Caragan Olles, a senior at Notre Dame Academy, has been part of the tech crew for NDA all four years of high school. 

“My freshman year they didn’t have enough techs and needed one more person for Mr. NDA to run the emcee microphones. My brother Carter who had worked tech for a few years pulled me in and asked me to help,” explained Olles. After that, Olles continued on the crew and quickly rose through the ranks and is now the lead audio engineer for the school’s tech crew. 

“My brother graduated after my freshman year and from there I was quickly moved up the ranks to lead audio because we had a very small tech team and there was no other person that had much experience with audio. I was forced to learn very quickly,” Olles said. 

Being forced to learn quickly greatly benefitted Olles because of all the information she now knows about tech. 

“I am the lead audio engineer. That means I’m in charge of audio and the sound board,” she explained. Olles also works on hanging and cabling lights. She focuses the lights to perfection, as the other tech crew members joke that she’s a perfectionist. 

Olles works on most events for tech, which are the musicals, Academy Awards, Cabaret Night, Triton Fest, masses, choir/band concerts and any other event that happens in the auditorium.

“A show does not come completely assembled with lights and audio aspects already set up,” Olles joked. 

While tech runs very smoothly at NDA, it takes many hours and late nights at school to perfect. 

“What we are doing can be challenging and takes a lot of skill learned throughout your years at Notre Dame,” Olles explained. 

“Anyone interested should know that it’s going to be a lot of work and a lot of learning of equipment, but if you honestly enjoy it, it will be worth it,” said Olles.