MC Theatre students seek employment,internships at annual theater conference

For decades, MC students have taken road trips to the Southeastern Theatre Conference (SETC). This year, the conference was held in Chattanooga, Tennessee, at the Chattanooga Convention Center.

11 students, four of whom are seniors, attended the conference, accompanied by Technical Director for the Division of Fine Arts Kevin Grigsby, and Assistant Professor of Theatre Andy Vaught. 

“It is both a professional and student conference,” Vaught said. “You have undergraduate schools that are recruiting for high school students, and you have graduate schools that are recruiting for undergraduate students. You have professional programs, like Dollywood, for instance, or some regional theaters around, which are recruiting professional experiences.” 

SETC’s goal is to connect students with opportunities in theatre and cater to a variety of different fields through workshops on playwriting, acting and technical theater. 

“There are two types of opportunities as a student that you can be provided with,” Kat Wilson (‘28) said. “You can do the audition process, but I did the job fair that’s provided by SETC, which is when professionals from across the country come in and offer positions for you to apply for.” 

For students looking for a job on the performance side of theater, applicants submit a 60-second monologue prior to the conference. If accepted, actors perform the same 60-second piece in front of a large panel of recruiters. 

From there, students can be called back to work at theatres, on cruise ships and at theme parks, among other opportunities. For non-graduates, attending SETC allows for summer stocks, which provide students the opportunity to build up an extensive reputation by working in a fast-paced environment. 

“They have booths, and you can just go interview with them, hand them your resume, and it allows a lot of opportunity for learning as well,” Wilson said. “You could interview with up to 50 companies, if you wanted to go to each spot at the job fair. It’s a little bit intimidating to have to go up to people for interviews and be like, ‘Hey, this is me. I’d like to apply for this job.’” 

But according to Wilson, even being denied a job is a valuable learning experience, and having an intense space like SETC helps students prepare and feel more confident going into job interviews in the future. 

Although a conference like this can be intimidating, Ian Baily (‘26) says that fear is replaced with confidence after attending several times. 

“A lot of the nervousness has gone away by the third time,” Bailey said. “You get your feet under you and start to feel more confident, especially in interviews. You also get a better idea of what seminars look like and which ones might actually interest you (as opposed to my first time, when I signed up for a lot of things and didn’t really know what to expect). Now that I am graduating, the types of jobs that I am able to accept have expanded. Those eight-month to year-long apprenticeships are actually viable now. And I look forward to seeing what comes my way!” 

According to Vaught, many MC students have succeeded in getting full-time or summer jobs thanks to SETC. 

“Because of the internships I’ve gotten from past SETCs, I’ve been able to travel to Iowa and Nebraska for three-month-long contracts,” Bailey said. “I’ve been able to work in different theatres, meet a variety of people and work on a vast array of shows, from opera in Rep (a multi-show performance at the Tennessee performing arts center) to large-scale Disney Princess productions.”

Eden Carnes (‘27) also received and accepted a summer job working as the wig shop supervisor and designer at Brevard Music Center, a job she says she was offered solely because of SETC.