Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2010 - 49

educAtiOn
of console proficiency. on the other hand, that's not the educational goal
of my program, as i am training artisans first. those students who only
know how to push the various buttons will do very well for themselves,
as those jobs are more and more critical, but they won't have the training
to tell them when and why to push a particular button. there will always
be a designer involved as well. to expand upon this, i don't just train
designers; i train Master electricians and Programmers too, but always
with a background in the art as well as the tech. Many programs may find
themselves re-tooling their curriculum to provide flexibility for students
who don't want to be designers, but who want a well-rounded education
in design training.
in the end, where is the best balance between technician and designer? can you be a designer without any understanding of the technology?
can you be a technician without any understanding of the art? i think you
have to have both, but where is the tipping point?
Where does high school training fit into the equation? Many lighting and sound designers got into the business because they were the
"go-to"student who could get the systems working in high school. there
seems to be a widening gap in experiences coming out of high school,
with some programs having top of the line gear, and others still way behind the curve. i also challenge the industry to find ways to get the message across that there are many more careers in our field other than lights
and sound. across the board, it seems that about 80% of those students
coming out of high school are interested in lights or sound. costumes,
make-up, scenery, props, rigging, and technical direction are woefully
under-populated comparatively.

1966

6th Annual USITT
Conference, University of
Toronto.

How do Mfa programs fit into all this? do they need to consider
changing their approach? Many of the issues facing four-year bfa programs apply to Mfa programs as well. Masters programs have long been
the proving ground for young designers, but would it not also be valid to
develop more Masters programs with a heavier emphasis on technology
as well as art? (and yes, i recognize that Masters td programs already do
this.) How do Mfa programs maintain their relevancy in today's world?
i have bfa students graduate frequently with the intent on going back to
get the Mfa "in a few years...after i've paid off some of these loans," but
i have yet to have any of these alums actually leave their paying gigs to do
so. not that i blame them!
there are over 1,400 schools claiming some type of undergraduate
degree in production, and over 200 graduate programs in theatre out
there. Many of my colleagues have been asking, is that too many? We have
seen an explosion of growth in this area over the past thirty years. Most
of my professors in college were some of the first to earn Mfas in their
field, and there were many for whom Mfas didn't exist when they graduated from undergrad. now, the Mfa is required to teach on the college
level, at least if you are to pursue a tenure-track position, and i hear many
young graduates say they are getting the degree so that teaching will be an
option for them later on. so instead of seeking advanced degrees for the
additional training, exposure, and experience, some are seeking the Mfa
primarily for future career advancement. this isn't a bad thing, as long as
the student doesn't pass up the wealth of educational experiences available
to them, but it does seem to be coming up more than ever. We are in danger
of becoming waterlogged with too many programs and too many educators.

1967 7th Annual USITT Conference,

New York City. Conference was titled,
"Theatre Explosion: covering all phases
of planning for the mushrooming
numbers of performing arts facilities."

1966

Opening night, Sept.
16, Metropolitan Opera
House at Lincoln Center.

1967

First issue of Theatre Crafts
magazine published in March.

1965 USITT's first office space, a room on the fifth

1968 Man of La Mancha

opens on Broadway

1967

U.S. Patent issued to Glynn
H. Lockwood for a "hot melt
glue applicator.

1968

floor of the ANTA building (now the Virginia Theatre
building) at 245 West 52nd St., New York, NY 10019.

New USITT
logo first published
in newsletter.

1966

New products featured in TD&T
included an improved GE halogen
lamp (750 watt T24) which used
bromine rather than iodine gas and
had a planar filament design.

1966

New products featured in
TD&T included a preset card
system by Ward Leonard which
promised to provide an "infinite
variation of sets of cues."

1968

8th Annual USITT
Conference, Chicago, IL.

1968-1971

C. Ray Smith
USITT President

W I N T E R

2010

theatre

design

teChnology

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Winter 2010