Shooting High During the Fur-'low'

Furloughs were unfortunate and unavoidable as the Pandemic closed down the Cruise and Theatrical industry. As our teams have slowly returned to work, two of our NCS family members' have stuck out to me as examples of being resilient and shooting high during the fur-'low'.

Cassie Plumridge is a valued part of our Theatrical Operations Team with a long family history of owning dance schools. Her aunt and uncle (now retired) owned dance studios in South Florida, and her brother has owned dance studios in the Atlanta area for over 20 years. Cassie used her leave to follow in her family's footsteps, developing and opening the New Heights Dance Academy. "When the pandemic and lockdowns were in place, I noticed there were so many families out walking in the neighborhood – so every night I started 'walk by dance parties' in front of my house where I would play music and encourage neighbors to 'dance it out.' It was so much fun, and I connected with so many people through it that I knew I had to do more," said Cassie. "Our neighborhood is known for its local businesses, and while the foodie and craft beer scene is solid here, I noticed that there was a void for children's dance lessons." She quickly realized that having free time during the leave would turn out to be a blessing. "I was able to focus on researching and taking classes on startups, applying for the corporation docs, business accounts, setting up a website, etc. I saw the way virtual learning was succeeding across the world, and so while I hunted for a physical location, we started classes online."

One surprise to Cassie as she took on this new endeavor was how much time it takes to build a website. "I consider myself very tech-savvy, and when I started the website, I thought I'd be able to knock it out in a day or two – but it took weeks! And then once it was up and running, I didn't like it, so I started over again a few weeks later and redid it." 

The New Heights Dance Academy's mission statement is to provide a safe, creative, and inclusive space to inspire the community. They're focused on creating a passion for dance and offering professional and individualized instruction for students of all ages and levels. Cassie feels that her time working onboard our ships with crew members from so many cultures and backgrounds has taught her how to adapt her communication and leadership styles to ensure everyone's best outcomes. This experience helps her to handle each student's learning style effectively.

"While many dance studios find success long term with award-winning competition teams, we have a different plan. We plan to foster the love for dance for all students, regardless of how much time they decide to commit each week," says Cassie. For her students who are serious about a dance career, she plans to start a Pre-Professional Program that focuses on making students well-rounded dancers, marketable in the entertainment industry. Having now worked on the "other side of the table" in the theatrical world, Cassie was shocked at how many dancers couldn't prepare a resume, dance in heels, or pick-up choreography of different styles, etc. "When I was a young dancer, I thought the only dance jobs were on Broadway or with the Rockettes- I had no idea, until after college, how many opportunities there were with theme parks, cruise ships, corporate entertainment, etc." The Pre-Professional Program program would give dancers the training and tools they need to succeed in the arts beyond their high school years.

Safely transitioning to in-person classes

Now that Cassie's back to work on our relaunch, she's on double duty. Theatrical Op's Specialist by day and Community Leader/Business Owner by night. With the New Heights Dance Academy, she's working on safely transitioning to in-person classes as the business develops. Cassie was thrown into dance classes as soon as she could stand, so she understands the importance of growing up in a studio with a dance family. "It's an invaluable experience. Most of my best friends, formative childhood memories, and lessons center around what happened at the dance studio. I'm excited to be able to continue the family business in Tampa and offer our community a place that they feel comfortable to learn and grow."

Brian Baez is an anchor in the Theatrical Casting Department, facilitating most of our branded and Broadway theatrical casting. At the beginning of the furlough, Brian settled into a new hobby of saltwater fishing. Content to soak up the rays and wait patiently to return to work, Brian found peace being out with nature and away from thoughts of COVID. Little did he know he'd soon be swept in a new completely new direction.

Brian found peace being out with nature and away from thoughts of COVID

Brian's former colleague, who had moved up in his career from sports staff to working as a Cruise Director, had recently accepted a position as the General Manager for a few properties in Watford City, North Dakota. Knowing that Brian had similar training in the Cruise/Hospitality industry, he reached out and asked if Brian would temporarily come up to help him open a second property just outside of Teddy Roosevelt National Park.

Brian was hesitant at the thought of moving into a world in which he had no experience. Still, he remembered a moment from an episode of DIRTY JOBS where Mike Rowe said, "if you're offered a position, it means someone believes in your abilities, and that you could LEARN the job." Brian dove right in, "I tried to put self-doubt aside and jump head-first. The road trip was long ...three full days of driving, up through Indiana, to Minneapolis, then across to the badlands of Western North Dakota just south of the Canadian border". 

Teddy Roosevelt National Park, ND

In his new temporary position, Brian managed 250 hotel rooms and a staff of 50 across two properties. I asked Brian what he learned from his time in North Dakota. "I feel fortunate to have picked up some new skills. I've brought back a renewed love of our industry and re-instated respect for the operational department at Norwegian Creative Studios as well as Hotel Operations onboard. The hours extend well beyond what the guests see, and their jobs are often thankless. I learned a lot regarding profits and losses, revenue versus labor hours, HR policies and team management, the importance of always knowing what your competition is doing, and being better than them at it."

Thankfully, Brian is back with NCLH. He jumped right back into the game, working on casting FOOTLOOSE on the Norwegian Joy. Having a taste of management under his belt, Brian would love to move into a management position within our company. "I'd like to continue pursuing my love for finding and cultivating talent, as well as utilize some of the new skills I've learned. Utilizing skills in personnel, budget management, and working to lead a multi-departmental team all while getting your hands dirty in the trenches as well."

Professionals built by experience, both team members above are more rounded, knowledgeable professionals because of their ability to dive into the unknown. Being fearless, they made good of their off time, setting themselves up for success in the future.

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