ETC is excited to introduce the talented students that are participating in the 2025 Fred Foster Student Mentorship Program, hailing from the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Through the program’s online networking events, students will meet a wide range of industry mentors, building connections as they kick off their careers. ETC’s late Founder and CEO Fred Foster started the program in 1999, recognizing the critical role mentorship plays in any lighting professional’s career.
Congratulations to the 2025 Fred Foster Student Mentees. Learn more about each of them below.
North American Students
Bharat Vyas
Bharat recently earned a diploma in Theatre Production from Humber College in Toronto. His passion for the stage began with a local theatre group in southern India. Before transitioning to the performing arts, Bharat worked as a cinematographer and photographer for films in the Indian film industry. This experience in visual storytelling led him to explore lighting and stage design. Recent credits include Lahore (Sawitri Theatre Group) and Bodies of Nature (Cawthra School). Assistant lighting designer credits include Noir (Frog in Hand Productions) and Erased (Open Heart Surgery Theatre + Theatre Passe Muraille). Visit Bharat’s website at acameraperson.com
Destiny Garner
Destiny is entering her final year in undergraduate studies at Columbia College Chicago. She was recently selected as a 2025 August Wilson Fellow in Theatrical Production by KCACTF. This fellowship supports emerging BIPOC theatre professionals by providing training and practice in technical theatre, theatre production, and design in a professional workplace. Destiny has also built her experience in lighting design with recent dance productions at Columbia College Chicago, as well as theatrical shows such as Fabulation or The Re-education of Undine and Minutes and Seconds.
Emma McManus
Emma is an MFA candidate in Lighting Design at California Institute of the Arts. She earned an undergraduate degree from Brooklyn College in both Theatrical Design and Film-Screenwriting. Born and raised in Queens, New York, she has worked on numerous productions spanning theatre, dance, concerts, galleries, and other live events. She is currently a Show Lighting Intern for Walt Disney Imagineering in Anaheim, California. Visit Emma’s website at https://imemmamcmanus.myportfolio.com
Essie Claire Winston
Essie is entering her final year of undergraduate studies at Webster University, focused in Lighting Design. They have worked as a Lighting Designer, Programmer, and Electrician on multiple productions. Throughout her career, Essie has worked with artistic organizations such as the Webster Department of Dance, Barrington Stage Company, Sargent Conservatory, Pack Dance Company, and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Additionally, Essie is working as an Electrics Apprentice for Santa Fe Opera in 2025.
Hailey Garza
Hailey is currently completing her undergraduate studies at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama. Hailey has now worked as a Lighting Designer, Assistant Lighting Designer, Master Electrician, Assistant Master Electrician, Programmer, and Lighting Technician. Upcoming lighting design projects include The Jungle Book and Secret Garden in July 2025. When she’s not busy lighting a production, she enjoys being a freelance photographer in her spare time. Visit Hailey’s website at https://haileygarzadesign.com
Isabel Caldwell Aranza
Based in Pittsburgh, Isabel is currently obtaining her BFA in Theater Production from Point Park University’s Conservatory of the Performing Arts. During her time at Point Park University, she has earned accolades such as the Richard Rauh Excellence in Theater Award, an award for Outstanding Leadership in Production, and the Alumni Association Scholarship for her commitment to leadership and inclusion. Isabel particularly enjoys lighting design for dance and plays. Visit Isabel’s website at https://www.izcalighting.com
Jonathan Roth
Jonathan is from Brookfield, Wisconsin and is studying for a BFA in Theatre Design/Technology with emphasis in Lighting Design at the University of Evansville. His recent lighting design credits at UET include Romeo and Juliet as well as John Proctor is the Villain. He also served as Head Electrician for Into the Woods and Clyde’s. Currently, Jon is leading as Head Electrician at the Lyric Repertory Company in Logan, Utah for three mainstage shows performed in rep and one show performed in the Blackbox. Last summer, Jon worked as a Lighting Technician with the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Visit Jon’s website at rothjonathan8.wixsite.com/my-site
Soleil Ramirez
Soleil is actively pursuing a B.F.A. in Production Design with a lighting design concentration at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). Throughout her education she has experienced several positions within the design process including Lighting Supervisor, Lighting Designer, Associate Lighting Designer, Production Electrician, Programmer, and Follow Spot Operator. Her passion for collaborative storytelling and live entertainment has led her to creatively design unique and expressive visuals. Visit Soleil’s website at https://www.soleilramirezld.com
Taylor Olson
Taylor received her MFA in Lighting Design from the University of California, San Diego. Rooted in San Diego’s vibrant arts scene, she brings stories to life through light and movement as the Resident Lighting Designer for DISCO RIOT. She has collaborated with innovative groups, including Fresh Congress Dance Company, Malashock Dance, La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe, and Nautilus Entertainment Design, crafting immersive experiences that have lit up stages from San Diego to Los Angeles and San Francisco. Explore her work at taylorolsonlighting.com.
Trini Rogando
Trini is a student at Stanford University working towards both a B.S. in Design and B.A. in Theater and Performance Studies. She currently works at the Designing Education Lab in the Center for Design Research, promoting accessibility for blind and low-vision students, as well as the TAPS Scene Shop, supporting electrics and scenic construction. Her recent lighting design credits include Proportionality, Wanderers, and what remains. She has also been credited as a Scenic Designer, Assistant Projection Designer, Sound Designer, and Assistant Stage Manager. Visit Trini’s website at https://trinirogando.xyz/
International Students
Aravindh (Aran) Baskar
Aran is a student at University College London, entering his final year. He has over 900 hours of experience in lighting theatre and music productions, working on a variety of projects from dance and drama to live music concerts. Aran currently works at the Bloomsbury Theatre, building his experience by handling the entire end-to-end process of designing the rig on multiple shows, hiring, rigging and patching fixtures, designing the states and programming cues as well as operating on show nights.
Howard Shakespeare
Howard is currently studying at Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London to earn a BA in Production Arts – Theatre Technology. He has gained experience in a variety of locations, providing lighting, video and sound, while also attending as much training as possible to gain new skills useful in the entertainment technology industry. Some of his recent lighting design works include lighting designer and programmer for productions of High School Musical and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, the latter for which he also acted as production designer.
