Our Students
Leah Tucker, 2026 MFA Candidate (Stage Management)
Leah Tucker (she/her) is a stage manager from Irmo, South Carolina who graduated with a B.A. in Fine Arts- Theatre from the University of South Carolina- Aiken in 2021. She is a Virgo who thrives on organization, planning ahead, and being able to make art come to life. Having been actively involved in theatre for 12 years, and focused on technical theatre and stage management for 10, she has practical experience in all areas of the field. Her favorite positions have included Stage Manager, Playwright, Props Manager, Publicity Manager, Lighting Designer, and Assistant Director.
Her professional experiences have been primarily at Trustus Theatre in Downtown Columbia, South Carolina, where she is a company member. She spent two years there before being encouraged by directors, actors, and coworkers to pursue a graduate degree in stage management. She loved the community at Trustus, and hopes to either bring the small theatre comradery to a larger space or continue working in small professional theatres over the next several years.
Leah is also a disabled student who centers her work around that identity. Accommodations for those who need or want them benefit even those who are not currently disabled. She sees that leading with understanding, especially as a stage manager, is a path towards broadening the horizons of the theatre world. She believes that creating safe, brave, vibrant spaces full of diversity and room for growth will only ever add to the joy and spread of our art. She is currently working her way through the National Disability Theatre Handbook and making a plan for implementing those ideas in her own work at Virginia Tech and beyond. Another step she has taken towards physical and mental safety at Virginia Tech has been with the addition of a personalized version of the Chicago Theatre Standards’ Non-Equity Deputy system. For the 2023-2024 season she worked with Stacy Blackburn, Cara Rawlings, and the directors of each production to modify and practice this system, named the Company Advocate. This experience has helped her to understand the reality of implementing new practices into an environment that is steeped in tradition.
Maxwell Allen, 2027 MFA Candidate (Stage Management)
Max is thrilled to have the opportunity to study stage management at Virginia Tech! He is in his first semester of the MFA program. Max is a recent graduate of the University of South Florida with degrees in Business Management and Theatre Arts. Previous stage management credits include Next to Normal (Tampa Rep), Howl O Scream and Christmas Town (Busch Gardens, Tampa 2023), Unto These Hills (Cherokee Historical Association 2022 & 2023), The Smell of the Kill and Christmas Contigo (Stageworks Theatre) USF stage management credits include As You Like It The Musical and Little Women The Musical. Other USF credits include Life Is A Dream, Ride The Cyclone, Everybody, House of Desires, and Ordinary Days. Max has also worked at Tampa area theatres in various capacities such as The Straz Center for the Performing Arts, Stageworks Theatre, Jobsite Theatre, Tampa Rep, Center for the Arts Wesley Chapel, Hillsborough Community College, and USF Events and Production Services.