Let's Get to Know the Faculty: David A. Miller

We’re interested in getting to know the faculty of the Division of Theatre and Dance a little better, so we asked them a few questions. Here’s what we learned from Professor David A. Miller who teaches acting, directing and scriptwriting at Bloomsburg University.

The Robot Inventor (Then)

What first got you interested in theatre?

My first experience seems to be acting in skits in Cub Scouts. I recently rediscovered a photo of one of those. In the skit I played a Robot Inventor. Like all Cub Scout skits, it was a comedy. As my colleagues and students can attest, my interest in comedy has not diminished since that fateful Pack Meeting performance oh so many years ago.

What made you want to teach theatre?

I have always loved working with young people in a teaching or mentoring capacity. From an early age I was a babysitter. In Scouts I was regularly a leader. In grade school I wanted to be either a teacher or a professional soccer player. By the time I reached undergraduate I had dreams of teaching theatre at the college level. But there was something particularly special that happened during undergrad: When searching for a summer job I saw a posting for a part time teacher to teach visual arts and drama to 8 to 11 year old students. I was amazed at the prospect of teaching arts to young people. I don't know that I believed before that moment that I might be able to create a career teaching theatre and visual art. That was turning point for me in my marrying of my two passions of teaching and the arts.

What is your most memorable theatre experience?

Perhaps my most memorable experiences, or at least the most unique, was when I served as an understudy for a professional production in Seattle. As an actor, the job of being an understudy is fascinating and potentially nerve wracking. The understudy is the "back up" for a role or for multiple roles. The actor has to learn those roles—the lines, the stage business—and be ready to go on at a moments notice if the actor in the role cannot, for whatever reason, perform. 

 

For this production, Kenny's Window at Seattle Children's Theatre, it was unlikely that I was going to be called to perform. The actors I was understudying were notoriously sturdy in their health and work ethic. However, I got the call on a Sunday afternoon. (Actually, I got the page, then called back, as this was in the pre-cell phone era.) It was 20 minutes before the matinee was to begin and stage management could not get a hold of one of the actors and they could not get a hold of his understudy. I grabbed my script and ran to the theatre which was thankfully only blocks from my apartment. While wardrobe fitted the Soldier's costume to my body I rehearsed lines with the other Soldier and talked through how he would help me while we were on stage. I had seen these scenes in rehearsal, but I had never rehearsed them myself. We performed the first act with a script in my hands and my fellow Soldier whispering directions to me ("Stay here." "Sit on the bed.") By intermission the other understudy had been contacted, so I got out of the costume and he got into it to perform the second act. We came out together for the curtain call.

What is one show you would love to work on?

There are so many great plays and musicals out there... These days I am thinking a lot about the plays of Eugene O'Neill. Pig Farm by Greg Kotis is on my list. Some day I would love to direct the play Spring Awakening. There's a slew of playwrights creating new work with whom I would love to collaborate, including Brenda Withers, Erin Mallon, Catherine Weingarten.

Now

Who would you love to work with?

There are several directors who I would love to assist. They include Ivo Van Hove, Katie Mitchell and Arin Arbus. Their work is always so clear and so compelling. I would love to be part of their process to learn more about how they approach a play script and how they work with actors and designers.

David A. Miller is a professional director, playwright and educator. He is Resident Director at Amphibian Stage Productions (Fort Worth, TX), a member of Stillwater Writers (New York, NY) and former Artistic Director of The Artful Conspirators (Brooklyn, NY). mrdavidamiller.com

Let’s Get to Know the Faculty: Ethan Krupp

We’re interested in getting to know the faculty of the Division of Theatre and Dance a little better, so we asked them a few questions. Here’s what we learned from Professor Ethan Krupp who teaches Lighting, Scenic, and Sound Design and Technology classes as well as some Theatre Appreciation sections.

What first got you interested in or involved in theatre?

Took a drama class in 8th grade.  I did some scenes from some Neil Simon plays, as well as a Thornton Wilder one act play, among other things.  Really enjoyed doing the scenes and wanted to continue.  That lead to more drama classes and plays in 9th grade with the same teacher.

What made you want to teach theatre?

By the time I was trying to figure out what the plan was after college, I had worked with a few teachers who had really nurtured my creativity and shown me how powerful theatre could be. There's a long history of teaching in my family, so that, combined with the impression these folks had made on me, made exploring teaching as a career a logical plan.

What has been your favorite or most exciting or most memorable theatre experience?

Professor Krupp's lighting design in Dance Concert 2016

One of my favorite experiences was one of my first professional design jobs.  I was hired to serve as the lighting designer for a new play called The Last Hanging in Pike County that looked at the final hanging during the feud between the Hatfields and McCoys.   It was produced at Theatre at Lime Kiln in Lexington, VA.   The main performance space theatre was an outdoor space built in and around a cluster old limestone kilns.  The scenic designer was my undergraduate design mentor and we worked really well together, creating some beautiful moments on stage.  My grandmother, Margaret Rector, who was a playwright and producer earlier in her life was able to come out and see my first professional show.  It was pretty special.  I hadn't really been aware of my grandmother's theatre work before getting more into theatre in college, but had been reading some her old plays and pumping her for stories when I would go back home on breaks.   The intersection of my beginning professional design career, a typical crazy, wonderful, busy summer stock experience, and my family history was quite magical.

What's one show you would love to work on?

I've always wanted to revisit Neil Simon's play The Prisoner of 2nd Avenue. I did a scene from it in 8th grade that is etched in my brain. Before coming to Bloomsburg, I had a chance to work on Plaza Suite, also by Simon, and design the lights (as well as the Act III rain effect) for another play I did a scene from in junior high school and I loved revisiting with an "old friend."

Where would you love to work on theatre?

Theatre at Lime Kiln will be a special place for me.  The space was just so amazing and unique.  Working in outdoor summer theatre in Virginia wasn't always the most pleasant in terms of weather and temperature.  Throw in the fact that you can only set light levels in an outdoor theatre during overnight tech slots and you've got an experience custom built for creating great memories! While I was in Houston, TX, I saw many shows at the Alley Theatre but never had a chance to work for them.  They are another company I would love to work with.

Professor Krupp

Who would you love to work with?

Thanks to my sabbatical during the Fall 2015 semester, I actually got to work with two dear friends and colleagues, Tom Anderson and Will Ingham...Tom was undergraduate mentor and Will was the scene shop manager (and one of my bosses) during graduate school.   I would love to work with Mark Dean, my graduate school mentor again, as well as some of the folks I spent time with in various summer stock companies over the years.  Barbara Masters was my high school drama teacher...I would give my left arm to work with her again.  

Some years ago I had the chance to hear Jules Fisher and Peggy Eisenhower speak about their lighting design work.  I would love to work with them and pick their brains. Robert Edmond Jones (although deceased) is another designer I would have given anything to work with again.   The two most bittersweet names, in terms of people I would love to work with, are both people who clearly put me on the path to where I am now who died far too early, Ron Masters and Mike Gorman.  In part, I think some of why I do what I do is to honor them and carry the small part of their legacy that lives inside of me forward. 

Ethan H. Krupp teaches design and technology classes as well as some of the general education classes.  He serves as the Director of the Theatre and Dance Division and as the Division's Technical Director.   He's also a lighting, scenic, properties and sound designer for the BU Players and other theatre companies.  

Let’s Get To Know The Faculty: Julie Petry

We’re interested in getting to know the faculty of the Division of Theatre and Dance a little better, so we asked them a few questions. Here’s what we learned from Professor Julie Petry who teachers performance courses in both Theatre and Dance.

What first got you interested in or involved in theatre/dance?

I was lucky to grow up with a Dance studio in the basement of our house.  Every chance I got I was going through the "dress-up box" my mom provided, putting on costumes and singing and dancing to all the records (musicals) she had: Anything Goes, Les Miserable, Xanadu and Fame were some of my favorites.....I knew every word to each of those albums by heart.  Sometimes I would dress up my brother, and get him to play characters, and I would direct him. 

What has been your favorite or most exciting or most memorable theatre/dance experience?

I was lucky and had many benchmark moments in my career that brought great excitement and rewards to me. I have been fortunate to work with over 20 different professional companies, multiple University programs, and received several grants along the way. I will never forget touring with Kenny Rogers in his original musical, receiving two regional Emmy nominations for my work in Children's entertainment, or teaching Ellen DeGeneres dance steps via telephone live on national TV.

What's one show you would love to work on?

I would some day like to perform in musicals again.  Playing Little Red in Into the Woods, and Tzeitel one more time in Fiddler remain on my bucket list.

Where would you love to work on theatre or dance?

I would love to direct/choreograph an off-Broadway musical in either LA or New York. Access to an amazing talent pool of true triple threats is what would make it exciting!

Who would you love to work with?

I would love to work with so many folks that this question is over-whelming.  However, I can say Susan Stroman is high on the list. I know I could learn a lot from her.

Julie Petry, Associate Professor of Theatre and Dance, is in her 7th year teaching at BU, and enjoys writing, directing, choreographing, teaching, traveling, and the healing arts. She continues to study her craft, bodywork, Reiki, and the never-ending field of human behavior as much as she can. She has a great love of animals, and supports the generation of quality food products and humane farming techniques.

Portrait of an Artist as a Theatre Minor (or, Five Questions for Alyssa Lardi)

We wanted to get to know more about our Theatre Minors, so we have started to ask them each five questions… The first Theatre Minor we asked is Alyssa Lardi and here’s what she told us.

What do you love about theatre?

I love how theatre can be so different yet similar. When I tell people I'm a theatre minor, sometimes they'll respond with "Oh plays are so boring" or "God I can't stand musicals," but there are so many different kinds and levels of theatre that it's impossible to not find SOMETHING you can enjoy. Theatre allows you to go anywhere and be anyone- a stressed and overwhelmed student director one week (first photo--I am on the right, attempting to troubleshoot blocking issues), a secret agent the next, and an Elf a month later (in the second photo, I am in the bottom right in pink wig and green jacket--I'll never get to dress this fashionably again). It's also a craft that employs all kinds of people with all kinds of interests, and everyone can feel that their work is important and they belong. Whether it's people working on Broadway, community theatre, improv groups, school plays, musicals, Shakespeare, introductory classes- there's always a bond among those who appreciate theatre and you can always find something you have in common.

What's one show you would love to be a part of one day?

I've been in love with the musical Spring Awakening since my freshman year of high school, and have seen it six times during three different productions. It's amazing to me how you go from all the issues the young characters face- suicide, child abuse, acceptance, religion, abortion- to a song named "Totally Fucked" which is literally a carefree rocking out party on stage. The music is beautiful and the show itself is quite eye-opening, so it's definitely a dream production for me.

What inspired you to become a Theatre Minor?

I've been involved with theatre for my entire life, and freshman fall semester was the first time since about 4th grade that I wasn't involved with a production. I knew I wasn't going to just stop being involved and had friends who were majors, so I decided to look into the minor. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to stay active and really start learning about all of the aspects of theatre. I like the structure of the minor because it's not too overwhelming for a person with a time-consuming major, but still allows me to branch out into new disciplines and take courses I'm interested in. 

What is your major?

My major is American Sign Language/English Interpreting, which means facilitating communication between hearing people who use spoken English and Deaf/Hard of Hearing people who use ASL. If you've ever seen a person signing during an important press conference or interpreting for famous Deaf people like Marlee Matlin or Nyle DiMarco, those are a few settings interpreters can work in. I took ASL in high school and came to Bloomsburg specifically for the interpreting program, because I am absolutely in love with the language, the communities, and the profession (even though it's a LOT of work and extremely difficult). Adding a theatre minor was also a practical career choice, as theatrical interpreting is a field I may wish to pursue and background knowledge of what happens both on stage and behind the scenes will be extremely beneficial.

If you were a fruit or vegetable, what would you be?

I won't lie, I thought the most about this question. After a lot of personal debate and soul searching, I think would be an Apple, because they're honestly the most superior fruit. They go with caramel, peanut butter, chocolate, and in pies or other amazing desserts. Also, I'd get to be in a ton of Instagram and Facebook posts in fall when all of us New Yorkers visit orchards and spend the day apple picking.

Five Questions for Maggie Korell, Props Designer

Maggie Korell is the properties or props designer for Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom. We asked her five questions.

What made you first interested in theatre?

I became interested in theatre because as a child I hated sports. My mom wanted me to get involved in something and after five years of sitting on the bench she signed me up to audition for Alice in Wonderland and I was hooked. After high school I thought I would be done with theatre until I took an introductory theatre class my freshman year and realized that I wouldn’t be able to leave it again.

The Three Witches from BU Player’s Macbeth  

gather around their cauldron. Prop Design by Maggie Korell.

 What is exciting to you about working on Neighborhood 3?

Neighborhood 3 is a play I loved after the first time I read it. This is a play that will spark so many conversations among its audience and that is what attracts me to theatre.

Where have you found inspiration for your design?

I found a lot of my inspiration in listening to my gamer friends talk about their passions. They were so enthusiastic in telling about the worlds and characters in their games. It was eerie in a way because it made the characters in Neighborhood 3 seem more accurate.

If you could design any show, what would it be?

Ever since I read Michael Weller’s Moonchildren I have wanted to work on that show. I would love to be involved in recreating the atmosphere of a college student’s apartment during the Vietnam War. The show has an excellent sense of humor that would be amazing to be surrounded by.

If you were a fruit or vegetable, what would you be?

Pineapple. I wouldn’t mind being in a tropical climate right now. Also I think pineapples have the best hair out of all the fruits in the basket.

Maggie Korell is a senior dual majoring in theatre and mass communication with a creative writing minor. Maggie has previously prop mastered for the BU Players for Macbeth (Fall 2014), The Children’s Hour (Spring 2014), The February Festival (Winter 2014), and Avenue Q (Fall 2013).Maggie is vice president for the BU Players and a member of their Season Selection Committee.

Five Questions (or more) for Jennifer Haley, Playwright

In preparation for the BU Players production of Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom by Jennifer Haley, we found that Sacred Fools Theatre Company asked the playwright some great questions about the process of writing the play.

How does an actor select & prepare a monologue? (Auditioning, Part II)

This is the second post in a series about auditioning. (Read the series.) In this installment we ask Professor David A. Miller—who teaches all levels of acting at BU and will direct this fall's production of Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom—five questions about monologues. 

What is a monologue?

In contrast to "dialogue" which is two people speaking, monologue is one person speaking for sustained amount of time. As Joanne Merlin defines it in Auditioning, "A monologue may be a soliloquy in which the character speaks to himself, or it may be a speech take from a scene in which the character addresses another character at length and without interruption, although the other character is not physically present and must be imagined by the actor."

Here is an example of monologue from The Drunken City by Adam Bock, one of the monologues found in In Performance by JV Mercanti (the paragraph breaks are the playwright’s):

MARNIE

I'm not kissing you in a church. I got more important things to figure out. Be serious.

You gotta help me figure this out. Please?

I wanted the wedding. Because it's gonna be a gorgeous wedding. I'm gonna wear my Mom's wedding dress.

It's from 1910 and her Mom wore it

and her mom's mom wore it

and it's satin with inlaid pearls, well not inlaid pearls, that's not the word I'm, and I remember when I was a tiny little girl I remember thinking “I’m gonna wear that dress" because it's the most, it's gorgeous and I'm gonna get to be looked at, I'm gonna,

Gary was just a prop. He was. He was just

And I knew he wanted me to say yes, so I did. I just

I kept lying

And then, worse, Frank, worse, he suddenly changed on me.

He started acting like a husband. How he thinks a husband is, the world's dangerous and he has to protect me and that means I have to listen to him and he's gonna tell me what to do and I'm gonna have to act like he tells me. He's gonna be like his Dad. But his Mom's this little mousy woman who never says Boo.

And I'm not gonna be her.

Uh uh.

But I just don't know what to say to Gary.

I want to tell him the truth. I do.

It's good you brought me here. I'm gonna need some help doing all th.is. Will you wait for me? I'm gonna go sit and be quiet for a minute. You're so sweet. I wish I'd met you before I met Gary.

How does an actor select a monologue for an audition?

Some auditions with ask that you prepare a monologue. Or two. For a "general audition" often times actors are asked to prepare "two contrasting monologues" lasting a certain amount of time, from two to five minutes depending on the audition. A great starting point for all actors is to have a contemporary monologue (As opposed to classical such as Shakespeare or the Greeks) that is 1 to 2 minutes long and is in the actors age range (The range of ages that you would be most likely to play on stage). As you move further along in your acting career, you will build up a full set of monologues—an arsenal—that will have a variety of types for each type of audition,, such as a dramatic classical piece, a comic classical piece, a dramatic contemporary, a comic contemporary, an off the beaten track monologue, a song, etc.

How does an actor prepare a monologue?

The first thing to do with any monologue is to make sure that you read the play. And read it more than once. In order to understand, the given circumstances of who, where, when of the play and of the monologue itself. The next step is to determine the specifics of the monologue. I really love starting with Michael Shurtleff’s “guideposts” which he lays out in his book Audition:

• Relationship. Who are you talking to? And what is specific about that relationship? A mother-daughter relationship is factual, but it's not enough. What kind of relationship, is it strained or healthy, etc.?
• Conflict. “What are you fighting for?” Shurtleff asks. What is it that you need from that other person and what is it that makes it urgent? Why do you need it right now?
• The Moment Before. What happens to you before the monologue begins that propels you into this monologue? There's a reason that you begin speaking and the reason comes from that other person. What is it that they say or do that you are responding to? And what is it in your backstory is a character that fuels your need at this very moment?

How does an actor best perform a monologue?

Before the monologue begins, you will introduce yourself and the piece you will be performing today (the name of the play and playwright, as well as the character if appropriate). And be sure to take a moment before the monologue begins to make a clear break between you and you as the character. It does not need to be long—in fact, it should not be too long, but it should distinguish you from the character. Then, as the character, your focus should be above and beyond the director, casting director, or whoever else is in the room so that you are delivering the monologue to the imagined other character and not to them. Similar to the beginning of the monologue, make sure that you complete the moment after the monologue. Imagine that final response from the other person. Did you get what you want? Did you fail? Take that moment after, then take a moment to return to being yourself. And say thank you. The director then may have something to say to you or they may not. They may sell simply think you and your audition is done with the director might work with you on your monologue or ask you questions about your experience in theater.

Any tips for performing a monologue? Do's and do not's?

Don't use my monologues that are gratuitous in anyway—that indulge in violence or profanity or general anger. And make sure to put that focal point—where are you are seeing the other character—above and beyond the director. Don't perform as if the director is the other character. They are not they are not your mother or lover or whoever it is you're talking to.  And don't stand too close to the director. It gets real creepy when someone is right in front of you. The director wants to be able to take notes and not feel that you are reading their paper.

Professor David A. Miller teaches acting, directing, devised theatre, and playwriting at Bloomsburg University. He regularly directs productions for BU Players (Macbeth, The Nosemakers Apprentice: Chronicles of a Plastic Surgeon) and professionally (Amphibian Stage Productions, The Artful Conspirators). 

Five Questions for Samantha Phillips-Norton, Actor & Fight Choreographer

We are happy to have Samantha Phillips-Norton teaching Theatre Appreciation for the Division of Theatre & Dance this fall while Professor Krupp is on sabbatical. Sam is a regular collaborator with the division. She taught Stage Combat for theatre students and was the fight choreographer for last fall’s BU Players production of Macbeth. We asked her five questions.

Fight rehearsal for Macbeth choreographed by Sam Norton.

How did you first become interested in theatre?

I first became interested in theatre in Rota Spain where my Father was stationed. My parents had a wild pack of friends, both military and native, who jumped on the idea to start a local community theatre. My Father was the leading force in this endeavour since he had more "theatrical training" than the others, meaning he had once dressed in drag to do a radio play when stationed in Antartica.  I remember the sensation of being bewitched watching my Mother and Father performing Shakespeare.

What is your favorite thing about theatre?

My favorite thing about theatre is Samuel Tayor Coleridge's coined phrase, "suspension of disbelief"- (1817 Biographia Literania): "[...] to transfer from our inward nature a human interest and a semblance of truth sufficient to procure for these shadows of imagination that willing suspension of disbelief for the moment, which constitutes poetic faith."  There is nothing like that moment we find ourselves 'inside' the story. It's a very elusive victory for the actor and their audience.

What's one of your favorite shows you have ever worked on?

I was cast in the American Repertory Theatre's national tour of Shlemiel the First. It was my first time working with an ensemble of real pros., Robert Brustein, Hankus Netsky, Robert Israel, Catherine Zuber, and David Gordon. David Gordon directed the musical to the break-neck tempos of Klezmer music. In addition to understudying the two female leads, my job was to replace, without interruption, any 'wise men' who left the stage with a stunt dummy. I loved the speed and precision of the exchanges. Also exciting was the opportunity to perform the lead female part for a weekend and being cast in the Broadway(bound), production.

What’s one show you would love to work on someday? 

Mrs. Peachum in Brecht's Threepenny Opera, (hint, hint). Any play Mark Rylance is in, (like his upcoming production, Nice Fish) or ANYTHING Dame Judi Dench is doing- like The Winter's Tale at the Garrick theatre in London. It's not so much the role that I desire, it's the dream of working with extremely talented artists.

If you were a fruit of vegetable, what would it be? Why?

If I were a fruit it would have to be the banana. As a banana, kids love you. It's also one of the fruits they often have a hard time pronouncing- which can be funny and endearing. Grown-ups think you're funny. They use your skin for pratfalls.The polar opposite of the popular banana is my favorite vegetable-the brussel sprout. It is one of the most hated vegetables in America. I am the brussel sprout. Crisp on the outside, tender on the inside with a surprisingly nutty flavor. Even the most ardent loather can be converted when they pay attention to we're prepared. We are secretly delicious.

Samantha Phillips-Norton holds an MFA in Opera and Theatre from the University of Maryland College Park, and is an Affiliate Artist with The Bloomsburg Theatre Ensemble.  Recently at BTE, Samantha played Jean in Good People, Mrs. Billiams in A Very Special Christmas Special and the Musician/Judge in The Merchant of Venice.

Five Questions for Bob Cardana, Technical Director & Lighting Designer

This fall we welcome Bob Cardana as our technical director, lighting design instructor and lighting designer for Neighborhood 3. He is with us this fall while Professor Ethan Krupp is on sabbatical. We asked him five questions. 

How did you first become interested in theatre?

Fresh into college, I was all set to become a chemist. Taking both chemistry classes and theater classes, I found myself spending way too much time in the theater and way to little time in the Chem lab.

I much preferred the scene shop and lighting grids, learning how these new-fangled computers made the lights change, rather than memorizing the periodic table of the elements.   We did the Scottish play. Whoa, that was cool! I ran a manual 5 scene preset light board.  I could do this for a living? Someone would pay me to do this?

Needless to say I dropped chemistry and added more theater. 

But the real infection took hold when I walked into a dress rehearsal of "Tosca" at the San Francisco Opera.  The music and the visuals were overwhelming.  It was in Italian, and I had no idea what was happening, but that didn't matter, it was beautiful and I could feel the light.  Add in torture, murder and in the end (Spoiler Alert) she throws herself off the top of the castle. It was so epic.

What's your favorite thing about theatre?

I love that it allows me to learn anything and everything from art to physics. That we study the entire universe, change, arrange, manipulate it, squeeze it down into its essence, take a tiny drop of the distilled truth and make it come alive again.  

And each project is different.  No assembly line work for me.  Oh, the boredom of repetition. 

Electricity, wood, design, building stuff - solving problems, thinking, doing, login and emotion - New projects, different theaters, working with so many different people, various schools and so many students.  But my favorite thing?  Proving Socrates got it wrong, theater is truth.

What's one of the favorite shows you have ever worked on?

Of course we never forget our first, do we?  I'll always have a place in my heart for the Scottish play. Look it up, if you don't know which one that is, and the first freshman to see me on campus and whisper the name into my ear (but only if I am outside, never inside) wins a prize.

My first lighting design was Studs Turkle's "Working". I didn’t know what the hell I was doing, and I had to figure it out as I went along, but I knew from that moment, my life was never going to be the same. 

What's one show that you would love to work on someday?

Neighborhood 3: Requisition of Doom.

If you were a fruit or vegetable, what would it be? Why?

But I am a fruit AND a vegetable!  What's wrong with that?  Why are you asking?  Don't you know? Isn't that OK?  I thought it was the right thing to do. No, not really.  Actually I am a bear.  I sit in a freezing river catching salmon, then lay in the sun eating huckleberries the rest of the day. A solitary, active animal that works like hell half the year then hibernates.

I act like a grizzly bear but if I stay around long enough, you might eventually find out I'm secretly a teddy bear.  But, we know not to poke bears with sticks, right?  And don't forget you can tell grizzly bear crap from black bear scat by the little bells in the grizzly poop. 

Nothing like avoiding the question and then answering another question that wasn't asked. 

Bob Cardana has worked theater from Montana to Mexico and Maine to Marin since his first paid design job too many years ago.  He used that money to buy a drafting table.  After earning a Bachelor’s of Arts in Technical Theater at California State University, he received a full-paid scholarship plus housing, to attend Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas as part of their 3 year MFA design program, where they gave him a Masters of Fine Arts degree in Stage Design with specialties in Lighting and Scenery.