Meet Julie!

We wanted to give you a glimpse of what goes on here at SCT, so you could get to know some of the work that happens here behind the scenes. The interns who help make the Summer Season's student productions possible are a vital part of our community, so we'll be posting some of their responses to a questionnaire we handed out, in the hopes that you can get to know them a little better.

Here's a little spotlight on Julie Baldwin, one of the outstanding education interns here at SCT!

1. What led to your decision to intern with SCT?
I had visited the Seattle area in January and their support
of the arts really impressed me. As a theatre for youth major,
I of course started to look into the SCT and discovered how
holistic their program seemed to be and how much I agreed
with their mission statement. When I returned to Iowa and
started looking for internship opportunities, SCT was on
the top of my list. I seemed to keep running into it
--mentioned in books on my report about the Federal Theatre
Project, raved about by my professors...I liked that the
internship would allow me to shadow so many different
professionals instead of just teaching like mad for three
months like most children's theatre internships. And after
interviewing with Ellie and Karen, I knew that it would be
a wonderful fit for me.

2. Where are you from, and what did you study before coming here?
I am from Cedar Falls, Iowa and I currently am finishing
my studies in Theatre for Youth and Spanish.

3. Why is theatre important to you personally?
I see theatre as not only a great tool for social change
and vehicle for social commentary, but one of the most
intimate was to connect human beings to one another.
It forces people to become physically and emotionally
close in a very short amount of time. I believe that
maintaining this connection may be the only thing that
keeps us from becoming sucked into the techno-era that
distances us from geniune human interaction.

4. What do you feel you bring to SCT’s Summer Season program?
I bring my passion and intensity to serve the community
through theatre. I believe that sometimes all that
children need is encouragement and a chance to prove
themselves. Through the summer season, they get the
chance to do so and I'll be on the side lines cheering
them on as hard as I can.

5. What’s your most memorable experience so far as an intern here?
Movement with Eric Johnson is pretty memorable for me--
his style of teaching and encouragement is so different
from anything I have seen and I believe it will really
influence my teaching style in the future.

6. What do you feel are the biggest challenges confronting you as an intern?
My goal for the summer: to work on observing and
understanding and child's behavior--what lies beneath
the words or actions they employ or what they are
saying nonverbally. Also, to try to assess the stage
of each child so that I can interact with each of them
as they need.

7. What part of this internship are you looking forward to the most?
Working with such a variety of age groups and observing the differences.


8. What is your specific job as an intern this summer – specifically,
what shows or age groups will you be working with the closest?
I am doing a lot of work with 4th through 6th graders,
both through Wayside Stories and acting and musical theatre
classes. I will be working also with 3-7 year olds through
Splash and story drama and have a few weeks of 7th-12th graders.


9. What do you feel is the most valuable thing you’ve learned so far as an intern here?
The power of influence in 7th-9th graders. In other words,
how one person's behavior can drastically influence the
behavior of others in the class.

10. What are your plans for the future?
To teach, to act, to have a hand in making theatre happen.