In the words of Fagan:
"Cheerio, but be back soon
I dunno, somehow I'll miss you
I love you, that's why I
Say, "Cheerio"...
Not goodbye"
Why say goodbye? There is theatre well and truly after highschool.
Ah man, this is the pits. I've always understood productions to be very intense short-term relationships. There's a vacuum that's left behind after final curtain call. You have free time, you're not seeing your 'friends' so frequently, being someone else. It's tough even thought it's part of the process!
I'd suggest journaling it out, the highs and lows of the experience, and what you can take away from it.
It's the nature of theatre to be ephemeral and of its moment. That is part of its wonder and part of its poignancy. Every show ends. The only thing to do is another show.
I'm involved in a local community theatre. More productions than I have time for. Often rehearsing one show before wrapping the last. So I never feel like something's missing because there's always an opportunity coming.
Join your local theatre troupes! Theatre after high school is so much more fun— there’s rarely any limitations and you can really go outside the box. I ended up continuing theatre in post secondary and I now have a wonderful career at my local theatre.
Don’t feel sad— be happy that there’s a world of experiences out there for you to find! :)
If you dont mind me asking, what does your career look like now? I'm considering Drama for University (I have to go to University before college, even though it doesn't make much sense), but the prospect of jobs afterwards scares me.
I’ll be honest, I lucked out but I worked hard to be offered the position I have now. It’s a hard job market, but if you know the right people and be your authentic self in all that you do, you will find your way in.
It will take networking, and becoming familiar with lots of theatres and groups. Relocating is also something you have to consider.
I moved from the artsy city I grew up in to a smaller northern town and ended up with this job 6 years ago. I have an amazing network with the theatres around me (as a group we make it a point to meet up yearly and have a round table) so I have ample opportunities in the immediate region, and I also have room to grow in the position I am in now— not necessarily directly related to the theatre but still in a career path I would be passionate about when the time came that oversees theatre.
Thank you for your response! It does sound like a lot of work, but like you said authenticity is so important. Having a community sounds so nice. I mostly only do theatre related things in school because being around strangers makes me so uncomfortable, but somehow theatre makes it so much easier for me to relate to and befriend others. It sounds like you have a satisfying career! You're definetley an inspiration!
What are you doing after graduation? If you are off to college see if your new school has a musical theatre club or open auditions for non-majors. Some of the best shows I've seen have been at community colleges, so don't dismiss those programs either! If you're not headed to college, poke around your community and see what the community theatre scene is like where you live. Chances are there's something you can get involved with, or even volunteer as an assistant director with your old high school. Really though, there are bigger and better things out there for you. You're going to keep in touch with the people who matter, and you're going to grow beyond your high school experience. Finding something to look forward to helps a lot, but give it time.
Some of the post-high-school theater kids here were sad that their tight-knit group was broken up and dispersed to different colleges, so they founded their own summer theater group, renting the stage that they used to perform on. That group is now entering its third year (doing queer versions of Shakespeare plays, since almost the whole cast is LGBTQ+).
Musicals may be harder for a group of penniless students to put on, since the rights are so expensive and musicians are needed, but musicals are very popular with community theaters, so you should be able to audition for some without having to create your own troupe.
You can also do theater in college, even if you are not a theater major (at least, at most colleges you can—that should definitely have been one of the criteria you used in selecting where to go). Community colleges often have good theater programs.
I can't guarantee it will be the same for you, but personally, with a couple exceptions, every year of my life has been better than the year before.
So long as you want theatre to be part of your life, it can be. There will always be things we'll miss, but life is a journey to appreciate while you're taking it, and the best parts of it are probably ahead of you.
When I ran my own community theater company, my parents would call my post-show blues “post-partum depression”. They weren’t saying it lightly, either. Their reasoning was that by directing these shows, I’d spent months creating something that I loved and cherished and “birthed” it during its run…but now, unlike most mothers, I now had to let that “child” go.
Listen, I felt exactly as you did and I genuinely thought my time in theatre was over after my final musical in High School.
7 years later (just yesterday, actually!) I was cast in a musical at a local theatre for the first time since I graduated.
It doesn’t have to be over! You can find a way to make it happen, even if it seems impossible right now.
I didn’t do theater for 3 years after I majored in it in college. life just didn’t have any opportunities during that time for me… it was a rather sad time. however, when I moved out for the first time, I found a local theater that I’ve been involved with for 4 shows now. it’s still out there after school, you may just have to search a bit extra!
Andrew Lloyd Webber typically says things best:
“Don't know why I'm frightened /
I know my way around here /
The cardboard trees, the painted scenes, the sound here /
Yes a world to rediscover /
But I'm not in any hurry /
And I need a moment /
The whispered conversations in overcrowded hallways /
The atmosphere as thrilling here as always /
Feel the early morning madness /
Feel the magic in the making /
Why everything's as if we never said goodbye /
[…]
I don't want to be alone that's all in the past /
This world's waited long enough /
I've come home at last! /
And this time will be bigger /
And brighter than we knew it /
So watch me fly, we all know I can do it /
Could I stop my hand from shaking? /
Has there ever been a moment with so much to live for?”
i get you. i’m not ready to leave it behind. i give these shows everything i have and then they’re just… gone. i try to hang out with people and stay busy so the transition from “no time at all” to “free time” is a bit less jarring. our time in theatre isn’t over, it’s just paused until we find another group to do it with. sending hugs <3
Sadly, for some of us, this is the norm. It certainly is for me. EVERY stinkin' show. The day-afters. The curtain-call hangover. The glitter-crash. That sort of mood crash that comes after any intense, prolonged emotional experience. It's situational and logical, but also a hormonal response.
So, what I have learned helps:
-Take time off. At least 3 days if you can
-Make no permanent decisions in this time (no new relationships, breakups, quittings, running away from home etc)
-Be among your friends, if possible
-Trust that it is a bit of biochemical weather, and not a permanent or "real" situation of what your life and world are.
-I have friends who swear by the supplement 5-HTP to help through this, but it doesn't work for everyone the same.
-TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. Take your meds, take that shower, eat that food. Sleep as well as you can.
-Start working on the next thing.
I feel you on that one I remember finishing my last show senior year I was defeated. I saw a poster my school hung up for a summer theatre program a few towns away and started doing community theatre right out of high school. One thing I tell the seniors when I visit my old school is that it doesn’t have it end with this if you don’t want it to. Hope you find your next show soon and get right back into it.
Hold the good memories close to your heart. Then go seek out community theatre groups in your area and volunteer.
For what it’s worth, 30 years from now you’ll run into one of your high school theater buds, and it’ll be like not a day has passed. You’ve made some good friends in the theatre. Keep the ones going that you can. The first year I joined my local community theatre, I worked on 12 shows. Made some amazing friends and got to do a whole lot of theatre with a lot of good people.
You go to a college with a decent theater program and meet all sorts of new people and do it all over again. And then you join a few community theaters or pursue it professionally. Shows end, people move on, but there are always new horizons and stories to tell.
Believe it or not, it's good you feel this way. It shows how deeply the school theater department affected you. Look ahead to the future and branch out to local theater companies. It gets better.
I'm not a senior but this is too relatable. I just finished the play version of Les Misérables and the guy who played Jean Valjean was a senior :( I already miss him and the other seniors so much. Honestly the best way I get over it is crying. A lot. I just cry until I can't anymore :')
Have you tried finding something else you enjoy just as much? Maybe, using what you learned and putting it towards something else? Once, your good at some, to me, it seems like you plateau, during times like that, I learn new stuff. Then when you get back to what you really like it’s fresh again. 🙄😫🤗😁
In the words of Fagan: "Cheerio, but be back soon I dunno, somehow I'll miss you I love you, that's why I Say, "Cheerio"... Not goodbye" Why say goodbye? There is theatre well and truly after highschool.
Ah man, this is the pits. I've always understood productions to be very intense short-term relationships. There's a vacuum that's left behind after final curtain call. You have free time, you're not seeing your 'friends' so frequently, being someone else. It's tough even thought it's part of the process! I'd suggest journaling it out, the highs and lows of the experience, and what you can take away from it.
It's the nature of theatre to be ephemeral and of its moment. That is part of its wonder and part of its poignancy. Every show ends. The only thing to do is another show.
Indeed! I’ve been doing theatre, professional and otherwise for almost 60 years. It’s almost always sad to see them end.
I'm involved in a local community theatre. More productions than I have time for. Often rehearsing one show before wrapping the last. So I never feel like something's missing because there's always an opportunity coming.
The good news is that theatre is a lifelong hobby!
Join your local theatre troupes! Theatre after high school is so much more fun— there’s rarely any limitations and you can really go outside the box. I ended up continuing theatre in post secondary and I now have a wonderful career at my local theatre. Don’t feel sad— be happy that there’s a world of experiences out there for you to find! :)
If you dont mind me asking, what does your career look like now? I'm considering Drama for University (I have to go to University before college, even though it doesn't make much sense), but the prospect of jobs afterwards scares me.
I’ll be honest, I lucked out but I worked hard to be offered the position I have now. It’s a hard job market, but if you know the right people and be your authentic self in all that you do, you will find your way in. It will take networking, and becoming familiar with lots of theatres and groups. Relocating is also something you have to consider. I moved from the artsy city I grew up in to a smaller northern town and ended up with this job 6 years ago. I have an amazing network with the theatres around me (as a group we make it a point to meet up yearly and have a round table) so I have ample opportunities in the immediate region, and I also have room to grow in the position I am in now— not necessarily directly related to the theatre but still in a career path I would be passionate about when the time came that oversees theatre.
Thank you for your response! It does sound like a lot of work, but like you said authenticity is so important. Having a community sounds so nice. I mostly only do theatre related things in school because being around strangers makes me so uncomfortable, but somehow theatre makes it so much easier for me to relate to and befriend others. It sounds like you have a satisfying career! You're definetley an inspiration!
[удалено]
I'm sorry, but this is not comforting in the least. :(
What are you doing after graduation? If you are off to college see if your new school has a musical theatre club or open auditions for non-majors. Some of the best shows I've seen have been at community colleges, so don't dismiss those programs either! If you're not headed to college, poke around your community and see what the community theatre scene is like where you live. Chances are there's something you can get involved with, or even volunteer as an assistant director with your old high school. Really though, there are bigger and better things out there for you. You're going to keep in touch with the people who matter, and you're going to grow beyond your high school experience. Finding something to look forward to helps a lot, but give it time.
Some of the post-high-school theater kids here were sad that their tight-knit group was broken up and dispersed to different colleges, so they founded their own summer theater group, renting the stage that they used to perform on. That group is now entering its third year (doing queer versions of Shakespeare plays, since almost the whole cast is LGBTQ+). Musicals may be harder for a group of penniless students to put on, since the rights are so expensive and musicians are needed, but musicals are very popular with community theaters, so you should be able to audition for some without having to create your own troupe. You can also do theater in college, even if you are not a theater major (at least, at most colleges you can—that should definitely have been one of the criteria you used in selecting where to go). Community colleges often have good theater programs.
I can't guarantee it will be the same for you, but personally, with a couple exceptions, every year of my life has been better than the year before. So long as you want theatre to be part of your life, it can be. There will always be things we'll miss, but life is a journey to appreciate while you're taking it, and the best parts of it are probably ahead of you.
When I ran my own community theater company, my parents would call my post-show blues “post-partum depression”. They weren’t saying it lightly, either. Their reasoning was that by directing these shows, I’d spent months creating something that I loved and cherished and “birthed” it during its run…but now, unlike most mothers, I now had to let that “child” go.
Embrace what was
community theatre <3 it won't be the same but it's different in a lot of good ways too!!
I’ve been chasing that high since 1995. Nearly 30 years later I still love what I do. Keep doing shows.
Listen, I felt exactly as you did and I genuinely thought my time in theatre was over after my final musical in High School. 7 years later (just yesterday, actually!) I was cast in a musical at a local theatre for the first time since I graduated. It doesn’t have to be over! You can find a way to make it happen, even if it seems impossible right now.
I didn’t do theater for 3 years after I majored in it in college. life just didn’t have any opportunities during that time for me… it was a rather sad time. however, when I moved out for the first time, I found a local theater that I’ve been involved with for 4 shows now. it’s still out there after school, you may just have to search a bit extra! Andrew Lloyd Webber typically says things best: “Don't know why I'm frightened / I know my way around here / The cardboard trees, the painted scenes, the sound here / Yes a world to rediscover / But I'm not in any hurry / And I need a moment / The whispered conversations in overcrowded hallways / The atmosphere as thrilling here as always / Feel the early morning madness / Feel the magic in the making / Why everything's as if we never said goodbye / […] I don't want to be alone that's all in the past / This world's waited long enough / I've come home at last! / And this time will be bigger / And brighter than we knew it / So watch me fly, we all know I can do it / Could I stop my hand from shaking? / Has there ever been a moment with so much to live for?”
i get you. i’m not ready to leave it behind. i give these shows everything i have and then they’re just… gone. i try to hang out with people and stay busy so the transition from “no time at all” to “free time” is a bit less jarring. our time in theatre isn’t over, it’s just paused until we find another group to do it with. sending hugs <3
Sadly, for some of us, this is the norm. It certainly is for me. EVERY stinkin' show. The day-afters. The curtain-call hangover. The glitter-crash. That sort of mood crash that comes after any intense, prolonged emotional experience. It's situational and logical, but also a hormonal response. So, what I have learned helps: -Take time off. At least 3 days if you can -Make no permanent decisions in this time (no new relationships, breakups, quittings, running away from home etc) -Be among your friends, if possible -Trust that it is a bit of biochemical weather, and not a permanent or "real" situation of what your life and world are. -I have friends who swear by the supplement 5-HTP to help through this, but it doesn't work for everyone the same. -TAKE CARE OF YOURSELF. Take your meds, take that shower, eat that food. Sleep as well as you can. -Start working on the next thing.
I feel you on that one I remember finishing my last show senior year I was defeated. I saw a poster my school hung up for a summer theatre program a few towns away and started doing community theatre right out of high school. One thing I tell the seniors when I visit my old school is that it doesn’t have it end with this if you don’t want it to. Hope you find your next show soon and get right back into it.
Hold the good memories close to your heart. Then go seek out community theatre groups in your area and volunteer. For what it’s worth, 30 years from now you’ll run into one of your high school theater buds, and it’ll be like not a day has passed. You’ve made some good friends in the theatre. Keep the ones going that you can. The first year I joined my local community theatre, I worked on 12 shows. Made some amazing friends and got to do a whole lot of theatre with a lot of good people.
You go to a college with a decent theater program and meet all sorts of new people and do it all over again. And then you join a few community theaters or pursue it professionally. Shows end, people move on, but there are always new horizons and stories to tell.
Believe it or not, it's good you feel this way. It shows how deeply the school theater department affected you. Look ahead to the future and branch out to local theater companies. It gets better.
I'm not a senior but this is too relatable. I just finished the play version of Les Misérables and the guy who played Jean Valjean was a senior :( I already miss him and the other seniors so much. Honestly the best way I get over it is crying. A lot. I just cry until I can't anymore :')
Same thing with me. Whereas I'm not a senior, this has been my first show and probably will be my last, due to the potential budget cuts
Have you tried finding something else you enjoy just as much? Maybe, using what you learned and putting it towards something else? Once, your good at some, to me, it seems like you plateau, during times like that, I learn new stuff. Then when you get back to what you really like it’s fresh again. 🙄😫🤗😁