December 28, 2020 at 1:17 p.m.
Nicolet welcomes new theatre and performing arts coordinator
Nicolet welcomes new theatre and performing arts coordinator
By Stephanie Kuski-
Effinger, a former Lakeland Union High School technology and engineering teacher of 14 years, said he got his start in theatre when he first began working as the technical director at LUHS.
A drummer for most of his life, Effinger said he already had ample experience working with sound reinforcement technology when he began teaching at LUHS. Since he also taught classes in construction and woodworking, he was asked if he would help build the sets for the school plays.
"I said 'yeah that sounds like a lot of fun,'" Effinger recalled. "I loved doing that in high school. I was always on the tech crews there, worked with the sound, worked with the lights... So I started building the sets."
"As I was doing that, I was noticing that there was nobody supervising the kids doing the sound and lights," he continued. "They're just running amok, unsupervised, doing whatever they wanted with very little instruction. So I started taking them under my wing and built the theatre tech into its own program... Then I just kept learning more and more about it as I was doing it."
Over the years, Effinger has been involved in 32 productions at LUHS, designing sets, sound and lights. He said his experience working on a number of these productions also enabled him to become well-acquainted with other artists and directors in the area.
"I had always dreamed of working here (at Nicolet) as a technical director - Jim knew that," Effinger said. "So when the position here became available... I applied for it and got it."
But Effinger was appointed to the new position just as pandemic hit the Northwoods. Prior to the onslaught of COVID-19, Nuttall planned a phenomenal lineup for his final season as director, but the pandemic forced the college to cancel or postpone a majority of these acts.
While Effinger is taking over for Nuttall in running the performing arts series, managing the theatre and being the technical director, he noted he will not be directing plays as Nuttall did. He will, however, be contracting local directors to direct future plays.
For the time being, however, the Nicolet theatre - in addition to several buildings on campus - remains closed to visitors in an effort to stop the spread of COVID-19. Effinger speculates the college will not be able to host any performing arts performances until fall 2021, which he said is a similar timeline to many major performing arts venues such as Broadway.
Although the theatre is closed, Effinger said he will continue working on a number of projects in the meantime. He said a major goal during his time at Nicolet is to solidify existing collaborations between Nicolet College, ArtStart and WXPR in addition to exploring new partnerships and outreach to local high schools.
He said he wants the programming he brings in to compliment other programs on campus and he hopes to introduce lesser-known acts to the Nicolet stage as well. In addition, Effinger's personal connections to the local arts community have allowed him to collaborate with local artists and organizations during the time the Nicolet theatre remains closed.
Early next year, Effinger hopes to unveil a project he has been working on in partnership with ArtStart and WXPR since November to record and stream a virtual concert series featuring local musicians.
Effinger said a major goal of the virtual concert series is to support local artists, especially those who have encountered a decrease in gig revenue due to cancellations precipitated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The group has already recorded audio and video of local musicians Jared Kay, Brett Winters and Santy & Son for the virtual concert series. Effinger said the project hopes to target artists within the Nicolet service area and a second round of invitations will go out soon.
"There are a lot of talented people here," Effinger commented, "so it's nice to give them a platform, a stage for them to be able to perform."
Nate Sheppard of Nate Sheppard Media has also helped facilitate the project with his multimedia expertise, and Effinger said WXPR hopes to produce a CD featuring one song from each artist in the concert series. By the early months of next year, the videos will be steamed to the Nicolet Live! Facebook page and Youtube channel and audio recordings will also be aired during WXPR's local programming.
Until then, Nicolet College is also hosting a free virtual 60-minute show on Dec. 10 featuring Christmas tunes by the Emmy Award winning vocal group Tonic Sol-fa, who performed live on the Nicolet stage this past February. For more information about attending the virtual concert, visit Nicolet College on Facebook.
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