Open Forum

One of the main goals for our Theatre Education Community is to help theatre students and professionals from all over connect and identify with each other in order to build resources and support the theatre education field. We shine a spotlight on a different member every other week by conducting a simple interview.

Our latest Spotlight Member is Aileen Zeigler, a theatre teacher and yoga teacher at Brownell Talbot School in Omaha, Nebraska. Aileen is one of the rare few who serves as troupe director for both a high school and Junior troupe at the same school. Since she works with students in grades 5-12, she has a wealth of experience and advice to offer her fellow Community members.

Ginny: What kind of training/education did it take to get you to the job you have today?

Aileen: I have an undergraduate degree in Theatre and Spanish from Denison University. I taught at the Peace Learning Center in Indianapolis for a year before going back to school to get my teaching certificate and masters. I originally taught Spanish, but found my real joy came from teaching Theatre. I taught at Druid Hills High School in Atlanta, GA where I rechartered our troupe and build a theatre program.  I moved to Omaha a few years ago and was lucky to find a Theatre job at a great school.

Ginny: What advice do you have for new theatre teachers?

Aileen: Cultivate relationships. Students, parents, fellow teachers, staff (the bookkeeper is your best friend), vendors, professional theatre artists. Having all of these people in your corner is essential.

Ginny: What is your greatest challenge currently?

Aileen: Currently, I am working on finding a new balance. My first child is 4 months old and that has been a dynamic shift in my life. I'll take any advice from other paren/ directors. Coordinating bed time routine with rehearsals and tech days is a challenge.

Ginny: What does a typical day look like for you?

Aileen: My day is never typical. Most of my classes meet twice a week, so each day is totally different. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays, my schedule is packed. Fridays, I have time to work in the shop or visit vendors. I teach 5th and 6th grade Intro to Theatre, High School Intro to Theatre, Acting, Technical Theatre, Directing & Design and Yoga.

Ginny: What is your “dream” show? The one that you would love to direct at your school if there weren’t any obstacles?

Aileen: I want to produce the bilingual Aladdin or really any bilingual Spanish/English show. As a former Spanish teacher, I love combining both worlds.

Ginny: What was the most difficult element of a production you’ve ever had to manage?

Aileen: Adding moving lights and learning a new lighting operating system in two weeks. 

Ginny: Everyone has at least one good theatre story. Tell us yours!

Aileen: At my previous school, I had a couple of students trained in the technical elements and other teachers would have them run lights and sound for orchestra performances, etc. The night of an orchestra concert, I'm sitting down to dinner at home at 8:30pm, when my phone rings. It's the principal, so of course I answer. She proceeds to tell me that my students had let off the fire extinguisher in the booth, filling the balcony with haze and coating our equipment in chemicals. They must have emptied the extinguisher, because there was so much that they set off the fire alarm. They told me it “fell” off the wall and started shooting extinguisher powder. The pin must have just slipped out. Needless to say, I was back at school that night with a shop vac, trying to salvage as much as I could. Both boards had to be professionally cleaned.

My proudest mishap was when an actor entered the stage on the wrong cue line, effectively skipping six pages. We were performing a murder mystery farce, so there was a lot of important info in those six pages. My students stayed in character and improvised their way through the act, filling in all of the important info, even though it was out of order. Most of the audience had no idea.

Ginny: What is the weirdest stage food you’ve ever made or eaten?

Aileen: Room Service. I had to prepare an entire plate of food that looked like a fancy dinner but could be eaten in 30 seconds. A fake chicken cutlet out of white bread, etc. 

Ginny: How do you relax after a busy day?

Aileen: Stare at my newborn son. Or knit if I can get my hands free.

Ginny: Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of theatre?

Aileen: I'm a knitter and I love to design my own work.

Ginny: If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you go and why?

Aileen: Madrid. I loved the time I spent there. The pace of life, the food, the parks. 

Aileen always has rock solid tips to share with her fellow teachers in the Community and this interview was no exception! If you enjoyed Aileen’s interview as much as I did, add her as a contact in the Community!

Do you know someone who deserves a moment in the Spotlight? Tell me their name and why at gbutsch@schooltheatre.org. Want to read more Community Spotlights? You can find them here.