As the sun rises and sets on Lake Murray during this beautiful (albeit sweltering) summer season, each day brings with it the promise of new beginnings. For some, it’s the opportunity to make new memories with their families through vacation, for others, the opportunity to make new connections and advancements in their careers. For the Lexington Chamber & Visitor Center's new Content Strategist, Trent Loggins, it’s the chance to settle into newly married life in a community that he grows to love more and more each day. It’s a refreshing change of pace for the young professional, after having experienced an exciting, spontaneous and fast-paced career in theater and hospitality over the last dozen years.
After graduating from the University of Montevallo with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre in 2012, Trent wasted no time in jumping head-first into his theatrical pursuits. After a national tour with Birmingham Children’s Theatre beginning only weeks after his graduation and a 7-month residency with the Round Barn Theatre in Indiana, he found himself in Seaside Florida for three years, working not only as a performer but also as a technician, improv artist, playwright, props master, teacher and administrator with the Seaside Repertory Theatre. There he honed his craft and developed a love for the administrative side of the theatrical art form. In January 2017, he waved goodbye to his beachside life and began touring with the National Theatre for Children (NTC).
Working as a performer with the NTC afforded Trent the opportunity to visit parts of the country he missed on his first national tour, including Minneapolis, Arizona, South Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky and more. At the end of his second tour with the NTC, he met Gabriella Francis, the young woman who would later become his wife. They met in the Minneapolis Airport, where they bonded over both their flights being delayed, McDonald’s chicken nuggets, and, of all things, fidget spinners. After finishing his tour, he counseled and taught theater camps at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. with the U.S. Performing Arts Camps, returned to the Round Barn Theatre to play Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls (one of his dream roles) and then moved to Chicago to study improv and sketch comedy. Unfortunately, city life didn’t quite suit Trent; after a handful of months, he accepted a last-minute offer to move to Wisconsin and perform with the Palace Theatre in Wisconsin Dells…and as luck would have it, what was supposed to be a one show contract with The Palace turned into 2 1/2 years of some of the greatest performance and administrative opportunities in his theatrical career.
On the opening night of Happy Days: A New Musical, his first show with the Palace, Trent was cast in a role he had always dreamed of playing since he was five years old: The Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz. The Palace’s production pulled out all the stops – movie quality costumes and prosthetics, a fly system for Glinda’s Bubble, the Wicked Witch and the flying monkeys, elaborate sets, special effects, and more. The production ran for four months, often to sold-out audiences, and kickstarted Trent’s journey with The Palace Theatre. He went on to perform in leading or supporting roles in 10 productions for The Palace, including DeathTrap, Mamma Mia, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, The Game’s Afoot, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels: The Musical, to name a few. Offstage, he directed two Children’s Theatre performances, including an original musical version of Alice in Wonderland which he also co-wrote and costumed. He additionally had administrative positions in their box office, in theater education and community outreach, and also served as the theater’s Prop Designer for 14 productions. He continued with the Palace until its closing in March 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the fate of live theater as a career being uncertain during COVID and his relationship with Gabriella growing more serious, Trent knew it was time for a career change. In July of 2020, he accepted a position as the Kid’s Entertainment Manager for Great Wolf Lodge Wisconsin. The new position gave him the best of both worlds; offering opportunities and responsibilities he hadn’t experienced before while still allowing him to work in the arts and occasionally perform with his job. He and Gabriella remained in Wisconsin throughout the remainder of 2020 until late 2021, when adventure called for both of them with new careers with American Cruise Lines.
Trent began as a Cruise Director while Gabriella took on the role of onboard Restaurant Manager. As a Cruise Director, Trent developed, scheduled, and led programming for guests, along with selling cruises onboard and occasionally performing as part of the nightly entertainment. Both he and Gabby received promotions in 2022; himself in a Cruise Director role that had him visiting and helping more ships in the fleet, and Gabby to Hotel General Manager of her own ship. As fun and exciting as life onboard was, he and Gabriella were ready to settle down and decided to move to West Columbia, South Carolina in November of 2022.
The year 2023 proved quite eventful for Trent. Just a month after moving, he stepped into a remote corporate position at American Cruise Lines as their Entertainment & Enrichment Manager. This position required him to manage resident and step-on entertainers, guest speakers and artists-in-residence performing on over 35 different itineraries throughout the year across a 17-ship fleet. In 2023 alone, he traveled to Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Mississippi, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, and Connecticut to visit ships. In November of 2023, he and Gabriela were married in a beautiful ceremony in her hometown of Rochester, New York. After returning from their honeymoon, a career opportunity presented itself as the Content Strategist for the Lexington Chamber & Visitors Center, a 65-year-old non-profit organization in Lexington, South Carolina. Looking to settle down, start a family, and find a better sense of community, he was ecstatic to accept this new position. Starting in December 2023, he connects with businesses, tells their stories, and promotes key programs, initiatives and events. Most of all, he enjoys making a meaningful impact in the Lexington community.
As the sun rises and sets on Lake Murray and another day goes by, Trent counts himself lucky to have been blessed with the wonderful experiences he has had thus far. After a fulfilling theatrical career, he finds serenity in the promise of the many new adventures to come with his family and career in the Midlands, a community he’s proud to now call his home.
Trent was cast in a role he had always dreamed of playing, The Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz.