TORONTO – For the eighth year in a row, Cast Software has sponsored the USITT (United States Institute for Theatre Technology) Southwest Student Design Competition, an annual event which recognizes young talent in the categories of lighting, sound, set and costume design, stage management and scenic technology. This year’s winner is University of Oklahoma student, Leahe Knott.
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TORONTO – For the eighth year in a row, Cast Software has sponsored the USITT (United States Institute for Theatre Technology) Southwest Student Design Competition, an annual event which recognizes young talent in the categories of lighting, sound, set and costume design, stage management and scenic technology.
Each year, Cast bestows the winner of the Lighting Design category with an educational wysiwyg license. This year’s winner is University of Oklahoma student, Leahe Knott, for her work on Peter Oswald’s translation of Friedrich Schiller’s play, Mary Stuart. In a review of the production for the University’s Routes website, Laurel Dix noted: “The purity and subtlety of Leahe Knott’s lighting draws out each brilliant bit of color from Lloyd Cracknell’s sumptuous costumes.”
Says Knott, “I’ve never had the chance to use wysiwyg before, so I’m really excited to try it out now. I really like rendering and showing people how a scene will look. With lighting, directors have to trust you and go with what you say – they don’t really get to see any sketches or anything – whereas scenic designers have a means to share their ideas a little better. I think wysiwyg is a way for lighting designers to do this as well.”
USITT has been serving professionals and pre-professionals in design, production and technology for the performing arts since 1960. It provides benefits and learning opportunities, as well as places to network, exchange ideas and develop, for more than 3,700 members worldwide.
Cast Chairman Bruce Freeman added, “Cast is so pleased to continue to endorse the great efforts of USITT. We estimate that there are 27,000 students a year using wysiwyg. Not only are these students creating pre-visualizations that show them exactly what they will achieve from their physical designs, they are also getting to grips with an environment that is fundamental in the use of our revolutionary BlackTrax system – the future of 3D and 6D production.
“We invite all interested academic institutions to contact CAST Software by emailing Igor Fernando at: [email protected], or go to the academic section of our website to learn more about how your institution can get ongoing free upgrades, tech support and much more.”
