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Celebrating 25 Years: Sarah Saugier

As we approach our 25th Anniversary production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat this summer, we’re celebrating by looking back through our history.

After she met Gina Milbourn, Sarah Saugier stage managed countless shows for us, and eventually served on our board. She is an incredibly important part of our story, and a big reason we have so many students still thriving behind the scenes!

“Hollywood may have Kevin Bacon, but here we have Gina Milbourn. Six degrees of Gina Milbourn.
 
“I went to school with Amy Kleinschmidt, and the Brays would have New Year’s Eve parties. New Year’s Eve 2006 to 2007, I was at a New Year’s Eve party at their house. And Sharon Kleinschmidt knows that I was a teacher and that I did theater. So she connected me with Gina to talk about possibly teaching some classes. And as I was sitting there that night talking with Gina, she found out I was a stage manager and her eyes got real big.”
 
“And so, you know, 30 shows later! When I first started, I had interviewed with Gina for teaching theater stage craft kind of classes. And at that time, CYT wasn’t ready to have those kind of classes, or had the support, the time, those sort of things. And now they do. And now we have those kind of not only classes, but camps and activities and to just continue beyond uh what the options are, so that everybody gets involved. Because not everybody’s an onstage kiddo. We have a lot of backstage kiddos as well.”
 
So what’s one of your favorite things about being a stage manager?
 
“I love seeing the show from beginning to end. You see it from the show concept being made all the way through until the final bow.”
 
“I think it’s about more than the theater and it’s about more than the connections for the youth. It’s about the connections for the families as well and how involved everybody is. It’s not just drop your kid off and then come see the show at the end. You’re involved in the show. You’re part of it and part of creating that memory as a family. And I think that’s something that’s very different, very unique to the theater experience here than you get anywhere else in town.

What's Happening at First Act?

Praying with Hope for the Future

At First Act Theatre Arts, we are excited and prayerfully looking forward, with abundant hope, that our next home is becoming a reality. Throughout the next year of our Capital Campaign, it is imperative that we make this journey rooted in Christ and the purposes created for us.

High School Musical Jr. Director’s Letter

First Act’s Middle School Overnight Camp is always my favorite week of the summer. When I heard that High School Musical Jr. was our show this year, somehow my excitement for this week grew exponentially. My first camp experience with First Act was a High School Musical summer camp when I was five years old, and I cannot comprehend that I am now directing the musical with the same organization!

Nine to Five Director’s Letter

Before the 9 to 5 movie and musical we know and love, there was a movement that inspired both. 9to5 is an organization created in 1973 by clerical workers to respond to the inequities, unfairness, and outright harassment and discrimination they were experiencing in the workplace. These courageous, tenacious, and fierce women organized and banded together to advocate for themselves and for a better future for working women. 9to5 still exists today, fighting every day for equal wages, paid family leave, and a harassment-free workplace. Their work continues to advance racial and gender justice through community-led advocacy as they seek widespread, long-lasting change.