Today we’d like to introduce you to Jamie Warde.
Hi Jamie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I was born and raised in Buffalo, NY, and started working in theatre there as a teenager. My parents loved art, music, literature, and theatre, so I grew up with a lot of that influence. They encouraged all their children (my three sisters & I) to try different things and when we found something we liked, they encouraged that, too. So I began working in any & every theatre I could talk my way into, while still in high school, still living at home, and generally not being an adult. I worked my way up to the large-scale theatres in Buffalo, and after a few years, left the city to see what else was out there.
I settled in Atlanta, GA in the mid-90’s, working at what was called Turner Broadcasting at the time, building in their Scenery Shop for all the many different networks, from CNN to WCW, and learned a lot there over five years or so. Through mutual friends & a former partner I met in Buffalo, I started going to see shows at Dad’s Garage Theatre (www.dadsgarage.com), which had been founded in 1995, a small nonprofit theatre producing scripted and improvised plays. I started volunteering, helping out with shows and Production work there until I was offered work on specific projects. I joined the staff in the fall of 1998 as the Technical Director and never looked back.
Over the next few years, the job expanded to a full time Production Manager & Technical Director position, including Facility Management, and I continued building the Production Department up from its humble beginnings with a handful of crew members. Dad’s Garage has grown and expanded, and all of us who started there in the mid or late 90’s when we were all in our 20’s, grew up along with it. Now as the Production Director, I have full time, part time, and contracted positions in the Department: a Props Curator, a Costume Curator, all the Stage Managers, Production Designers, Stage Crew, Technical Improvisers, Scenic Carpenters, Scenic Painters, Lighting Electricians, Sound Engineers, and other contractors who all work together to produce our shows. I really, truly, definitely couldn’t do it without them. Way too many to name, but you know who you are.
I also met the love of my life there 26 years ago, and we’ve never looked back on that, either. We both still work together at Dad’s Garage (among other places) and then go home to our rescue pup.
Over the years at Dad’s Garage, I also participated in several Search Committees for Artistic Directors & Managing Directors, and on several Facility Task Forces, to find and renovate the forever home that the organization was fortunate enough to purchase in 2015, after losing our original, rented location in 2013, and for renovations we’ve done since then. At the end of 2020, I also joined the Board of Directors for the Atlanta Green Artist Alliance (www.atlantagreenartistalliance.org), a nonprofit dedicated to sustainability in the arts. I also sit on the Steering and IDEAS Committees for the national Production Managers Forum through the Theatre Communications Group.
Today all those organizations and committees keep me very busy (sometimes a little too busy) but they all give me joy. The nonprofit sector feels right to me, it feels like I can make a difference in people’s lives, it feels like accomplishing shared goals with a community, it feels like witnessing art being created…it really feels like connecting with people. And I like building those connections, I like building a crew, I like building scenery, I just like building. It’s the best.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Definitely hasn’t been a smooth road! Some were bumpier than others, to be sure, but I don’t remember any completely smooth roads. And I find myself a bit suspicious of roads that seem completely smooth. The bumps in the road are how you know what you’re getting into is genuine. Anything that’s worth doing is worth struggling for, after all. And anything that feels like it’s too good to be true probably is exactly that.
But my own struggles over the years probably aren’t unique or surprising. My family lives far away, and theatre schedules often get busiest at times when one is likely to go visit family, so that has meant missing family occasions, or visiting only once or twice a year when we’d rather see them more often. Also, spending a life working in nonprofit really does mean nonprofit — for the company you work for, of course, but also for yourself. And that’s how it is for most people who work in nonprofit fields, it’s a check-to-check life. Plenty of people in every sector live and work that way. Other struggles came & went, too, like losing family & friends over the years. Some went naturally, but some suddenly & tragically were lost to violence. It feels odd to think about listing them because struggles are personal, I guess. I feel like the struggles I’ve gone through are where I’ve learned lifelong lessons, though, so I wouldn’t trade them. Lessons like “don’t trust a smooth road” for instance.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
(NOTE: some previous answers may also fit this question well, & my apologies if I made that previous answer long enough that it inadvertently answered subsequent questions)
I’m the Production Director for a midsize nonprofit producing theatre, Dad’s Garage Theatre. We produce original scripted plays & comedic improvised theatre. A Production Director is in charge of the Production Department, handling the management of production elements and personnel. So when you go to see a play, there are common production elements the performers interact with: scenery, costumes, props, lighting, sound, and sometimes video, puppets, live music, etc. For our productions, each of these elements have a Designer and the main practical aspect of my job is, basically, to help bring all their ideas to real life however I can. Building quality scenery that looks amazing is what I specialize in, for the most part, but it’s a communal process with a lot of people’s work going into it. From the Directors and Designers in a show (who I support) to the people building and painting the scenery (who support me), there’s a whole team collaborating on the end result.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
I mostly found mentors by accident. Usually I was looking for a job at theatres or other companies that were doing what I wanted to do, except they were doing it with more resources, more lead time, and most importantly, more experience and skill. If I was able to get in, I would just soak up everything I could from anyone who would care to share any pointers. Just staying open to suggestions, and being ready to find mentors in unconventional ways.
Usually I wound up making a connection with a character I’ve found pretty much everywhere I’ve worked: “grouchy older carpenter (or painter, or stagehand, etc) with a heart of gold.” And if you can break through the curmudgeonly exterior, you’ll find out they know something about almost everything. Honestly, sooner or later, I’m going to be that guy. Full circle.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.dadsgarage.com and www.atlantagreenartistalliance.org
Image Credits
Casey Ford
Jamie Warde
Melisa DuBois
