The Rowan University student chapter of The United States Institute for Theatre Technology (USITT) is working hard towards improving the quality of technical theatre and design within the Department of Theatre & Dance. Last week, our division of the national organization attended its first-ever virtual conference. Here to talk about her experience attending the conference is Rowan’s USITT club president Becky Fritz (She/Her).
“USITT is a membership organization which aims to advance the skills and knowledge of theatre, entertainment and performing arts professionals involved in the areas of design, production and technology, and to generally promote their interests.”
Want to hear more about USITT’s 61st Annual Conference & Stage Expo and Becky’s takeaways? Keep on reading!
USITT’s 61st Annual Conference & Stage Expo ran from March 8-12, 2021. Artists across the nation attended seminars held in varying fields such as carpentry, lighting, costuming, hair/makeup, sound, and education. There are also fundamental classes for educators to learn about teaching each department. With this year’s first-ever virtual conference, seminars were recorded. Many professionals led workshops that our Rowan students were able to learn and grow from.
Fritz attended many education workshops as her dream is to teach theatre at a high school level. She saved a lot of worksheets, trauma pedagogy, and scenic art for inclusion of deaf and hard of hearing students. She intends on taking advantage of the seminars being filmed and saving further educational information.
Decision Making for Theatre Leaders was a seminar standout for Fritz. The lecture was about risk and decision-making in a theatre department, as well as judging the broadness and quality of said decision. "The outcome of something isn't necessarily the quality", said Fritz. "Just because something worked well doesn't mean it was a good idea, and just because something didn't work out does not mean it cannot be fixed."
Fritz also attended Finding Our Voices Through Theatre of the Oppressed to learn about how to address issues of oppressed voices while running a theatre program, especially for those who are not in a position to speak up about it. The seminar offered step-by-step ways to hold yourself accountable in your community and how to make students feel comfortable to address issues they may be experiencing.
Fritz: "It (Finding Our Voices Through Theatre of the Oppressed) addressed a big issue we have with things that are offensive. You instantly want to say 'Oh, I didn't mean it that way!' It was more about accepting that a student took what you said that way and the steps you can take to change it, rather than defending yourself all the time."
Fritz’s favorite seminars were the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Studio and Working with Performers of Color. The Macy's studio showed what goes into the parade as a whole, how it takes a whole year to build the floats, and a look inside their factory. Working with Performers of Color offered one-on-one information on how to address wigs, hair, makeup, and products for POC. A list of products and questions to ask POC about was also provided to be able to give the right attention to their hair/makeup.
When asked about her biggest biggest takeaway from the conference, Fritz said it was the amount of information and angles that all of USITT's professionals brought. "I'm really glad I got all the resources, power points, and worksheets they gave", said Fritz. As the conference was virtual, many were able to attend and receive unique experiences they would not have been able to in an otherwise in-person format.
Are you a Rowan student interested in joining USITT? Reach out to Fritz at fritzr49@students.rowan.edu for information on their next meeting.
See you next week!
Erica Gerold
Theatre Arts & Public Relations '23
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