Justas Joedele, 11, is one of Aves Theatre’s technicians (better known as Techies) and is currently busy on a very exciting project. For the upcoming production “The Outsiders,” Joedelle has been building a running fountain.
The fountain, as well as being fully functional, will also be the pivotal prop during the top of act one, when the play’s protagonist Ponyboy is dunked and almost drowns to death within the fountain.

Did you design the fountain by yourself?
I had to follow Whapham’s instructions and the needs and the requirements for the show, but I helped quite a bit with designing it.

Is constructing it difficult?
To design it I had do some pretty hard math, to make sure everything fit together and it was safe for actors to dunk each other in. I still can’t say how difficult it is to build yet, though, since I haven’t put the water pump in yet.

Will it be safe for actors to dunk each other in?
Completely. It can support the weight of many actors. It’s even safe to jump up and down on it.

What else have you contrcuted for the play?
I built the brick walls, but those weren’t hard to do.

What do you think will be your biggest problem with constructing the fountain?
Making sure it’s not too loud. The rest of the techies and I have to figure out how to reduce the noise it’ll make as much as possible.

For more information about the show, visit Ave Theatre’s website.