Usually, I’m cautious about saying yes to new things. Maybe it’s the introvert in me who doesn’t like change or trying new things. I’m probably not the only one who doesn’t like putting themselves out there.

One of my friends—and co-worker but I also consider her a good friend—has been involved with a local theater group helping them with their graphic design needs, and back in January, she asked if I wanted to help them with social media for a few months. I didn’t know much about the group, but she said everyone was really welcoming and nice. I thought about it, and at that time, we were still in our winter quarantine—or at least I was—and figured, hey, this could be something fun to do.

I told her yes, and I’m incredibly glad I did.

Shortly after I agreed to, I met with her and the rest of the publicity team, and they were so great. And very welcoming. From January to May, I managed their social media accounts, promoting upcoming events and shows.

In May, they performed Something Rotten, their first performance on stage since pre-COVID. They didn’t have a live audience but offered a live streaming option for viewers to watch at home. A few of us got together and watched the show together. In August, they performed Shrek the Musical with their summer theater program, which was performers ages 8-22. It was their first live and in-person production with an in-person audience. This month, they performed Mamma Mia!—also with an in-person audience, masks required—and I love me some ABBA.

For Something Rotten, I created social media posts promoting the show; for Shrek the Musical and Mamma Mia!, I helped create the program, collecting cast and production staff bios, the production team list, president and director’s note, as well as editing and formatting the copy. I also helped with some social media posts and creating and sending out e-blasts. My friend is now the publicity/marketing manager, and I’m still working on the publicity team, helping however I can.

I’ve met so many great people so far, and although I’m not in any of the productions, I still feel like a part of the community. This past weekend, my friend and I went to see one of our friends from the group perform in a show—with another local theater group—and it was great to know how happy he was that we went to support him. We got to see him after the show, which was Carabet and very good.

Getting involved with a community theater group isn’t something I’d do on my own, and I’m glad my friend thought highly enough of me to ask if I’d like to volunteer. I’m definitely learning a lot about theater, and it’s nice to see the final product and support the cast and production team. So the moral of the story here is this: it’s perfectly okay to say no to opportunities but it can also be really great if you do. And then you’ll have songs from musicals stuck in your head all day (“A Musical” from Something Rotten and “Willkommen” from Cabaret).