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Meet the TPA Ushers: Kennedy Paris

Meet the TPA Ushers: Kennedy Paris

Friday, February 10, 2017

Did you know? Texas Performing Arts has approximately 400 dedicated volunteers who help keep our performances running smoothly. In the 15/16 Season, our ushers donated 25,000 hours of their time.

Meet Kennedy Paris, UT Austin Junior, Theatre Studies Major

How long have you been an usher?
For the past two years. This will be my third.

How did you get involved with ushering? 
I saw at an information table at orientation.

Why did you decide to get involved? 
To see the shows!

What are some of the shows you’ve had a chance to see? 
Annie, Beauty & the BeastOnce, Dirty Dancing. There have been so many!

Which was your favorite show? 
Probably Once because there was the bar on stage that the audience members could go up to. And the music is great.

What do you do as an usher?
You show up about an hour before show time and meet up to discuss how late the show will go, the photography policy, the late seating policy. Then each usher meets with their house manager. When people come in you tell them where they’re sitting and show them to their seats.

Who are the people that typically usher? 
There are two main groups, the student ushers and then the community of older ushers who have been doing it for twenty or thirty years.

What do you like about theater? 
It’s like a live-action movie done all in one take.

When did you first get involved with theater? 
Well, my parents were pregnant with me while they were directing a show together, so essentially since the womb. 

Do you have a favorite type of performing arts? 
Musicals.

What’s your favorite musical? 
RENT because at the time it came out it broke a lot of boundaries in theater.

What would you say to someone to encourage them to come out to a Texas Performing Arts show? 
If you’ve never been, you definitely need to at least try it. There is so much work that goes into it and every little piece that goes into putting on a show is amazing. 

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