Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 2020 - 20

professionals is an important aspect
of the event. To ensure that students
will still benefit from one-on-one attention, Scenic Designer Anya Klepikov
(University of Massachusetts Amherst)
and Professor of Stage Design Steve
Woods (Southern Methodist University)
had to rework the showcase website. In
addition to featuring the students' portfolios, the website now allows guests to
arrange times with students for personal
Zoom interviews and portfolio reviews.
Another issue was the URTA
Keynote Speaker series, a big part of
Design Showcase East. In 2019, scenic
designer Rachel Hauck (Hadestown,
Latin History for Morons, and What
the Constitution Means to Me) spent
two hours discussing everything from
Broadway to collaboration to life. This
speech is attended by both students and
faculty members. Organizers chose to
Zoom in this year's guest speaker because Zoom is capable of handling large
numbers of viewers and enables interaction that would be lost through a recorded event.
The new format has even allowed
for expansion of the event. Lighting designer Robert Perry (University of Illinois
Urbana, Champaign) and costume designer Claudia Stephens (Southern
Methodist University) are developing
a Designer Round Table that builds on
the designer-student conversation. They
have been in contact with the attending
student designers and tasked them with
answering two questions: What designers would you enjoy chatting with and
what one question you would like to ask
of them? The Designer Round Table
event will be co-hosted by Robert Perry
and scenic designer Russell Parkman
(Southern Methodist University).
Marketing the event has also
changed. Organizers are promoting the
new format through Live Design and
the weekly podcast Light Talk, which
currently features two students' work
each weekday on their Facebook series
"Designer du Jour."
All student websites will remain
active on the DSE site through 2020.
Overall, 56 MFA and BFA/BA portfolios
of exciting work from around the country
are shared on the site. All working professionals are encouraged to reach out
to these young men and women. Take a
little time out of your day now to contact

The Actors Theatre of Louisville production of Are You There? is part of the streaming content at Actors
Theatre Direct. | Image courtesy Actors Theatre of Louisville.

them, set up a phone call or Zoom interview, and discuss their portfolios. A
phone call is the least we can do to help
celebrate their graduation and entry into
the profession.

Actors Theatre of
Louisville
Elizabeth Greenfield

Actors Theatre of Louisville and
Executive Artistic Director Robert
Barry Fleming launched Actors Theatre
Direct, multi-channel, on-demand creative content to ensure that world-class
theatre continues to thrive and enrich
lives during this turbulent time. The
public health crisis around the spread
of COVID-19 necessitated the suspension of Actors Theatre's season, including nearly 100 planned performances as
part of the 44th Humana Festival of New
American Plays.
"The decision to utilize the recommended social distancing strategies, and
suspend the remainder of our season, remains an act of civic duty and is, without

20 | THEATRE DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY | SPRING 2020

question, in the best interest of public
health and wellness," said Fleming. "It is
also true that for the individuals in any
community, self-quarantine measures
can be psychologically difficult and emotionally painful. As a staff, we quickly redirected all our creative energy to finding
innovative, high-quality, virtual solutions
to continue fulfilling our mission. Actors
Theatre Direct is a key strategic initiative
that allows us to do just that."
Content for Actors Theatre Direct
is a combination of recorded productions, panel discussions, and talkbacks
intended to provide audiences with continued access to performances and a
platform for new works. A premiere in
the Humana Festival gives a work and
its creative team the opportunity for invaluable audience exchange and industry exposure. For 44 years, the Humana
Festival has offered theatre lovers the
chance to be the first to see groundbreaking new plays by some of the most
talented voices writing for the American
stage. Therefore, the flagship offerings of
Actors Theatre Direct are two full-length,

Theatre Design & Technology - Spring 2020

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