Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1997 - 6

from the
Tbe jourl/at for
deSign & production professionats
ill tbe performing arts.

Alexandra Bonds' article on Beijing Opera costumes, which has been in the works for several
months, seems particularly timely as this issue goes to press. Chinese

DIY

RIAL OF ICE

president Jiang Zemrrun has just completed an historic trip to the

DAVID RODGER
Editor

United States and many feel that a new era of cooperation is dawning.

DEBORAH HAZLEn
Art Director

In theatre, as in all the arts, political boundaries have little meaning

for us, and we enthusiastically support whatever steps are taken, even
small ones, which allow free expression and open cultural exchange.

3001 Springcrest Dr.
Louisville, KY 40241-2755
502-426-1211 fax: 502-423-7467
e-mail: dkr@broadwaypress.com

Face it, most people who toil backstage are pretty unfanliliar
with the design and technical work that goes on behind movie cameras. Many consider this ignorance blissful. However, for those eager
to book passage to Hollywood, Holly Cole offers to be your tour gUide in her article about working

STEVE POLLOCK
Arcbitectllre
PEGGY ROSEFELDT
Costume Desigll & Tee/mology
PATRICK M. FINELLI
Computers & Software

as a costumer in the film industry.
The USlIT Standard for Stage Pin Conectors, Sj-l997, which is published here in its en-

SUZY CAMPBELL
Educatioll

tirety, will be for many an "acquired taste," but I encourage everyone to take a bite. I have great

WILLIAM B. HEKTNER
Healtb & Safety

respect for those who write standards having sat in on a session of the Rigging and Stage Machinery

RICHARD DEVIN
Ligbtiug Desigu

Standards Committee a couple years back. We spent four hours going over six paragraphs in a draft
document. We debated word definitions and grammar, we analyzed the appropriateness of refer-

RICHARD PETERSON
Mauagement

encing an existing standard from another industry, and we agonized over the probality of two words

ROBERT L. SMITH
Scenic Design

being correctly understood. The stage pin connector standard describes manufacturing specifica-

KEN BELL
Sound Design

tions-pretty dry stuff-but if you read between tile lines, you will see tile caring efforts of several

BILL BROWNING
Tee/mical Production

members of the USITT Engineering Comrrussion who just want to insure that a simple electrical

NORMA ADLER
International journals

connector, sometl1ing we all are fanliliar with, is safe and easy to use.

ELBIN CLEVELAND
Nelli Product Reviews

Rounding out tltis issue, Mary Buffum, Marketing and Public Relations Manager for USITT,
gives us a tantalizing taste of some of the Professional Development Workshops lined up for the
SITT Conference & Stage Expo in Long Beach, Bill Browning compares new versions of two popu-

SYLVIA J. H. PANNELL
Book Reviews
WILLIAM J. BYRNES
Inside USITT

lar CAD software packages, Bill Byrnes, USITT Vice-President for Marketing & Development, reports on the progress of USITT strategic planning efforts, and we have two book reviews. --dkr
ARNOLD ARONSON· JARKA BURIAN·
SARAH NASH GATES· JOEL E. RUBIN *
BEEB SALZER· DELBERT UNRUH·

Correction: Bill alldjeall Eckart's lastllame was misspelled ill tbe title to Ifill Pbillips' tribute piece

TOM WATSON

all page 45 oftbe summer issue. We sillcerely apologize for tbis editorial mistake.

Statements and opinions expressed in articles or editorials in TD& T are the expressions of the individual contributors and
do not necessarily represent the policies or opinions of the United Stales Institute for Theatre Technology, Inc. Adl"ertisemenlS appearing in this publication are the sole responsibility of the adl"eniser.
TD&T (ISSN 1052-6765) is published fil"e times a year-Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Special Issue (in September)-by Uniled Siales Institule for Thealre Technology, Inc., 6443 Ridings Road, Syracuse, NY 13206-1111. TD&Tis also
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4

ALL

997

TD&T

MICHELLE L. SMITH
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1997