Staff Blog Week 6 - Alexis Maxwell
Staff Blog Week 6
By Alexis Maxwell – Acting Teaching Artist
The last week of City Spotlights is always bittersweet. As someone who has now been involved in this program for seven years, both on and off stage, I can truly say that the process of saying goodbye never gets easier. If anything, it actually gets harder, with each new connection, a new seed is planted in a garden of love, and though it hurts for them to leave, it’s truly an honor and a privilege to see how they blossom over the course of these six weeks. Emotions were running high this week and the week prior, as many people were faced with one of the unfortunate conundrums that can come with creating a show—having to cut for time. There were difficult moments, but this year, teamwork was very strong, amongst both staff and participants, and I feel everyone handled each other with patience and care. They truly cared about one another’s success, along with their own, and it was apparent in how smoothly runs became as we started getting into the swing of tech. The teens showed up at 100% and delivered what I believe to be one of the strongest City Spotlights performances in years (I can say that since I also participated in the program for three years). The teens care so much about each other and their message, and it was so beautiful to see as someone who cares about them as well.
With the Final Showcase said and done, we move into our next steps and commencement. Two days filled with love, laughter, and sometimes tears (usually my own). Most years, I can control the waterworks, but it was my first year back in a new role, and so I was feeling a bit more sentimental, I believe, and one of the teens gave this beautiful, heartfelt, and genuine speech, and I just broke down. Not only because what that teen said was so important and honest, but also because that was the same way this program made me feel when I first came in 2017. I am so happy to know that after all these years, City Spotlights still fosters so much joy and belonging for young people, and I am even more thrilled that I now get to be a part of that and help make young people feel as safe and cared for as I did. City Spotlights has always been a second home to me, and I am so happy that I can help make others feel a little more at home in this program too. I am very grateful to City Spotlights for allowing myself and others to, in the words of music specialty, plant a tree where we’re gonna stay, for as long as you give us grace to.