This week’s “Woman to Watch Out For” is Laura Boyman. Boyman is a Theater major and a Women and Gender Studies minor in the class of 2020 from New Providence, NJ. On campus, she is the Head Music Director of the all-women’s a cappella group, Special K. Boyman also works for the Office of Admissions as a tour guide. She has participated in Hamilton College Choir in the past, and looks forward to getting back into it her senior year. Amidst this array of activities, Boyman is drawn most toward stage management. She credits theater professor Craig Latrell, as well as Resident Designer and Production Manager for Theater, Jeff Larson, for exposing her to stage management and allowing her to come into her own. Both Latrell and Larson gave Boyman the opportunity to do stage management — something she had never done before Hamilton. Thrown into something new and exciting, Boyman fell in love with stage management and is considering stage managing as a career after graduation.
At Hamilton, Boyman worked tech for the production of
Mr. Burns
in fall 2017, and is currently stage-managing
King Stag
, which is set to open on Nov. 2 and run through Nov. 10. When asked why she enjoys stage management, Boyman replied that “there are some people that enjoy putting out fires.” Boyman loves the adrenaline rush from working behind the scenes and putting something together as big as a mainstage play. Backstage, one needs to be aware
of everything that’s going on, as well as solve any issue that arises. Every time she accomplishes a new and challenging task while doing tech, the rewarding feeling keeps her coming back.
This summer, Boyman was a sound design intern for the Shakespeare Theater in Madison, NJ, where she worked three jobs at the same time. First, she worked under a master electrician, working with lights, sound, and set design. While on the job, Boyman was required to climb a 20-foot scaffolding and hang lights in the outdoor theater — sometimes without a harness. At the Shakespeare Theater, Boyman was also the sound design intern. This meant that she did sound design for every single performance. Boyman is specifically enjoyed sound design because it is a combination of theater and music. As a music director, Boyman enjoys nitty gritty details. She remarked that she would play with sounds in the theater for hours. She came to learn that even a millisecond crossfade makes a big difference in a show. Boyman hopes to do more theater-related sound design in the future.
Lastly, Boyman served as the board operator on the outdoor stage. She made sure that the sound equipment, such as the microphones and speakers, were up and running. During the last week of performances at the Shakespeare Theater, one of the stage managers broke her ankle and could not work, so Boyman swiftly rose to the occasion and became the assistant stage manager for the last two performances.
While she worked three jobs, Boyman rarely got a day off. In total, she had only three days off for the entire summer. Her job was also unpaid, but she gained experience that she could use to her advantage. Boyman now feels even more confident working in Hamilton’s Theater Department. She also has a strong set of transferable skills that she can potentially use in the television or digital media industries post-graduation. Boyman’s summer internship at the Shakespeare Theater made her realize that it is indeed possible for Theater majors to get a job.
If you don’t know Laura Boyman, but you attended the recent performance of
Twelfth Night
on the KTSA lawn, you might recognize her as the lead role of Viola (with pink hair). Boyman played the same role in high school and was excited to have the chance to revisit it. She is a “huge Shakespeare nerd” and enjoyed arriving back on campus early to put on one of his plays with her friends. The role of Viola is one of her favorite roles that she has performed. If you want to see Laura Boyman perform again, attend an a cappella concert, where you can see her directing Special K, as well as managing the mainstage production of
King Stag
in November.
