We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lauren Harvey. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lauren below.

Lauren, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

Am I happy working in the arts? Yes. Do I sometimes miss the traditional 9 to 5? Sometimes, but not always.

After working corporate jobs four years post-college, I had the opportunity to return to Weathervane Playhouse – a professional summer stock theatre in my community I was able to work at during my college years. I began as an unpaid writing intern through a college course and was asked to return that Summer as an Arts Administration Intern in the Box Office. Although I had an interest and participated in theatre in high school, I didn’t really dabble in it as I started college.

I stayed in touch with management at Weathervane while I was working other corporate jobs and volunteered at the theatre when I could. A lot of things factored into my return – I was in-between jobs due to COVID impacts and Weathervane was just starting to need additional staff members.

As someone who has worked a traditional 9 to 5, I do miss the consistent schedule, but that’s about it. The arts allow me to be creative, collaborate with other organizations, and make a difference in my community.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am a lifelong native of Newark, Ohio! I spent many of my younger years trying different things – sports, Girl Scouts, 4-H…and many others. It wasn’t until late middle school where I found an interest in music and the arts. I started by joining the band, and while I was several years behind my classmates, I caught up fairly quickly. Once I got into high school, I began figuring out what I was actually good at. I tried being an actor in a play, and while I had fun, let’s just say I am not an actor. I still really enjoyed theater, so I was encouraged to help off stage as a crew member – and this is where I thrived! Between playing trumpet in every band group and being a stage manager, I found my favorite things to do.

As senior year of high school was coming to an end, I was undecided on what I wanted to do with my life. I went to The Ohio State University at Newark to get started – it was a local option and I knew I could get some pre-requisites out of the way. However, I still struggled to pick a major. I tried to focus on business, but quickly learned that math was not my strong suit. I ended up taking an English course with (unbeknownst to me) the most difficult professor on campus. I found that class a challenge and really enjoyed what I did, so I took some more English courses and decided that an English degree is what I should pursue – and I did! Through my time in college, I was able to work in the Writer’s Studio on campus tutoring students in English, travel abroad to Berlin, Germany, and start my path with Weathervane Playhouse. I knew as I inched closer to graduation that finding a job in the arts wasn’t extremely likely in my area, so I decided to focus on writing-focused jobs in marketing.

I worked with a local marketing agency for almost four years until COVID had other plans. I bounced around a couple of other jobs to make ends meet, but wasn’t really happy. The previous Executive Director at Weathervane had reached out to me and said she was looking to hire someone full time and begin the succession plan. I didn’t even second-guess this option; I agreed!

Although I spent a lot of time at Weathervane in multiple capacities from 2016-2020, I never expected to be the Executive Director at the company! I began full time in November 2021 as the Assistant to the Executive Director. I came in with the knowledge that I would hopefully be climbing the ladder in the near future. Within nine months, the dream came true! I took over as Executive Director – and was terrified! I had never run a company before and there was so much for me to learn. But the Board of Directors had faith in me. I had the knowledge of Weathervane’s history and knew I was up for the challenge to lead the company.

Weathervane Playhouse in Newark is Ohio’s longest running summer stock theatre. We got our start in 1969 in a barn in Heath, Ohio. Through struggles, growth, and ambition, Weathervane still exists today and is a beautiful five-building campus that houses two theatres, a rehearsal space, a giant costume storage, a scenic shop, and prop shop. Our mission is to entertain, educate and inspire our community through professional theatre and theatre arts education with our vision to be a cultural hub for the arts.

As the only full-time on-site employee, I get to wear a lot of hats. I cover everything from marketing, bookkeeping, budgets, ticket sales, facility maintenance, grant writing, and much more. I am proud of what I do here because I get to help bring in young artists for their first professional theatre experience. From our youth education to our professional main stage productions, we prides ourselves on helping others grow into their craft and creating a safe space for our artists. My team is small but mighty, and we keep taking the theatre to new heights. From our traditional summer programming to live concerts, collaborations with local organizations, and being an arts leader in the community, I am so lucky to lead an amazing theatre in Newark.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Show up and appreciate what these artists are doing! Every person has their chance to tell a story – a director or designer’s vision comes to life and it’s their interpretation of the story. The time and effort it takes to produce a show sometimes goes unnoticed from society’s view. And if it’s an interpretation that you don’t like, that’s 100% okay! But that doesn’t make that storyteller’s story wrong – embrace the art and ask why the story was told that way. Good art and storytelling should make you think!

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Seeing others happy. Whether it’s an artist getting to tell their story, a patron becoming emotional by the story-telling, or a child excited to see their favorite character come to life – that’s why I do what I do. Theatre allows us to take a break from reality and go into a land of make-believe for a short while. While I am not creating the art myself, I get to lead a bunch of wonderful artists that bring stories to life by doing the required behind-the-scenes work that goes into our productions.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://weathervaneplayhouse.org/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lkswriter/

Image Credits

DiBlasio Photography

Etre Crew