BFA Design and Technology Emphasis

Program Overview

The Design and Technology program prepares students to pursue a wide range of careers in theatre design and technology, which provide clear career paths in organizations including professional, education and community theatre or theme parks, cruise ships, museums, industrials, film and television. This program also provides a pathway to pursue graduate work in a Master of Fine Arts program.

This is an undergraduate program in which students earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts.

Learning Objectives

There are four clearly defined emphasis areas in the BFA Theatre Design and Technology program: Scenic Design, Costume Design, Lighting Design, and Production Technology. The type of activities in which they engage measures the success of our BFA graduates. All emphases require paper projects, design presentations, hands-on practicum in the Scenic, Costume, and Lighting Design studios, and annual portfolio reviews culminating in a fully realized stage design, short film or technology project within the Utah State Theatre production season. Students are then chosen through the jury system to compete in the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival (KCACTF) national competition, film festival or the United States Theatre and Technology (USITT) convention. The Department of Theatre Arts offers six full-scale productions a year in three different venues, including an experimental black box theatre, a small proscenium and large thrust venues, allowing for seven student design positions per production (42 per year). Prior to graduating from the program, students must demonstrate competency in one of these distinct emphases that is directly related to successful professional practice in the field.

Competency 1: Literature and History Analysis

Students must be able to:

• Demonstrate the ability to analyze plays perceptively and to evaluate them critically.
  • Script Analysis introduces students to methods of analyzing written play scripts from various genres and styles, encouraging better understanding of the importance of background, plot, structure, character, dialogue and all the elements that collectively determine the play’s meaning.
• Demonstrate the ability to understand and discuss dramatic literature drawn from different genres and styles.
  • The Theatre History series introduces students to cultural theatre activity of European and American literature from ancient to 1840, then from approximately 1840 through the cultural revolution (60’s to 90’s) of the last decade of the 20th century.
  • The Period Styles and Historic Clothing components require complete design research dossiers in regards to design projects, paper or realized. (e.g. a costume bible, French scenes, character evaluations, script analysis for actors/directors).

(This competency is measured through the History and Literature components of the program)

Competency 2: Artistry and Skills

Students must be able to:

• Regularly envision, create, or significantly contribute to the creation of high-quality artistic projects (as assessed by university faculty, professional community partners, and peers).
• Understand the specific requirements of a production, including style, period, mood, location, and special needs.
• Demonstrate an innovative and creative approach to the process of theatre design, problem solving, and/or management.
• Demonstrate quality of product through well-planned, meticulously executed and skillfully presented artistic or technical projects: renderings, draftings, video, photo, or other multimedia documentation that clearly demonstrates the quality of a particular aspect of a creative project
• Demonstrate a broad general knowledge of the technical aspects of theatre, as well as expertise in technology specific to one or more areas of specialization.

(This competency is measured through BFA Continuance Evaluation given at the annual portfolio review.)

Competency 3: Academics/Scholarship

Students must be able to:

• Meet or exceed departmental academic requirements.
• Make meaningful contributions to high-quality research/design and technology projects.
• Demonstrate the ability to communicate artistic, technical and/or organizational ideas through appropriate means, including written or visual.

(This competency is measured by the departmental standard of an overall 2.75 GPA and nothing lower than a B- in a program course.)

Competency 4: Leadership/Service

Students must be able to:

• Frequently lead in informal settings, such as: organizing theatre design/technology student activities or projects; coordinating communication among students; modeling leadership in classroom & laboratory.
• Utilize effective planning, time management, organization and leadership.
• Utilize effective collaboration, team-member and leadership skills while contributing to the "many artists/one work of art" concept that is at the core of theatre production.
• Regularly engage in service to the program, university, and/or community.

(This competency is measured through BFA Continuance Evaluation given at the annual portfolio review.)

Competency 5: Portfolio

Students must be able to:

• Demonstrate comprehension of the basic business procedures of the theatre profession including portfolio, resume and self-promotion.
• Prepare and display all design and technology work at the annual portfolio review each spring semester.

(This competency is measured through BFA Continuance Evaluation given at the annual portfolio review. See Assessment Plan: Assessment Part II below)

Competency 6: Professionalism

Students must be able to:

• Consistently exhibit respect for others as well as context-appropriate attitudes, enthusiasm, and engagement.
• Frequently offer helpful / competent feedback & receive criticism with grace.
• Consistently arrive on time, fully prepared, and dressed appropriately for courses, meetings, rehearsals, and other events.
• The outcomes for this program have been developed to align with the guidelines from the National Association of Schools of Theatre (NAST), as well as with the mandates for teacher preparation programs in theatre arts education set forth by the Utah State Office of Education (USOE).

(This competency is measured through BFA Continuance Evaluation given at the annual portfolio review.)

Assessment Plan

Student progress on the competencies above is assessed formatively through ongoing mentoring, advising, and feedback throughout the year from faculty in the Department of Theatre Arts, as well as through feedback from guest artists and educators.

Formal, summative assessment takes place regularly through two independent means:

• Completion of courses related directly to the competencies with minimum grades of B- in all theatre related courses.
• Compilation of extensive portfolios documenting students' achievement in each of the six competencies, which are reviewed by a minimum of three design faculty annually during the portfolio review and continuance evaluations.

Assessment Part I: Course Completion with Satisfactory Grades

Students complete a comprehensive training program that includes a core of 27 credits of theatre core courses designed to ensure a rigorous background in acting, technical theatre, directing, and theatre history and literature.  Students must pass all of these courses with a minimum grade of B-.

Students take an additional 38 credits of coursework directly related to the area of emphasis, including a realized capstone project.

Assessment Part II: Annual Portfolio Review

Each year, students prepare portfolios comprised of artifacts that demonstrate their evolving skills in each emphasis area, compose letters of intent, and provide a current resume. USU design faculty review students’ portfolios based on the BFA Continence Evaluation rubric based on the learning objectives, calculate a score then diagnose the student’s progress.

Portfolios are comprised of the following documents, in this order:

1. Letter of intent, according to their prospective emphasis, explaining there career objective.
2. Current professional resume or curriculum
3. Supporting documentation, divided into the sections
4. Examples of artifacts that might be included are provided for each area. Students should include a wide variety of artifacts throughout the portfolio, and should be especially careful not to rely exclusively on peer assessment. As appropriate, students are welcome to include additional documentation not listed.
   
   1. Literature and History Analysis
      
      • Complete historical dossier on historical costumes and architectural periods and styles.
      • Complete design research dossiers in regards to design projects, paper or realized. (e.g. a costume bible, French scenes, character evaluation’s, script analysis for actors/directors).
   2. Artistry
      • Reviews of productions or other artistic projects by faculty, media and/or peer, as Renderings, drafting’s, video, photo, or other multimedia documentation that clearly demonstrates the quality of a particular aspect of a creative
      • Other documentation appropriate to the specific artist performed (e.g. a prompt book for stage managers, light plots, sound plots, scene break downs, costume plots).
   3. Academics / Scholarship
      • A current academic transcript (required; unofficial transcripts are acceptable).
      • Documentation of extenuating circumstances that may have resulted in poor performance in a particular course, if this area is measured by the departmental standard of a overall 2.75 GPA and nothing lower than a B- in a program course.
      • Scholarly writing samples or academic
      • Other written or multimedia documentation of research
   4. Leadership & Service
      
      • While documentation of leadership and service may be included in the preceding sections, students may opt to include an additional section to document accomplishments not addressed elsewhere.
   5. Portfolio
      • Prepare and present at the annual portfolio review in the spring semester.
   6. Professionalism
      • Because professionalism is expected in all contexts, it should be documented in each of the previous areas, as opposed to a separate section.

Criteria for BFA Assessment

BFA Student Portfolios are assessed annually by USU Design faculty using the criteria of the rubric on the Criteria for BFA Assessment page and evaluated using the Student Continuance Evaluation form.

Based on faculty assessment of each students' portfolio using the rubric above, students' progress toward meeting each competency. Their progress is assessed holistically and rated as exemplary, strong, acceptable, marginal, or poor. Students are required to meet the following benchmarks each year:

• Freshman Year Review: Acceptable or above in each of the 6 areas.
• Sophmore Year Review: Acceptable or above in all areas; Strong or above in at least 3 areas.
• Junior Year Review (and beyond): Strong or above in all areas; Exemplary in at least 1 area.

Based on this portfolio review, the faculty will then determine if students should:

• Continue in the emphasis
  
  • To continue, students must have met the appropriate benchmarks described below, and must not be on academic, departmental, or any other form of probation.
• Be placed on programmatic probation
  
  • If a student fails to meet all benchmarks, but in the opinion of the faculty has the potential to recover and meet the benchmarks within one semester’s time, the student may be placed on programmatic probation.
• Be discontinued from the emphasis
  
  • If a student currently on probation fails to meet benchmarks within the time specified when he/she was placed on probation, or if his or her conduct is such that the faculty do not have confidence that he/she will be able to meet the benchmarks even during a probationary period, the student may be discontinued from the program. Students discontinued from the program may apply for re-admission only with permission of the faculty after demonstrating significant improvement from the time of their dismissal.
    
    

 

Outcomes Data

Currently there is no data to provide a graphic outcome. However the policy outlined above is used consistently to provide assessment and feedback to the current students. As indicated above, student performance in each of the competency areas is largely on target. As this evaluation documentation is put in to action, data will be available within the next two years. Currently there is data on numbers of students graduating, and the list below documents their successes.

Utah State Theatre Department Design Alumni "Successes"

Key:

• BFA Students
• *Graduate Students

Lighting Designers

• *Steven Piechocki , 6th Street Playhouse, Santa Rosa CA TD/ Lighting Designer
• Kenny Driggs, Disneyland Hotels Designer/ Master Electrician
• Kyle Hansen, Disneyland Hotels Designer/ Master Electrician
• Josh Wilson, Faculty/Baylor University
• Kyle Hansen , Disneyland Hotels, Master Electrician
• Braden Howard, Faculty BYU Idaho, Owner of Live Entertainment Design
• Paul Yeates, Faculty Morehead State University, MFA University of Connecticut
• *Athony Johnson, Lighting Designer/ Technical Director, Faculty Montana University
• *Melinda Weeks, Faculty Snow College
• James Larsen, Staff Lighting designer University of Utah
• Randy Mugleston, Department Head, Montclair State University.
• *Amy Critchfield Lighting Designer/Technical Director Department Head Western Wyoming State College
• *Craig Steenerson faculty Lighting Designer/Technical Director University North Carolina at Wilmington 480-965-9553
• Brandon Moss won the Western Region ACTF competition in Eureka, CA, in February 1999 with his lighting designs for Holiday Memories, graduated MFA Lighting Design San Diego State University.
• *Mitch Dana Broadway Lighting Designer and Adjunct Professor Rutgers University
• Cole Adams Resident Lighting Designer Dance Department University of Utah
• Preston Horman , Disney Imaginer MFA California State University at Irvine.
• Greg Brenchley, Architecture Lighting Designer SLC
• *Kay Townsen Lecture at Mesa Community College KCACTF regional winner Lighting Design Urine Town, Sound Design Anna in the Tropics
• Tim North Technical Director, Production Services, Utah State University
• Eddie Wong Technical Officer at Polytech University, Hong Kong

Stage Managers

• Jessie Drollette, Stage Manager, Georgetown Palace Theatre, Austin Texas
• Julienne Bailey, Stage Manager PCPA
• Kim Iverson USU student relations
• Liz Black Disneyland California Stage Manager
• Brandon Stoffer Stage Manager/ Cirque du Soleil
• *Kris Bushman Equity Stage Manager/ previous Production Manager, USU
• Becky Dawson ACTF Stage Management Regional winner 2004, MFA, Rutgers University, Equity Stage Manager NYC.
• Amber LaBau, Krannert Center Illinois
• Ashna Horman Production Stage Manager, Disneyland California
• Scott Bean Human Relations officer
• Jamie Sanduck Production Stage Manager, Hale Center Theatre, SLC

Technical Directors

• Truxton Molton, TD Tuacahn
• *Nathan Kluthe, TD Utah Opera
• *Mark Ross Sales Manager BMI
• *Lew Haslem Facilities Manager Northern Nevada University
• *Troy Cadwalladar Director of Park Enhancement/Disneyland California
• Matt Stowe Faculty, Utah State University
• *Brent Innes Faculty Designer/TD USU Eastern
• Cory Castillo, Staff TD, Ellen Eccles Theatre
• Bryce Allen Faculty TD / Set Designer, Weber State University

Sound Designers

• Jason Romney Sound Design Faculty, North Carolina School for the Arts
• Brian Richards MFA North Carolina School for the Arts, 2003 KCACTF Regional Design Winner 2003, Sound Engineer Disney California
• Alec Labau Sound Engineer Kranert Center

Scenic Designers

• Trent Bean, Faculty, Snow College; MFA The Ohio State University
• Ann Benson, Faculty, Broadview University
• Jon Savage MFA, North Carolina School of the Arts; Department Head, Boston University; USA designer
• Patrick Larsen placed second in the nation at the Kennedy Center ACTF competition in the spring of 1999 for his design for Holiday Memories,; MFA Scene Design, University of California-San Diego.
• *Craig Brashears Faculty Scenic Designer/Technical Director at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas, in the summer of 1999; he was a finalist at the Kennedy Center in 1996 in the ACTF competition with his designs for the new play by Jack Gilhooley, The Machine, and the following year won the ACTF regional competition for his lighting design for Into the Woods.
• *Jen Taylor, Staff designer, Hale Center Theatre
• *Anne Benson, Scenic Charge, Utah Festival Opera
• Kacey Uda, Resident Scenic designer, Hale Center Theatre
• *James Lydan, Freelance designer
• *Caress Bergato KCACTF Regional winner, Scene Design, Sleepy Hollow 2006
• *Darrin Brooks Faculty, USU Interior Design, KCACTF Regional winner Scenery Design, Hayfever 2005

Costume Designers

• Molly Hills Costume Technician, Tuacahn
• *Carrie Hansen, Department Head, Old Miss University
• Adrea Varga, Broadway costume designer, NYC
• *Amanda Profazier, Faculty, University Wisconsin; KCACTF Regional winner 2004
• *Macy Perone, KCACTF Regional winner 2005; Freelance designer, Alley Theatre Texas
• *Linda Pisano Costume Design Faculty, Indiana University; Utah Shakespeare Festival
• *Cameron Roberts was invited to the Kennedy Center two consecutive years (‘96, ‘97) after winning regional awards for her costume designs compete regionally in Cedar City in 1997.  Cameron's designs were one of 14 costume exhibits from the USA featured in the USITT-sponsored (The World of Design) in Prague during the summer of 1999; she is now a graduate of Yale University and Designing in New York City.
• *Nina-Nikolic McMillan was a finalist at the ACTF competition at the Kennedy Center in 1999 with her costume designs for The Royal Family.
• *Philp Lowe ACTF Nationals 2003,Costume Designer for the Egyptian Theatre in Ogden, Utah
  Rosa Lazaro Costume Design Faculty, Texas A&M Corpus- Christi

KCACTF Winners

1996-97

• Cameron Roberts was invited to the Kennedy Center two consecutive years (‘96, ‘97) after winning regional awards for her costume designs compete regionally in Cedar City in 1997. Cameron's designs were one of 14 costume exhibits from the USA featured in the USITT-sponsored (The World of Design) in Prague during the summer of 1999; she is now a graduate of Yale University and Designing in New York City.
• *Craig Brashears Faculty Scenic Designer/Technical Director at Del Mar College in Corpus Christi, Texas, in the summer of 1999; he was a finalist at the Kennedy Center in 1996 in the ACTF competition with his designs for the new play by Jack Gilhooley, The Machine.

1998

• *Craig Brashears ACTF regional winner, lighting design for Into the Woods 1998

1999

• *Nina-Nikolic McMillan was a finalist at the ACTF competition at the Kennedy Center in 1999 with her costume designs for The Royal Family.
• Patrick Larsen placed second in the nation at the Kennedy Center ACTF competition in the spring of 1999 for his design for Holiday Memories, MFA, Scene Design, and University of California-San Diego.
• Brandon Moss won the Western Region ACTF competition in Eureka, CA, in February 1999 with his lighting designs for Holiday Memories, graduated MFA Lighting Design, San Diego State University

2000

• Greg Brenchley, won the Barbizon Award in lighting for KCACTF Region VIII and attended workshops at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC. MFA at Indiana University in Lighting Design, Architecture Lighting Designer, SLC

2002

• Jon Savage Regional winner Scene Design Lion in Winter 2002

2003

• *Philp Lowe ACTF Nationals Costume Design 2003,
• Preston Horman won the Barbizon award, Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF) competition in Logan, Utah, in February 2003 with his lighting design for To Kill A Mocking Bird. MFA from California State University at Irvine.
• Brian Richards received a fellowship to study sound design at the North Carolina School for the Arts, 2003 KCACTF Regional Design Winner, To Kill A Mocking Bird 2003
• Rachael Wendal KCACTF Regional costume Design The Boy Who Drew Cats

2004

• *Amanda Profaizer, KCACTF Regional winner, The Beaux Stratagem, 2004

2005

• *Macy Perone, KCACTF Regional winner Costume Design, The Hollow 2005, Freelance designer in Texas
• *Darrin Brooks, Faculty, USU Interior Design, KCACTF Regional winner Scenery Design, Hayfever 2005

2006

• *Kay Townsen, KCACTF Regional Make-up Design winner, MacBeth, 2006
• *Caress Bergato, KCACTF Regional winner Scene Design, Sleepy Hollow, 2006
• *Macy Perone, KCACTF Regional winner Costume Design, Comedy of Errors, 2006, Freelance designer in Texas
• *Amanda Profaizer, KCACTF Regional winner, Sleepy Hollow, 2006

2007

• *Kay Townsen, KCACTF Regional Sound Design winner, Anna in the Tropics, 2007

2008

• *Kay Townsen, KCACTF Regional Lighting Design winner, Urinetown, 2008

2010

• *Anthony Johnson, Faculty University Montana, KCACTF Regional Lighting Design winner, Issun Bossi, 2010

2011

• *Melinda Week, KCACTF Regional Lighting Design winner, Suesscial, 2010
• *Brandi Jenks, KCACTF Regional winner Set Design, Golf Balls, 2010, 2013

2014

• *Steven Piechocki, Barbizon award, Kennedy Center American College Theater Festival (KCACTF), Utah, in February 2013 with his lighting design for A Catered Affair, National award for the same production in April 2013, including and internship at the Eugene O’Neill Theatre
• *Chelsea Richardson, KCACTF Honorable Mention, Set Design, Still Life with Iris
• *Katy Parks, KCACTF Honorable Mention Costume Design, Still Life with Iris
• *Hongji Zue, KCACTF 1st Place Costume Design Paper Project, A Winter's Tale

2015

• *Katy Parks, KCACTF National Winner for Theatrical Design excellence in Costume Design Bus Stop
• *Hongji Zue, KCACTF Honorable Mention Costume Designm A Game of Love and Chance
• *Jenny Cawley, KCACTF 1st Placem Costume Design Paper Project Gappers of Frip

Data-Based Decisions

Based on the data presently available, the theatre design faculty believes that student progress in the program meets or exceeds expectations and that the best course of action at present is to continue with current practices and methods of evaluations. In future years, data will be reassessed to determine if there are particular areas that warrant further investigation or possible programmatic changes.

Design Student Graduation Data from 2005 to 2012:

• 2005  7 Completions
• 2006  4 Completions
• 2007  6 Completions
• 2008  5 Completions
• 2009  4 Completions
• 2010  1 Completions
• 2011  3 Completions
• 2012  7 Completions