Since its opening more than two decades ago, the McAfee Center has been a constant focal point for arts performances of all genres. Its sound shell echoes back countless events — within the school and broader Bay Area community — that are bolstered by the expansive auditorium and lighting system.
Behind the $8.6 million 569-seat are 1,200 families’ donations, with seat arrest engravings dedicated to honoring their names. The theater is named after the family of Eric McAfee, whose $1 million donation helped complete construction of the facility.
However, none of the theater’s performances or other uses could happen without the dedicated work of those working behind the scenes.
Leading the charge is theater facilities coordinator Christine Schwanhausser, whose duties start well before a performance or event is scheduled.
The McAfee is a popular location for rentals — from professional music groups such as the San Jose and Saratoga Wind Symphonies to visual arts organizations like Los Gatos Ballet. The facility is often used seven days of the week. Before groups even take the stage, Schwanhausser and other coordinators compile a significant amount of paperwork to keep all events, projects and building repairs organized.
“A lot of my work focuses on communications between SHS staff, renters and my employees to ensure that when our events and performances do take place, we have as much information as possible to make the event a success and that anything broken in the facility is getting fixed,” she said.
The job of a theater coordinator entails mechanical aspects as well. When Schwanhausser is not at her office in the backstage of the McAfee, her typical duties include fixing lamps, checking on equipment or working with the maintenance team and tech team on various minor projects around the theater.
With the tech team, she focuses on theater gear such as stage lighting and sound systems while the school maintenance team works with facility infrastructure such as doors, carpets and the electrical room.
“Working with the school maintenance team is absolutely wonderful,” Schwanhausser said. “I always feel supported with the projects that I bring to them.”
On days when the McAfee is used, staff members arrive 30 minutes before rental times begin to turn on equipment and do their standard sweeps of the stage. Preparation times can vary depending on the type of the event; different equipment on stage varies significantly depending on occasion — whether it’s dance, live music with microphones or projector presentations. Preparation times can range from an hour to several hours and may require additional staff members when heavier equipment is needed.
Inevitably, various pieces of equipment fail over time after constant use; in these situations, the maintenance staff ensure quick repairs to keep the auditorium in the highest condition. With the help of the school’s maintenance team, they coordinate a large portion of theater check-ins such as ADA elevators and fire inspections.
“Without the general upkeep, a facility with as high a use rate as McAfee can easily fall into disrepair, which impacts its ability to be used safely by the school and community,” Schwanhausser said.
According to substitute coordinator Kyle Fox, McAfee staff members are responsible for inspecting various equipment on stage. Some of the many maintenance protocols include refurbishing curtains with fire retardant sprays and replacing burned out lightbulbs. Fox, specializing more in moving heavy objects, is often scheduled for days where big moving pieces shuffle around.
Others who specialize more in sound or the administrative side take on different roles in and out of the theater. Right before the beginning of each school year, the maintenance department does a deep cleaning of the McAfee, which encompasses floors and carpets, while Schwanhausser schedules the tech team to focus on cleaning and checking stage equipment.
Most events held at the McAfee involve various technologies in the control room, which stands above the back of the seating area. The light board, sound board, projector, headset and communication station are common controls used to introduce and accompany performances.
“Sometimes we might use submasters — physical sliding faders with specific lighting looks programmed to each one — for something typical like a concert,” Schwanhausser said. “For something more complex like Bombay in the Bay or the Spring Musical, we’ll program hundreds of digital cues for the performance that can be progressed by a single ‘go’ button.”
The soundboard connects to numerous inputs throughout the building, where Schwanhausser and her team can plug in up to 32 different microphones or a couple of computers to play music or sound effects. Through this, they can send their sound inputs to the main speakers and onstage monitors.
A Clear-Com communication system allows intercommunication between staff through wireless headsets. There is usually someone in the control booth receiving messages from the headsets, ready to call cues for lights, sound and curtains. It also allows for troubleshooting between the booth and stage when things go wrong. Curtains or set pieces that fly in and out are operated from the stage by trained personnel with a manual counterweight rigging system.
After each event, the staff run through a standard cleanup procedure that involves returning any used equipment to the booth such as microphones, headsets, cables and connectors, and then shutting down all the booth equipment. The house is then scanned by staff for any items that were left behind. Finally, staff members end the night by locking up the facility and setting the ghost light onstage while turning all other electronics off.
Every staff member is integral for the maintenance of the performance center; they also share one thing in common — a passion for running the McAfee, rooted behind a past tied to theaters.
“I chose this job because I have always loved the theater world ever since I was four years old watching Cats on VHS,” Schwanhausser said. “When I was looking at my two job offers at the time, I knew this would be a place where I could come to be challenged and grow not only as an employee, but as a person as well.”
Notably, Schwanhausser’s job as the theater coordinator stretches beyond just maintenance. She said the most fulfilling part of the job to her is being able to work with students, especially those interested in the technical side of theater. During the fall play and musical, she gets the opportunity to help coach students on how the equipment in the space works and share guidance she has from her prior stage management positions.
Schwanhausser loves the advanced opportunities the McAfee space offers to students — from having the chance to see during class how different things might sound between the music building and the performing hall to students practicing for speech and debate to filming for Media Arts Program projects. Every year, one of the most notable events is Bombay in the Bay — an occasion when Schwanhauser and students work toward the goal of putting on an inspiring performance.
“There’s so many different ways this space can be used to learn and share with the community,” Schwanhausser said. “And I very much enjoy taking care of a space that provides all these opportunities.”
