Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 2012 - 16

DL: Is this what you were referring to when you had mentioned the
importance of being a curious user?
HB: It's open-mindedness, curiosity, and skepticism. Just because it's
written down doesn't mean that it's right. It may not apply to what you
are doing. It's open-mindedness. It's a broad view of everything that
is critical.
DL: That goes back to the "hammer and nail" theory? You come in with
an idea, and you keep pounding until you can make it work.
HB: Yeah, it is. You need to be open to the best solution.
DL: You use self-evaluation as a key component of your
personal design process and cite the importance of
seeking criticism from people that you respect.
HB: If my work is not beyond good I consider it a
disaster. You have to be able to be a good judge
of your own work. I learned a lot from my former
brother-in-law, Roy Lichtenstein, how to examine art.
He would look at something that looked perfectly
good to me, and he would tear it up. He would say,
"That's not a work of art." I'd think, Boy, you have to
be able to be that-a judge of your own work-to
know when you have achieved it or not. Roy
measured everything very carefully.
The thing you have to bring to the work is a
discipline. I'm famous for this question, "What do I
wish to see?" The problem is deciding what I wish to
see. Make up your mind. When you know what you
wish to see, then you can have a chance of achieving
it. Until you have that clear vision, you don't know where you are
going. Most people don't have a clear vision. They are following
a formula instead of having a creative process. Every person has
to have a personal design process. That is what springs from your
consciousness for what is appropriate for the project that you are
doing, whether it is a play or writing an essay, no matter what it is.
Your clear vision of what you hope to achieve will let you know what
you are doing to put the puzzle pieces together and build on the
next. You might pick on something. If it isn't from a true clear vision
it's a crutch; it's a standard method of doing something instead of a
creative process.
DL: Please share a few insights about Stanley McCandless and any other
people you felt were influential to your career.
HB: McCandless was always doing work on architectural projects. He
consulted on my architectural projects. Stanley McCandless was the
guru of the stage lighting profession. He was brilliant and so humble.
He was extremely conservative. McCandless used books of tables
rather than depend on slide rules to do his calculations. He had his
method; we would use our slide rules but not him; he had his own
approach.
Abe Feder referred to me as "the kid." He called me the kid,
and I was a kid then. I was in my 20s and he was in his 60s. I had
a place in the design world because I was McCandless's assistant.
I was the spoiled brat of stage lighting! As Stanley McCandless's
assistant I had access to everything. I saw everybody. Everybody
would come in to see either Chuck or McCandless. Eddie Kook was
also an amazing guy, a tough bird. He put together the best teams

of people. People lived in fear of Eddie. I'm sure being with them
informed me. It was another day in our office; people would walk
in. Projects came through like to design a new studio space for
Lee Strasberg. He needs this done, so I did it. Eddie Kook, Stanley
McCandless, Chuck Levy, and I would have these meetings to get
things done. Who's who in the theatre would get together. It was
another ordinary day, sitting next to these people. Another ordinary
day. It doesn't matter who you are with because you get used to it,
this interaction. That's why I learned very early
on that it doesn't matter who you are, if you are
there on a daily basis with your student or anybody
else it becomes ordinary. In order to keep it at an
extraordinary level, you needed to do something.
That's where I started using the phrase, "Jack them
up." You need to "jack them up" every now and
then. That's what I did for my students. You bring in
somebody else that is a new face. They may know
about this person, but that day becomes a special
day for them.
DL: I am having an extraordinary day with you today. You
have mentioned Lee Watson, whose career expansively
involved all areas of professional theatre including
Broadway, Off Broadway, opera, dance, and also TV
lighting. He was a founder and former president of
USITT, an author, and an educator. Watson wrote
reviews for productions, and occasionally you would
accompany him to see these shows. The two of you
would discuss the work.
HB: He would take me with him. I had the evil eye. We would talk,
and I would point out something that didn't work for me during
the performance. Lee would ask me, "How did you see that?" I
would see it and say, "That's the wrong backlighting color. The
right backlighting color would come from this reason or that.
That is what you should see."
DL: In your opinion.
HB: No, it violated the eye function, the seeing function. This was
picked by the designer because it seemed like a nice thing to
do. The designer thinks that it will look really great. It's going
to be cool. It violates how your basic seeing process works.
Was this the appropriate time to do this type of disruption of
the seeing process? Make this choice when you wish to cause
discomfort. That's the time to create this violation. Create this
physical discomfort. It was that kind of stuff that Lee would say,
"How did you see that? What would you give this designer for
this production?" I'd say to give them a D. And Lee would say,
"Oh, God." McCandless would add in, "Howard, at some point,
somebody's got to pass." You got a grade according to how good
you are. If you are unknown, you could get a B, but if your work
was known, you got graded on the basis of your work. The goal
is to grow. I don't look for a new technique or fad, I look for
impact. It needs to fit within the context of what you are trying to
do.
DL: How has your experiences with so many good teachers
influenced your teaching philosophy?

If my work is
not beyond
good I consider
it a disaster.
You have to
be able to be
a good judge
of your own
work.

14

theatre design

& technology

f

a

l

l

2012
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 2012
