Star/Tech

Enhance your dance training with production skills

By Peter J. Jakubowski

Katie Hughes had no trouble deciding what to study in college. “I love to dance more than anything,” says the University of Nevada, Las Vegas sophomore. “So naturally, a degree in dance was the most logical choice.” But once her college classes started, she began to worry about getting a dance job after graduation. “Dance performance is such a small and competitive industry,” she says. Katie entered UNLV as a performance major, but after a close look at career options, she decided to explore the school’s new program in dance production and management. The B.A. degree is designed to provide students with skills they need to find work as stage managers, company managers, designers, or choreographers—all useful trades whether or not they decide to continue performing.

As Katie has realized, every additional skill you possess as a dancer enhances your future. The industry is competitive and, unfortunately, accident-prone. But no one should have to end their dance life just because they can’t perform. The dance world is full of creative pursuits and not all involve being onstage. The study of design and production allows choreographers to use the tools of the theater to their maximum potential. Many dancemakers never master how to collaborate with designers and thus never get their work fully realized. And if you choose to devote your artistic talents to production design rather than dance and choreography, your dance training will still serve you well. Production professionals rarely have dance knowledge. Those who do are valuable and can develop prosperous careers.

So how do you get the training? At UNLV, students take typical dance degree courses like ballet, modern, and jazz technique, as well as dance history and music theory classes. But they also take production classes specifically geared towards the professional dance industry. There are two semesters each of lighting, scenic, and costume design. They also take stage management, sound and video design, basic drawing, and a class in the “business of dance,” which focuses on contracts, managing studio budgets, dealing with touring, and other skills professionals wish they were taught in school.

Just as in technique class, where dancers study the styles of different choreographers to enhance their own movement vocabulary, production and design majors at UNLV study a wide variety of artists to expand their visual vocabulary. By knowing visual art, a designer can express ideas more concretely and successfully. If a lighting designer tells a choreographer, “I want the lighting for your piece to be like moonlight,” you’d think the idea would be very clear. But, actually, it isn’t specific enough. Is it moonlight in the heart of New York City? The kind you see reflecting off a mountain lake? Or the sort you’d find in some bad horror film?

A knowledge of different artistic styles can give a designer and choreographer a common understanding of a piece’s mood and look before entering the costly theater. Student designers at UNLV begin by doing visual research that they share with the choreographer. For example, if, after watching a piece, the movement reminds the designer of the tranquility of Monet’s Water Lilies, he or she will share this with the choreographer and, if the imagery seems to fit, will base all color and texture choices for costumes, lighting, and scenery on this work of art. This helps guarantee that visual elements stay unified and enhance the piece instead of being a hodgepodge of disjointed ideas.

If you’re interested in production and your dance program doesn’t offer courses in it, seek out classes in other departments to enhance your knowledge and skills. The easiest place to go is your theater department. Even if the courses aren’t specially geared toward dance, the basic principles are the same. An introductory class in technical theater and design is a good place to start. This will give you the tools to pursue more in-depth study. Since dance generally doesn’t use large scenery, it’d be best to focus mostly on lighting and costume classes. Many professors are willing to add a dance project if students express an interest in this area. Don’t be afraid to explain to your instructor why you are taking their class.

To broaden your visual vocabulary, an art survey class would be very useful. Most art survey classes expose you to a large number of artists and art periods in a semester or two. This exposure will lead you to other areas of interest. By gaining knowledge of other arts, dancers increase their ability to communicate and visualize. The ability to clearly communicate ideas with an audience and collaborators is what makes a great artist—in any medium.

Peter J. Jakubowski is assistant professor and production/design specialist at UNLV. He serves as resident designer and production manager for Jeanne Ruddy Dance and The Snowy Range Dance Festival. He has work in the repertoire of The Koresh Dance Company, Peter Pucci Plus Dancers, Alban Elved Dance Company, and Colorado Ballet, to name a few.