Victoria Schiller, Senior Writer
MU Players are known for the magic they put on throughout the semester. However, to be able to successfully put on any show, an abundant amount of preparations are needed to ensure even the smallest of moments run smoothly. Those behind the stage who work with lighting, props, design, costumes, as well as the stage and technical crews, put in the work necessary for the arts and entertainment performances to be complete.
Kristina Bopp, a freshman civil engineering major, was recently elected as House Manager for the 2025-2026 academic year. She has been involved with acting and the technical sides of productions since high school and knew coming into Manhattan that she wanted to get back into the swing of things.
“I was really involved in high school,” Bopp said. “I was stage manager for three years straight for every production we did. Then I came here and I assistant stage-managed the play ‘And Then There Were None’ and then Rob [Nolan] asked me to stage his show “How to Pull an All-Nighter and Live to Tell the Tale.”
Bopp’s favorite production thus far has been “And Then There Were None” because of all the minor details that allowed the show to run so well.
“The script that we get has lines, but it also has space where we write every move a character makes,” Bopp said. “You have to keep in mind where they’re going, what they’re picking up, what they’re putting down. It helps when we’re helping out with transitions during the actual show because we know what was put where and it also helps if you’re a stage manager with knowing, say I need a spotlight on character A, I need to know that they made it to that spot by that line to put the light on. It ties into all sectors, but assistant stage managing especially is a lot of logging and all that stuff.”
@PLAYERSMU / INSTAGRAM
Joseph Nitti is a sophomore civil engineering major who became involved with Players his freshman year. He’s not only an actor, but an involved stage hand and crew member. He shared what he was most excited about for production in the upcoming school year.
“I’m mainly excited for the stage design,” Nitti said. “I’m excited for how the stage is supposed to be designed. Someone’s going to paint, put things up, and nail it all together. It’s really nice watching everything go from planks and boards to painted scenes.”
An artist himself, Nitti is looking forward to all the artistic talent that come together to shine on stage during the upcoming semester.
Marley Saal, a junior digital media arts major, became involved with Players this past fall. A friend on the board suggested Saal join the club during their Disney Cabaret production. Saal primarily focuses on stage crew and production and ran sound for “And Then There Were None” in the fall.
“With sound, it kind of mostly depends on doing whatever the director wants,” Saal said. “There’s the element of how much sound we’re putting in. There’s obviously music, but whether or not things need sound effects and exactly what sound effects comes down to the discretion of the director, but you just kind of put that together. You make sure everything sounds alright and then you’re there to hit the buttons when the show runs.”
Daniel Berak is a freshman and history major who is actively involved in Players and holds the role of assistant stage manager. He explained how the production side of Players actually heavily consists of the actors the MU community sees on stage.
“Players is a lot smaller of a club,” Berak said. “It’s a lot of dual actors and tech, which makes up the majority of people on tech. There are very few exceptions to that. I think the three stage managers are the exceptions. There are so many people on campus that hold smaller roles in Players, but are equally as important to getting everything going on so smoothly. The acting you see on stage, there are usually two people behind them where the reason they are doing that is because of the other people that you don’t see on stage. No matter how small of a production you’re doing, you still need a sizable amount of tech. Everything you see on stage, there’s probably double, if not triple, the amount of people involved in the production.”