Ever wonder what a summer stock internship looks like? This summer, I’m the electrics intern at Peterborough Players in New Hampshire. I spend my days working on the upcoming shows and spend my nights in a cabin on the theater’s campus. Here’s what a typical day in my life looks like when there is not a show running and we aren’t in tech (based on a recent Thursday).

7:00am  My alarm goes off. I get out of bed and get dressed. 

7:10am  I take a morning walk to admire nature and get some steps in. I make an effort to take a walk each morning before work. I’ve found that my attitude and energy have significantly improved from this small act of daily movement. 

8:00am  I return to my cabin and finish getting ready for the day.

8:20am  I head to the community building to make breakfast (a frozen waffle with peanut butter and a banana) and socialize with friends.

8:57am  I walk over to the theater (a one minute walk from my cabin!) and drop my stuff off in the lighting office.

9am  The work day starts! Today, I tested a lot of cables and hung lights for the upcoming production.

12pm  Lunch break! I made myself a spinach salad with chickpeas, peppers, and hummus!

1pm  We got back to work and continued our morning tasks.

2:10pm While testing cables, I came across one whose hot and neutral wires were flipped. Luckily, fixing this was one of the first skills the master electrician taught me when I started the job. This was an exciting opportunity to put my knowledge into practice and fix the cable! It’s always exciting when something you’ve learned happens organically and you get to apply your training.

4:30pm All of the interns go over to the lobby to clean during our daily maintenance. Today, I was in charge of taking out all of the trash and restocking the bathrooms. 

5pm This marks the end of my work day! I went back to my cabin to change into comfier clothes and then I hung out with friends in the community building.

7:45pm A bunch of the interns and staff gathered on the screened-in porch for a powerpoint night. I taught everyone a line dance. Other examples included a general overview of every preparation of eggs, a history of the stone walls in New England, and a dramatic reading of college emails. I laughed a lot, learned a lot, and felt a deep gratitude for the new friends I’ve made. 

10pm Our powerpoint night wrapped up, and I went back to my cabin to shower, set out my clothes for the next day, and read a bit before going to sleep!

My internship is providing me with so many learning opportunities and incredible new friends, and I’m working to savor every moment. As performances start, my life will grow more busy, but I’m looking forward to tackling this challenge alongside my friends.

Coming soon, I will write a similar blog post describing a day in my life (tech week version)! Until then, I hope everyone is having a great summer!

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