STEP VA Crew Profile – Aiden Gibson and Noah King
- 6 hours ago
- 3 min read
by Brigid O'Leary
FREDERICKSBURG, VA—Courtland High School's auditorium will become a swamp for two days in April. A swamp, and then a forest, and then a castle, and kingdom, and maybe a village as well, all in the span of an hour and a half, as STEP VA performs Shrek The Musical JR. Making that all happen is the tech crew. Six people strong, the tech crew has been hard at work since early January, building, painting, gluing, and sewing. Two of those hard at work behind the scenes are Aiden Gibson and Noah King.
Wanting to try something new, Gibson signed up to be part of the tech crew for the STEP VA Spring Musical Experience. Though this is his first experience with musical theater, Gibson has enjoyed building and painting the set for the show, allowing him to be part of a show without jumping straight into the limelight. And as a fan of the Shrek universe, he is anticipating his favorite scene from the story, where Donkey and Shrek meet for the first time.
“It was hilarious!” he says of the movie-verse interaction.
While new to the tech crew, Gibson is not exactly new to STEP VA. His first foray into activities with the non-profit that “empowers people with disabilities through creative expression and sensory exploration” was the drum classes hosted by Ray Nelson. He chose to get involved with the tech crew in part to learn new skills but also to make new friends.
One of those new friends who is more than skilled enough to show him the ropes is King, who has been involved with the STEP VA since the early days of the organization, participating in camps and classes, as well as having been part of the Spring Musical Experience from its inception. Initially double cast as Tim Croakee's dad as well as Tim's friend Jeremy in “A Special Covid-19,” written by STEP VA alumnus Noah Finch in 2021, King has built a solid acting resume. He went on to play Adult Simba when STEP VA staged Disney's “The Lion King, Kids!” in 2022 and Pig Pen in “You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” in 2023. In 2025, he once again took center stage, playing Marlin, the father fish in Disney's “Finding Nemo, Jr.” He hasn't limited his theatrical practice to STEP VA, either, performing in musicals at his church when the opportunity arises.
A renaissance man, King occasionally steps back from acting, first serving on the Tech Crew in 2024 when the organization performed “Seussical Jr.” He enjoyed that experience and chose to do so again this year, in part because he's adjusting to life as a college student. Doing so allows him to remain involved in the organization, in which he's been participating for the greater part of its existence, without over-committing his time.
Though he's not the biggest fan of Shrek franchise, he's excited to see how the projects the tech crew have been working on come together on stage.
“I have heard a lot about the dragon some of my friends are working on, and I’m really excited to see that,” he says. “It should be really cool.”
For King the Spring Musical is an added opportunity to hang out with friends and he's looking forward to seeing them belt out the songs, even if he would score the stage show more similarly to the movies.
“My favorite part of the first movie was the rock-tinged soundtrack. My favorite song in the original ‘Shrek’ is ‘All-Star’ by Smash Mouth. It’s too bad that’s not in the score for the musical; I’d totally watch Joe Guyton sing Smash Mouth in the opening scene of the show,” he says.
You, too, can come share in the hilarity of Shrek meeting Donkey, cower at the dragon and hear Joe Guyton sing his heart out—not to Smash Mouth, but with other fun songs—as STEP VA stages Shrek The Musical JR, April 18 at 6 pm and April 19 at 3 pm in the Courtland High School auditorium.
Tickets are available online at stepva.org.
