Name: Felicia Fitzpatrick
Age: 25
Job Title and Description: Playbill’s Social Media Manager! I oversee all of our social media – like everything! From daily posting to bigger picture strategy, I’m your girl.
College Name/Major: University of Texas, Theatre and Dance with a concentration in African American performance (and a Her Campus Texas alum!)
Website: FeliciaFitzpatrick.wordpress.com
Instagram/Twitter Handle: @felicianicole86
What does your current job entail? Is there such a thing as a typical day?
FF: There isn’t such a [thing as a] typical day – which can be fun and challenging at the same time! As a social media team of one, you always feel busy because there is always something else you feel like you can do, can tweet, can plan. I think of them as low-tide days and high-tide days. There are certain things I have to execute every day, like posting editorial content from [our] website on our channels, interacting with our community, and using After Effects to animate our daily news recap videos for our Instagram stories. Then are things I have to execute on a weekly basis, like co-hosting our Instagram Live series, curating our Spotify playlists, and analyzing data and writing up the social media report.
Between all of this, a low-tide day might mean that I can really sit down at my desk and focus on strategizing bigger picture campaigns we might have with a Broadway show or an advertising client. Or maybe I’m planning coverage for an upcoming event, like BroadwayCon or The Tony Awards. A high-tide day means that I’m running from our studio where I took Snapchats of Darren Criss while he’s filming a video for us to Times Square to interview Broadway fans back to my desk to tweet breaking news and then back to the studio to prepare equipment for our opening night Facebook live-stream that evening. It’s a rush!
What is the best part of your job?
FF: First and foremost, I’m a theater kid, so being able to engage with my passion every day is is such a gift and I am so grateful. If I ever get burnt out of frustrated, that’s the first thing I remember! 12-year-old Felicia would FLIP if she knew this was my full-time job. Growing up on the west coast, traveling to New York City and watching Broadway shows wasn’t possible. The closest I got to a Broadway show was watching behind-the-scenes YouTube videos of Beauty and the Beast. The fact that I know I’m making Broadway accessible to young kids who don’t live in NYC through social media is really important to me. Broadway, and theatre as a whole, is very community-driven. There’s such a hunger to be a part of the Broadway community, and utilizing these huge platforms so our followers feel included is a responsibility I take seriously. T
his also goes for diversity and representation, too! A part of my job is co-hosting our red carpet for opening nights, and I’ve made a commitment to wear my hair natural (or at least try) for every single one. Even if it is 2am the night before and all I want to do is go to sleep, I twist my hair so I can wear my curls out and proud. I’m the only woman of color hosting on these opening night carpet, and as far as I’m aware, I think I’m the first, so being able to help young women of color feel like they’re represented in the community is a huge priority for me.
What was your first entry-level job in your field and how did you get it?
FF: My first job was at DoSomething.org, which is a not-for-profit that focuses on social cause campaigns for young people. I started as the social media intern and was then hired full-time as the Digital Content Associate after I graduated! I had found the internship during my sophomore year on an internship website and created this whole video application where I dressed up as Janet Jackson. It worked! I spent the next two summers interning there, and during the summer after I graduated, I got a call from the CEO and my internship supervisor asking me to join full-time! I moved to NYC a month later! I am so grateful – that place became my first home in NYC, truly.
What words of wisdom do you find most valuable?
FF: During that spring that I was thinking about interning in NYC, I REALLY wanted to work at Seventeen magazine. I didn’t get it. And I was so bummed. But I actually saw a tweet around the time that I got the rejection email and it said “God has three answers to prayers: 1) yes, 2) not yet, 3) I have something better in mind.” I’m not necessarily religious, but I took comfort in the idea that the universe had a reason for me not getting the Seventeen internship. Sure enough, I found about the DoSomething.org internship a few weeks later! A friend of mine, Tyree Boyd-Pates, voiced this same idea in a different way: Trust the process. Everything that happens to you, every curve ball, every side path you go down on your journey, will eventually get you to where you need to be, and you’ll realize that’s probably where you want to be.
What is one mistake you made along the way and what did you learn from it?
FF: A lesson I’m continually learning is to speak up for myself. It can be challenging as a young, bubbly woman in the workplace – sometimes people don’t take you seriously, or they feel like they can bully you around just because you quote Disney movies or like to sing Beyonce, #patriarchy. It can be discouraging to as I try to speak up for myself during discussions or confrontations at work, because I’m not always successful, so I’ve also found other opportunities to empower myself in different ways. Most recently, I started a podcast called Call and Response which explores the intersection of blackness and performing arts through interviews with Broadway performers, ballet dancers, creatives, arts administrators, and more. I knew it was a topic that was important to me, and it also gave me a sense of agency and personal autonomy where I could learn to be confident in my decisions and own my individual perspective.
What has been the most surreal moment of your career thus far?
FF: Oh, definitely meeting Whoopi Goldberg. It was June 15, 2016. I’ll never forget it. It was the week after the Orlando tragedy (which was actually happened on the day of the Tony Awards), and the Broadway community had gathered to record “What the World Needs Now is Love” as a benefit song (with proceeds going to organizations in Florida). I went to capture content for our social, and just to express the magnitude of theater royalty that was there – the first two people I saw when I walked in the door were Broadway LEGENDS Chita Rivera and Tommy Tune. Lin-Manuel Miranda was there, Audra McDonald, Bernadette Peters, Joel Grey, it was wild. Eventually, I saw Whoopi and I was struck still. This woman inspired me growing up – from Sister Act 2 to Cinderella – everyone knew how much I loved her. I didn’t know how to voice everything she meant to me. Eventually I made my way over to her and said “Hi, Ms. Goldberg, I just wanted to introduce myself and say thank you. Just, thank you.” And she said “Whoopi, baby, Whoopi.” And then we hugged. And then I died. This is my ghost writing this now.
What do you look for when considering hiring someone?
FF: I look for creativity and passion! These things aren’t necessarily measurable through what’s written on a resume, but how you present yourself during the application process. If you’re applying to a graphic design job, that resume and cover letter better have a flawless design element. If you’re applying for an editorial job, your specific voice needs to come through the page of your cover letter. If you’re applying for a social media job, your social media accounts need to represent your personality.
What advice would you give to a 20-something with similar aspirations?
FF: Create and consume. What’s so exciting about social media is that anyone can create content on there. So roll up your sleeves and start trying things out! Make a YouTube vlog, start an Instagram – but focus it on whatever you’re passionate about. You’ll be able to find your voice and see what resonates with the internet. Don’t listen to the trolls, but understand what kind of content is compelling. At the same time, you’re creating a portfolio to show at your next interview! In terms of consuming, as a social media manager, you have to have your salad fingers on the pulse (that’s a Broad City reference…) at all times. What’s the latest trend? What’s the hot new app everyone’s using? By continuing to consume media, you’ll be able to brainstorm new ideas for your own projects.
What’s the one thing that’s stood out to you the most in a resume?
FF: For me, it’s really not about your resume – I mean of course go for the internships and get the experience because that is important and you need it – but it’s about what you do with it. At DoSomething.org, we actually tested the creativity and ability to read directions of our digital intern applicants in one simple way: the cover letter could only be 140 characters. We had hundreds of applicants, and there were plenty of impressive resumes. But you would not believe the amount of people who sent in regular, standard – and over 140-characters – cover letters. Social media is all about grabbing someone’s attention quickly and efficiently – and being able to cut through the noise. In one particular instance, one applicant had huge brand names on their resume, fantastic internship experience, but their cover letter, while 140 characters, lacked that spark of creativity and passion I was looking for. Meanwhile, another applicant really captured my attention in the cover letter, even though they didn’t necessarily have a stacked resume. The second applicant got the offer.