Fox Valley Rep Blog

Fox Valley Rep recently welcomed to their team Cassius Wright as their new production manager. After a wild and successful history of operating over 1200 live performances, festivals, and events, Cassius eagerly looks forward to working alongside his new cohorts here in St. Charles. As a get-to-know-you for the start of his job with FVR, he answered a few questions about theater and the company.

Q. Welcome, Cassius! Certainly this isn’t your first experience in theater, so tell us, how long have you worked in theatre?

A. You’re in luck!  I’ve been working in production for well over a decade and have held every technical position to be found backstage–from all aspects of design, to mopping the deck, and everything in between.  I truly enjoy learning on a daily basis, and there is no better environment than live performance to be presented with new and interesting technologies, problems to find creative solutions to, and opportunities to be artistic and impact an audience on an emotional level.  I find it to be the most rewarding pursuit available to me, and I honestly feel lucky that I look forward to work every day.

Q. Naturally, we know that Fox Valley Rep is a fantastic company full of talented people (right?), but what drew you to Fox Valley Rep?

A.  Fox Valley Rep has a growing reputation as a go-to company for high-caliber productions, so for me, artistic integrity was a major factor.  Of course, joining a company during a period of sensational growth and development is fantastic as well, because it allows me to put my efforts towards a common goal with the rest of the management team.  Such an opportunity rarely presents itself during such a period of growth, and I knew when the job became available I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t apply!  I’ve been rewarded by a real feeling of support from both my equals and the team I supervise, but most importantly, I feel total support from my superiors.  This isn’t a company that sits around and wastes time, or has any sort of problem articulating exactly where your piece of the puzzle fits into the total picture, and for that, I’m endlessly grateful.  This can be an incredibly detailed and difficult job, but it’s absolutely worth it because everybody with FVR has made me feel like an immediate member of our crazy little family.  Special thanks to John and Colleen for maintaining the work environment that they do–it fosters working your hardest, and it fosters being your best.

Q. We often get asked by our patrons, “So, what does a production manager do?”  So tell us, Cassius, what is the production manager’s role in preparing a show?

 A. What doesn’t a Production Manager do?  I organize and arrange design meetings, and serve to keep the lines of communication open between the various artists’ whose visions you see enacted on stage, and the individuals actually building the sets, hanging the  lights, and sewing the costumes.  I interface with both talent and patrons at the theater itself to make sure that all is going smoothly, and everybody fits into the production in the most efficient and comfortable way possible.  I find and hire amazingly talented stage managers, props masters, and technical staff to keep the season running at its usual vigorous pace.  I also keep an eye on all budgets for all shows to ensure that Fox Valley Rep can continue providing the same artistic and meaningful productions that keep our season subscribers growing, and coming back for more.  Oh, and payroll.  Everybody needs to get paid, too!

Q. Which upcoming production are you most looking forward to working on?

A.  The Woman In Black is one of my favorite stories of all-time.  Haunting, surreal, terrifying, and unsettling, and also one of the very first shows I designed with any level of real success while I was training to become a lighting designer in school.  Nostalgia plays a small role in that choice, I suppose.  That being said, I think Sirens is such an interesting script and has such an engaging storyline, and knowing what I know about the various design elements, I can’t help but be excited about the final product.  I think it will really “wow” our audiences on all levels, which is, of course, why I’m here!

Q. The performing arts can be some powerful stuff.  How has the arts impacted your life?

A. Powerful doesn’t even begin to touch it for me.  I met my wife, the love of my life, doing theater.  I met her doing a production of the musical Pippin, and when the show closed, I moved literally across the entire United States to be with her, 10 days later.  No joke.  I met all of my closest friends (or is that accomplices?) in theaters.  Every single job I’ve ever had that I loved was in a theater or a concert hall.  I eat, drink, sleep, and breathe Performing Arts.  Watching an elderly gentleman put his arm around his wife during the previews of Some Enchanted Evening, remembering how they fell in love, really brought all that back for me, and made me reconnect with a moment in my life I cherish.  Performing Arts has given me so much in my life, so I can’t help but endeavor to bring what I’ve found through it to others.  That’s what makes Fox Valley Rep so special–they really make you remember the best parts of your life.  

Q. Aside from theater, do you have any other hidden talents, super powers, or crazy hobbies we should know about?

A.  I was originally a musician, specializing in saxophone and vocal performance.  I play about 12 instruments, mostly woodwinds.  Of late, I’ve been focusing on playing the blues on electric guitar.  I’m synesthetic, which means that certain sounds and musical pitches correspond to colors for me.  Strange as that may sound, for a lighting designer it’s an amazing blessing, although I’ve been known to disagree with a director over the color of a musical number simply because they want it a different color than I see it! 

For a hobby, I enjoy meeting people and learning about them, in person, online, or otherwise.  I believe Colleen refers to me as “chatty.”  Spending a few minutes in the lobby during intermission and learning about our patrons is always nice.  I try to find a new person I’ve never met before every day so I can discover what makes them special.  I look forward to meeting more of the Fox Valley community that has been so supportive of the Performing Arts.  I bet we’ll have a lot in common!