KATY, TX – Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) and theatre go hand in hand for Taylor High School senior Luca Kuhl. For nearly four years, he has worked behind the scenes with Mustang Theatre Thespian Troupe 311, running the sound board, programming lights, creating 3D models and designing sets while combining his interests in technology and the arts.
Luca Kuhl has been running sound, lights and more at Taylor High School since he was a freshman. As a senior, he’s incorporating STEM into the arts.
Kuhl’s passion for technical theatre goes back as far as he can remember. As a child, he organized plays for his family, and by elementary school, he was editing short films he created with his best friend.
Now a senior AP student near the top of his class, Kuhl is using his interests in satellite imagery and geography to enhance Taylor Theatre’s upcoming production of “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.”
“I’m designing projections for the play,” Kuhl said. “Behind the set, there’s going to be a projector that displays a map of where the main character is at all times. I’m figuring out how to get real-world data into a modeling program and how to make the videos to display it for the audience.”
Kuhl said the idea came after reading the script and studying the protagonist, prompting him to consider how technology could help the audience experience the story through the character’s perspective.
“I can put together my passion for mapmaking and technology with the elements that are already in the play to make the show more than I’ve ever seen,” Kuhl said.
Mustang Theatre Director Sara Blumber said Kuhl has become an invaluable member of the troupe. As an officer, his contributions extend beyond his technical expertise.
“He’s very level-headed,” Blumber said. “In the midst of chaotic teenage theatre kids, he provides the calm that the other kids can feed off of.”
Balancing a theatre leadership position with as many as four AP classes simultaneously has also taught Kuhl lessons in time management, leadership and collaboration. He has learned to meet tight deadlines, navigate conflict and ask the right questions to keep a production moving forward.
“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is how to have a job and go into the real world,” Kuhl said. “I’ve learned what it’s like to have a boss, and now that I’m leading the design and have a crew, I’ve learned what it’s like to be a boss.”
Kuhl also credits his father with shaping his approach to problem-solving and decision-making, teaching him to consider different perspectives and carefully analyze challenges before acting.
As graduation approaches, Kuhl is considering the University of Texas as well as McGill University and the University of Waterloo in Canada. While he has not decided where he will attend, he knows engineering will be part of his future.
For Kuhl, the skills developed behind the curtain at Taylor High School have offered more than a way to combine his interests in STEM and theatre. They have helped prepare him to take those interests from the stage, past the curtain and into his next chapter.
