Saint Michael's College student Heather Lessard of Concord lands internship with professional Playhouse

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Heather Lessard of Concord working as company manager for the professional summer Saint Michael's Playhouse.

COLCHESTER, VT (06/20/2011)(readMedia)-- Heather Lessard, a senior theater and English major at Saint Michael's College, was named company manager of Saint Michael's Playhouse, a regional summer theater owned and operated by Saint Michael's College under contract with Actor's Equity Association.

Ms. Lessard, the daughter of Drake and Heidi Lessard of Concord, describes her job as essentially ensuring the daily happenings of the Playhouse move forward with as few issues as possible. She is the liaison between Chuck Tobin, the producing artistic director of the Playhouse, and different offices within the college, such as Residential Life and Human Resources.

Lessard graduated from Concord High School before coming to Saint Michael's College of Burlington, Vt., one of the top 10 college towns in America. She says her theater job is a challenge, but that she is finding it very educational. Initially hired as a general technical intern, she was offered the job of company manager, when the hired company manager was unable to make it to Playhouse this season.

Long hours to create the show in two weeks of production time

"It's a completely different job than when I'm on campus," said Lessard, "First, it's a professional theater, which means everyone has to follow strict guidelines, things like where they live. There's a whole Equity rulebook that I'm learning." She says that despite the long hours, night and day, her experience has been a positive one.

"Summer stock is the best way to be thrown into the professional world. The hours are long, the days are long, and the season is long, but it's a lot of fun." Playhouse internships are highly competitive and highly valuable.

Playhouse background

Founded in 1947, Saint Michael's Playhouse features talent from Broadway, Off-Broadway, and regional theaters nationwide and attracts approximately 16,000 theatergoers each season. An auxiliary enterprise of Saint Michael's College, the Playhouse is Greater Burlington's only actors' Equity resident theater company and operates under contract with Actors' Equity Association in New York City. At the same time, Saint Michael's College students have the opportunity to learn from the pros through internships in technical theater, costuming, lighting, set construction, publicity, and occasionally, on-stage roles.

Learn What Matters at Saint Michael's College, The Edmundite Catholic liberal arts college, www.smcvt.edu. Saint Michael's provides education with a social conscience, producing graduates with the intellectual tools to lead successful, purposeful lives that will contribute to peace and justice in our world. Founded in 1904 by the Society of St. Edmund and headed by President John J. Neuhauser, Saint Michael's College is located three miles from Burlington, Vermont, one of America's top 10 college towns. Saint Michael's is identified by the Princeton Review as one of the nations Best 373 Colleges, and is included in the 2011 Fiske Guide to Colleges. Saint Michael's has 1,900 undergraduate students and 500 graduate students. Saint Michael's students and professors have received Rhodes, Woodrow Wilson, Pickering, Guggenheim, Fulbright, and other grants. The college is one of the nation's top-100, Best Liberal Arts Colleges as listed in the 2011 U.S. News & World Report rankings.