Employment

Seeking Scenic Designer/Tech Team Lead and Costume Designer/Tech Team Assistant

NextStop Education is seeking a dedicated and creative production team for our upcoming school residency program, Stars on Stage. In addition to fulfilling their roles on the production team for the musical, Finding Nemo: Kids, ideal candidates will also function as Teaching Artists, teaching the students involved about the process of putting on a show and what it means to be a theatre technician. This team will work closely with the same groups of students over the course of 3-4 months, approximately 24 rehearsals at each school, so being able to foster community and teamwork among the cast is a must. Prefer Teaching Artists who are bilingual in English and Spanish, as the student population involved will have many English language learners. See descriptions below for more specific requirements for each role on the team.

ALL Members of the Stars on Stage Production Team will be expected to:

  • Participate in production meetings prior to the first rehearsal and throughout the process with the entire team and NextStop staff. 

  • Help instill in the children a love of theater, an excitement for performance, and a willingness to collaborate

  • Create or collaborate on the rehearsal schedule and/or lesson plans for each meeting

  • Be present for rehearsals and performance dates at each of the three schools (Dogwood, Hutchinson, and Clearview)

SCENIC DESIGNER/TECH TEAM LEAD

The Scenic Designer/Tech Team Lead will work closely with the rest of the Production Team to produce the musical, Finding Nemo: Kids, at Clearview Elementary, Hutchinson Elementary, and Dogwood Elementary Schools (all located in the Reston/Herndon, VA area) during the 2025-2026 school year. Experience working with children is especially important. They will attend approximately half of all rehearsals and every performance at both schools (calendar provided upon request). 

The Scenic Designer/Tech Team Lead will be responsible for designing and helping to build a small, but functional set for Finding Nemo:Kids that can be easily assembled/disassembled and transported from one school to the other. They will also be responsible for acquiring or building the needed props, working with the Director throughout the process to determine what those will be. When present in rehearsals, the Scenic Designer/Tech Team Lead will be in charge of a small group of students (anticipating 8-10 kids) who want to assist with the show’s backstage/technical elements. There will be opportunities to teach short lessons to the student tech team about set design and props, and what those roles look like in a professional setting. Materials can be brought to those rehearsals so the students can help make simple props/elements of the set as appropriate. The Scenic Designer/Tech Team Lead will be compensated with a stipend of $1,800 per school ($5,400 total) to be paid in bi-weekly installments. 

Looking for candidates who are self-motivated, efficient, and creative, who possess excellent communication and organizational skills, and can work well on a team. Spanish speakers preferred.

COSTUME DESIGNER/TECH TEAM ASSISTANT

The Costume Designer/Tech Team Assistant will work closely with the rest of the Production Team to produce the musical, Finding Nemo: Kids, at Hutchinson Elementary, Clearview Elementary and Dogwood Elementary Schools (all located in the Reston/Herndon, VA area) during the 2025-2026 school year. Experience working with children is especially important.  They will attend approximately half of all rehearsals and every performance at both schools (calendar provided upon request). 

The Costume Designer/Tech Team Assistant will be responsible for designing and creating flexible costumes for one whole group of students (anticipating 30-40 kids) that can easily be transferred from one cast to the other. When present in rehearsals, the Costume Designer will assist the Tech Team Lead with the smaller group of students (anticipating 8-10 kids) interested in helping with the backstage/technical elements of the production, in addition to having costume fittings with the cast as needed. There will be opportunities to teach short lessons to the student tech team about costuming, and what that role looks like in a professional setting. Materials can be brought into those rehearsals for the student tech team to assist in making costume elements as appropriate. The Costume Designer will be compensated with a stipend of $1,800 per school ($5,400 total) to be paid in bi-weekly installments. 

Looking for candidates who are self-motivated, efficient, and creative, who possess excellent communication and organizational skills, and can work well on a team. Spanish speakers preferred.

Qualified applicants should submit a resume and brief cover letter via email to recruiting@nextstoptheatre.org.