Gesa Power House Theatre is excited to be collaborating with Rodney Outlaw and Walla Walla Music Organization as a training ground for students learning audio skills.

Starting in 2020, the Walla Walla Music Organization’s “Live Sound” classes, which are offered through Walla Walla Community College, will begin meeting at Gesa Power House Theatre. Each quarter, the students will spend 10 weeks learning how to use audio equipment at the theatre. Some students will then transition into an internship capacity at the theatre, working in the audio booth on various events and shows, and gaining real world work experience.

Originally from North Carolina, Rodney Outlaw created the Walla Walla Music Organization nonprofit to create a framework for training students in a variety of audio skills.

“The students that come into our classes already have so many different skill sets,” says Outlaw. “My main concern is to build their confidence through learning specific audio skills. Regardless of whether music is the path they follow. You can’t do anything without confidence.”

Outlaw has more than 20 years of audio engineer, writing, and music production experience, including producing and recording his own music. He is a graduate of the Conservatory of Recording Arts and Sciences with a degree in Audio Engineering. He has more than a decade of experience working with kids as an after school program director for the Seattle Downtown YMCA and as a Paraeducator for the Walla Walla Public School District.

The historic Gesa Power House Theatre is a 300-seat performing arts venue, located in downtown Walla Walla. The 120-year-old building was once the Walla Walla Gas Plant, built to produce coal gas used to light the streets, businesses, and homes of Walla Walla. In 2011 the Gesa Power House Theatre building was transformed into a state-of-the-art playhouse for live performance. The venue hosts a variety of community events, concerts, and private events (including weddings).