Catherine Kunkel
SFHS Technical Director
“Tech is collaboration. Sound, lights, costumes and set are the base upon which
acting can stand tall. If done correctly,
no one notices the tech; when things go wrong, it can take an
audience out of the magic of the theatre. In the beginning, our
director has a vision. I interpret that vision to a scenic design and
our Production Manager makes sure we stay on task and under
budget. After the scenic design is approved, we agree on a basic
lighting look and on what sound effects need to go where. Props
and costumes get decided somewhere in there, and then my
Techies and I get busy. Once the set is built and the show opens
(hopefully in that order,) my job shifts to running the show. Our
Stage Manager makes sure each element happens at the right
time - so we don’t have a blackout in the middle of an important
scene. There are Techies running the light board, sound board,
and rigging. As Technical Director I tend to put out metaphorical fires during the show. This is what tech is for me. I build giant
dollhouses for imaginary characters.”
Mrs. Kunkel started working at St. Francis in September 2016
and immediately jumped into building Mary Poppins. A graduate
of UC Davis with a BA in Theatre Arts and a concentration in
lighting design, she has spent the bulk of her professional career
in the Stockton and Sacramento areas. Cat worked as a carpenter
and scenic designer with B Street Theatre and later UC Davis,
working the occasional Local 50 IATSE Union show and dealing
with sound for both CORE Contemporary Dance and Leighton
Dance Project.
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Jeff Metzinger
Parent Volunteer: Fly Operator
“My recent experience as a parent volunteer was very rewarding.
The November 2015 production of Mary Poppins started months
before the curtain was raised on opening night. Every Saturday,
students, staff, and parent volunteers worked side-by-side –
creating and building some very technical set pieces. From design,
to construction, to painting – it was a team effort. I was most
impressed with teenage girls welding steel and operating power
tools. I also volunteered to assist backstage with flying Mary
Poppins and Bert. These two student-actors were fitted with a
special harness and then attached to airplane cables for lifting. An
outside company trained the actors and fly operators for several
days before being on-stage. A team of five trained adults manually lifted and moved these actors across the stage. It was a very
serious job that required strength and concentration – the actors
lives were literally in our hands. The flying team quickly became a
close-knit group of friends, working all six shows.”
When Jeff ’s not working as the Fire Chief for Sacramento County
Airports, he loves volunteering his time with the Arts at St.
Francis. He proudly announces, “It’s also a great way to stay connected to my daughter – a St. Francis senior, Lauren Metzinger.”