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chausman

Is College for Me?

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chausman
, August 1st, 2012 at 02:42 AM (982 Views)
Quote Originally Posted by derekleffew View Post
I suggest watching the movies All About Eve and Showgirls (for examples of how NOT TO do it).
Quote Originally Posted by derekleffew View Post
Just found this quote from Tom Skelton's obituary, full text here:
...A genial, witty man, he asked his students at the Yale School of Drama to study everything from French to Picasso to cooking.




"These are all things that make it possible to communicate with the other people you are going to be working with," he said in an interview in Theater Crafts magazine in 1989. "And I certainly don't think you should be studying amps and volts. I don't know very many designers who know very much about amps and volts. You hire an electrician who does."
It jives with Gilbert Hemsley's thoughts (previously discussed in this thread: http://www.controlbooth.com/forums/e...tre-major.html ):
The lighting designer is expected to communicate with directors more and more. I don't deal with somebody who majors in theatre as an undergraduate. I want a history major, a communication arts major, or an English major. I want somebody who can talk about the history of the 19th century. It is crucial that students have a sense of time and place. It is impossible to do opera unless you understand the 19th century. Or the 20th. Thank God I had taken a lot of classics at Yale before I talked to Martha Graham. ... You can't get into those wonderful, fantastic conversations unless you do have a knowledge of the world behind you. One foot in the humanities, the other in the technical side. It's no longer Leko, Leko, Leko. A broad education is needed not only of the real world but of the humanities, finances, art, and architecture; then they can be a lighting designer or a person in the theatre.
Agree/disagree? What's more important to a designer, electrical calculations or Picasso's expressionism?


How wrong you (and Footer) are, grasshopper:
If you want to be a box pusher, spot op, ME, or even programmer for the rest of your life, don't go to college. If you want to be a good designer, you need the exposure to non-theatre courses that, minimally, a four-year degree offers.
Thank You!!!
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  1. derekleffew's Avatar
    You're welcome. But why post this here? No one reads the CB blogs.

    Nice used of nested quotes.
  2. StNic54's Avatar
    This is a tough one - I hold an MFA in lighting design, and I see both sides of the coin. Young (uneducated) designers and programmers have access to the same gear that those who spent a lot of time in college have. True, having all the knowledge and time spent studying art, history, drama, etc are very good to have under your belt, but my question is this - which one is paying the bills? Education can leave any college alum in a world of hurt financially, and access to education will be more difficult as college expenses rise and lending continues to tighten up. Often times all the design jobs are already squared away with trusted designers or tenured faculty, so we wind up with over-educated assistants, box pushers and board ops. What do you do with an education when you are competing for positions that might be cheaper farmed out to those without debt?

    Truth is, we've all got to work, and as a young professional you'll simply need to be realistic about what you want to do, what education it may or may not take for that career path, and overall future job security as we see theatre companies continue to lose money in this economy. Tom Skelton was a master, no doubt, but what would he say to these times today? Skelton passed away in the 1990s, and as I remember, $1.25 for a gallon of gas was considered obscene. What do our current master designers offer to young designers for advice to those with plans for our industry? Gone are the days that one can spend all their time in a college theatre without the need for a night-shift to pay the bills.

    As my honors English teacher once said to me "Theatre major? You're going to be so broke."

    I encourage all to pursue college, but get scholarships and don't waste any time.

    PS - One year at Yale costs $58,600....all the head knowledge in the world won't matter to the student loan groups when you find yourself on the other side of a $234,400 bill after graduation - what is that, at least $1000/month for 30 years? Often-times academics can rattle on about broad educations, but you must be realistic when you are planning your future. Learn math, then see about classics, art, history, etc.
  3. gcpsoundlight's Avatar
    I completed a Diploma of Theatre and Events (Technical Production) here in australia. It was a one year course. The thing is, I then got some work at a local theatre as a Mech (I want to focus on Sound Production but am not in a position to be picky about work!). A lot of people told me that the industry in australia does not really care about qualifications, moreso about experience.