PROGRAMS — YOUTH INTERNSHIPS

For more information about our Youth Internship program, please feel free to contact us.

2007-08 Interns

REBECCA CHIAPPONE: DESIGN INTERN

Rebecca is a sophomore Design and Technology student at Philadelphia’s University of the Arts.  Raised in Brooklyn, she was lucky enough to be exposed to all the different art forms that New York has to offer, especially theatre. By the time she graduated high school she had participated in three high school musicals, one drama, and two one-acts, and regularly worked spotlights and assisted with props at the midnight showings of Rocky Horror in Chelsea. During college Rebecca has classes under working theatre professionals and gets valuable real-life experience in her school’s several performance spaces. She is also interested in art and poetry, and uses every opportunity to participate in creative processes. Rebecca is very excited to work with a company as socially conscious and creative as New Perspectives.

INTERN PROJECTS: From May to August 07, Rebecca worked full time as our design intern, creating a beautiful timeline display of our 15-year history for the June 27th Open House, and serving as production designer for THE ADVENTURES OF RUBBISH IN THE HOOD, the newest play in our World Voices series.  Rebecca returned to Philadelphia on August 24th, but before leaving she began work as production designer for THE FALL FROM PARADISE: A Modern Adaptation of an Ancient Sumerian Fable.   This is NPT's offering as part of the (RE)CYCLE PLAY FESTIVAL presented by Confluence Theatre at Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens on September 15, 2007.  Rebecca will be finishing her designs long-distance, and "graduates" to become NPT's First Apprentice Designer as of September 1st.  Photos of Rebecca's design work will shortly be available on this site, or come out to see them in person on September 15th in Queens (FALL FROM PARADISE), or at Morningside Park on September 29th (RUBBISH IN THE HOOD)!

My Experience With New Perspectives Theatre Company by Rebecca Chiappone

I've been interested in the backstage aspects of theatre ever since I was a little girl, so when it came time for college it seemed fitting to major in Theatre Design and Technology. After my first year at Philadelphia’s UArts, I decided to come home to New York City for the summer and try to find an internship. After going through website after website and sending out resumes, the New Perspectives Theater Company responded to one of my e-mails saying, we would love a summer intern!

Although I expected to be running errands and doing gofer work, I was secretly hoping for a hands-on, creative, active position. Luckily, at New Perspectives, I got everything I was looking for and more.

As soon as I got to my first day at work, Melody and Jenny and I sat down to discuss ideas and possibilities for the new children's show we were developing, “The Adventures of Rubbish in the Hood”. That very day, I started designing the backdrop for the show. In my coming weeks at New Perspectives I would be entrusted with important designs and concepts, to the point where I felt less like an intern, and more like a real designer. I never felt like a child who needed supervision, in fact I was given a key to the office so that I could come in and work whenever I needed to. I was also entrusted with designing the Open House event which featured a timeline of all the events, plays, and performances that NPT had been part of, spanning 15 years. Melody guided me and directed me, so that our relationship always felt like that between a director and a designer, never an employee and a boss. When the night of the Open House came around, she even credited me for the work in front of several important people in the theater world.

I also helped out a bit with costume arrangement for the Apprentice Showcase, featuring the acting apprentices at NPT. On top of that I also designed costumes and some props for “The Fall From Paradise:  A Modern Adaptation of an Ancient Sumerian Tale”, as part of the Confluence Theater Company’s (re)Cycle Plays.

Even though I felt like a real designer, I never felt alone in my work. Jenny Greeman and Shykia Fields were just as important to my learning and creating as Melody was. Everyone was very supportive and helpful in every endeavor. No one at New Perspectives was ever forced to do something all alone. I felt like everyone was learning and experiencing every day.

Not only did I design fun and interesting productions at New Perspectives, I also met a lot of important people, and made great connections. Getting work in the theater world is not just about being talented and ambitious, it’s also about knowing the right people and being able to say, "I've worked with so-and-so". Melody was always looking for ways to give me opportunities to expand my repertoire. She signed me up for a Designer’s Faire where successful New York costume, lighting, and set designers showcased their work. She also told me about ART/New York’s Intern Luncheon series, a weekly event where interns could meet and talk with various professionals in the theater world. These experiences were invaluable to me as an aspiring designer.

My summer at New Perspectives was one of the most creative, productive, and enlightening experiences I've ever had. Everyone with NPT worked hard and partied hard, too – we often barbequed for lunch, making Shykia and I the best fed interns in the city. Thanks to the NPT family, I've got several great pieces for my portfolio, I've got great connections, and great friends.

SHYKIA FIELDS: GRADUATE PRODUCTION AND ACTING INTERN

Shykia has a long history with NPT, having done her undergraduate internship at the Pelican Studio Theatre (our former home) in 2004-2005.  After graduating from LIU/Brooklyn, where she was a student of NPT Artistic Director Melody Brooks, Shykia completed her course work for her MFA from Savannah College of Art and Design this spring.  She then returned to NPT for a full-time Production Internship for June and July, and will be an Acting Intern for the fall.  Both of these internships are part of the final requirements for her MFA.  While here, Shykia will also be completing her thesis project--an analysis of the evolution of depictions of the Black Matriarch in the popular media. 

INTERN PROJECTS: As Production Intern, Shykia staged-managed the Apprentice Showcase in June, and helped organize and produce our 15th Anniversary Open House.  She also served as production assistant to a two-week developmental workshop of a new play, FINDING HOME, which will be presented as a work-in-progress this fall as part of NPT's VOICES FROM THE EDGE Festival.  In the fall, Shykia will be acting in THE ADVENTURES OF RUBBISH IN THE HOOD (playing "Florence Tucker", a role she originated in the play's premiere performances this summer); playing the rople of "Lennox" in our 90-minute production of MACBETH for school audiences, and appearing in the Ensemble cast of THE RITUAL, an NPT co-production with Banana Boat Productions in December.

THOUGHTS ON MY PRODUCTION INTERNSHIP by Shykia Fields

July 20, 2007

I walked in to New Perspectives Theatre not knowing I would be given so much responsibility, freedom, and space to do what I love to do. There was no one looking over my shoulder or codling me throughout this process. I was treated as one of the staff members of this company and that is important to me. Being seen as a professional allowed me to claim responsibility for a project and to see my own capabilities. I have done work like this type before, but never on this level. Being treated as an equal in this company proved to me that I could handle the real world and it showed me that this is my calling because I am good at what I do.

I look back at my time here at NPT and I was given many different opportunities such as: seeing a production of Electra at the Classical Theatre of Harlem, attending ART NY Luncheon Seminars (which I am still attending), viewing a production of Romeo and Juliet as part of The Public Theatre Shakespeare in the Park, and getting to meet Austin Pendleton. These were the highlight moments at NPT, and I don’t take any of them for granted. I saw these moments as instances to learn as an actor, as a person who goes to see theatre, and as a chance to network.

I find myself asking, where do I go from here? What is the next step that I have to take to become the person I envision myself to be in the years to come? I know that as an actor I want to do film/television and theatre. I want all those things that every actor dreams of. I want to be famous, and I want my name to be a household name. However, I don’t want to be an actor that does not make a living from acting. I cannot have my craft become a hobby to me because my work and the art that is performance is too important to me. Being here at NPT has shown me that the work is the most important thing and I will always carry that with me.