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  • 1.  Placing Value on Theatre & Fine Arts Education

    Posted 11-22-2016 13:53

    This recent posting at an architecture web site is worthy of a read and discussion.  Architecture is fundamental to our understanding and development of scenery and backdrops.  It is yet another branch of study that our students can explore for careers - or bring knowledge from the field of architecture into the theatre.  The knowledge of architectural styles can inform us to the place and time of our presentation, and the knowledge of architectural execution (structural engineering, building codes, fire codes, fit and finish) can guide us to constructing better, safer sets.

    http://architizer.com/blog/nbc-called-architecture-majors-useless-the-internet-fired-back/

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    Erich Friend
    Theatre Consultant
    Teqniqal Systems
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  • 2.  RE: Placing Value on Theatre & Fine Arts Education

    Posted 11-22-2016 17:26

    Thanks for the link, Erich, and I agree that it needs to be read and discussed. From my viewpoint, the writer was correct in that "The media company, in its desire to attract the maximum number of viewers with a provocative headline... " posted this totally unfounded shoot-from-the-hip opinion as fact. Then again, it's not the first time the media has posted something like this for the purpose of attracting attention, and it certainly won't be the last.

    But I can speak to this from personal experience. I started out as a set design major and then went on to get my MFA in grad school. One thing led to another, and I took a couple of grad-level architecture classes. Then, for totally mercenary reasons, I decided to look for a job in the architecture field instead of in set design. At the interview, they asked me to roll out some design and construction drawings, most of which, of course, were for theatrical sets. I got the job partially based on those drawings and proceeded to spend the next fifteen years in architecture.

    What was really interesting (to me, anyway), was that I actually had more hands-on experience in construction than most of the people I was working with, which meant I could come up with design details based on knowing how to build things, and could also talk to contractors in their own language. Where did I learn all this? In the scene shop. Certainly the other guys in the group had learned this in school, but, for the most part, they had zero hands-on experience with construction.

    And that's not all. What I learned in theatre about managing a construction crew rolled right over when I started managing my own projects. Sure I still had a lot to learn, but I didn't go in cold.

    Of course, the other side of the coin is that I learned a lot in architecture that I then brought back into set design.

    The other comment I liked in the article was "Studying architecture trains you to think critically, innovate, communicate and work as part of a team to find a solution, whatever the challenge might be." We often tend to think of design as "creating pretty things," but it's not. Design is about solving problems by really understanding them and then being creative.

    So thank you again, Erich. And, hey, NBC -- think about what you're writing next time.

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    George F. Ledo
    Set designer
    www.setdesignandtech.wordpress.com
    www.georgefledo.net
    http://astore.amazon.com/sdtbookstore-20

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  • 3.  RE: Placing Value on Theatre & Fine Arts Education

    Posted 11-23-2016 21:23

    I (half-seriously) tell my lighting design students that if they have any interest in lighting they should go into architectural lighting! I once took my own advice – much like George – and decided that I wasn’t going to be able to earn a living in theatre, so I took an architecture class and an interior lighting design class. I then went to work in the architectural world, first in sales, and quickly making my way up to designer, having my own business for a while, then my culminating claim-to-fame project designing the landscape lighting for the Hyatt Regency in Guam. Like George, even though I had no direct experience, because I did have experience in stage lighting and stage management, it was easy to get a job. I also taught a few continuing ed classes at a local community college on home lighting and garden lighting. But…I really did not enjoy it at all. I felt like all I did was to sit at my desk and draft, meet with picky clients, go back to my desk and draft, meet again with picky clients, ad nauseam. I really missed the collaboration of theatre, the hands on aspects, and I also missed the satisfaction of working with high school students.

    I do agree that architecture is analogous with set design, and also lighting design. In college, back in the day, our theatre history classes (for scenery and lighting) could not be separated from architectural history. But, it’s really the other way around, tech theatre is the best training ground for so many professions, and not only architecture. To place it second as a “useless” degree is definitely something to take issue with.

    I know I’m preaching to the choir when I say that in tech theatre students learn design concepts, use of technology, problem solving and analytical thinking. They also develop self-confidence, leadership skills, creative thinking, teamwork, decision-making, and responsibility to self and others – lessons that cannot be learned from a book or sitting in a classroom. In addition, because not all students will go on to work for Cirque du Soleil or design the Super Bowl Half Time Show, students benefit from a myriad of transferable life skills and competencies that will put them in good stead in many industries.

    High school technical theatre students who do go on to work in the Entertainment Industry are not just “skilled labor” but they are leaders, innovators and collaborators. Designers, managers and technicians in the Entertainment industry are the backbone of every event our society. We often think of them in live theatre, sitcoms and movies, but they also work for: political rallies, sporting events, concerts, documentaries, radio stations, the Olympic games, amusement parks, conference centers, tradeshows, press conference management, circuses, museums and other societal environments.

    For students who may not go on to pursue a degree or career in the entertainment industry per se, the transferable skills and knowledge learned in technical theatre are relevant to a wide variety of careers that have similar knowledge bases and practices as technical theatre such as: architecture, construction, engineering, science, people management, teaching, project management, art, technology, computer drafting and design, computer programming, robotics and other related skill sets.

    Great discussion post! Now the rest of the world needs to hear it!

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    Beth Rand
    Author of: "High School Theatre Lighting for Architects" and "High School Theatre Operations"
    High School Theatre Manager and HS Theatre Operations Coach
    PRESETT, a service of RCDTheatreOps
    www.PRESETT.org
    www.RCDTheatreOps.com
    Woodinville, WA

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