Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 2008 - 14

from their students is "this class changed my life." The students learned
to travel on their own, they discovered the beauty of manicured Japanese
gardens, and they came to understand theatre on a higher level. Kathy Perkins has taught lighting independently with community groups and universities in Uganda, South Africa, Tanzania, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Lesotho,
and Ethiopia with the goal of encouraging young Africans to study theatre
lighting. Michael Ramsaur conducts presentations on lighting to international colleagues who are keen to learn contemporary methodologies. Michael plans to join Kathy Perkins in a "Light for Africa" campaign.
Several USITT members have discovered the special draw of conducting research abroad, from the wider range of available materials to the
longer histories. Annie Cleveland and Peter Beudert found their international connection in archiving projects. Annie led a project to archive the
collection of costume and scenic designs in the Estonian Theatre and Music Museum in Tallinn. While in Paris as a Fulbright scholar, Peter worked
at the archives of the Paris Opera and the Comedy Française where he
discovered the gloriously beautiful extant nineteenth century paint elevations and models. Frank Mohler's international research focuses on the
documentation and computer replication of enchanting extant Baroque
theatres including Český Krumlov. Deborah Bell and Ron Naversen were
drawn to other countries to understand the power that masks have to enthrall and beguile. Deborah has interviewed and documented the work of
over three-dozen exceptional mask makers on five continents. On Ron's

journeys, he has met artists whose talents astonish and inspire and who
have helped him to glimpse the many wonders of imagination and the
common spirit that unites us as humans. Marianne Custer interviewed and
photographed the work of thirty-eight costume designers in seven countries in Central and Eastern Europe. The experience provided her with invaluable insights into design, theatre, and politics, which she shares with
her students on annual excursions. Carnival activities drew Loyce Arthur
and Treva Reimer to travel to meet the top practitioners. Loyce has been
working with Clary Salandy for two years constructing costumes for Notting Hill Carnival in London. Treva believes her international experiences
have given her, and her students, a deeper appreciation of a far wider
world than the small Kansas town in which she was raised.
Each of these researchers has expanded the world of others by incorporating their findings into publications, conference sessions, or workshops, enabling all of us to benefit from their awareness and perceptions.
A key reason why many of us are in theatre is our passion for productions, and several members have connected with performances overseas through co-productions, exchanges, or by invitations. David Grindell
was the production stage manager in an exchange between the Atlanta Opera and the Czech National Opera in Prague. Margaret Mitchell, through
the theatre at the University of the Incarnate Word, has prepared joint
productions with people in New Zealand trained in the Maori tradition.
Sabrina Hamilton, as artistic director and resident lighting designer of

Annie Cleveland and her
student, Kerrie Lovercheck,
photographing costume
renderings at the Estonian
Theatre and Music Museum
in Tallinn, Estonia.

Deborah Bell in Nigeria with mask maker Agbede Adebisi
(right) and an Osun priestess.

Marianne Custer (left) with
German costume designer
Susanne Raschig.

Shan Ayers with his students, Kiersten Norbrothen and Stephanie Stringer, and some local Japanese
students outside a shrine in Nikko, in the mountains north of Tokyo.
S U M M E R

2008

theatre

design

technology

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 2008