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When Ricardo Ortega ’23 discovered theater in high school, he knew he found a pastime that would stay with him always. As he went on to study history at Kent State University, he found ways to stay connected to theater.
He served as cofounder to help launch an organization for Latine theater students and was involved with many productions during his four years on campus. His final research paper even focused on the historical significance of a musical in relation to the Latine community. As graduation arrived, so did the pandemic. This left Ortega searching for a job when many industries were shut down. “It was a little bit of a shock because it felt like I didn’t get to finish college,” he describes. “I wanted to find a job quickly. Even though I had studied history, I also wanted to find ways to stay connected with theater and still be able to think critically about theater-related things.”
After receiving his bachelor’s degree in 2020, he returned to his hometown of Cleveland and found a job in retail. After working for a year or two, however, he realized he wanted to do something different with his time—and make his way back to theater. As he explored different theater companies in the area, he realized he was a little out of practice when it came to training and performance experience. But he also made another discovery: He had a unique ability to create, execute, and follow through on plans. “I think every theater needs help like that, and I want to be the person who can support them,” he explains. As he became more involved in local theater, he also spent time with students who were going to college and acting at the same time—and this inspired him to return to school. As Ortega started to explore graduate programs, one of his mentors from Kent State suggested Northwestern’s MS in Leadership for Creative Enterprises program.
“When I read about it, I thought it was amazing,” he says. “It was really holistic, and I was excited about the breadth of the courses it offered. I want to have the building blocks to go anywhere. This would prepare me to understand what I need to about accounting, business, marketing, economics, or law for a variety of industries, including music, film, and theater—but industries outside those as well.” He already sees a strong connection between what he’s learning now and what he plans to do in the future—and says these lessons apply to many of the theater programs he worked with in Ohio, too. In Organizational Processes in Creative Enterprises, a class led by Professor Pablo Boczkowski, for example, many of the lessons encourage him to think about unique ways theater companies could open their doors to new membership, better delineate staff responsibilities, grow attendance, and increase reach among students. With the skills and insights he’s gaining today, Ortega hopes to one day run a theater company with his partner in Cleveland. “I want to see all the theaters there succeed and do really good things with education,” he describes. “I want to see them try their best and do new shows, and I want to help build them up as best I can. I admire the environment they made and the space they want to create. In my opinion, they deserve to have that, and I can be the one to help.”
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