Technical Theatre 1 students are starting to learn the ropes of the stage behind the scenes as through the month of September, students are doing safety training by familiarizing themselves with power tools, how to build structures, how to correctly measure and cut wood, and more.

“It’s important for tech students to learn the basics because after they’ve mastered the basics, there’s nothing they can’t build or create,” tech director Aaron Yowell said. “My favorite part of the safety unit to teach is when the students actually get to use the power tools. When they get to use the drills and the drivers and when they get to cut things, they feel powerful.”

The safety unit allows freshman Daphne Atchley to further explore aspects of Tech Theatre she finds intriguing and assist her in the rest of her high school years.

“I’m most excited to use power tools and overall safety procedures because I think Tech Theatre is so cool,” Atchley said. “Being able to use power tools will really allow me to take the next step in my theatre career and I think it will help me a lot in being a better technician.”

Although safety training primarily focuses on hands-on activities, to senior Kylie Gore, it’s more than that.

“A lot of it revolves around listening, which is a key aspect,” Gore said. “Listening keeps us safe and also helps make us better. We [also] learned teamwork because a lot of things we can’t do by ourselves. As much as we like to be strong, it’s safer to have people help you out and no one is ever alone in a situation.”