Organic Mapping Image. | Created by Megan Haase. Empowered by Design Unlocking interdisciplinary possibilities across campus during a time of uncertainty BY ALEXANDRA SARGENT CAPPS T heatre and theatrical design have powerful applications outside of the discipline itself. This time of pandemic and uncertainty has revealed an opportunity for theatre designers to re-brand and use our skillsets. Empowering students currently facing an unknown future by teaching them to think like designers opens up possibilities across our campuses. The interdisciplinary application of two specific processes, human-centered design and systems mapping, allows faculty members to universalize practices routinely employed in theatrical experiential and creative endeavors. A focus on these transferable skills can facilitate: 1) designer thinking and practice for nondesign students and, by extension, 2) teaching interdisciplinary student groups, and 3) collaborative opportunities which capitalize on the expertise of the vast network of faculty, staff, and students at academic institutions, as well as in the local community. FALL 2020 | THEATRE DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY | 23