Lighting Technician + Eagle Scout + Computer Genius = Connor Hickman
Photo by Kiera Classen
Connor Hickman is a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School. He is also a very well rounded individual. “I have lettered in Academics and Drama three times. I am also involved in the Computer Magnet (now Center for Communications Technology). It is too bad the Magnet does not give letters.”
Connor is also involved in the Drama department at TJHS, and has been in TJ’s Technical Crew for four years now. He has participated in five shows at TJ including Moon Over Buffalo (2009), Footloose (2010), RENT (2010), Noises Off (2011), and The Fourth Wall (2011). Connor says his favorite play of all these was Moon Over Buffalo. “The Moon Over Buffalo tech crew was the best. We had so much fun and worked very well together,” exclaimed Connor.
Connor says he really enjoyed this year’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. “The play is a horrible messed-up love game; everyone loves someone else. It is like a cat-and-mouse game, then these fairies come out and decide to play around with people and wreak havoc with everyone’s love life.”
In the previous years Connor has been in tech he has participated in manning the light board, painting, building sets, sound, lifting, moving, curtains, etc. But this year it is all about lights. Connor was the Head Lighting Technician for A Midsummer Night’s Dream. He says he really enjoyed the lighting design because this play incorporates a lot of different light combinations. Connor says on a normal day, a tech practice consists of, “…sitting at my light board and making sure my cues are right.”
This year the technical crew for Thomas Jefferson’s interpretation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream consists of a large cast and crew. Connor declares, “This year’s Tech Crew is going to be great. We have a lot of hard working people who, if told what to do, will get a lot done. Our set is all built and needs a few adjustments but it is almost there. After we had that construction crew accidentally set off the fire alarm system and drop all that water on our set, the amount of damage was actually way less than expected.” Elaborating, Connor says, “The accidental water drop could have caused much more damage than it did. When the construction crew came to fix the damage that it did cause, they set our practice schedule back a little bit but we dealt with it well.”
Connor is not sure where he would like to go to college, but he knows that he likes Colorado State University. He explains, “I have a low GPA but I got a very high ACT score. I am confident that I will be accepted.”
Connor believes that even if he does not pursue a technical career, being on the tech crew at TJ will significantly enhance his résumé. His friends believe that Connor will go far in this field if he wants to. Senior Keith Hussey said, “Connor knows the theater like the back of his hand. He has years of experience. Connor has been a major part of every production TJ has had in the past four years.”
Photo courtesy of Connor Hickman People working on Connors Eagle project
Boy Scouts is another activity in which Connor is avidly involved. He recollects, “I have been in Boy Scouts fourteen years, since first grade. Wow, that is a lot longer than I thought.” Connor has been an Eagle Scout for almost a year now and he completed his Eagle project last March. He explained what exactly an Eagle project is and what some of the regulations behind it are. “To become an Eagle Scout you have to plan your own project then carry it out without actually doing any of the work; this shows leadership skills.” The rules are, “Plan, develop and give any leadership that is beneficial to any non-profit organization.” Connor noted, “For my Eagle project last March, I revamped the bathrooms at Roman’s Park.”
The roles of an Eagle Scout include “…providing community service in neighborhoods; we do about three hundred or more hours a year.” Connor clarified his roles in scouting, saying, “As a scout, being as much of a leader as I can be is great. I do not have a specific position, but I am always someone you can come to for help. I am in the Boy Scouts but I am technically an Eagle Scout. An Eagle Scout is the highest rank as a youth leader that you can receive in the Boy Scouts.”
Those who know Connor know that he has had a considerable limp a on a regular basis. Connor’s foot has been in a boot multiple times throughout the years, and he is also a regular on crutches and in a wheelchair. “I was born with club feet, meaning that my feet were facing the wrong way. So when I was ten months old they had to fix it, but it did not get entirely fixed. So the past few years I have had to have more corrective surgery on my heels. But, thankfully I’m done; no more surgery for me,” he said.
In the end, Connor is a technical extraordinaire, a leader in Boy Scouts, a decorated Eagle scout, and a great friend. Some believe that the most prevalent of these attributes is his being a great friend. Chris Rosales says, “When I think of Connor I think Fee Fi Fo Fum, like the giant.”
Keith Hussey adds, “Connor has a great personality; he is really funny and he is a great person to have around when you need something off of that tallest shelf.”
