Keyword: Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarships

Applications for the 2020 Pat MacKay Diversity in Design Scholarships are due June 4.

A freshman at Fordham University, studying Theater Design and Production, Amara Payton McNeil is one of the six Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarship winners. She received the 2018 Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative Training Scholarship from the American Theatre Wing, which allowed her to attend the NYU Tisch Summer High School Production and Design Workshop, and the 2019 Andrew Lloyd Webber Initiative University Scholarship. Her show credits include Seussical (Hartford Stage Education), Stained Pages (Carriage House Theater), and Uprising (Herman Gillman Theater). McNeil is a strong believer in the need for more women of color in all areas of theater technology.

One of the six winners of the inaugural Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarships, Sydney Smith is a sophomore at Pennsylvania State University, majoring in Theatre Design and Technology, with an emphasis in Sound Design and a minor in Music Technology. As an artist, Smith believes that art should be entertaining but should also be thought-provoking and convey a message. Smith’s future career goal is to become a freelance sound designer, working in theatre, film, and game design as a sound designer/composer and technical sound for live performances. As Smith continues in the profession, he hopes to spread a positive message with his work.

Winner of a Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarship, Mackenzie “Mack” Gauthier is a junior at the University of Connecticut, studying for a BFA degree in Design and Technical Theatre, with a concentration in sound design. Mack was named 2018 New England Scholar by the university and opened her first repertory show as a sound designer, If We Were Birds by Erin Shields at Connecticut Repertory Theatre. Mack aspires to continue creating unique soundscapes for performances that inspire justice, and shed light on difficult narratives within society. Some of her other credits include The Trestle at Pope Lick Creek (sound designer, UConn Dramatic Arts Department Series), and Into the Woods (sound designer/A1, Chestnut Street Playhouse).

A senior studying sound and lighting design in the Theater Design/Technology program at SUNY Purchase, Nina Field is one of the six winners of the inaugural Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarships and is looking forward to developing her career as a full-time professional. Her latest sound design credits include SUNY Purchase’s production of Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play and Exit Strategy. She is looking forward to working on the sound design for The Wolves at SUNY Purchase, as well as the lighting design for Marisol and A Bright Room Called Day. Field was the A1 for #Dateme: An OkCupid Experiment, and worked in production audio around NYC for the summer. The sound scholarship winners were selected by a judging panel organized by TSDCA, and coordinated by Lindsay Jones. “I felt Nina Field was the best candidate for the Pat MacKay Scholarship based on their commitment to education, dedication to furthering their theatrical skills, and vision of collaboration through integrated design. A person with this much heart, compassion, and drive makes me look forward to seeing their future in the theatrical arts” says sound designer Sharath Patel, one of the judges for the sound scholarships.

A video and media designer from Chicago, currently working toward a BFA at Carnegie Mellon University, Joss Green works primarily with appropriated cultural imagery and media design for theatrical productions and installations, exploring issues surrounding marginalization. Green hopes to pursue a career in concert media design and content, and most recently was the media designer for Chasing Elevation (2019), a show by the queer youth theatre ensemble, Dreams of Hope, and presented a Mainstage video, lighting, and sound collaboration project at the 2019 USITT Conference in Louisville, KY. Green is one of the six winners of the inaugural Pat MacKay Diversity in Design Scholarships.

One of the six winners of the inaugural Pat MacKay Diversity In Design Scholarships, Tyler Christian Harris is a creative producer and designer specializing in concept development and set/media design for themed entertainment. A junior at Arizona State University, he is pursuing a degree in Immersive Experience Design at the Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts. His goal is to bring the seemingly impossible to life through tangibility, interactivity, narrative, and a little bit of magic. He is currently working on a new immersive theatrical experience through his themed entertainment production and design company, TCH Experiences, and ASU Gammage.

USA – To encourage diversity in the live event design community, LDI, in partnership with TSDCA and USITT, is delighted to announce the first round of winners for the Pat MacKay Scholarships for undergraduate students. 

To encourage diversity in the live event design community, LDI, in partnership with TSDCA and USITT, announces three $5,000 Pat MacKay Scholarships for undergraduate students. This scholarship is to support the underrepresented and unique voices in the field of entertainment. These scholarships are funded by LDI/Live Design International.