by Alexis Alicea
Acting takes center stage when theatre comes to mind. The actors on stage are not the only people behind a production. There's the technical crew, the stage crew and, of course, the person who wraps it all together, the director.
Nicole Crabtree knows the life of being a director all too well because of her major in directing at Ball State University, which envelopes her in the world of leading productions.
As director, Crabtree is in charge of the entire production. From finding a performance space to hiring cast and crew, directors navigate "the ship," or the play, said Crabtree.
"I am the captain of the ship, and the ship is the show," said Crabtree. "I have to know the ship, or the play, like the back of my hand so I can show other people how to operate it. But most importantly, I have to be the face at the wheel every day, guiding the whole thing in the right direction."
Crabtree had been involved in theatre since her high school. Though she had not acted before her sophomore year, Crabtree says she always knew she'd be good at theatre.
"It seems weird now but when I finally did step into the theatre, I started doing it likfe I had been there my whole life," said Crabtree. "My love for storytelling naturally translated to the stage."
Crabtree's love of theatre influenced her to transform her passion into a lifestyle. When it came to deciding her major, Crabtree's first choice was not directing.
"After some failed attempts in college at being a performer, I took an entry level directing class," said Crabtree. During one class, my professor told me to think about studying directing. A professional just told me I might really have potential. I thought 'there might be something to this.'"
After switching her career focus to directing, Crabtree began to navigate her own ship by directing her first full-length play, "Veronica's Room," a psychological thriller."
"I got to tell a story about the darkest parts of the human mind, asking the question: 'Are we who we chose to be, or are we who we are made to be?' I got the chance to test my skills with a really cool story and had a blast."
As for misconceptions about acting, many people get play directing and film directing confused, even though it's a huge difference, said Crabtree.
"A whole different set of skills goes into film directing. It's like baseball and football; they're both sports, but the diamond ain't the grid iron," said Crabtree.
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