Meet CTC's 2024-2025 Fellows
Posted on September 18, 2024
Meet our 2024-2025 Fellows, (left to right) Elijah Virgil Hughes, Yuheng (Kitty) Jiang, and Antonio De La Vega! Keep reading to learn about their roles and their experiences so far at CTC.
Meet Elijah Virgil Hughes
Stage Management Fellow
What is your position and what have you been doing/what will you do in this role?
I am the Stage Management Fellow for this season! I will be working as a second ASM on each of the shows this season.
What are you looking forward to experiencing?
I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to work with professional stage managers, performers, and technicians, and get to know the beautiful Twin Cities!
What have you enjoyed about your experience so far?
Getting to watch the Curtain Call Ball come together and work directly on it was an absolute delight! Each and every person here is incredible in their dedication, problem-solving, and joyful energy.
Meet Yuheng (Kitty) Jiang
Production Management Fellow
What is your position and what have you been doing/what will you do in this role?
My position is the Production Management Fellow. In general, I will learn from and work with the Director of Production in the administration of the production department on multiple productions, fundraising events, and building/show rentals. For example, I’ll support creative teams and the production process with contracting, travel planning, and attending production meetings and technical rehearsals.
What are you looking forward to experiencing?
I am really looking forward to seeing all the productions of course! I am ready to learn more about the logistics and the management side of a production since I’ve been mostly involved in the design team in the past. I am also excited to meet more people and explore learning experiences other than production management (e.g., seeing how ASM and wardrobe work during a busy show.)
What have you enjoyed about your experience so far?
During my first week at CTC, I really enjoyed the working environment, it’s very pretty. The staff here has been really nice to me; they are patient and are willing to answer all my miscellaneous questions, and I genuinely feel welcomed. I was also excited to see the shops. I glanced at some props and costumes, and they look amazing, which made me want to know more about the techniques and constructions behind them.
Meet Antonio De La Vega
Generation Now Fellow
What is your position and what have you been doing/what will you do in this role?
I have the pleasure of being the 2024-2025 Generation Now Fellow! Generation Now is a partnership between CTC, Penumbra (MN), Ma-Yi Theatre (NYC), Latino Theatre Company (LA), and Native Voices (LA) generously funded by the Mellon Foundation, and my job is to help advance their commission and developmental process(s) for 16 new plays for multi-generational audiences. I have been organizing meetings for the Generation Now cohort, liaising with our playwrights, creating systems for commission progress tracking, and serving as the project head for our upcoming Generation Now Reading Series in October. For this project, I’ve developed the event itinerary, coordinated travel/lodging to Minneapolis, assisted in casting our three readings, and will ensure our first-ever reading festival is both a meaningful experience for the artists and audiences who participate.
What are you looking forward to experiencing?
I’m looking forward to the Reading Series in October, as that’s my most immediate project, but I’m also very excited about selecting the next round of commissions for Generation Now. Prior to my fellowship, there have been two rounds of fabulous commissions from innovative and inspiring BIPOC writers, and I am excited to play a part in selecting the next round of stories that we get to help bring to life through Generation Now.
What have you enjoyed about your experience so far?
I’ve enjoyed getting to work directly with artistic leadership both at CTC and the four other theatres that make up Generation Now. As an aspiring arts leader, it’s been invaluable to be in the room with such energetic and motivating forces in the industry which have helped clarify and refine my own artistic ambitions. A collaboration of this scale is not only historic for the theatre community, but for my own career ambitions as well. Learning how to lead as a collective group has been the biggest learning lesson in my time thus far with the fellowship, and I cannot wait to continue to learn from the amazing Generation Now cohort.