By Harrison Hickman

The arts department has always been a very prominent part of the history of  RJ Reynolds high school and no one exemplifies that more than stage manager Lydia Evans.

   Senior Lydia Evans has been stage manager since her junior year and has served as junior stage manager since her sophomore year.

    In this role, she is responsible for everything that goes on “on stage,” this includes working on props, setting the lighting and cleaning up after shows. She is able to use her experience as a stage manager in her everyday life.

   “I have learned responsibility and leadership skills that have helped me in the classroom and in the real world,” Evans said.

 Evans loves being part of the arts program as it allows for her to make new connections with people she would not have met if not for being a stage manager.

   “I love being a part of the performing arts and having the opportunity to work with so many other artists,” Evans said.

   Every year at RJR, there is a fall play and spring musical put on by the theatre department for the school and even broader community. Evans has had an enormous impact on the different plays that the department has put on. In preparing for a RJR production, Evans is an integral part of the planning process for all things taking place on stage.

   “The time leading up to the plays is always very busy for me,” Evans said.

   Evans works closely with the actors and directors of the play to make sure that everything looks and sounds the way it should when the big day comes to perform.

   “When it gets to the week before the show, I work with the lighting and sound designers, to get cues for the actors” Evans said.

   This part of her job is one of the most important parts of being a stage manager as she has direct control over the way the production is performed.  Evans has always enjoyed her role as stage manager even when it is a challenge to balance it with her other classes.

   “Spending so much time in the theatre might seem like it would make less time for academics, but I feel that the arts are important to having a well-rounded educational experience,” Evans said

   Evans loves the experience of being stage manager as it has taught her many valuable lessons and broadened her outlook on the way theatre is handled.   

  The theatre department has kept Evans as a stage manager since her sophomore year, and has benefited greatly from her talents as an exceptional stage manager. It is safe to say that the Reynolds art department is fortunate to have someone like Lydia Evans.